I recently purchased a new 2018 prius c and haven't ever had a hybrid vehicle before. I have run one tank of gas and have only gone 330mi. I called the sales person who sold me the car and asked him about the mpg not meeting the estimated by a LONG shot. he replied that the engine might need to be "broken in" for 500-1,000 miles before it will reach the estimated mileage. this kinda sounded a little fishy to me but I know other gas engine only cars require a "break-in" period where you aren't supposed to drive over 50-55 mph. also I didnt read anything like this in the manua nor was I told this when I bought the vehicle. just wondered if anyone else had been told this by Toyota dealership or knew anything about it. thanks
No worries luciscout… Your far from the first to ask this question. But yes you will see mpg's increase as time goes by. It was a couple months for me because I don't drive a whole lot and in a Prius, the internal combustion engine (ICE) doesn't get used as much as it would in a normal vehicle. . Do be aware however that cool/cold days will significantly decrease mpgs in a Prius. If you like, click the "fuelly" thing below my post. It'll take you to my mpg history and overall averages for everyone who's logged their mileage for the Prius C. (You'll note the drastic drop in my mpg's - that's the cold weather hitting those mpg's) On another note to this. You may still be driving it like a "normal" car. Nothing wrong with that at all - but if you cycle thru your displays on the dash, you'll eventually see the "ECO" screen. I used that display to "train" me in how to drive the car more efficiently. I can't tell you enough how much that helped. After awhile you'll find yourself "trained" if you will to the point that you won't need that screen anymore. Congrats on your purchase and enjoy the car!
If your trips are real short (< 5 miles) you will get poor mileage too. The Prius family are primarily low polluting vehicles. Once the engine starts the first time, it runs to get up to optimal temperature as quick as possible to minimize pollution. The Prius fuel economy is basically a byproduct of minimizing pollution. Short trips distribute the warm-up "penalty" over a lower number of miles. The situation is worse in cooler weather because the cabin heater cools the engine quicker, causing it to run more.
congrats and welcome! do you even know what your mpg's are? there is a little something in the o/m about break in, i would read and follow it, but has nothing to do with mpg's. fill your tank, reset a trip meter, drive until the low fuel warning comes on, refill the tank and divide miles driven by gallons pumped. then report back here for help, opinions and commentary. all the best!
Letting the car sit in READY with the engine running to heat up the car is hard on fuel economy too.In fact the heater affects fuel economy more than the electric air conditioning does.
Congrats on your new car. I think you’ll be pleased with it. As mentioned, cold weather really affects the fuel efficiency. Mine averages in the mid to upper 50s in the summer, and lately has been struggling to hit 50 here lately.
I think bisco called it... if you don't do the calibration thing from the manual it'll take 6 months to correct itself, and even then it won't be as accurate as if you just do what the manual says. That said, most new cars underperform their mileage estimates in the first few months. Virtually all of them underperform EPA estimates in winter. We saw the eco screens and stuff but have chosen to ignore them. We set ours to show the simple screen- mostly just a gas gauge. We just buckle up and drive, and it gives us 45-60mpg, long term average 49. Congrats on finding a great car!
