Who drives his c like a non-hybrid car? And what MPG do you get?

I am used to higher powered cars. My other car is a classic 71 Chevy Monte Carlo with a 402 Quadrajet. Very fast and about 7-8 MPG. I am used to utilizing the throttle the way I want and not conservative.

When I got the C3, I had a lot of strange looks from my friends and family. They were all trying to figure out how many days it would last before I complained.

I don't drive the C like a hybrid. I drive it like any car I have owned. Quick off the line on a start, and up to speed. I don't baby the car at all on acceleration.

That being said, I get after 1000 miles from buying it, 49.2 MPG. This is with a 5.7 miles mixed drive to work and a 5.7 miles mixed drive from work. Most of the speeds are 40-50 MPH with a lot of red lights and quick acceleration. I live in the south and we utilize Highways a lot (I-10) to get around. So most of the driving that is not back and forth to work is 75-80 MPH driving.

I think the reason I liked the C was that I could drive it the way I was accoustomed to and didn't have to modify my driving style to get high milage. After 31 years of driving, I don't think there is a lot that will change my driving style .

My biggest challenge at the moment is trying to remember where the gas tank side is. I have only filled it twice so far and each time I have been wrong. I think I might have to put an idiot sticker on the dash somewhere for myself to remind me as I so rarely need fuel.

Your son's expenses related to fuel are going to go down. He will pay a premium over a gas only car to start. The premium you pay to start will be offset by the fuel you save over time. Biggest bet will be do you think gas will go up in the long run, or down. With the economies around the world in a slowdown, it is actually down at the moment. I don't anticipate that staying that way for the next 3 years that I took a loan for. I expect gas to continue to rise over time.

 

They thought of that. On the fuel guage, next to the little fuel pump symbol there's a triangle. That points to the side of the car where the tank door is.

On my old Corolla they made this a bit more obvious by saying "FUEL DOOR" but it looked pretty ugly, so I prefer this new, more subtle approach.

If you forget there's always a cruder technique... pull the lever to pop the door, then check your side mirrors.

 

I keep up with traffic - commutes of 10 miles one way - sometimes 25 miles one way. Traffic here is bad so average speed is low. But some stretches of 65 mph.

The only thing I do is to feather the gas pedal sometimes - let up and barely push on it. Those who say to accelerate quickly are correct - get up to speed and stay there as long as possible.

I don't really notice much difference between normal and ECO but my right leg is kinda numb anyway (back problem).

MPG is slowly going up. Fuelly average is creeping up every month now. MPG has definitely improved since I hit 5000 miles. Fuelly MPG and the car display differ by about 3 MPG. Right now the C tells me I'm averaging 52 to 54 MPG - Fuelly lists 50.3.

Only time I got lower 40s was when I had a Exacto knife blade in one of my tires. TPM finally came on and I got the tire replaced under road hazard warranty. That knife blade really knocked down my average MPG and it took a while to recover. Even then - the C was averaging about 43 MPG with one tire down around 20 PSI. When I installed the little spare tire it kicked the MPG up above 50 while it was on.

One time my C held 70 mpg for almost 20 miles - on the way home from cousin's house - several hundred feet elevation drop and then hit the freeway. For once the traffic was averaging 50 to 55 mph almost all the way home. MPG reading held at 80+ during the downhill then stayed at 70 MPG for most of the way home. Only had a couple thousand miles on the car at that point. Strangely I wasn't using ECO that day.

YMMV

 

Tom,

I have only had my Pc4 for a week; however, I just got 61.5 mpg driving for 46 minutes in 55 mile zone and drove 55 mph ... in town tried to drive it carefully ... but mostly I drive it like a regular car and overall I am getting 46 mpg ... at 70 mph ... I got about 43 mph ... it is still way better than any other car ... even my 4 cylinder Camry which averaged 28.5 mpg so it is all relevant ...

Just enjoy the car since you will be getting way better than most everyone around you ...

 

I used to drive pretty aggressively but like others have said, since getting the c I have learned to drive a little more conservatively. I slow down sooner by putting my foot off the gas and break earlier. That being said, I find the acceleration in ECO mode to be too weak so I tend to drive it in 'normal' mode. On average I'm getting 5.2 L/100km or 45 mpg. It's not the best and in recent months it's been getting worse. I don't feel like I'm using the heat more than I did the AC in the summer so not sure what's going on here... But one tip is to check your tire pressure as that has a significant impact on fuel economy. I have mine inflated to 42psi front, 40psi rear.

Anyone else leaving the ECO mode off?

 

I'm getting 46 mpg on my Prius III/3 last few days driving "normally" due to heavy wind and rains so figure 10% off rated mileage driving "normally".

 

I'm getting 48mpg driving normally with the occasional snappy takeoff at the lights to get to the speed limit. 57 mpg is possible with a little effort.

Since owning this car, I find the conservative driving style had knock on effect on driving my other car (VW) and I regularly get a small but measurable improvement in my mileage.

 

I drive like Driving Miss Daisy and I get 55-60.

 

I am a 58 year old hotrodder. My family and friends had a hard time seeing me in the C. Even my motorhome is a hotrod with plumbing. I love the C. Most of my driving is on the hiway so I have to be cautious to get 50 mpg. I see many of you averaging well over 50 so I must assume that you drive in cities mostly, as the car was built for. Our town is 8,000 population so it is not far from one end to the other. Our mall is a Walmart Super Center. I get a kick out of "stomping" the accellerator when I have a non hybrid person in the car. They can not believe how the thing takes off. I let up by 30 so I have gas and electric pulling. I just try to snap their neck a little to let them know I can hotrod this thing when I want. Everyone is impressed. Wish it was a 2 door but it is what it is. I am happy with my mileage. Have a great Thanksgiving.
Dan

 

I've had my C3 for about a month now. I get 53 on average but if I drive more conservatively I can get low 60s. On short trips (~1mile) to the store using almost no gas driving 30 mph but its on a flat grade.

 

Tom,

after I read your post, I wanted to try it for myself, and started to drive my C like I drove my previous cars. I was able to do it for a two days, then I just got greedy, trying to get the most miles per gallon of fuel, and quickly found myself hypermiling. I really like how Toyota designed the C, with fuel savings info and ECO scores. The whole driving experience makes you want to drive in a gas saving manner. I have a little over 1000 miles on the clock. The C came with a full tank of gas from the dealer, and I visited the gas station twice. Each tank gets me a little over 400 miles... a little over 8 gallons at the pump.

Perhaps my greed comes from the fact my previous car did 8 to 10 mpg. 100 bucks each visit to the gas station for a little over 200 miles per tank. My wife also had a 10mpg SUV. If you do the math on how much money we've wasted in gas over the years... It's very sad.

Anyhow, I see your concern you have about the real world mpg. And I can speak from experience, it doesn't matter. You'll want to beat that EPA estimate. You'll want to learn the hypermiling technique, and you'll enjoy it.

 

That is true BUT it is nice to be able to drive like a maniac and get 45 mpg. Also nice that Prius gives us PWR mode to zip around in getting 45 mpg.

 

After a week of ownership and not truly changing my driving behavior my high mpg on a trip *7 miles* was 70.2, my lowest trip mpg is 48mpg. I have no idea how you can drive and get under 40 mpg in this car unless you drive only in a cold start mode and you drive in the "grey" area I have defined as between the bottom eco line and the power line. As long as you drive in one or the other areas for eco mode, I am confident you will consistently see above 50mpg.

For what its worth I have always exceeded the manufacturer ratings in my BMW's. The glide technique that is commonly referred to on this forum is actually quite common just a regular driving behavior in the bmw world.

Pretty amazing how much money I have wasted on commuters over the years. My wife's 2013 Grand Cherokee rarely yields over 12.5 mpg in town.

 

A bit off topic but the hubs just bought a new truck (has to have one - job related, and his had over 200k on it) I am sickened to see the mpg on the dash of 14.5. He's happy because it is "better" than the older one.

I can't wait to be in the 40's on a "bad" day!

 

I got my MotorTrend today. They trashed the C. But they said it is best for fuel mileage. I have never gotten less than 48 mpg on any trip of 25 miles or more. I love the car. Dont care what the mag writers say. The dash was not my favorite so we covered it with a mat. Its a mile per gallon getter not a Caddy. Anything north of 40 mpg and I am tickled pink.
Dan

 

I took a 500 mile trip this weekend. 250 out and 250 back.

Haven't gassed up from the return side, but got a whopping 39.93 on the way down. 75-80mph. 500lbs total pounds in the car (w/occupants).

Likely the same on the way back. More like 78-80mph, though.

 

I also took the C on a road trip for Thanksgiving, about 2600 miles roundtrip from metro Detroit to southern sprawl of Denver. The car acquitted itself for being a competent and comfortable mileage muncher [mainly thanks to my suspension changes, a stock C would've left me nervous and clamped onto the steering wheel], however the fuel economy really suffers through the plains states. I set the cruise control either at the speed limit or 70 MPH, screw those 75 MPH+ speed limits when paying any mind to FE. Nebraska and Iowa in particular netted awful fuel economy, about 42 MPG both going out and coming back, so wind didn't seem to make a difference, unless I magically had a headwind both ways. Once I got into CO, the mileage went up considerably to 46 MPG, however it was through IL and MI where the car got "normal" mileage, about 50 MPG both ways.

Long story short, this car needs to be a Diesel Hybrid to beat the VW TDI's on the big open road. On the same stretch of I-76, I-80, and I-94 between Denver and Detroit, similar time of year, my old Mk6 Golf TDI got 47.0 MPG, whereas the Prius averaged 45.8 MPG.

Prius C for City indeed. I have to admit I'm a bit disappointed, but I can't say I'm terribly surprised. This car seems to have too much aero drag to really win on the highway.

 

Kinda like seeing that new girlfriend for the first time without makeup, is it?

High speeds, heavy load, unfortunate aerodynamics, cold weather...not quite as beautiful as it was in the warm summer in the city driving.

Oh well, long term relationships require compromises.

 

Ok, it's not all doom and gloom. The car still averages MPG well over what my TDI did on fuel that's both cheaper and has a lower energy content per volume. The whole 2600 mile trip cost me $198 in fuel, which is awesome.