So I just bought a new 2013 Prius and was looking forward to seeing 50+ MPG or greater. I've been driving the car around the city for 3 days now and my average mpg is around 30. Anyone have any thoughts as to why this is? I don't really drive all that fast and even if I did it shouldn't be that low should it?
Welcome & Congrats. There are countless threads pointing out the wide variety of MPG influences to new owners. With the car not broken yet and the fact that it is the middle of winter, you're facing a challenge right out the gate. Short trips are a major influence too. Basically, just give it time. Don't try to do anything special. Watch the MPG slowly climb up. And in the meantime, read up on all the comments made on the forum.
Usually in the winter, my '04 mpg decreases from 50mpg to 43mpg then in the spring the mpg increases again. Certainly the ethanol additive the refineries add during the winter months may be a factor as well as turning up the temperature in the car to stay warm/comfortable.
How sure are you that you did not have usage from the dealer/other shoppers? Just wait until you would normally fill up, and reset all the trip meters, then focus on MPG, you need to be learning the controls and mirrors on the first tank anyway.
Yep. Or fill up now and reset the trip meters. If you truly want FE help, please answer Fuel economy complaints/queries? Please copy, paste & answer these questions, esp. if you're new | PriusChat in this this thread. We can at least give you an idea of what you can expect.
A new Prius will take time, in order to get great gas miles, it takes patiences, for a few months. I practice hypermiling techniques. Read tips in these forums, maximize tire pressure, plan to avoid excessive traffic and other things too. But I can already see some improvements. She is just starting to break in.
No but you still have to deal with winter blend fuel. Temps under 60F have a pretty profound impact too.
I've taken my new 2012 prius IV on a couple of long trips and have averaged 50.8 MPG, using ECO mode. It's been fairly mild and I haven't needed either heat or a/c much.
One very common reason for initial low mpg reading is not resetting the trip odometer from the dealership. Short test drives, idling in the parking lot while showing features, etc., will deliver very low numbers.
