What is the range that folks are getting to a tank? Is it in the 500 to 600 miles per range? It's just one of the questions I've been pondering before I put my money down on a Prius. Any input would be greatly appreciated.
Depends on terrain, climate, and whether your car (and driver) is broken in. My highest is 440mi (700ish kms) (currently ~ 5000mi / 8000km on my odo) so I can't wait til summer to achieve 500 mi or more!
Varies greatly (cold = lower MPG, lower tank miles, slightly smaller emissions bladder in tank). Summer rules though, with around 500+ miles per tank. Winter, about 380-400 miles per tank. My best tank miles are 525 with 52 showing on the MFD. That was on an Oregon trip last summer. Temps were 70-80 F. Not so best tank (I just can't say "worst tank" when 'complaining' about 45 MPG or 300 miles per tank!) has been during Jan. 290 miles. Temps then were never above 32 F. MFD said 41 MPG. Too many variables out there in the real world to really get a consistent 500 mile tank. Sometimes I feel like showing the acceleration of the Prius, sometimes I love to just coast and coast and coast. It is amazing though how this car shows you where you are wasting fuel, teaching you how to be more efficient. Other 'non-evolved' vehicles' don't have this great feedback. The zen of the auto world.
520+ miles @ ~46mpg, or about 70+miles past the low-fuel blinker @ ~76mph on 90% highway (sometimes w/ lots of stop&go Los Angeles traffic). Tank fillups are ~11.1gal. I could probably get it farther if I wanted by driving slower, or keep going until I run out of gas. Just switched to synthetic after hitting 5K miles last weekend, so going to see how mpg changes.
I've seen about 620 miles one one tank. That was pushing it though, putting 11.5 gallons in a 11.9 gallon tank. The closest I came to running out was pushing to get to my preferred filling station. I was somewhere in the middle 500 mile area, and drove quite a while on the blinking bar. While the car didn't quit, I pumped 12 gallons that day, so I figure I was down to what little fumes remained in the fuel lines that day.
Best tank 763 miles, next best 703, most tanks I fill up after 600 miles or so. Worst tanks, when driving almost 80 mph across country, 450 miles.
Highest until now (26000+ km) is 914 km. Lowest is 667, but it was followed by a tank of 898 km... I have two tanks below the 667 km mark, but there were over 2 bars left on the fuel display, so those tanks don't count. Overall I tend to tank before the last bar starts blinking, sometimes when there are still two bars left.
I'm regularly averaging over 500 miles on a tank. Only broke 600 once. I can literally drive twice as far as with my Neon. -m.
438 Miles is my best tank at 9.2 gal. I have only had the car since Dec 30th. Shorter trips kill gas mileage as does the colder weather. Hoping to get over 500 miles as the weather warms up. Lately I have been filling up and putting in 7-8 gallons. Swings in temperature seem affect the accuracy of the fuel gauge and bladder effect. I'd rather play it safe and fill up at one bar even if it only takes 8 gallons. If the fuel gauge is innacurate, it errs on the side of caution, which is a good thing. For 5,000 miles in the Northeast, I have averaged 43mpg with a mix of short trips, hilly terrain and some days with long (70+ mile each way) commutes. Some days I only put on 20-30 miles total for several 5-10 min trips and can watch the MPG fall drastically before my eyes. However even on days that don't get much above freezing, I can average close to 50mpg on the highway when I have longer trips to make. Most tanks this winter are in the 350+ mile range.
I've made a few 540+ mile round-trips to Florida and didn't need more than one tank of gas. April and October, so A/C probably wasn't as big an issue as it could be. Another trip in about 3 weeks, and hopefully just as economical since gas will be about 25% more expensive than the last one...
425 is my best, but usually about 350. I fill up at about 7-8 gallons, with one or two bars left. I've always thought it best not to drain the dregs of the tank and can't be bothered with "dripping" in the last gallon. I average ONLY 46 MPG as I climb 3000' each workday and make several short trips on weekends. What a great car!
See all my data at www.enerjazz.com/prius 19 tanks over 7.5 months Avg range: 477 miles (768km) High tank: 569 miles (916km) Low tank: 417 miles (671km)
Best so far has been 1039km with an average of 880km. Just found out about super highway mode. Tried it on my way home from work today. 40km from work to home with a previous best of 3.7lt/100km. Smashed that with a 2.9lt/100km My mobile was sitting in front of the MFD so I couldnt read the FE until I stopped at home. A few times I got a bit rushed went above the 1200rpm 14deg BTDC with a few 2300rpm at 18deg BTDC but to see a drop from 3.7 to 2.9 knowing I could have done better.. Cant wait until tomorrow.
Stretching out total distance on a tank has never really mattered to me. I've always been more concerned about keeping top tier fuel in the car and not running out of it. As I result I have always just filled it up when convenient after the gauge gets down to 2 bars. That's the reason I've only gone longer than 400 miles two times. For our long distance trips I use the Pilot/Flying J trip planner to space their stations 300-350 miles apart, knowing that by then at least one person in the car will need a restroom or want something to eat anyway. I print out the list of all those stations along the route, then highlight the ones I intend to stop at. That way I can adjust on the road if I need to. I don't like stressing while driving.
Amen. In particular with second gen's having the bladder tank, this varies by country. There's no monetary advantage to stretching tanks. Still, @ClintJ001 is achieving insanely good numbers. I am not worthy.
Best that I have gotten is 1229km or 763 miles. I have tried to use super highway mode but it just seems to be impossible (for me) with constant up- and downhills.
Bladder is an NA thing only for emission purposes. Australia doesn't have the bladder, hence the eye-popping fuel economy and range numbers. Might be why a Prime isn't worth it - a Gen 4 could beat match the Prime under the same driver.
The most I've got out of my 2008 Prius Gen II is a not inconsiderate 634 miles from one tankful of petrol - achieved during a hot summer in the UK, with A/C use in the afternoon everyday. In winter, I get around 500 miles out of a tankful, plus minus 10 miles at worst. If you do many short journeys, your mileage may vary. My vehicle is used primarily for commuting a round trip total of 36 miles a day, Monday to Friday every week. I will freely admit that my morning commute is executed at a time when the roads are free (between 5.15am and 6.00am), and I'm guaranteed a smooth, virtually uninterrupted journey to my destination, allowing me to maximise hypermiling techniques. One such trip fresh from a petrol station where I had just refuelled and reset my mpg meter, yielded 72.9mpg for the one way journey to work (and it was down to 64.2mpg after the return trip).
