Crazy mpg hit with cargo box

We don't want no posers! Seriously it keeps getting worse with you low-MPG priusers... Whatever happened to the good old days when we all posted our Fuelly widget in our signature line that bragged about our current MPG? Used to be able to tell a real prius owner from a poser back then.

 

I found with a Thule Weekender or Thule Adventurer on top and towing a folding caravan. I still achieved 68mpg avg over 400 miles last summer.
I think it’s about choosing the appropriate box for your Prius. Certainly the whole roof bag idea is a bad thing as it ruins aerodynamics.

 

It's too much work, takes too much time, too many hills around me, and I don't drive a car for the purpose of getting mpg's.

I want to get from A to B (most often in the least amount of time that the police will tolerate). For now that happens to occur in a Prius - I am interested in how my HV battery refurb will hold up.

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

Our state does produce some criminal weather across and beyond the Cascades, especially in winter.

Crossing the state westbound not long ago, into a considerable headwind, my Prius achieved only 43 mpg to Cle Elum. It probably would have been several points higher had it not been shod in true winter tires, but then it would also have been at significant risk of not properly making the trip, one direction or the other.

At least I managed to cross both directions without getting caught in the "Chains Required" conditions, which would have cut mpg even more.

 

Pff, I'm about to weld in a rear mounted turbo that cycles on and off a oil pump in RDY mode

Keep a lookout for that thread

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

Hmm interesting. Does it have a thermal cutout for coping with the weather in California ?

 

Lol... At least you'll be able to confirm that all the warning lights on your dash work once you get that set up.

 

I thought u couldn’t put a hitch on a Prius tho?

 

Seems that way in the US. UK gen4 has a capacity of 725kg

 

All full size cars are designed to allow you to put a hitch on because people with disabilities need a way to haul wheelchairs and mobility scooters and you get a lawsuit if you discriminate against them.

 

Nope. Unless US rules are different , in the UK the DVLA manage the capacity of things like towing. Not only is it Illegal to modify an unrated vehicle it also invalidates your insurance.

 

Maybe there's restrictions on towing in UK, but it's there's not going to be a restriction on installing a hitch for non-towing use like a hitch-haul or rack to for a handicapped person to mount their wheelchair or mobility scooter directly to the back of the car.

And as for Toyota Stealerships telling people you can't use the car for towing. My insurance company told me there's no issue, no extra coverage required and they should know because they're the ones who have to pay for towing failures.

What's more all vehicles have heavy duty plates under car on both rear corners for shipping and towing. Those plates are strong enough to hold the vehicle secure if the tow truck or ship tips over. So all you do is weld up or buy a pre-welded hitch/chunk of steal and bolt them to those four big strong bolt holes that go into the frame.

 

Interesting approach. Good luck with that.

 

Good luck?
Why so dismissive and closed minded?

Haven't you ever seen someone's mobility scooter or wheelchair mounted to the back of their vehicle?

I've even seen them mounted to the back of Teslas. This is just basic auto mechanics 101 here, buddy! This isn't a conspiracy or any other kind of chicanery.

 

Nope never seen. Wheelchair or mobility scooter hanging off the back of any car. Must be a US thing. Calling me closed minded will just get you reported.

 

No, not needed for rear mounted. Haven't seen one of those for any setups I've run.

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

Not sure why that would happen. The boost is minimal.
The worse case is over voltage if the engine pushes too much HP. In which case it would throttle back.

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

No, it's not just a US thing. You're basically implying that it's illegal for disable people to drive cars in the UK, but that's simply not true.

And I did mean what I said about you being close-minded. I'm here to learn new things with people and have an open mind, not to be dismissive without doing the research first. So let's take a look shall we:

In less than 30 seconds a quick google search brought me to a company in Yorkshire, England that assists disabled people in setting up their car so they can bring their mobility scooter. And of course disabled people can't just lift the scooter up and put it in the trunk, so here's what they tell their prospective customers:

"There are some differences between scooter/wheelchair accessible cars and other motors on the road. The main one being that cars for mobility scooters and wheelchairs will usually be fitted with a ramp or a lift. This facilitates an easier, safer method of getting in and out of the vehicle. The ramp or lift can be fitted to the side or the back of the car depending on where access is the best." The Best Cars for Mobility Scooters - Yorkshire Care Equipment

 

you are being argumentative and misguided. Reported

 

Everyone I've interacted with who've worked on Prius engine mods have been limited by a very narrow range of parameters due to the car being optimized for fuel efficiency. So soon as you pump more air into the intake then it expects the computers will try to adjust all the other settings and then give up and throw an error code in a matter or seconds. Unlike Honda, there's no reverse engineering of the source code, no piggyback high performance chip to put on the engine ECU. This doesn't mean it's not possible, just that there's not enough people working on cracking Toyota's proprietary source code.