MPG results for Southern California drivers

Not all of the Midwest is flat. We have a lot of hills around here, but not as much traffic. Trip length has a huge effect on mileage, so that can be a major contributor.

Tom

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Ari @ Oct 5 2007, 11:28 AM) [snapback]521867[/snapback]</div>

I commute from Escondido to Sorrento Mesa (I15, Hwy56), I'm averaging 56+ and haven't had a tank under 500 miles since the dealer supplied one went 430.

 

I drive between Moreno Valley and Riverside, and I am doing great to get a 45mpg tank. I've never done better.

 

I travel from Oxnard to Northridge (50 miles each way) two or three days per week, and otherwise drive around town.

My long term average is 48.5 MPG, with driving strategy that sounds similar to yours.

At greenhybrid.com, http://greenhybrid.com/compare/mileage/

Toyota Prius II (HSD) 2WD eCVT
47.6 * 47.7 * 44.9–50.5 * 5.0 * 0.1 * 1376
Med * Mean * Mid 50 % * SD * SE * Cars in Sample

(I do not know how to create a table in this message)

Based on these data, we are both doing OK, or average.

I am not sure if this answers your question, but there you go.

 

I'm pretty knew at this - bought the Prius 3 weeks ago.

I live and work on the west side.

So far I'm doing 46-50 mpg. I live on a hill, and work on a different hill. My commute is 10 miles. I'm either on a freeway doing 70+ in the slow lane or in bumper to bumper stop and go traffic.

So, yeah it seems a bit harder. But the fuel efficiency is a lot better than my old car.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Panacea @ Oct 6 2007, 08:19 AM) [snapback]521976[/snapback]</div>

How far is that and what is the terrain like?
I drive from Woodcroft to Walkley heights and get 4.3L/100km ever tank except 1 I went on a trip on the highway to Port Augusta where I got 5.2L/100km
See, that tells you nothing does it.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Panacea @ Oct 5 2007, 03:49 PM) [snapback]521976[/snapback]</div>

That's the same sentiment me and wife has. Have you ever wondered if its our car or is it our method. For me, its not the method. I practice everything ARI listed on his post. But yet, We cannot get over 46 mpg at the most. Even on a 200 mi round trip from Huntington Beach to Poway [near San Diego]
we get maybe, if we are lucky, about 48mpg, using CC set at 62 - 65. I set mine at 62 going and Lily sets 65 when she is driving. And on the screen the yellow column varies from below 50mpg to 70/80mpg, but more near the 50mpg line, and below, when there are any rises. Have you ever driven with just the CC and watched for consistency of the mileage?
I hope I don't get flooded with replies telling me its still my method

 

The Prius won't get the best economy on the open road, it is happier around town. No car will get the EPA numbers if it is used for short trips, but the Prius will still be better than anything around on those short trips.
45 to 48mpg on the open road at constant speed is fine.

It isn't the method, it's how you use the car but I bet it still uses a lot less fuel than your last car.

 

Well for the best fuel economy in SoCal, maybe a motorcycle would be best. That way you can also weave around traffic during bumper to bumper traffic.

Funny nobody ever considers bikers as being "Green."

 

The hilly nature and traffic of SoCal puts us at a distinct disadvantage compared to a lot of the midwest. My sister lives in Ohio and has a '06 prius almost identical to my '07. I've stayed with her a few weeks and watched how she drives, and it's a lot easier for her to achieve 55 MPG without much effort.

Besides the fact that it is much flatter in Ohio, and there is much less traffic, another huge difference is that she can drive 30 miles using surface streets. Doing that in LA would take hours. I guess the fact she can avoid freeways is technically related to her lack of traffic.

So at least from compairing the San Fernando area to Cleveland, i'd have to say a lot of it could be geographical differences. But don't let that discourage you. Even given our tougher predicament, I installed an EBH and got 57.8 MPG calculated (not MFD) on my last tank. Of course I was using every trick, including pulse and glide.

 

I live in SoCal, in West Hollywood and commute 7 miles each way to work near downtown L.A. I don't usually go on a freeway, but instead use Melrose or 3rd street. My average is 49.5. I drive very conservatively to achieve this. Lots of P+S and no quick starts. The highest I have gotten is 59, but that was when I went into the Angeles Forest and going down the hills made that happen. Good luck...

 

I wanted to add one last thing about the differences between SoCal and Ohio. My sister's traction battery is much more stable (as you had pointed out). My battery often will go from 2 bars to 8 daily. I remember when I first got the car, I had asked my sister if the battery ever filled all the way up, an she wasn't sure. Her drive is so much flatter that she is almost always in the blue range.

 

An EBH in SoCal?

I'm new at this Prius stuff (3 weeks so far), and assumed EBH's were mostly used by people in colder climates.

What type/brand EBH did you get and where?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Panacea @ Oct 5 2007, 03:49 PM) [snapback]521976[/snapback]</div>

very familiar with the route. obviously moreno to riverside gets you great mileage but that will be negated coming home. anytime time you are doing that much elevation change, it will be tough to get good mileage. there is a limit as to how much benefit you can get going downhill and there is no way to improve going uphill other than minor changes in velocity

as for mileage, i live in the hilly pacific northwest and i still get good mileage. traffic is always an issue, but knowing your route and anticipating as much as possible is the best way to improve

 

There are a bunch of great threads on priuschat about the effectiveness of using an EBH year round, even in warm areas. Do a search for "engine block heater." The end result for me is, I spend about 10-15 cents a day on electricity, and my first 5 minutes of FE has risen from
25 MPG to about 70 MPG (my route is slightly downhill in the morning). This has really helped my tank average.

As far as were to get one, the next group buy would be a good bet, or you can order one from www.metropn.com .

 

I currently have a lifetime average of 62.5mpg, with a best of 66.4mpg. I got the car in April, live in Huntington Beach, work in Anaheim. P&G raised the tanks ~5mpg and the EBH an additional ~2mpg. I attribute the good mileage to patience and anticipating traffic lights. I also only spend ~3 miles of my 14 mile commute on the freeway.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Sean Blumenthal @ Oct 13 2007, 10:20 AM) [snapback]525159[/snapback]</div>

So my back of the envelope calculations shows about a $0.18-20 savings in the first five minutes for me, if I also get a 50mpg savings.

I do about 3 miles in the first 5 mins, and also live on a slight hill. So at 50mpg savings, that's 0.06 gallons saved over 3 miles. At $3 gas, that's $0.18 cents. If I pay $0.10 in electricity, that's $0.08 saved per day. The EBH would take 2 years to pay off.

Moot point anyway, since I don't have an outlet in the condo garage I park in.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Mormegil @ Oct 15 2007, 03:13 PM) [snapback]526036[/snapback]</div>

The senario I described wasn't a best-case. In my best case senario, I hop in the car to go to the shops and back, about a 3 mile drive. And by plugging in the car for an hour before I leave, I spend 4 or 5 cents, and get my 55 mpg for the trip as opposed to 25.

But more importantly, I think that you buy an EBH in a warm climate to get the best MPG possible, not save money. If that seems like a contradiction, then think about the difference between buying an $11,000 Hyndai or our $20,000 Prius. It's highly doubtful I'll ever make my $9,000 difference back in gas savings. But I didn't buy the car to save money, I bought it to use less oil.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Sean Blumenthal @ Oct 15 2007, 10:09 PM) [snapback]526207[/snapback]</div>

Point taken.