Hi david..., I am suprised you were sold on the 50/50 ratings of the car, without finding out what that meant. It means, the car got 50/50 on the EPA test. Is your drive similar to the EPA test? I would doubt it. Route selection has a dramatic effect on Prius mileage. Find a route where the stops are either few, or short, for the first 10 minutes. If you cannot do that, then the block heater is the next best thing.