Hypothetical question - PiP Potential 90% Hwy Commute

You should try saving your EV miles for going home. If your commute is like F8L and mine, you might find your aggregate fuel economy better that way. Only one way to find out.

 

So basically use half going and rest on return trip? I'll give it a shot - still playing with the PIP and hooked on getting higher than 126mpg - but you're right, end goal is best possible average not bragging rights. Thanks

 

No, use EV in slow sections and HV on the freeway in the morning. You should still have about 80-90% of EV remaining when you get to work. Save the remaining EV for the return trip. The idea behind it is that daytime temperatures are typically warmer than morning temperatures which is beneficial to EV range. Also where I live, PM rush hour traffic is worse than AM rush hour. Average speed is lower going home for me. Add in higher elevations at my work place versus home and it makes it a sure thing that I will get better fuel economy going home than to work.

This also strokes your pride as you may be able to exceed 126 mpg going home if your commute matches those 3 factors. For example, I could never exceed 100 mpg going to work. But I've done it 3 times going home, 106 mpg being my personal record for 53 miles.

 

Great points - hadn't thought of warmer temp impact. Will try it next week. Thanks!

 

Yesterday was my longest no-charge (HV only) trip ever. The temperature averaged 40°F. The driving was almost entirely highway (55 - 70 mph). I was thrilled with the results...

291 miles

59 MPG

That heavily supports the "Solid 50" goal following depletion Toyota set to deliver. It proves Prius is very much still a remarkable hybrid even when there isn't any plug-supplied electricity available.

You can imagine just how uncomfortable that makes the competition, especially when you consider the affordability of a system with only a 4.4 kWh capacity. The plug-in feature can easily become a simple as a package option.

 

Glad to see you made it thru the recent snow. Nice little trip, I haven't seen the 50 degree f mark yet, maybe Friday! Get ready for your next snow! Summer temps are just around the corner!

 

Looks like you are in that mileage range where volt beats the pip.

Do you know without a shadow of a doubt that you will have that same mileage for the next 3-5 years?

 

Will the Volt be as reliable as the Prius?

Mike

Mobile on my SGH-i717

 

I don't think there was any doubt with 2 way charge that the Volt would get better fuel economy. It was 1 way charge, that the PiP's would do better.

 

uhhhh... did you just buy another car????

 

Don't let the displayed big MPG number fool you. Let's see the efficiency breakdown. Since you actually got the EPA rated 38 EV miles, you got the electric efficiency of 98 MPGe and gas efficiency of 25 MPG.

If I recall with PiP, you got 130 MPGe on electric and 50 MPG on gas.

Isn't funny how misleading it can be?

When the electric bug hits you, all the reasoning goes out the window. Enjoy it and satisfy that electric love bug.

 

Welcome to the Volt club. Watch out for the trolls!

 

mods: please move this to the volt forum 'other hybrids'.

 

I've had my Volt for 2.5 years so far with 33k battery miles and 52k miles total with only a couple of trivial issues unrelated to the battery or powertrain.

That puts it about on par with my early-build 2004 Prius which had it's center console lid fixed when the fabric started to unglue.

Within its first 2.5 years, my 2001 Prius had its accelerator pedal sensor fail and need replacement. It also threw a check engine light while I was on a road trip which resulted in an unplanned afternoon dealer visit.

 

If you used the battery in that steep uphill section, you would not get 38 miles EV range. You may be able to bring the gas mileage up to 37 MPG but then the actual EV range may be in high 20's. The car is still breaking in so it can only get better. Keep us posted.

It boils down to the efficiency hit of both fuels in order to increase the EV range. If you get the electricity from renewable source, you can justify it. If the electricity is from mostly coal or natural gas, it is not so good. You are switching one fossil fuel to another while taking the efficiency hits of both, just for the EV ride experience.

Volt can makes sense in an ideal scenario. California has one of the cleanest electricity in all states so should be good. If I have time, I want to do the emission comparison. If you love the way it drives, forget about the efficiency, emission, interior, etc and just enjoy the ride. Enjoy looking at the big MPG and EV miles.

Your morning trip is deceiving because Volt showed 120 MPG while PiP showed 68 MPG hypermiled. I pointed out that if you look at the efficiency breakdown of both fuels, PiP is more efficient with either fuel.

We can do the opposite misleading MPGe number. Volt went 48 miles with 0.397 gallon equivalent electricity. So it got 121 MPGe.

PiP went the same 48 miles with 0.095 gallon equivalent electricity. So it got 505 MPGe.

Dividing the total mile with one fuel is misleading. It is madness.

If Volt got 54 miles on a charge, you averaged 248 Wh/mi (136 MPGe).

If your PiP went 15 EV miles and it displayed 90 MPG, your electric miles would average 213 Wh/mi (158 MPGe) and gas efficiency would be 62 MPG.

If your PiP went 20 EV miles and it displayed 90 MPG, your electric miles would average 160 Wh/mi (211 MPGe) and gas efficiency would be 53 MPG.

Both plugins would beat their EPA figure because it is a downhill trip. PiP may not provide you a gas-free drive back home but it sure uses both fuel very efficiently. Nothing can beat it, especially with the interior space and a flat cargo floor.