hi folks, I have had my Prius since 2014 and the first owner. I was talking to a guy while pumping gas and he said he was getting 500+ miles on a tank. I came here and saw all those 500, 600, 700+ miles club threads, which lead me to believe my Prius is sucking or something else is wrong. The last time I filled up, my indicator showed 423m before I have to refill again. I recalled that I was closer to 500 when it was brand new. most of my driving is done in Arizona and involved lots of highway driving. averaging speed of 65-75 on some stretches. Daily round trip is about 60 miles. air pressure tired is up at 38/35. when fill up gas, I would slow pump and stop at the first click. was wondering if you guys have any advise/tips/tricks I can try. thanks, *edit* I should probably note that the prius is low profile and has the sport package, which comes w/ the 17 inch tires.
If you're putting about 9 gallons into your car and you're getting 42x miles per tank, then that's still more than 45MPG. Driving at interstate speeds (+) with the A/C on, and rolling 17" tires that are a little on the under inflated side will more than explain the lack of 500+ mile tanks. Usually, the people with 700 mile tanks are running at much lower speeds, sans A/C, on 15" rubber and use some of the goofier hypermiling tricks (drafting, grill blocking, and inflating the tires to max sidewall pressures plus) You also have to remember that the fuel tank on a G3 is pretty much 12 gallons if you fill it to the neck. What's the most that you've ever pumped into your car? 10 gallons? 11? Bump your tire pressures up a little bit and make sure that your maintenance checks are up to scratch, and be happy with 45+. Good Luck!
My opinion would be given your 17iinch tires, and the amount of highway driving, you're probably doing fine. I can under ideal circumstances get a 500 mile tank. BUT the majority of mine fall below that level. In the winter for sure, and even in Spring and Summer, I do a lot of short distances, so my expectations are not usually at the 500+ miles per tank level. I'm not disappointed. All I have to remember is how often I was filling up at about 270 miles per tank, with my Honda Fit, and filling up at around 450 miles a tank with The Prius is still a efficiency luxury and marvel.
After reading how many ignore the empty tank warning and continue driving risking an empty tank to get 600...700...800 mile tanks, I lost interest in trying to pursue some arbitrary number...and would rather fill up my tank when it reaches 0 estimated range (usually 9.3 gallons). I do, however, always try to hit 500 Miles before filling up, which is around 52-53 MPG, it's a nice challenge to aim for without being reckless.
@Red8Rain , If you want to pursue something, how about mpg? Forget about how far you get on a tank, there's no upside, and it's risky. At fill ups record your distance traveled and gallons pumped, divide the first by the second, that's your mpg, Way more important than how far you got on a tankful.
Take a look at Fuelly. Toyota Prius Mileage | Fuelly The median fuel economy for all Prius is 46 mpg. That's what you are getting. If your Prius is sucking then the average Prius on Fuelly is sucking as well. That's how a bell curve works. There will be outliers that do exceptional and a few that don't. But you're smack dab in the middle. There are plenty of tips to increase fuel economy, I don't need to add on. What you have to understand is those that reach 600 - 800 miles per tank likely drove way past empty and risk running out of fuel or harming their car. (I've read some posts here that their car doesn't start after they run out and refuel again) And while they are white knuckling the steering wheel, they are likely sweating more without using AC. They are also likely taking longer routes that favor better fuel economy further extending their discomfort even more. And... you want in on the club? Are you sure? My average full tank is in the 430 range like you. I can easily do a 550 tank by following what I said above. I might be able to get to 600 but I chicken out. Most I ever filled was 9.7 gallons meaning I had I could've made it. However, it's all for fun and it will not be a regular thing for me. Regularly will be 430.
hi folks. thanks for all the feedback, i thought 500+ was the normal on the prius w/o any extra work/effort. I'm averaging around 48-50mpg during my daily commute. I had, one time, gotten down to 35mpg but that's because I used the wrong engine oil (used 5w-20 instead of 0w-20), that only lasted a week.
when filling up, the readings is normally ~8.5 or 9 gallon on the pump. i'm averaging about 48-50mpg.
I only do a little better, but when I'm filling up I usually have 10,5-11,5 gallons. So you see why it is useless to say "my mileage is bad because I don't drive a lot of miles on one tank".
