Phase Two - Drive Normal

Over 7500 miles I have done the standard "OMG, I have a Prius! I have to always see how good I can get my mpgs!" Best tank was 60.7 mpg. Been there, done that. Now what.

I put down the Kool-Aid and turned off all the screens. Still get 51-53mpg over a tank.

It can be done. FYI.

I totally get this. I probably won't ever turn my screens off, but I definitely pick and choose the trips/times when I want to really focus on hypermiling and attempts at 60+ mpg versus when I just need to get somewhere without obsessing about the car.

The Kool Aid still intrigues me, but you can't live on Kool Aid alone ;-)

I wish there was a "funny" button in this forum ;-)

That's where I am. Mileage is so good without making a big effort that I don't.

Some fuel saving techniques stay with you even if you aren't thinking about it. Your mind will never purge itself completely of the Kool-Aid.

I'm not knocking those that do make a game of getting obscenely good fuel economy, I learn from them.

I find most anytime I'm a passenger with someone who's not aware of hypermiling, I find them incredibly lead-footed, invariably well over the posted limits, tromp the gas, then lean on the brake, sad.

Just using a gentler, more laid-back driving style is dead simple, doesn't take much concentration. That's what sticks with me, even when I'm not trying.

Yep, Same here. My next interstate trip, no trying to achieve unbelievable mileage. Just going to have fun.
Dan

Still in "Honeymoon" mode here. Both the wife and I are trying to beat each other, MPG-wise. As of today, I have a 0.1 mpg lead.

I am paying less attention to the screens and still get sixty to seventy mpg's around town. When I mention that to friends they look at me like I have the colloquial lobsters growing out of my ears.

You guys have fun with that and be sure to wave if you pass me. I will never stop trying to do better. Well maybe if I beat Wayne Gerdes AND he proclains me the new hypermiling king. Then and only then will ok with not getting better lol.

If you really want to be lazy about it, get a plug-in.

Go, Revan! There's no reason NOT to try to do better if you are having fun at the same time. How can saving money, helping the environment, and having fun be anything but a good thing?! I'll be that smug car cruising along behind or beside you, laid back, enjoying the drive, grinning ear-to-ear as I watch my mileage climb.

Saving gas is entertaining and keeps me driving slower and supposedly safer . But... watching the gauges and the ScanGuage all the time and having my eyes off the roadway scares me....

That's why I prefer the energy monitor screen, I can see it from the corner of my eye without having to compromise the attention I am giving to the road around me. I can also feel when the car changes from electric to ICE mode, without having to look.

An idea ... two electrically conductive wristbands that are tied into the gasoline fuel pump so that each time it pumps you get a little reminder, the faster the pump operates the more reminders you get. a little "pain from the pump".

I have to avert my eyes out the passenger window when my husband is driving. I put the screen into Eco for him and say "just stay out of the red zone." He complies for maybe one acceleration and then it's as if we never had the conversation. I just cringe as the MPGs plummet. At least he doesn't drive the car very often.

I will let you decide where to place the wristbands then.

LOL - I like the way you think, John! Now I have to destroy this thread so hubby doesn't read it over my shoulder! ;-)

You know part of the problem with people distracted with the phone is that their staring straight ahead and yet are not 'watching' the road. Their minds are occupied elsewhere. Even when heading out to work at 6am, my mind instantly is absorbed by this constant fuel mileage awarness mode. I have to admit when not driving the Prius, 'just driving' is a less absorbing and more relaxing mode. Anticipating or keeping the EV mode ON with traffic is a challenge.

It comes much more naturally to me, PruisAz, as I have always been one who is very "in tune" with the sounds and feelings a car generates. In the months I have had my C, I have not once had a moment of "oh crap" because I was concentrating on mileage instead of the road or traffic. When I drive, it's as if the car becomes an extension of myself. Difficult to describe, really.