Worst mileage yet

Those cold weather short trips kill mpg on the Prius. I saw a few trips (2.5mi or less) in the low 20's mpg in my Prius the first winter I had it (Feb 2012).
I actually traded in my Prius for the Plug-in Prius because my short weekend errand runs were destroying the good mpg figures I was getting during the week driving to work and it was annoying the heck out of me.
Now I go the full weekend without the engine even starting seeing 999mpg for the full weekend in the PIP.

 

That is less than 0.05 gallon for a really cold start, that is great! At a much balmier 20F, my old Subaru would burn 0.08 gallon before I could even finish scraping the frost off the windows, before driving even the first inch.

 

My mileage is shot too. the screen reads something like 5.3L/100km (40mpg?) now that the temperatures are freezing. Also brakes are a little squeaky probably because of all the salt and gravel on the public roads. Not complaining because I still love the car!

 

a half mile??

i remember back in the day when i had to walk three miles to school in the driving snow...

i'm kidding. i am sure you hwd good reason to drive that half mile.

 

And up hill both ways!

 

First Winter with my 2013.

I also do a lot of short trips to work.

The winter mileage hit has been considerable but not unexpected, and I'm NOT unhappy. When I do a short trip in the cold and "ONLY" average 25-30 mpg? I have to remind myself that previously in similar situations 25-30 mpg would of been the "best" I could expect, and that's from a Honda Fit. So the Prius at it's MPG worst, is better than almost every other cars MPG at their best.

And I'm not working too hard to maximize. Yes, I use the heater, and no I'm not grill blocking.

 

Only 3 miles... wow- you had it made! We had to walk at least 5 miles, with dogs and angry squirrels chasing us

 

oh yeah i forgot to mention the bears and moose, eh.

 

You guy's are really tough!

 

It's amazing we survived at all

 

Selection bias. Our classmates who didn't survive are not here to pass along their stories.

 

Good Point!

 

Up hill, both ways, and against the wind!

Bob Wilson

 

I once walked 2500 miles in 155 days, but it was not winter. Snakes were my adrenaline rush. Once you step on a rattler, you might as well walk another 5 miles, the adrenaline is already pumping.

I do not drive many short distances, everywhere they pay me to be is at least 45 miles in some direction for my house. Today was a 180 mile day north to Tunica and back, 43MPG at 40 degrees.

 

The PIP needs to run the engine to make heat for the passengers, so you would want to bundle up if you're driving in EV mode. However, it would be better otherwise if you plan on making many trips that are that short.

 

We should qualify that. It gives the impression of the engine having to run all the time for heat. It doesn't. Once the coolant is heated, warmth can be extracted from it for awhile with the engine off.

With the system warmed up, I drove the other day in EV and the heater set to 65. The engine didn't fire up again until the coolant temperature dropped all the way down to 87°F.

 

Last night the outside temp was in the teens (F) and the ICE never turned off during the 6 mile trip to church. This morning the temp was 9 for my 45 mile run to work on the freeway at 71 MPH and the average MPG for this tank nudged down to 38.x.

My mileage is lower by about 10% this year from last. I thought it was my new summer tires (Conti pure contact), but the lowered mileage is continuing with my winter Michelin Xice2 tires mounted. I'll speak the the dealer about it in a few weeks when I take the car in for 40K service.

 

I couldn't have said this better myself. I think right now about 285 miles into a tank averaging 13mph (mostly short distance city driving in a city with terrible traffic) I am getting around 41mpg average, but I've seen it dip lower a few times. Could I grill block or drive to work freezing? Sure, but I've never had another car that got more than 30mpg EVER, so I figure I'm already ahead and it's okay to indulge in the luxury of heat and not screwing up a grill blocking craft project.