1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

Prius Newbie - Very Excited

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by JerseyPriusOwner, Aug 26, 2009.

  1. JerseyPriusOwner

    JerseyPriusOwner New Member

    Joined:
    Aug 26, 2009
    4
    0
    0
    Location:
    New Jersey
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Hey everyone,

    I'm a prius newbie. I picked up a silver/dark grey IV w/nav yesterday after trading in my old clunker right at the deadline. I travel a lot and had orchastrated the whole deal from San Franciso while on business. I never stepped foot into the dealership (yet), never met the sales agent but managed to aquire the car at MSRP. My wife took delivery of the vehicle yesterday.

    I'm still traveling and can't wait to get back to NJ to take my baby for a spin. I'm new to hybrids and was wondering if anyone has advice for how to drive the vehicle. Is it any different from a "regular" car? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

    Russ
     
    #1 JerseyPriusOwner, Aug 26, 2009
  2. eglmainz

    eglmainz New Member

    Joined:
    Jan 21, 2009
    887
    141
    0
    Location:
    Chicagoland, IL
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    V
    :welcome: Russ, Welcome to the Prius Family

    As for learning how to drive the car, I would for the first few days, just try to drive it like a 'normal car'. Then, once you get the feel for it, and the way that it responds, you can try to start to get higher mileage. This is a 'game' that will not stop, as you will always want to better that last trip.

    The one tip that was given to me (Thanks, a priori), was to try to keep the HSI (Hybrid System Indicator) below 75% at all times is possible. When I do that regularly, I tend to get mileage above 60.also, try to 'coast' with no energy being displayed on that screen, as much as possible.

    You can search here for more tips, but I swear that when I do only these two things, I get much better mileage than if I try all the other tricks combined. Drive it for a few days, and come back for more tips.
     
    #2 eglmainz, Aug 26, 2009
  3. JerseyPriusOwner

    JerseyPriusOwner New Member

    Joined:
    Aug 26, 2009
    4
    0
    0
    Location:
    New Jersey
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Thanks eglmainz.
     
    #3 JerseyPriusOwner, Aug 26, 2009
  4. Richard_Simmons

    Richard_Simmons New Member

    Joined:
    Aug 25, 2009
    3
    0
    0
    Location:
    Texas
    Vehicle:
    2001 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Yes it gets better gas mileage :rolleyes:
     
    #4 Richard_Simmons, Aug 26, 2009
  5. MaggieMay

    MaggieMay Active Member

    Joined:
    Apr 6, 2009
    534
    68
    0
    Location:
    Gloucester, MA
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Congratulations! You may want to spend some time in the Fuel Economy Forum for more details on driving techniques and a better understanding of how the Prius works. But I found that if I drive sensibily - just doing the things we've always been told will be gas-saving like no jack-rabbit starts, and long, slow braking - I see over 55 mpg on the dashboard readout regularly.

    It's fun to drive - enjoy and let us know what you think!
     
    #5 MaggieMay, Aug 26, 2009
(You must log in or sign up to post here.)