Improved MPG by removing seat

I've wondered about this a few times. I use my car almost exclusively for commuting alone. I rarely have any need for the passenger or rear seats.

Just how difficult is it to remove the passenger seat and the backs/cushions of the rear seats?

Just how much weight could I drop from the car by doing so?

Anything else nonessential I can leave in my garage?

I probably wouldn't bother removing the seats if it was going to take more than 15 minutes to replace them (for the occasional time when I need to accommodate passengers.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(zenMachine @ Jul 25 2007, 04:45 PM) [snapback]485001[/snapback]</div>

Zenmachine, did you notice any increase in the ambient temperature of the car, I wonder if we're talking not just about weight, but a general cooling of the battery compartment through convection (e.g., A/C), hmmm?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(zenMachine @ Jul 25 2007, 05:20 PM) [snapback]485029[/snapback]</div>

What about the folding seat backs on the rear seats? Easily removable? Light/Heavy?

 

Six mpg gain by removing a seat and adding weight back in? Yikes... you don't REALLY think it is the removed seat causing this gain, do you? Over how many tanks? How are you measuring it?

It would seem that if we all went on a diet and lost a few pounds that we could all gain six mpg. Or even easier, just don't fill the gas tank all the way. Leave it two gallons down and you'll get the same benefit. When I overload my car with four passengers and gear, I lose one or two mpg at most. That's with the addition of maybe 800 pounds over normal. Call me a skeptic... but really, I can't figure out a way to make a seat removal = six mpg.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(darelldd @ Jul 25 2007, 06:38 PM) [snapback]485035[/snapback]</div>

I saw a stat about three months ago that listed how many gallons of gas per year were used to transport the extra weight people have. It was a huge number.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Malarkey @ Jul 25 2007, 07:03 PM) [snapback]485051[/snapback]</div>

I AM SO PLEASED to know there are other Prius owners who are getting mid- to upper-40s mpg. When I first joined this group, I was stunned to read amazing 60 and 70 mpg reports, with screen displays to boot, while I was doing around 42-45, up to a one-time high of 52. Today, I'm happy with the mileage my '06 gets, but dred winter, when it sometimes plummets into the mid-20s in -20 F all-night in the cold temps.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(zenMachine @ Jul 25 2007, 04:09 PM) [snapback]485054[/snapback]</div>

Warmer weather has much more potential to improve mileage, actually. Is your improvement over several full tanks, or are you just talking about a daily difference?

Even if the difference were 60 pounds, that is an insignificant percentage of the weight of the vehicle! It would stagger me to find that it makes any detectable difference!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(zenMachine @ Jul 25 2007, 07:09 PM) [snapback]485054[/snapback]</div>

Posted to the wrong comment earlier (repeat to the right one): I AM SO PLEASED to know there are other Prius owners who are getting mid- to upper-40s mpg. When I first joined this group, I was stunned to read amazing 60 and 70 mpg reports, with screen displays to boot, while I was doing around 42-45, up to a one-time high of 52. Today, I'm happy with the mileage my '06 gets, but dred winter, when it sometimes plummets into the mid-20s in -20 F all-night in the cold temps.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Malarkey @ Jul 25 2007, 04:03 PM) [snapback]485051[/snapback]</div>

And just think of what an insignificant amount of weight that the human cargo adds to a typical car. If we can save energy by losing body weight, imagine what could be possible by getting all the single-driver 6,000+ pound vehicles off the road!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(zenMachine @ Jul 25 2007, 04:45 PM) [snapback]485001[/snapback]</div>

I'd like to believe that removing the seat was responsible for the mpg gain, but it seems a little much for just that amount of weight, doesn't it?

Let us know if the increase is temporary or continues from tank to tank.

 

I was going to hold off on my MPG test results, but my MPG on this last tank with about ¼ left to go has gone from about 49 MPG on the last tank and 47 MPG average before that to around 53 MPG now.
Over the last few tanks I’ve upped the air pressure to 40 PSI in the tires, changed the oil to synthetic at 2,500 miles and this last tank added 92 octane gas.
I have slowed the driving on the HOV in the AM, because there is not much traffic in southern Va at 6:30 AM on HOV and I have the special fuels plate .
I do not think any one change is making a difference other than slowing the interstate driving from 65 to 60 when I can, but I will keep testing.
I do not think the seat would make much of a change…

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(chuck kershner @ Jul 25 2007, 07:30 PM) [snapback]485069[/snapback]</div>

I totally agree I struggle to keep it at 45 most of the time, and im really happy when it hits above that. Perhaps all these people raging about 60 to 70 have ev buttons?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(fairclge @ Jul 25 2007, 08:05 PM) [snapback]485105[/snapback]</div>

I believe tp makes a difference. You are on the right track. I don't believe the synthetic oil produces any noticeable results but will defer to the oil experts. Using 92 octane on a regular basis is just a waste. The ICE runs fine on 87. If you had contaminated gas adding the 92 would have increased the overall average for the tank and would have helped--once. Steady and slower speed probably made the most difference. You may be able to pick up a couple more mpg by dropping your speed, increasing your tp, blocking your upper grill, and using the EBH.

The posters with the 60+ mpg averages tend to have these conditions in common:

Lower speed limits (local roads at 40-45mph)
EBH (to eliminate the awful 1st five minutes) and blocked grill (to retain heat--ICE runs less often)
higher tp (42/40 minimum)

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(SureValla @ Jul 25 2007, 05:11 PM) [snapback]485107[/snapback]</div>

In general, the EV button reduced gasoline mileage. The EV button is useful for many things, but it is not a magic mileage increaser - all energy comes from gasoline, and charging the battery with the ICE before using it for traction power is a net loss of energy.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(SureValla @ Jul 25 2007, 07:11 PM) [snapback]485107[/snapback]</div>

Nah, just better driving conditions. I get my >50 by driving 95% on the expressway and just using cruise control set exactly at the speed limit (55mph around here) and driving 40+ miles per trip.

I agree that a 6mpg improvment is more likely due to warmer weather and other factors than removing the seat. I've wodered how much the seats and seat backs weigh and how easily they can be removed (along with other stuff). If you could get 300 lbs out of the car, you'd drop the weight by 10%. As has already been mentioned people see about 1 or 2 mpg change with the addition of passengers and gear.