Silver bullet, part deux

Some of you may recall that last year, I posted this:

http://priuschat.com/forums/fuel-economy/40901-do-i-believe-evidence-dealer-3.html#post534412

My mileage had dramatically dropped after a visit to the dealership, and eventually, I discovered that a local rodent (Chippy, by name, I think) had set up camp above the cabin air filter, depositing a lot of dog food there.

Well, one of the symptoms last year was a strange smell, and today, I smelled something strange again. Mileage has also been dropping a bit, but I thought that was because of cold weather and the changing gas formulation.

Lo and behold, Chippy was back! And this time, I *DID* take some pictures!

First, the CAF after it was removed from the housing:



Next, the measurement of just how much was removed:




That's 2-1/3 cups... and needless to say, I once again need a new CAF... you can see where it's a little chewed in the top right quadrant, if you look closely.

So for all those who were looking for pictures last year, here they are. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go look up who it is that offers those on here, 'cause I'm going to pick up a spare as well. And I'll also look for that thread on how to block the spot where Chippy is getting in, too...

 

The dog's food is in the garage, in a large tub that's *supposed* to be covered. He eats inside, so it's not an issue of him not finishing his food. It's probably an issue of the *other* humans leaving the lid off the dog food container... myself excepted, of course, because I'm pretty sure I'm perfect

Thanks for the links, Boo... that's indeed what I'm after next. Thanks especially for the doc on how to remove the wipers and such. I'll be into that shortly... probably tomorrow, 'cause I don't want Chippy to move back in yet

Already ordered a couple of CAFs from MetroTPN... this one will do until they arrive. Interestingly, there doesn't appear to be any evidence of animal droppings and such... just food. I guess the Prius makes a good pantry too

 

Chippy's a chipmunk, and you'd be amazed at how little space they need to be able to squeeze into a garage. Besides, he's chewed the rubber seal at the bottom of the garage door so he can get in and out more easily. And yes, I've replaced it... but that doesn't matter in the summer, when the garage door is usually open.

This is in this thread because my original post from last year was here... I'd lost a massive amount of mileage after going to the dealership for an oil change, and was looking for ideas as to things I could check. When I finally tracked down Chippy's winter home, which seemed to be the culprit (or at least a significant contributing factor), people asked for pictures which I neglected to take back then. So when it happened this year, I was determined to document it fully. Plus, for those who are unaware that the CAF exists, it's a humorous way to be reminded and consider that you should check it periodically...

In my brief driving this morning, it seems like I've already pulled back a good 5MPG, perhaps more. I'll know more in the next few days.

 

Our dog's got allergies, so that's "unique" food we get at Chow Hound. I think most of 'em look similar... can't vouch for the taste

I don't think it's a critter getting in there on its own... we're talking a 30-gallon tub with a click-on lid. There have been some chew marks, but nothing's gone through.

Nope... I think the critters responsible for leaving the food out there have two legs only...

BTW, I seem to have picked up around 4-5 MPG. Haven't done any serious driving in the last couple of weeks, so I don't know for sure. But it's definitely worth checking out your CAF.

 

In case I'm sliding past the humor bar, the two-legged critters I believe are responsible are my wife and kids. Primarily the kids, but the wife has an aversion to putting lids tightly on things. Or perhaps I have an obsession... could go either way Couldn't be me, though... I *am* perfect, after all

As for how it impacts fuel economy, like Rokeby said, if the CAF is blocked, economy goes down. It appears that 2-1/3 cups of dog food poured on top of it is worth about 3-4 MPG... exact numbers not quite available. In my case, the CAF was probably reusable except for the holes that had been chewed in it... the replacement CAF has been received and installed.

As to the question in point, cleaning the CAF blocked with dog food appeared to be a silver bullet a year ago, when I first posted about a performance problem and my difficulty in trusting the dealership. It resulted in an immediate boost in mileage. Same thing appears to have happened this year.

 

I won't disagree with someone making such a strong statement.

I do, however, have the mileage results from the last two tanks of gas, plus the current reading.

Tank 1: 305 miles, 8.644 gallons, 38.9 per MFD, 35.3 per my math. That's about 15 MPG off my normal summer mileage. I have no commute.

Shortly after filling, checked and removed the aforementioned dog food. BTW, it's freakin' cold up here in Michigan...

Tank 2: 356 miles, 8.034 gallons, 41.8 per MFD, 44.3 per my math.

To be fair, that included 150 miles on the highway from here to the Wings game Saturday night (sorry, Sabres fans) at peak speeds of a whopping 50MPH... gotta love class 2 snow advisories and such.

On the trip back the next day, having refilled the tank in Detroit, without that snow advisory, and with "normal" freeway speeds, I don't have any fuel levels, 'cause I'm not filling up at less than half a tank.

Miles: around 140. MPG per MFD... 49.8. Was over 51 until we stopped at a rest area to take care of business. Methinks I've got to read more about S4 and how to get/stay there...

Only variable that has changed in a positive manner is the dog food. Weather was crappier, temperatures were colder, and heater/defroster was in *much* more use than normal. I'll call gas a wash since the first two tanks were *probably* from the same place, and I've got no reference point for the current tank.

I believe during discussions from a year ago, it was mentioned that having the CAF blocked while using the heating system does force it to work harder to get air through. I don't remember the details, and I don't claim to be an expert by any stretch of the imagination.

From last year when the dealership looked at the poor mileage, they found nothing wrong and in fact, got considerably more mileage than I did.

They also did their testing with the environmental system turned completely off, too. Eliminates *any* traffic past the CAF, open or closed.

All I gots is my eyes, the ability to try to avoid repeating mistakes... and the willingness to look around when things seem to be different, trying to figure out the difference. Per Sherlock Holmes...

In any case, Chippy's probably done for this year. We'll see what happens this time, next year.