I would think the cover under the car would have more impact at highway speeds. Around town I would not expect any change in MPG.
Aero drag is still important at non highway speeds (you can feel it while riding a bike at only 15 mph...). Good call on the aero panels.
I’ve been rolling without the oil change door for over 180k miles and I still average around 50 mpg. Also one of the back fasteners on the splash shield snapped in place so I’ve had zip ties on there for over 100 k miles. This is 90% highway driving or better and I’ve seen very little affect to mpg. I even averaged one tank of 454 miles at 60.1 mpg. I wouldn’t worry about it too much.
If that cover needs replaced unless you find a used one it does not make economic sense on an old car.
I believe the cover missing on mine only causes the engine to take longer to warm up/cool off quicker. At steady state driving fully warmed up, I’m showing 48-55 instant mpg. I found economy line parts to fix it for 25 dollars. The pull it yourself yard here locally does not have any Gen 3 cars in the yard.
I think the OP disappeared long ago...right? At any rate, I'd bet the OP is from a colder environment area. Folks tend to forget that ALL cars get worse MPG in the winter. A Prius getting 40MPG in winter is far, far better than ICE vehicles. And as for electric vehicles...there are reports of many Tesla owners reporting decreased range in colder weather.
Typical for a thread like this. Uninformed complaint dropped, then OP disappears, thoughtful people continue discussion, on topic, sort of on topic &/or off topic. Threads like this should be closed if no response by OP after a week or so (after I get my 2 cents in ).
I have banned my husband from driving my 2011 Prius, because at 125,000 miles, my gas mileage went into the pathetic range, as I’ve attached. My tires do suck, thanks to my Toyota dealer suggesting Cooper, which dropped mpg immediately, but I’m too stubborn and cheap to get rid of those tires and upgrade to the Bridgestone I had before, until those need replacing. I just changed my psi to 40 in the front, 38 in the back, so we will see how that goes. The moral of the story is that anyone can buy a Hybrid, but not everyone knows how to drive one. I’ll likely never get my record 62 mpg, again, but it’s still a great, low maintenance, and it’s easily paid for itself.
Similar to those guys who come and post that they will add another battery and revolutionize the gen 3 and change everything. But I’m still waiting for one to come back and say “WE DID IT!!!”
I am not he, but I am disappointed as well, for different reasons. I was a professional driver, a courier driving @ 45k per year, and I bought my first Prius, a 2009 Touring edition. It served me better than I served it, replacing all four shocks then the ic motor, the catalytic converter, the tranny, a wheel bearing, the inverter coolant pump and learning LOTS along the way. After installing slightly larger tires on this car, the speedometer started reporting accurately and the ride was much improved. I learned I didn't like low profile tires. I learned you CANNOT slam on the brakes at 80 mph and flip the trans into B to help slow down faster, repeatedly, without paying a price eventually, of a replacement, used, transmission. I replaced the traction battery. Eventually, I lost that Prius to the cat thieves and high mileage, but not before I bought a 2015 pkg IV to replace it with. My favorite Prius so far. On October 9th 2023, my wife was driving it home from work, when a newer Prius drove thru a red light and took the front end off the car. (Yes, this is California) He lost the right front corner of his car, bent the tire and wheel back at an angle, and my car lost everything in front of the radiator. No airbags(!) were deployed for either car! Because of high mileage, and a minor unrepairable (?) tweak to the frame, the insurance decided it was cheaper to total my car instead of repairing it. Dang, that was a good car. Now, my wife decided she liked the heated seats in that Prius, so she wanted a new one. A 2024 Prius with heated seats is at least a Prius XLE. We put a deposit down and in February this year we got our Prius. And, like I said, I'm disappointed. The ATT forced subscription we declined, the non memory seat, only one key fob so far, the non memory hatch height, the difficulty getting in and out (I put on weight after my retirement and surgery) the lack of a heads up display (I was looking forward to that!). Whew! I'm disappointed in the infotainment- without the subscription it's just a crappy radio without the JBL speakers. The Toyota safety sense is okay, the cross traffic and the radar cruise control all work well. I do feel more divorced from the hybrid system info. The bigger motor is nice. The suspension... works. Works well, actually. I want a key for me, tho! Look for me in the future as I'm sure to have questions or observations regarding the new Prius.
Yeah, I passed on gen 5 in favor of a bolt. While the new form factor looks good, a lot of the utility is gone
