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Record Keeping for Prime Newbies

Discussion in 'Prime Fuel Economy & EV Range' started by dlddvm, Jul 29, 2018.

  1. dlddvm

    dlddvm Junior Member

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    Vehicle:
    2018 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    All my driving life I've kept a little notebook in the glove box and dutifully recorded every fill-up, new wiper blade or tire, service trip, etc. I've always kept track of gas mileage per tank. I got a new Prime last week, and I was going to pick up a new little notebook for it, but I'm not sure what to keep track of anymore. My current headings are:

    date xx.xx gal price/gal price/tank odometer mileage tank mileage car's mpg calc mpg

    For routine driving I've been going 2 to 3 weeks between fill-ups (2007 Prius Gen II). Now it will be months. It seems like I should be keeping track of electric usage in some way, but I can't begin to guess what the most important metrics are. There are so many numbers available on my MIP and I'm sure I haven't found them all yet.

    When I turned in my Smurfy last week, the Toyota saleswoman didn't even want me to leave the little notebook with the car so the next owner would benefit from its stored knowledge. I've always done this in the past. Are written records just dinosaurs now?
     
    #1 dlddvm, Jul 29, 2018
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  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    checkout the prime spreadsheet, that should have all pertinent headings.
     
    #2 bisco, Jul 29, 2018
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  3. Prime Objective

    Prime Objective Junior Member

    Joined:
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    Upgrade
    All my driving life I've kept a little notebook in the glove box and dutifully recorded every... but I'm not sure what to keep track of anymore...

    I am not great at keeping records but I would like to try in the fall to record what the car estimates for electric distance with the temperature outside then as it gets colder here (Edmonton AB) then start recording fuel mileage when ICE turns on to keep me warm. Today was near 30 deg C / 86 deg F and estimated distance was 54.5 km / 34 mi.
     
    #3 Prime Objective, Jul 29, 2018
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  4. dlddvm

    dlddvm Junior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2007
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    Vehicle:
    2018 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    I'm guessing that is a reference to the sticky thread titled Record Your Prime and Gas Fillups. From the discussion it appears that the OP posted a spreadsheet that subsequent posters have been adding on to. I have turned off my ghostery and adblock and still cannot see this spreadsheet. Even worse, I've never used a spreadsheet so I have to be careful not to 'gum it up' should it appear.

    Is there any data that I am likely to lose access to between now and my first fill-up? In other words, stuff I should be writing down as I go? I'm totally afraid to reset my trip odometers and some other thing I saw on the 7" display for fear of losing data.
     
    #4 dlddvm, Jul 29, 2018
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  5. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i'm always careful about resetting my trip meters. i use a for current trip, and reset it after each drive.

    the only other way would be disconnecting 12v power, or someone servicing it and resetting.

    writing things down is never a bad thing.(y)
     
    #5 bisco, Jul 30, 2018
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  6. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

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    I use to keep a handwritten log in my car, but no longer. It is now replaced by quick photo with my smartphone, and later entering into either spreadsheet of my own or car service record site like Auto Repair Advice, Car Reviews & Values - DriverSide . I think only data you will lose other than trip distance and mileage associated with the trip when you reset trip meter is the Drive Monitor which I find it nor very useful information. Prime's daily log aka “Eco-Diary” is kept for 32 days, and monthly record is kept for 24 months. There is no easy way to download those record data. I take photo and enter numbers into my own spreadsheet. In addition to service record, I also keep everything I spend for driving this car (from gas to electricity to wiper blade to washer fluid to insurance to registration fee, etc, etc.) so, I know exact cost to operate this car.
     
    #6 Salamander_King, Jul 30, 2018
    Last edited: Jul 30, 2018
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  7. HPrimeAdvanced

    HPrimeAdvanced Senior Member

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    Plug-in Advanced
    Dealers don't usually like buyers of used cars speaking to previous owners. Where I worked, this was typical. Me, as a salesman of a used car (or a buyer of a used car too), feel that any info from previous owner is useful to new owner. Of course, many buyers really don't give a damn, and much record-keeping today is digital. I do what you do, and have designed software (DOS based!) that works on my PC or my Android phone. Sorry, Mac is a big loser in this category. As a prospective buyer of a used car, a person seeing meticulous record-keeping for that car has to appreciate that the previous owner probably took good care of the car. Of course service records where a car is regularly maintained by dealers, provide additional support for that used car being properly maintained. Since my Prime is so rarely gassed up, I track all the running ODOs, Main ODO, date, gallons, cost, etc. In my Calendar, I periodically note the EV range, miles traveled, money spent on services, etc. in special sections I designed.

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
    AChoiredTaste.com
     
    #7 HPrimeAdvanced, Jul 30, 2018
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