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Is 500 miles correct for a full tank?

Discussion in 'Prime Fuel Economy & EV Range' started by Joshua Ventura, May 26, 2020.

  1. Joshua Ventura

    Joshua Ventura Junior Member

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    I just bought a brand new 2020 Prime and the first tank the dealer had was quoted at 490 miles and today I filled up and the most I got for the range is 500 mile of gas.

    My EV range is at 20 miles but when I used EV with no A/C running, it dropped quickly.

    Does it need time to adjust or is that what I am normally looking at?
     
    #1 Joshua Ventura, May 26, 2020
  2. schja01

    schja01 One of very few in Chicagoland

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    It takes a while and it will also vary depending on outside temp/weather. That’s why we call it the “guess-o-meter”. congrats on the new car.

    suggestion: update your profile to reflect your current car
     
    #2 schja01, May 26, 2020
  3. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    congrats!
    it's constantly adjusting based on a number of different factors. and the dealer tank is usually not quite full.

    keep track of you actual mpg's at the pump and do a test route on ev only that you can replicate anytime you want to compare to new.

    all the best!(y)
     
    #3 bisco, May 26, 2020
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  4. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    Sounds about right. It’s different from the regular Prius because I find we only run the engine in the Prime when we’re on the highway or when we just run out of EV range so they tend to be in situations where the engine can’t take advantage the hybrid system.

    IOW, I wouldn’t worry about the shorter DTE range compared to a regular Prius. If you wanted a higher number, then just run your Prime like a regular Prius for several tanks. But then that defeats the purpose of having that EV range.
     
    #4 Tideland Prius, May 26, 2020
  5. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

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    Estimated Distance Till Empty (DTE), shown on your dash is closely related to mpg on the last tank. From the dealer, it probabbly have very little record to refer to if it has not been driven. You can check in this thread and compare with yours. What is your DTE after fill-up? | PriusChat Generally speaking anywhere between 400-600 miles on DTE is normal. Note: DTE does not include any miles driven on pure EV mode. It is strictly HV mode estimate.

    EV range is also an estimated distance till the EV portion of the traction battery goes 0%. It usually starts low, but with practice and conservative driving it will go up. Especially in warmer climate it is easy to reach 30 miles on the EV range. You can check in this thread and compare with yours. Any one else getting more than 30 per charge? | PriusChat EV range is estimated mainly on your recent EV drive efficiency miles/kWh shown on your Eco Log, but other factors such as temperature and distance driven on EV will affect the estimate.
     
    #5 Salamander_King, May 26, 2020
    Last edited: May 26, 2020
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  6. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    The estimated fuel range is calculated from recent MPG history of your driving.

    But a new car has no long driving history, so the calculation starts with only the initialization figures programmed in at the factory, which are just placeholders that look somewhat reasonable and typical. It will start changing as soon as someone starts driving it and starts overwriting those placeholders with real numbers from the road.

    So it does take a while to adjust to your driving style and conditions and patterns. And even after it adjusts to you, it will still change as seasonal MPG conditions (weather, fuel blend, etc.) change. And it will change some more if you change driving patterns, e.g. take it on a long road trip after having used it as a commuter car for a long time.
     
    #6 fuzzy1, May 26, 2020
  7. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    ^ both our 2016 and Prime had 800 miles DTE from the factory lol. They probably shouldn’t make it that high. Even in the 2016, 800 miles is very hard to achieve in North America with its higher speed limits.
     
    #7 Tideland Prius, May 26, 2020
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  8. covrc

    covrc Junior Member

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    Sounds about right. I’ve had my 2020 PP for Three Weeks. Received it with Full Tank. Commute 29 miles each way 5x week. Plug in at work 80% of time but not at home and got 812 miles on my first tank. My second tank is 1/2 full and looks like the same numbers.
     
    #8 covrc, Jun 7, 2020
  9. eatriceyo

    eatriceyo Member

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    i average about 549 miles for a full tank of gas
     
    #9 eatriceyo, Jun 9, 2020
  10. Joshua Ventura

    Joshua Ventura Junior Member

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    The reason I ask is because I feel like I’m using my fuel too much.

    I been driving on ECO mode and being light on the gas pedal. I get 507 miles on a total trip but that is consistently of me charging and using gasoline.

    My next test would be to fill up from empty to full without using any EV charging to see my total from Full to Empty.

    It says I am suppose to be getting 515 miles just on gas alone.

    I am going to try on my next tank hopefully when I finish it, to see how far I can go. It just feels like I’m personally losing gas quicker without the A/C on or speeding.
     
    #10 Joshua Ventura, Jun 29, 2020
  11. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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    No need to run through a full tank. If you want to see the mpg without EV, just:

    1. Fill it up till pump shuts off, stop. Note odometer reading (it should display whenever the car's trnned off, for about 20 seconds.)
    2. Drive the car till it's somewhat low (no need to run it to vapours).
    3. Repeat step one.
    4. Note gas required to refill.
    4. Do the following calculation:

    (Current Odo reading minus previous Odo reading) divided by (gas required to refill)

    The above will be your miles per gallon (mpg) for that tank. Repeat for a few tanks.

    It doesn't hurt to reset a trip meter at each fillup, it is a good practice. Still, if you want to be bullet-proof, just use the trip meter for a check, rely on the odo values.
     
    #11 Mendel Leisk, Jun 29, 2020
  12. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    I don't care for the "supposed to" phrase for this. I prefer "guesstimate" or "forecast". And just like a weather forecast, this distance forecast will sometimes change substantially while you are out there making use of it.
     
    #12 fuzzy1, Jun 29, 2020
  13. benagi

    benagi Active Member

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    Could be a lot of variables here. Terrain, altitude, temperature, speed, etc.
     
    #13 benagi, Jun 30, 2020
  14. Joshua Ventura

    Joshua Ventura Junior Member

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    Okay, so I did my test.


    My fill up from empty to full, quoted me 509 of range.


    I did this test on ECO mode, no EV, 0%.

    I went from fully tank to virtually 0 miles on my display. I went 4 miles over the 0 miles DTE reading.


    The total range was 489 miles on a full tank. No speeding or pushing on the pedal too hard.


    It said I averaged a total of 52.7 MPG.


    In total, I put $25.56 of gas at $2.659 a gallon for a total of 9.614 gallons.


    My starting mileage was 3,911 to 4,400. July 6 - July 13.


    Is this normal for a Prius Prime? Range?
     
    #14 Joshua Ventura, Jul 13, 2020
  15. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

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    Yes, it's perfectly normal. Please note DTE is only an estimate, mainly from the last tank of your HV milage. Also, when the DTE reaches --miles (zero) there still are some reserve gas left in the tank anywhere from 1 to 2 gal. In your case, 11.4gal tank was filled with 9.614gal, thus you still had ~1.78gal of gas remaining in your tank when you reached 489miles. You could have gone another ~100miles if you dare to go dead empty gas tank.
     
    #15 Salamander_King, Jul 13, 2020
    Last edited: Jul 13, 2020
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