The real world MPG numbers scares me...

bah.

i'm the one flying by the rest of traffic in the fast lane, first off the line at the light, hopping into the passing lane and stomping on it. when DH doesn't drive the car i pull off 48 mpg easy, 54 in nice weather.

what's so hard about learning something new anyway?

 

sorry but no chance in trying to convince me that an HCH is better than my Prius. it maybe a good car and it is, but better... no chance

 

I've passed up a few fellow Prius drivers... I speed a bit to avoid being hit and because sometimes I'm impatient. My mileage suffers a little, but not much. Recently, when I'm not slamming on the gas I average ~51-52 MPG... and ~48-49 when I am.

 

i guess us prius owners who do get higher mpg understand the value of a good coast to a red light, and a steady long breaking distance. I get int he mid to higher 40mpg.. only because i pass traffice all the time. In city i get in the higher (60 and above mpg) mpg range because i usually have a green battery. it's highway that kills me because i'm never traveling long enough to recoop the initial acceleration loss when getting on the highway.

 

Well the HCH does better on the freeway and the Prius in town. You may find us Prii drivers going the speed limit but I have to say that I do not go much under that. On the freeway I do slow down to the speed limit or 1-2 mph below or above. If I can I will try to go slower rather than faster. Yes I play the game but not below the speed limit. No I do not do 75 in the 60 zone you are more likely to see me in the right lane doing 59-60 mph. If no one is behind me around town I push the glide as much as possible.

 

I also have been watching these average mileage figures at GH. The HCH2 is an improvement and I think your assesment is correct. In general the HCH2 drivers are getting these figures without major changes in driving habits. The Prius owners are more apt to be massaging their driving habits to acheive better mileage. It is not often that you hear an HCH2 owner suggesting increase of air pressure, check the oil level, glide techniques, etc. Yet their mileage numbers are impressive. However, they can't fold down their rear seats and have a smaller cabin and trunk.

 

Go test drive them both, then decide what you like best. Both cars are easier on gas than traditional cars and both cars are "greener" than most cars. Personal preference really plays an integral part in purchasing a vehicle.

I drove them both twice and I liked the 06 HCH just fine. However, it did not fit our family's needs as well as the Prius and it just wasn't as much FUN to drive.

To each their own. Drive 'em both and decide for yourself.

 

The Civic is a fine car and gets good mileage with a simpler system than Prius'.

But it's smaller with less power, so it should be getting better mileage than Prius.

 

If you look closely at the numbers, the 06 HCH is at about 45 mpg, the Prius II at 48, so the Prius is still ahead of the game a bit. That could change though as the HCHs will complete their breakin periods. Overall, both are great cars and get great mileage. Keep in mind though the 06 HCH is a completely new car, whereas the PII is not. The next gen Prius will probably leapfrog the HCH, and so forth. Overall, the PII does well considering it's bigger, heavier, and has better performance. What is still impressive is the 05 HCH manual, which matches the Prius II at 48 mpg. I think it's too bad Honda discontinued the manual for their hybrids, I would guess that an 06 HCH manual would in fact be ahead of the Prius.

 

There is the possibility that Honda has 'underreported' the EPA numbers, like Ford supposedly did with the Escape hybrid. Given that Ford and Honda hybrids generally seem to report 'real world' milage numbers closer to the EPA estimates, I'd probably go with that possibility.

 

i didnt think manufacturers had any ability to manipulate EPA mileage figures. Toyota has already admitted that most will not reach EPA figures and went on to explain the outdated testing system used. to say that honda and ford unreported their figures. what kind of proof do you have??

 

The longer I own my '05 Prius, the more impressed I am with this automobile. Yesterday, I took a 260 mile trip on mixed roads, mostly highway, some secondary roads. Traffic was moving very fast (way over the posted speed limits) and the weather was cold (30's). I stayed with the traffic flow, did not drive the car easy at all, and still got 49 mpg on that trip.

In the summer, I could get high 50's on that same trip if I drove a bit slower. And my best tank so far was a week of stop and go commuting during the fall, 68.5 mpg!

 

None other than the fact that other people have mentioned this before.

And if you think about it, I don't think the EPA would let people overinflate the figures, but what do they care if they underestimate them? And I can't think of any other reason why Toyota hybrids underperform in terms of mileage when Ford and Honda tends to be pretty close to the EPA estimates.

 

My wife drives her Prius like a maniac. My knuckles are white and sore after I get out of the car with her. Although I guess I balance her out since I tend to drive very conservatively to conserve gas.

 

Read CR. The largest discrepancy between EPA and their 'closer to average driving behavior and conditions' results was with the Honda hybrid in city driving.

 

Okay... I really do think there's a simple and logical answer to this...

Honda uses a mild/full system in the Civic. It doesn't rely on the electric as much as the Prius and the battery charge level doesn't vary as much in normal driving. You're always going to get the same level of assist, more or less.

Toyota uses a full system, and the electric is used quite a bit. And as everyone here knows, your acceleration is going to be a lot different if you have green bars as opposed to purple/pink bars. So 3 test runs are not going to be a good indicator to what your normal driving is going to net.

But that leaves Ford. How do the Escape and Mariner hit their estimates?

Software.

Reviewers do mention that the Escape (and presumably Mariner) are hard to get into EV only mode. Maybe Ford is a bit more conservative with the usage of the battery, almost treating it like a full hybrid with a mild hybrid's brain. The best of both worlds.