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PHEV calculator

Discussion in 'Prime Fuel Economy & EV Range' started by Marine Ray, Mar 3, 2020.

  1. Marine Ray

    Marine Ray Senior Member

    Joined:
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    Sparks, NV
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    2017 Prius Prime
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    Plug-in Advanced
    Pretty cool PHEV calculator from the US Dept of Energy. Plugged (get it, plugged) in my info and calculations were spot on from my use last year.

    My Plug-in Hybrid Calculator
     
    Salamander_King likes this.
  2. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

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    Cool tool. However, compared to my actual use log for the last 2+ years of 2017 PRIME, mine was quite bit off from the actual usage of gas and electricity. I used the calculated average gas price ($2.427/gal) and the electricity rate ($0.185/kWh) over this period for the price. The site projected almost even gas/electricity cost distribution, but I have used almost twice as much on gas compared to electricity. However, the total cost came out to be very close. $698 actual vs $693 predicted. I am not exactly sure where the discrepancy is coming from. I guess fluctuating gas and electricity prices and change in EV range and gas MPG must be some of the reasons. Of course, in order to assess the accuracy of the estimation, you have to have kept a record of how much gas and electricity you have used over a course of at least a year. Not many people have that data to compare.

    My actual average annual 15.3K miles/year usage is:
    gas: 188 gal, $458, 9727 miles 63.6%
    electricity: 1302 kWh, $240, 5579 miles 36.4%

    Estimate from the site for annual 15.3K miles/year is:
    gas: 147 gal, $357, 7800 miles 51%
    electricity: 2099 kWh, $336, 7500 miles 49%

    Screenshot 2020-03-03 at 9.46.22 PM.png
    Screenshot 2020-03-03 at 10.17.34 PM.png
     
    #2 Salamander_King, Mar 3, 2020
    Last edited: Mar 3, 2020
    Marine Ray likes this.
  3. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    Even with the detailed form, I'd be guessing on the miles per day. Mondays are pretty consistent. Tuesdays are different from Mondays but consistent with each other except on the first Tuesday of the month. Wednesdays are consistent during the fall, winter, and spring, but in the summer they are like Mondays. Thursdays are like Wednesdays every other week in the fall, winter, and spring, but more like Mondays in the summer. Fridays are all over the place from 0 miles to a few hundred. So are Saturdays. Sundays are their own day and most are similar to each other except for when we go someplace special in the afternoon.

    Absolutely NO way to make a form for that level of variety. :LOL: According to my spreadsheet, my cost per mile as of Dec. 27 (last time I got gas) was 4.7 cents/mile. That includes a 6,013 mile road trip. I have almost 2,700 miles on this tank, so my next fill up should reduce that average cost. My longest previous tank was 2,615, so I broke that record on the way to work this morning.
     
  4. Marine Ray

    Marine Ray Senior Member

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    Plug-in Advanced
    Yes, your driving seems to be all over the map :) Hard for you to use this DOE calculator.
     
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  5. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    Yup. But having had a PiP for just over two years, my guess on the Prime was pretty close. Plus I have the advantage that I'm harder for an assassin to pick off. :LOL:
     
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  6. m8547

    m8547 Senior Member

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    Prime Plus
    I made a spreadsheet with common places I go. Sort of a histogram of drive lengths. Then I assign a value for how often I would use each car, either the car I'm considering buying or my old SUV. Based on this, I calculated that I'd use less gas with a Prius Prime than a Nissan Leaf, because I can use the Prime for medium-length trips that the Leaf can't do.

    Hopefully I can upload the spreadsheet here. I didn't write it to be easy to read, but hopefully it makes sense.

    EDIT: See attachment in a later post.
     
    #6 m8547, Mar 5, 2020
    Last edited: Mar 5, 2020
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  7. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    Not bad. It is a little hard to grasp, especially the "%trips in Leaf/PP/etc" part and I don't know what "4r" means.

    Mine is basically simple. I calculate the cost of the gas and electricity purchased for each tank of gas and then I know my cost per mile. It makes for a big sheet with all the other stuff I track, though.

    Edit to add:
    I get the 4r now. I saw it at the bottom. The other questions make more sense now. But you need to fix the formulas in cells C34 & C35. They are using the electric cost instead of the gas giving crazy low cost per mile. ;)
     

    Attached Files:

  8. m8547

    m8547 Senior Member

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    Oops. Fixed those cells.
     

    Attached Files:

    jerrymildred likes this.
  9. hill

    hill High Fiber Member

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    This was an odd year for our plugin. Normally it's just be a couple or few hundred miles for vacation, otherwise we fly. This month, I got back from a Cannonball Run SoCal to fort smith Arkansas, to Nashville & back. Burned 98 gallons. Total miles 4,500. Did the return run 2 weeks later, & knocked it out in 34 hours.
    Otherwise, normally it's just 35 miles per day all electric. Thus the website was pretty useless unfortunfortunately - even just factoring starting state /gas price different from all others - much less the different weather temperature swings over from 70°f to 17°f.
    Whew! The old bladder ain't what it used to be - won't ever be doing that again
    .
     
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