Latest MPG

[hill]

Originally Posted by efusco

Do you have any photos of your grill blocking or can you give a good description of how you undertook it? The EBH clearly makes a big difference for my wife's very short commute, the ICE takes forever, compared to the Prius, to warm up fully without it. I'm convinced grill blocking would help, too, but can't see an easy way to go about it.

Evan, after hearing about 50lbs in your Prius tires, I'm now going to (be cringing as I) ask you what kind of pressures you run in the hyhi tires. BTW i'm putting our Prius higher then the measly 40lbs we've been running.

[ginostef]

I just got my 2008 HiHY and I am only getting 25-28mpg on moderate terrain, mixed driving. I had a 2004 Prius for 4 years, loved it and learned how to get it into the 50s regularly, but I don't have much history on the HiHy. Where do I get a block heater and some kind of monitoring equip to be sure I don't overheat anything if I do some blocking on the radiator/air flow? Anything else I can try - or can you point me to the right place in the forums? Thanks so much -these forums are priceless when it comes to making green, very very green.!!

[JackDodge]

A/C may be set too high. Unlike the Prius, A/C does seem to affect the mileage a little. The usual, check the tire pressure. Doubtful that an engine block heater would do you any good in the summer, although they are available. I haven't gotten one yet. Also, the a/c settings are a little tricky on the HiHy. You should check to make sure that the a/c isn't on when you didn't mean for it to be. One trick that helps in cold weather is to use the Econ mode. It makes driving a little sluggish but helps the car stay longer in EV mode. The EV button is useless in my opinion. Don't use gasoline with 10% ethanol, like Marathon. That said, I don't do anything particularly different with the HiHy from when I had a Prius and I'm currently getting around 32. The HiHy does seem to do better, mileage wise, at freeway speed than the Prius does and not as well at lower speeds such as 35. The HiHy is easier to drive up hill in EV, probably due to the greater mass.

[philmcneal]

WOW finally someone got an EBH for the HiHy! 35 mpg is very encouraging for something that seats 7! and finally a owner that grille blocks a brand new suv you don't see that everyday!

i think the user is using a scangauge, you can monitor engine temp that way, IMO its impossible to overheat if temps are lower than 5 degrees C with a hybrid when your grille blocking... EPICALLY when your robbing heat from the engine to the passenger compartment.

so if you use the EBH, does that guarantee EV mode operation?

[ginostef]

I have an 08 HiHy limited, 4x4, and I struggle to get it to 27mpg - takes a lot of care with the throttle, econ mode, I use it all. I am transitioning from an 04 Prius that I just plain ran the pants off and usually got in the high 40s to low 50s in mpg, so forgive me, but this is hard to get used to.

Where do I get a car chip to monitor temps on the 08 and can I also use an EBH for it? Has anyone tried blocking the radiator on this newer version? If there is an install for the EBH - I'd like to see it as I'm not sure about draining the block etal on this model.

Thanks to anyone who can help me get the mileage up. It's a great SUV, rides extremely well and has a much better interior appointment then the previous models.

Oh yeah - has anyone installed an extra battery in this - like where the third row seats are folded in? What a great car a plug-in HiHY would be!

Thanks everyone!
Gene

[JackDodge]

Originally Posted by ginostef

I have an 08 HiHy limited, 4x4, and I struggle to get it to 27mpg - takes a lot of care with the throttle, econ mode, I use it all. I am transitioning from an 04 Prius that I just plain ran the pants off and usually got in the high 40s to low 50s in mpg, so forgive me, but this is hard to get used to.

Where do I get a car chip to monitor temps on the 08 and can I also use an EBH for it? Has anyone tried blocking the radiator on this newer version? If there is an install for the EBH - I'd like to see it as I'm not sure about draining the block etal on this model.

Thanks to anyone who can help me get the mileage up. It's a great SUV, rides extremely well and has a much better interior appointment then the previous models.

Oh yeah - has anyone installed an extra battery in this - like where the third row seats are folded in? What a great car a plug-in HiHY would be!

Thanks everyone!
Gene

The limited HiHy is heavier and uses more power so you can't achieve what I can in the plain HiHy. Currently, I'm getting 34 and haven't gone below 32 all summer. All of that extra equipment that the Limited has, evidently, has a price. You're not the only one with a Limited that I've heard that from.

[kazots]

I guess I really would like to get mileage in the 60's. But I won't get greedy with my 50's.

[philmcneal]

how can the limited get lower mileage even though it weighs 150 something pounds heavier, unless your using more of the electrical features but ultimately yes all the energy does come from the gasoline tank.

jack you made a good point about being in econ mode when the gasoline engine has to fire up, at least you can idle less gas rather than more. Maybe when econ mode is on the engine knows it doesn't need to work as hard so the engine may shut down earlier?

and im pretty sure how the 3 white accelerator bars work in the way i described it at hybridchat

one bar = efficient cruising rpm
two bars = efficient acceleration rpm
three bars = efficient performance acceleration rpm

so anything above three bars, your KW demands are beyond what the efficient rpm is supported. So frictional losses and fuel enrichment modes occur. If I had to make a bet, beyond three bars is above 2300 RPM (someone with scan gauge plz confim!!!!) Also what is the KW rating when you pass the three bars? can one guess what the number rating is?

Does the N rule in the prius applies to the hihy? enigne off stays off/on

i drove one around a parking lot trying to engage ev mode... not even in 15 degrees C weather... dissapointing, and the poor thing went through 3 engine fireups, all from dead cold since it was only fired up to move a couple of feet, but since our area is small, it takes great caution not to damage a customer's vehicle.

[JackDodge]

Originally Posted by philmcneal

how can the limited get lower mileage even though it weighs 150 something pounds heavier, unless your using more of the electrical features but ultimately yes all the energy does come from the gasoline tank.

jack you made a good point about being in econ mode when the gasoline engine has to fire up, at least you can idle less gas rather than more. Maybe when econ mode is on the engine knows it doesn't need to work as hard so the engine may shut down earlier?

and im pretty sure how the 3 white accelerator bars work in the way i described it at hybridchat

one bar = efficient cruising rpm
two bars = efficient acceleration rpm
three bars = efficient performance acceleration rpm

so anything above three bars, your KW demands are beyond what the efficient rpm is supported. So frictional losses and fuel enrichment modes occur. If I had to make a bet, beyond three bars is above 2300 RPM (someone with scan gauge plz confim!!!!) Also what is the KW rating when you pass the three bars? can one guess what the number rating is?

Does the N rule in the prius applies to the hihy? enigne off stays off/on

i drove one around a parking lot trying to engage ev mode... not even in 15 degrees C weather... dissapointing, and the poor thing went through 3 engine fireups, all from dead cold since it was only fired up to move a couple of feet, but since our area is small, it takes great caution not to damage a customer's vehicle.

I can only speak for my own experience with my own vehicle but during the winter, the econ mode allowed the HiHy to go in to EV mode more readily and kept the mileage from dropping. That's a big help when you don't have an engine block heater which I still haven't ordered. The engine is sluggish but for short distances where slow speeds are necessary, it's not a big deal at all. In the initial miles, before the car warms up, it's critical not to use things like the heater in the winter or the A/C in the summer.

The dealership tells me that my mileage is the best that they've heard so far and they can see my mpg for themselves when I take it in. One Detroit newspaper columnist doesn't believe me when I say I am getting above 32 but won't take me up on my offer to prove it. I'm not the best on this forum at hypermiling but have no trouble exceeding EPA estimates. I know when not to waste energy so from the small group of actual HiHy owners, I may be better than most. If I were to drive a Limited, I may be able to eke out better mpg but I doubt that I'd be able to get what I'm getting with my unLimited HiHy