Consumer Reports gets only 67 mpg with Hymotion Prius

[PeakOilGarage]

Consumer Reports purchased a Hymotion battery, then went out and drove it like a newbie idiot. They achieved 67 mpg...

This borders on fraudulent reporting.

Consumer Reports only gets 67 mpg with Hymotion Peak Oil Garage

I disagree with their results...

[jelloslug]

Originally Posted by PeakOilGarage

Consumer Reports purchased a Hymotion battery, then went out and drove it like a newbie idiot. They achieved 67 mpg...

This borders on fraudulent reporting.

Consumer Reports only gets 67 mpg with Hymotion Peak Oil Garage

I disagree with their results...

Stuff like this is exactly why I don't explicitly trust Consumer Reports. I take them with a grain of salt just like any other info.

[bwilson4web]

Hi,

I bought the "Consumer Reports Cars Best & Worst for '09" a review of "268" models. From this and analysis of their January 2009 issue, I realized:

• handling heavily weighted - Consumer Reports has a handling protocol and this has a high weighting in their vehicle evaluation. This includes stopping as well as avoidance manouvers. Remember the 'stiffener plate?' That is the type of after market product that would correct a weakness in handling that Consumer Reports is likely to detect.
• electronic stability control - is very highly rated in Consumer Reports and they marked the Prius down because they believe it to be an option, not mandatory. It doesn't matter if 95% of all Prius are sold with electronic stability control, Consumer Reports will downgrade the vehicle. Also, the Prius came in only 4-stars in rear passenger safety, another negative in their safety rating system.

I am not defending their standard but rather trying to point out this seems to be why their ratings for the Prius look weak in some areas. With luck, the 3d generation will stiffen the frame so stiffening plates are no longer needed and make electronic stability control standard. Perhaps side, rear air bags might improve accident performance.

Bob Wilson

[ibcs]

My guess is they had the Prius cold outside temperature of 10 F on the interstate doing about 75 MPH. That's about the only way the Prius with Hymotion will get those results. I would like to see the test data to be able to comment to the editor.

---Kent

[alanh]

The article is here. They do note

Your results will vary

Because the converted Prius gets its best mileage while using the lithium-ion battery, drivers who can recharge frequently—at work, for example—will be able to extend their travel distance beyond the 35-mile sweet spot while getting optimum fuel economy. But finding outlets while on the go could be a challenge.

People who use fuel-efficient driving techniques will probably get better gas mileage than the average in our tests.

Their test cycle is described here

[oregonmike]

I was shown this article by my aunt who's subscribes to consumer reports. I found it very discomforting and shows a lack of understanding of the car and its abilities by the reporter. If you want to go as far to say they are closed-minded and uninformed of the world, I might agree; however they are just another corporate giant out to make $. My only real complaint about them is that you must consider their "Reports" with a grain of salt, their only 1 opinion amongst a ocean of opinions out there about any consumer products.

[bestmapman]

Over several years consumer reports has shown to be a biased publication not worthy of trust to evaluate a product in an informed way. This report on the Hymotion is just the most recent example of this.

[bwilson4web]

Originally Posted by bestmapman

Over several years consumer reports has shown to be a biased publication not worthy of trust to evaluate a product in an informed way. This report on the Hymotion is just the most recent example of this.

Is there another publication that has been more fair than Consumer Reports? I may not always like the outcome of their tests but I have a hard time faulting their methodology.

If there is something about our hybrids that make them appear to perform poorly in the Consumer Reports test, the right answer is to 'fix the hybrid.' This in turn makes the fix available to a wider range of lay-drivers who are also ignorant of the subtle aspects of peak performance.

We are in the 1915s-1920s of hybrid vehicle performance. We've seen two of three generations of Prius in the USA (the first never arrived.) There is a necessary learning curve on how to integrate the hybrid control laws and designs with how people actually drive. Let the machine do it so even my non-technical wife can get good mileage. <wink>

I just wish I knew their highway mileage route. I could then see if there is some way to replicate it in Alabama.

Bob Wilson

[daniel]

I have a very high opinion of CU. I think they are the most unbiased testing organization out there. PeakOil feels that driving the car like a "newbie idiot" is false advertising, but remember that CU is a publication for the ordinary consumer, not the skilled aficionado, and that they test all their cars under the same standards.

What I find noteworthy, and I doubt anybody can find fault with, is their finding that while the HyMotion conversion yields significant increase in mpg while the additional battery has charge, its added weight reduces the mpg after that period. In other words, this PHEV out-performs the stock Prius for short commutes, but under-performs the stock Prius for road trips. Once the lithium battery is depleted, it does not participate in HSD operation, and is not available to recuperate the energy of long downhills, for example. Presumably a PHEV from Toyota will change this.

A Prius-savvy hyper-miler will get much better mpg numbers, and stretch the PHEV range beyond what the CU protocol achieves, but will still see a reduction in FE after the battery is depleted, compared with what s/he achieves with a stock Prius. This tells me that in my case, a HyMotion conversion would be a bad idea, since I only use my Prius for longer trips.

[cwerdna]

Another article on this (that I stumbled across today) "Consumer Reports: Prius Plug-In Kit Gets Nowhere Near Maker's 100+ MPG Claim" Green Car Advisor. At least you can comment there...