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MPG is all I care about...

Discussion in 'Gen 5 Prius Main Forum' started by Billy56, Dec 29, 2022.

  1. Billy56

    Billy56 Member

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    Currently I drive aprox 2,100 miles per week delivering new cell phones all over western WA....from Bellingham to Olympia & Chehalis, and east as far as Ellensburg. My 2020 Prius L ECO, which I purchased new, already has 277,000 miles and runs perfectly....NO issues whatsoever. I am a decades long hypermiler, and I average 81 MPG on this car. I drive a bit slower than most, run 50 lbs air in tires, and always buy the stock Bridgestones in the late fall when it's "buy 3 get one free". I employ many efficiency techniques, they are habitual.

    With the 2023 model, I would ONLY consider the base model. My 15 inch tires are plenty big enough for me....17 inch are way too large, and 19 inch are ridiculous. The new base model appears to have Bridgestone Turanza ER300 Ecopia, in 195/60/17. I have researched this tire size, and it has been used a lot in Asia, especially Japan, but not much in North America. My ideal tire size would be 185/75/15.....with a very hard rubber compound and the LRR qualifying specs......but oh well.....

    I do love the looks of this new car, very nice. The Toyota specs say the CD is 0.27, which is worse than the 0.24 of my Prius. But I have heard conflicting reports.....and am hoping this is in error. Maybe it is really 0.23....that would be very nice.

    I am NOT happy about the larger engine and horsepower. The excellent 14 to 1 compression ratio is one partial reason for the good efficiency. But a SMALLER engine would be my preference, I surely don't need 2.0 liters, 1.4 liters would be fine. And I am disappointed in the small 11.3 gallon fuel tank. I want at least 14.

    I hope the E-CVT tranny is continued, and it uses the same shifter. I love how it so nicely shifts into neutral for lots of coasting.

    Wayne Gerdes and others have reported that the center cluster gauges are nearly partially blocked by the top of the steering wheel. Seating position height will be important.

    It appears to me that Toyota is primarily concerned with making a much more attractive-shaped car, to increase sales. Cannot blame them, I guess. The majority of people in our automotive culture, like the looks of big tires and wheels, and want the latest safety enhancements. I am just different, I don't care about having things like parking sensors, lane departure warning, smart cruise control, rear camera cross traffic alert, etc. Just give me a comfortable driver seat, front wheel drive, large fuel tank, tall & skinny tires, 5 MPG more efficiency than my current Prius, and I will be happy !!
     
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  2. Isaac Zachary

    Isaac Zachary Senior Member

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    If fuel mileage is all you care about, maybe wait for an Aptera???

    Sadly the Corolla Hybrid is going in the opposite direction when it comes to fuel mileage. It's dropping from 53city/52hwy to 53city/46hwy. So that's not going to be an option.

    A Chevy Bolt is decidedly better when it comes to fuel mileage, although the cost to fuel it depends on where and how. And your weekly mileage and desire/need for 14 gallons of fuel or more probably puts the Bolt on the "not practical" list.

    I guess you're probably stuck with the new Prius as your only future option, whether you like it or not. But if your 2020 Prius has no issues, I'd say just keep driving it until it dies. That may be several years from now even at 2,100 miles per week. I got something like 700,000 miles out of a 1984 VW Golf, and it still runs just fine.
     
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  3. FuelMiser

    FuelMiser Senior Member

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    Sounds to me like you just need to find another Gen 4. You've got too many gripes with the Gen 5.
     
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  4. Isaac Zachary

    Isaac Zachary Senior Member

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    Gen 4 is also $3,000 cheaper than the Gen 5.
     
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  5. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    few, if any manufactures will build to highest mpg possible, at the expense of other things that will help mass market the cars.
    idk who has the highest rated mg vehicle out there, but i guess that would be the one to hone in on.

    honda clearly proved that a high mpg two seater could not be sustainable
     
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  6. Isaac Zachary

    Isaac Zachary Senior Member

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    Unless it's a Mazda Miata type vehicle. That seems to be what Aptera is going for, something that feels sporty but is also highly efficient. This is also why the new Prius has more power. People put speed and acceleration and looks before fuel mileage.
     
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  7. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    seriously? >>> /

    they might make a business out of it, idk, but i don't think it will be popular by any means, but o/p might be interested

    miata(ish) i could see, but not sure about miata sales numbers either. i loved mine, and would love to have converted it into an ev
     
    #7 bisco, Dec 30, 2022
    Last edited: Dec 30, 2022
  8. Billy56

    Billy56 Member

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    Hello FuelMiser .....my GRIPES are just a reflection of my true wish list. As i said, I DO really like the looks of the Gen 5. And part of me likes something different, new. We are all just learning the details of this new car, and at this point I do think I will own one in the future. Also, a good friend of mine is the GM of a Toyota dealership nearby. He promised me that when there is a new Prius available, I could buy it with NO dealer markup.

    BTW, do you share some of my preferences in terms of fuel tank size, smaller engine, smaller tires, etc?
     
  9. Isaac Zachary

    Isaac Zachary Senior Member

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    If I can do 600 on one tank I'm plenty happy. And that's what I could do in my 1984 VW NA diesel with an 11 gallon tank! :D I can also do that in my 2013 Toyota Avalon Hybrid, but it has a 17 gallon tank.

    But in reality it's more of a bragging right. I never drive 600 miles stright without stopping. I usually don't go for more than two hours without stopping and stretching the ol' legs for at least a few minutes. 300 miles of range would be plenty for me, even in my long distance driving area I live in.

    I don't see how engine size matters all that much. I would welcome a huge engine with an extremely aggressive Atkinson cycle, or even Miller cycle, that renders the engine extremely weak for its size, yet it sips fuel like none other. You can't have an effective Atkonson cycle engine without oversizing it. This is why the Prius engine has always been less powerful than the same block and displacement in other cars. It's also why the Ford Maverick hybrid engine is 2.5L, yet produces substantially less power then the non-hybrid 2.0L Ecoboost engine option in the Maverick, even with the additional power of the electric drive train in the hybrid.

    I do think tire sizes are getting out of control. As someone who goes through lots of tires and religiously buys two sets of tires, winter and all-season, for all my vehicles, I don't welcome bigger, more expensive tires. It's been only 3 years since I got new tires, both for summer and winter, and I'm already needing new sets of both. The way things are going, I'm going to have to alot some $1,000 or more per year to just tires.
     
  10. reallyreal

    reallyreal Member

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    Keep in mind that the drag coefficient alone is not very telling because it’s just a coefficient, you need to multiply it with the frontal area of the vehicle to have a relatively good idea of the aerodynamic resistance of the vehicle (there are other more variable variables like velocity, air density, wind).

    Gen5 might be worse than Gen4 given that it’s larger and it looks bigger, but the roof is also lower, so you don’t know until you measure.

    In Japan they should sell the Gen5 also with the same 1.8 engine of Gen4, you might be able to import one from there maybe?

    Btw, 81 mpg?? US mpg?? That’s impressive!!!
     
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  11. daisy555

    daisy555 Senior Member

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    I’m stuck with getting the 2023 Prius or Prime with the big tires. Are you getting 80mpg with basic hypermiler skills? Any additional tips? If I end up with Prius, I need to change how I drive. My 2009 gets 47 mpg and I’m really disappointed that a new Prius only gets 49-52 mpg….twelve years later. I need smart key so skipping over the LE.
     
  12. Trollbait

    Trollbait It's a D&D thing

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    The 175 wide 17in tires for the i3 should fit the new Prius rims. Their LLR for an EV but are $240 each.

    Looks like the gen5 has slightly smaller frontal area.

    The 2L is a newer engine, and is actually more thermally efficient. The 1.8 might be the exact same one in your Prius now. Sportier Prius is how Toyota is differentiating it from the Corolla. If Toyota felt they could make money after paying to certify it, they would have brought the 1.8L here. As it is, the new LE gets near the old L Eco mpg with better performance.

    A poster at Cleanmpg gets over 80mpg from the new Elantra hybrid, but those use a DCT. The Prius is still an eCVT.

    Many people want better fuel efficiency, but few want to pay for it. Toyota has done all the easy things to improve efficiency in the Prius. They could have designed a car with fuel efficiency improvements of the past models, but the price tag would likely be even higher.
     
  13. John Daly

    John Daly Junior Member

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    i had heard the 2023's coefficient of drag was 0.29 . I was a bit disheartened with that. My 2009 Gen II Prius is 0.26 and this is going backwards. {could not be a typo :)}
    Add to that:
    • less headroom in the back,
    • less cargo room
    and to me its going away from me, away from our market.
    Cool looking, .Quite fast 0-60. But worse for life on the planet. Count me out.
    Who is taking Toyota's place at offering the most reliable AND efficient car on the market?
     
  14. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    no one
     
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  15. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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    Yet..
     
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  16. John Daly

    John Daly Junior Member

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    Thanks. That helps.
    Higher drag coefficient but smaller frontal area for the 2023? May be less impacted by wind resistance?
    Why do not they (i.e. manufacturers, car reviewers, etc.) give the variable for that combination of drag coefficient and frontal area as that is the real measure?
    Is there a name for that variable?
    THanks
     
  17. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i'm a sceptic. gonna take a long time for me to believe any other manufacturers hybrid offerings will be as reliable as toyota.
    and, i am also sceptical of mpg claims. i would have to drive one myself, that claimed substantially higher mpg's than prius.
     
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  18. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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    I'd be happy with current mpg and more utility, improved ergonomics.

    I'm not impressed by the h/v controls on anything these days: if you want to change vent mode with the setup they've all adopted, there’s a single button you need to first find (typically it's one in a row of uniform buttons), then tap it repeatedly while eyeballing a little LCD display till what you want shows up, and by then you're in danger of driving off the road. Oh hey, lane-keep assist can help with that. :rolleyes:

    Then there's the dearth of spare tires.
     
    #18 Mendel Leisk, Jan 3, 2023
    Last edited: Jan 3, 2023
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  19. Isaac Zachary

    Isaac Zachary Senior Member

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    Give me knobs and sliders back please!

    Mine has a mind of it's own. I can't recirculate the air when I want, and if can I select it, it turns off on its own after about 3 minutes. Having thermostatic heat is nice, but the way it's implimented, I'd rather have the old sliders and/or knobs back.
     
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  20. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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    Hey you could do everything by feel. (y)
     
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