At the end of JAN2014 I purchased a left over 2013 Prius Persona model that has the 17" wheels with Michelin Primacy tires. The MPG is averaging about 42.5, a combination of hilly town and highway driving. My 2007 Prius Touring averages 45.8 in the winter here in Maine with non LRR snowtires and winter blend fuel. Any thoughts as both cars driven the exact same way? Update today I started driving the 2013 in power mode and fuel mileage went up to 45.9 and the car felt more responsive and more like the 2007. AM I not using the new Prius hybrid modes correctly?? Thanks for any help.. Best, Ken
Everyone has a different style. The main thing that Power mode does is change the response of the accelerator. I think it is possible to drive the car too timidly and suffer poorer mileage for it. Generally you can gain more by braking more gradually and coasting than with your accelerating style--but none of this is much different from your other Prius. The tires' rolling resistance has probably eased up as they've broken in.
The difference in tire sizes probably has a lot to do with the MPG. Several others have reported using PWR increases fuel mileage. My foot is too jumpy to use it effectively.
no matter what mode you're in, you want to accellerate just to the right of the center line and coast just to the right of regen. this screen was not available on the gen II and can be very helpful to those who wish to maximize mpg's.
I find when using Power Mode, I tend to feather the throttle more due to it's higher sensitivity to input. Since I'm on and off the gas more frequently, I think it leads to higher mpg's. In my original Prius, I didn't use Power Mode for a long time and tried it out once for the heck of it. As I was nearly the end of my normal commute, I was surprise to see my cumulative mpg's for the tank about 1 mpg higher than before. From a stop, I tend to get up to speed with normal traffic to get up to steady speeds that yield the highest mileage when not coasting. Slow acceleration means the ICE is under higher load for a longer time, even though rpm's and speeds are lower, sometimes as long as until you have to start slowing for the next stop. That kind of driving won't get you the best results. Sometimes I cheat and start off in EV mode until between 18 and 25 mph, depending on how fast I need to accelerate, so once the ICE kicks in, the heavy lifting needed to get moving from a standstill is already done.
