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Warnning: MPG gauge meter is inaccurate for all prius

Discussion in 'Prius c Fuel Economy' started by NewYorkan, Feb 26, 2014.

  1. NewYorkan

    NewYorkan Junior Member

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    This is the fact that the number on the display screen showed higher mpg than actual. There are threads and articles about this. If you don't believe, calculate it yourself, but don't post result here. There is already a thread of 50 pages of people tested it. I cann't believe that car company can get away with this for so long. This problem was known since 2007 or earlier.
     
  2. Easy Rider

    Easy Rider Active Member

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    Old news. The sky is not falling.
    The same "defect" exists in almost all cars equipped with an onboard computer that tries to track gas mileage.
    It was the same with my Malibu and my current Elantra.
    The Malibu seemed to have the biggest over-shoot and my C the least, based on limited experience.

    You may not like it but getting upset about it accomplishes nothing useful.......as it is not likely to change.
     
  3. NewYorkan

    NewYorkan Junior Member

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    Meter and gauge are electrical. It can be adjust easily. Giving false information is illegal. Especially, they knew about it for years. Unlike technical error, if you give out false information on purpose, that is scam.
     
  4. Easy Rider

    Easy Rider Active Member

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    You are entitled to your opinion but the fact IS that the mechanism/electronics used just isn't that accurate.

    You have done your civic duty by posting it here and bringing it to our attention .......again.

    If you wish to argue about it more, I suggest that you contact a lawyer and file a court action.

    Done.
     
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  5. miscrms

    miscrms Plug Envious Member

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    Considering all the variables; fuel pressure, flow rate, variable injector timing and the fact that the system was (as I understand) intended to monitor emissions compliance in a fairly coarse way rather than estimate mpg I'm actually pretty impressed that its as good as it is, and seems to have gotten more accurate over time/generations.
     
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  6. NewYorkan

    NewYorkan Junior Member

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    Contact lawyer and file a court action is not going to happen due to the damage is minimal. You can get couple pennies if you win. 2nd, not many people know about the problem. Most people are just hop in the car and go to their destination. I don't see this will ever happen.
    What supprising me is that the goverment let this slide by for many years. Car company hype their mpg to display a bogus number in front of drivers to make their car looked better. Right now, most cars are 5% higher than actual milage. Like you said, some cars are as high as 20%. This is just outlaw and illegal.
     
  7. DKTVAV

    DKTVAV Active Member

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    There was a case about Honda Civic Hybrid a while back all over the news, don't remember who won.
     
  8. NewYorkan

    NewYorkan Junior Member

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    Wow, really? I would think that you rather go flip the buger. Probably making more than the time spend in court. lol
     
  9. SwhitePC

    SwhitePC Active Member

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    so far my prissy has met or exceeded the epa estimate, so I don't really care if the meter is accurate or not
     
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  10. NewYorkan

    NewYorkan Junior Member

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    Yup, the actual mpg is good. They don't need to put in inaccurate meter. If they lower the meter reading about 5% is right on the money. I hate the fact that they have inaccrute meter in every car, like a broken meter. 2nd, they don't tell you that it is about 5% higher, so basicly they lie to all the drivers. 3rd, they know the problem, so they did it on purpose to hype their cars as advertisement. The concept of lying to get benifit in the business world is just not acceptable.
     
  11. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Our 2010 regular prius consistantly overestimates fuel economy by an average 8%. The range is maybe 6 to 9 %. My 2 cents: that's not due to vagaries of the electronics, it's a deliberate ploy by Toyota, to cheer up owners and spread bogus mpg claims.

    Considering they've got the mpg game cornered, maybe they should stop with this nonsense?
     


  12. Buger flipping is fun, even Obama does it:

    [​IMG]
     
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  13. San_Carlos_Jeff

    San_Carlos_Jeff Active Member

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    Calculated for the 106k miles I owned my 2005 Prius the dash mpg was 2.68% optimistic. That's close enough in my book.
     
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  14. canta

    canta Member

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    That happens in our world.

    this the samething on most car Ads regardless of brands, such as: We achieve 30MPG (or 40MPG Highways) more on our top rated selections.

    well, My first "ugly" Hyundai Accent 1996 (sold years back) can achieve 32 MPG mixed local & Highways.
    I just blindly compare ads for Mazda 3 or Yariz or other comparable cars:D.

    I would bow-down when they can achieve 50MPG-60MPG on gas/petrol cars.

    cheers..
     
  15. Tony D

    Tony D Active Member

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    I don't really care what the display shows, I calculate te MPG te old fashioned way.

    I'd say most Prius owners will do the same tbh
     
  16. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i can't believe this, i feel so dirty...
     
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  17. JP2085

    JP2085 Junior Member

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    Mine's pretty darn close. I also hand calculate every time and I have had several that matched the meter to the tenth. Sometimes it's over a little, sometimes it's under a little. So factor all that in, I'd say it's pretty good.
     
  18. Stevie

    Stevie Junior Member

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    so lets get this right, I'm in a automobile with a fuel tank, a petrol engine, and a odometer, and even though there maybe some fluctuations due too, fuel evaporation/expansion/contraction/quality, air temperature/ humidity/quality, tyre pressure, wear, road surfaces, engine wear, variable wind resistance, different engine/vehicle loads, constant changing condition of engine and fuel system, (air and fuel filters, spark plugs, injectors, state of inlet and exhaust components etc), fuel being a liquid, therefore sloshing around in the tank causing inconsistent fuel gauge readings, a CVT transmission (without a constant direct drive to the wheels) the reported MPG on the in car display may be incorrect ?
    they are taking a liberty, I tell you what you design a system that can give an accurate reading for all these variables andi will make you a Zillionare
     
  19. JimN

    JimN Let the games begin!

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    Oh, and your new precise reporting system has to be as cheap as the current one. Good luck with that.

    There is an obvious solution for Toyota: Remove the offending displays. Ford had a good, simple solution. Measure the fuel level by lifting the passenger seat and inserting the stick.
     
  20. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    Says who? What law or federal regulation governs the accuracy of MPG displays? I am aware of none.

    This isn't like the speedometer, where some jurisdictions forbid the OEM display from reading lower (but not higher) than actual speed. Nor is it like the odometer, where some class action tort lawyers made a bundle over fraud claims regarding displays that read over (but not under) actual miles, causing some customers to be wrongfully denied some warranty claims.
    That concerned actual MPG compared to the EPA MPG label. Both of those are different subjects than this thread.