Real MPG for 17" vs 16" wheels.

If I only got 42-44 I'd cry but it all depends. I just completed a 1700 round trip to Atlanta almost entirely on the Interstates at highway speed and averaged a bit over 50mpg. Short hops, hilly terrain, climate that is too hot or too cold, and low tire pressure will all hurt fuel economy.

 

Do you mean the Prius v wagon or a regular liftback Prius with trim level five?

I assume you mean the new Prius v wagon since the standard lift back doesn't come equipped with 16" wheels.

Obviously 17s will hurt mpg more than 16s so your goal will be harder to achieve. With a good commute and a little bit of fuel efficient driving I don't think your goal is out of reach even with the 17s. Unless you drive over 20,000 miles a year I don't think the mpg loss is enough to miss out on the 17s if you think it would make you happier to have them. On the other hand, 16s don't look that much different. So it's up to you. If you like to play video games and get the highest score possible then stick with the 16s. If you want better handling and a little more bling then go with the 17s.

 

Just thought I would throw out there....I am on my 4th tank of gas and each has improved. The last two tanks have been in the 48-51 mpg range.

I have a prius v package 5 (so 17") without the ATP.

On my regular commute I can sit in the 50-55, however the minute I jump on a highway/interstate it seems to weigh it into the 40's.

So far - very pleased.

 

The difference will be more like 2mpg if I were to hazard an educated guess. That all depends on driving style and tire choice of course. The wrong tires can really wreck your mpg regardless of wheel size.

 

Which stats do you mean? All of the modifications done to my car are listed in my signature. I own a 2005 so it is not directly comparable to the v you want. Do you mean my commute stats?

I think your commute will work well for the Prius and you should be able to achieve at least EPA ratings. If you slow down to 65mph you will pick up a few mpg and if you learn how to glide when using the off ramps and glide when approaching stop signs and stop lights then you can pick up a few more mpg. Learning to glide whenever possible can help bring your numbers up even if you decide to continue driving at 70mph normally.

Since I have yet to try and hypermile a v I cannot say with certainty what your numbers should be but all of the Prii models respond the same to simple hypermiling techniques.

 

My dads prius V wagon (not sure of trim level) with 16in, he just got his best tank ever at 58mpg UK (48.3us). He doesn't do any special techniques except not driving too fast (65mph freeway). Regular tire pressure. It's been pretty warm here this week which would explain the best tank ever now. For this same week I was getting around 50mpg us on my gen II prius (but mostly highway for me vs his city).

 

Great info. My friend has th 2012 V wagon, 3, 16" wheels I have the V, 5, ATP, "17. Here are the results from us both: she has filled up 5 times since December avgs: heater on most days lowest 38 mpg, jan she was more hypermilling to 43-46. For my V5 avg 42-44 range without using Eco yet. Stay tuned

 

I have the Prius v 5 with 17" wheels. After about 1,800 miles I am averaging 36 - 38 mpg. Get better mpg on highway than city. Generally do only short city commute or short runs around town. Have only seen the 40+ mpg on the highway. So far I am disappointed. Not sure if it is the wheels.

 

The 17" tires will hurt but short trips hurt the most. Try combining your trips as much as possible and learn how to glide up to stop signs as opposed to keeping your foot on the throttle until the last minute then jamming on the brake like most people do.

 

Also, just adjust how you drive in general. For instance, being a new Prius driver in general, I drove the Prius v like I did my Sentra. I accelerated hard for the most part and pushed at higher speeds. There is a link from someone here about Hypermiling, and basically, he stated for most city driving, the max speed you want to hit is around 33 or 35... Highway, 71. Adjust on how you accelerate as well as just how you drive on the road. You don't always have to keep 'throttling' in some cases, coasting/gliding is better as you don't need to keep the engine going to maintain a speed or slow down. Slow acceleration is also a recommendation, as the 'power' indication on the MFD is there for you to judge how much you want the system to 'push'. If you are constantly hitting the Orange, you are just burning fuel more. If you accelerate staying closer to the the top or near top of the green indications, you will usually burn less fuel. Dropping below the mid green is fine and dropping below the midline is better when you are getting speed from downhill but don't want to decelerate.

Most cars work 'similarly' where a lot of the wasted fuel is 're-accelerating' because you are constantly pushing and then slamming the brakes to slow down in situations where all you need to do is just ease up on the acceleration and let the normal drag do the job.

When I had my Nissan, a lot of people I talked to recommended when you are slowing down, don't 'ride' the brakes, just let off the gas when you see traffic slowing down. Apply light pressure to the brakes in pulses, because you want to slow down, not abruptly stop. By doing this, you don't wear your brakes as badly over time. This is true even now, but more so as it helps your car regain mpg given it is a dual drive system. The Electric motor is still going to do a fair share of the work, and in city conditions, as you stay below the midline on power, you can get better mpg in city while it switches to EV mode for speeds under 30 mph.

Some suggest doing 'bursts' in acceleration, where you put just enough power to break the standing inertia resistance and allow a lighter continuous nudge, but in some cases, just staying with below 'full push' acceleration in city conditions, you might see an improvement on your MPG overall. I know right now, I went from 33.7 for the 2.5 weeks of driving and right now, seeing ~38 mpg after 2 days of readjusting my driving habits.

 

I have 17" wheels and I'm on my 3rd tank since I bought the car in January.
Spouse drives the car daily. She somehow manages to get 41-42 average per trip computer -40 actual (miles driven/gas pumped).
Tires at 35 psi. Live in hilly area.
When I drive on highway - I put cruse on where possible. Looks like the car manages power/mpg better than my right foot.

 

The dashboard readout on my Prius V 5 with 17" wheels said 41.9mpg over a 269 roundtrip mainly flat terrain in Los Angeles with non agressive but not hypermiling, averaging 70mph in the "Fast" lane.
But when I filled the tank up to the brim with 7.108 gallons, the calculation came out to be 37.84mpg.
Why the difference?