A couple stupid newbie questions: - I've barely owned my new 2008 Prius for 24 hours and I have driven it about a mere 35 miles so far, but the average gas mileage consumption has been around 31-33 MPG so far. My driving pattern has been about a 50/50 split of highway commuting and in-town driving. And I've been driving it pretty gently as well. Does it take a while for the hybrid system to break in and start getting better mileage? Or should I be concerned? - I've read with interest about all the Prius modifications people have made and recommend in this forum. But if you are a person whose #1 reason for buying the Prius is for maximum gas mileage efficiency, wouldn't physical modifications to the car's body such as mud flaps, bras, side panels, hood shields, etc. interfere with the car's aerodynamics and cause drag and thus decrease fuel efficiency? Or is the decrease too insignificant to worry about? Thanks, Steve
Hi Welcome to Prius chat! The Prius is designed to be driven like other cars. Driving it "pretty gently" may be working against you. Of course, any car gets better MPG if you avoid hard acceleration, abrupt stops, and not paying attention to traffic patterns. So, just drive the Prius like that... watch those stoplights/signs, ease off the accelerator a bit earlier for stops. Keep looking around here... there is a whole forum on fuel efficiency!
I got 50 + right from the start, the first thing I did when I left the dealership was reset the consumption screen. To save you some time here are the best tips that require no modification. 1. Short trips kill MPG also don't leave the car in Ready mode while parked for more then 5 minutes. (if running errands go the furthest place first) 2. Warming up the car in the morning also bad for mileage 3. Don't use the heater or A/C for the first 5 minutes 4. Put some air in those tires. (even just 38 PSI will show quite an increase, and is quite a comfortable ride still) 5. Learn how to at least glide through city traffic (no arrows through town and down hills) (avoid use of Yellow arrows) 6. Accelerate moderately (try to keep your instant MPG at least half your speed) 7. If at highway speed and going down a hill instead of letting off the pedal (Blue arrows / regen) feather the pedal down just a bit and let it glide down with the hill using the battery (yellow arrows), I think that is frequently called warp stealth. I hope this helps
To answer your last question, physical modification will not help; some won't hurt, some will, but the Prius is pretty aerodynamic as it comes from the factory. There are a few mileage nuts who have added fairings, spats, and related aerodynamic accessories to some minor gain, but it's mostly a hobby. Tom
I think before you get too disapointed you could wait until you put 2 gallons of petrol through it, maybe even 3!!
Yeah, and wait for the warm weather. Here in NY temps went all the way to mid 60's today and my MPGs were in the low to mid 50's for the day. Incredible how much easier it is to get good mileage when the weather warms up! And I loved it at 45 MPGs! Jack
Thanks for everyone's quick response. I reset the consumption as suggested and, sure enough, I averaged 53 mpg on my commute into work today. And thanks for the other tips, Morpheusx. I don't understand all them yet (e.g. yellow and blue arrows), but I look forward to learning and trying out your driving strategies. - Steve
Uh, why not? The engine is going to run anyway to warm up both itself and the catalytic converter; increasing the load on it will warm it up faster.
Would you please explain a scientific theory about "try to keep your instant MPG at least half your speed" part? Thank you, Ken@Japan
only while accellerating (most of the Can View guys say that it typically keeps the engine in the most efficient RPM range)
I found it (and still do) VERY helpful to have the MFD on the "wheels and arrows" screen - maybe called Energy? It tells you when the car is using the ICE or the motor or both or nothing at all......you can also keep an eye on the iMPG while you are accelerating and get an idea of just how hard to push the pedal. Keep nosing around the PC website - lots of terrific info here (one of which is how to disable that annoying backup beep) Welcome and have fun driving
After 6 months, I think the mph/mpg crossover is about 57 mph: steady speed at 56 mph gets more than 57 mpg, faster than 57 mph gets less than 57 mpg. Comments?
5. Learn how to at least glide through city traffic (no arrows through town and down hills) (avoid use of Yellow arrows) Why avoid the use of Yellow arrows? Thanks, lacooka
They indicate the flow of energy into and out of the traction (big) battery. It may seem like a paradox but you actually want to use this battery as little as possible. There are unavoidable inefficiencies (energy lost to heat) during energy conversions; charging and discharging a battery is especially poor. If I may be so bold as to attempt to summarize the excellent advice of many experienced drivers: The principles of good fuel economy are - Accelerate briskly (this uses the engine in its most efficient range) - Gliding (no arrows into or out of the battery on the "Energy" display) is better than coasting - Coasting is better than braking - Braking is better than coming to a complete stop. Applying the principles is the trick :_> Ideally one would accelerate to some maximum speed and then glide and coast to a stop at one's destination. Obviously this is often impossible. It's also important to not put one's self or others in danger by staring at the displays or go crazy trying to maximize fuel economy. Your Prius is probably using half or less of the fuel of your previous vehicle regardless, and life is short.
Do you mean overall MPGs, or just for that initial time? Running the A/C will reduce instantaneous MPGs, but then it also warms up the engine faster and so decreases the length of time that the engine runs sub-optimally. The net MPG reduction should be small, and it should reduce net emissions.
