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

Do I need to have my new 2 Eco looked at?

Discussion in 'Gen 4 Prius Fuel Economy' started by Brandon Wardell, Jan 8, 2018.

  1. Brandon Wardell

    Brandon Wardell Junior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 31, 2012
    4
    0
    0
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    I
    I want to love my new car, but the MPG has been very disappointing. With only 1200 mi on it, my new Eco is getting worse MPG than my 2012 C was getting with over 170,000 on the odo. Even getting 95 or 97% driving score it's sat stubbornly at 40.9. This is on suburban streets in 40° weather.

    With less than 200 mi on it, the car was getting 43-46mpg on the highway (though admittedly I was running late and not driving for economy).

    Should I take the car back to the dealership? When my 2012 C was new I was getting 50-52 mpg on the same highway...

    Thanks!

    IMG_5096.jpg
     
  2. Prodigyplace

    Prodigyplace Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 1, 2016
    11,696
    11,317
    0
    Location:
    Central Virginia
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Have you tried either using the trip meters or the "to the Flag" setting?
    It would take a large mpg change to affect overall mileage. Your Eco can likely go faster than your c could for highway driving.
    Are your tire pressures correct? That can have a large impact on mpg.
    Where in the world are you located? Many US localities are experiencing record cold. H sometimes struggle to keep my Two over 40 mpg lately.
    In Oct 2016, brand new, by Two got 59 mpg on the 150 mile highway drive home.
    It may be normal, with cold weather & winter fuel as you adjust to the car.
    IF you find it sluggish, try Normal drive mode.
    Is the climate control on ECO (ECO beside the fan speed) and Auto? Heating uses more mpg than air conditioning on the Prius.
     
    RCO and Mendel Leisk like this.
  3. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    54,475
    38,106
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    FWIW, 40 mpg displayed is very likely less when calculated.
     
    kithmo and RCO like this.
  4. Brandon Wardell

    Brandon Wardell Junior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 31, 2012
    4
    0
    0
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    I
    I'm not sure what "to the flag" is, but I'm in Chicago. I waited until a non-frigid day to check MPG and ask the question, because it's been incredibly cold here until yesterday. Yes on Eco heating, tire pressure is good, but even brand new, driving from IL (40°) to KY (65°) it never came close to 50mpg. That's what has me concerned.


     
  5. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,571
    48,862
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    how many tank fulls have you added, and what was the calculated mpg of each?
     
  6. alanclarkeau

    alanclarkeau Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2016
    7,041
    7,580
    0
    Location:
    near Brisbane, Australia
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Press the "TRIP" button on your steering wheel, and it will give 4 or 5 options - one has a picture of a FLAG. That keeps track of JUST your current trip since you Powered ON. It resets every time you re-start the car.

    Best indication is to FILL the tank to the first click - drive at least ½ a tank, re-fill and use a calculator/spreadsheet or long division to calculate it.

    The dashboard display computes it by inputs from various sensors, none of which are as accurate as your Wallet - the dash display seems to be between 5 and 10% optimistic.
     
    RCO and Prodigyplace like this.
  7. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
    Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 2, 2004
    44,768
    16,017
    41
    Location:
    Canada
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    You may want to reset Trip A or B and try again.

    The photo you showed us is lifetime MPG. It includes the time the car sat idling with the engine on while the dealer was prepping the car which contributed to the low mpg.
     
    RCO, Mendel Leisk and Prodigyplace like this.
  8. Prodigyplace

    Prodigyplace Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 1, 2016
    11,696
    11,317
    0
    Location:
    Central Virginia
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    It may have also included people test driving it hard. It takes a lot of trip economy to change the total average.
     
    Tideland Prius likes this.
  9. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,571
    48,862
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    you could easily have a brake dragging or something. take it in and let the dealer go through it thoroughly.
     
  10. padroo

    padroo Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 11, 2008
    2,763
    2,250
    13
    Location:
    Chesterton, Indiana Another third world country.
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    All the things above mentioned I didn't see the heater listed. With the heat turned up the engine will run just about all the time.
    I make a local trip of 25 miles today and got mid 60's at 37 degrees. I live east of you in Indiana. My gas mileage jumped just because of warmer weather and not much wind.
     
    RCO, Prodigyplace and Tideland Prius like this.
  11. Prodigyplace

    Prodigyplace Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 1, 2016
    11,696
    11,317
    0
    Location:
    Central Virginia
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    I mentioned at the end of post 2 that the heater reduces mpg more than AC.
    You make a good point that running the heater cools the engine faster making it run longer and more often.

    EDIT: Last winter I was usually able to keep indicated mpg above 50. I have some days in the 40s this year with an occasional one in the 30s due to the cold weather.
    In the summed I usually keep it in the 60s
     
    #11 Prodigyplace, Jan 9, 2018
    Last edited: Jan 9, 2018
    RCO likes this.
  12. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    54,475
    38,106
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    Heater use and engine shutdown are definitely linked, on our 3rd gen, in particular while the car is partially warmed. Roll up to a red light with blower going and temperature set moderately warm, engine will often keep running. Shut the ventilation system right off: engine will stop. Once the car is more fully warmed it'll typically shut down at stops in either condition, but just saying.
     
    Merkey, kithmo and RCO like this.
  13. kithmo

    kithmo Couch Potato

    Joined:
    Apr 25, 2010
    2,404
    2,773
    47
    Location:
    South Yorkshire, UK
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    On the Gen 3 pressing the ECO button would shut off the engine in this scenario, on the Gen 4 using the ECO heater setting does this.
     
    Mendel Leisk likes this.
  14. first_superior_prius

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2016
    76
    115
    0
    Location:
    Michigan
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    A few things to unpack here. From what I'm gathering, you have been getting 41 MPG on surburban streets during fairly cold winter weather in Chicago. It's also been very windy. What are your trip lengths like? 41 MPG is perfectly reasonable for winter weather and short in-town trips.

    If you were driving fast on the highway, again during the late fall/winter, 45ish MPG also seems right on the money.


    Think back to when the 2012 C was new, when were you getting 50 MPG? What time of year? What was the weather like? Were your driving habits the same?


    I think its at least 80% odds that the MPG you are observing is completely attributable to the environmental conditions you have been driving it in, the length of trip, and your driving style


    My 2 Eco went from 65 MPG in the summer months to 60 in the fall and now in December/January it is in the low 50s, and in the high 40s on many days. Today I only got 44 MPG going to work, because of the strong headwinds
     
    mark27lim, kithmo and RCO like this.
  15. John Kuhn

    John Kuhn Member

    Joined:
    Apr 15, 2017
    45
    47
    0
    Location:
    Wisconsin
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius
    Model:
    Two
     
  16. padroo

    padroo Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 11, 2008
    2,763
    2,250
    13
    Location:
    Chesterton, Indiana Another third world country.
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    I usually have to drive at least 20 miles before I can show respectable fuel mileage in the cold weather. Anything shorter and I am in the 40's. We know the engine has to come up to temperature but all the moving parts are cold and I never heard about the traction battery, how long does it take it to get up to an efficient temperature.
     
    RCO likes this.
  17. alanclarkeau

    alanclarkeau Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2016
    7,041
    7,580
    0
    Location:
    near Brisbane, Australia
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Some may depend on the internal temperature - there was talk by some who don't turn the Climate Control on but use the seat heaters being more economical. Not sure - we don't get the cold you do there - it was close to 40 deg CELSIUS here yesterday.
     
    Prodigyplace likes this.
  18. Prodigyplace

    Prodigyplace Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 1, 2016
    11,696
    11,317
    0
    Location:
    Central Virginia
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    While the US has been seeing record cold you guys are breaking all time high temperature records.
     
    RCO and alanclarkeau like this.
  19. RCO

    RCO Senior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2016
    3,709
    5,182
    0
    Location:
    Cornwall
    Vehicle:
    Other Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    I'm sure it's not true in your case, Alan, but some of your compatriots must be acclimatising for the afterlife!
     
  20. Prodigyplace

    Prodigyplace Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 1, 2016
    11,696
    11,317
    0
    Location:
    Central Virginia
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    And where does that place me? 9F (-13C) here this morning.
     
    RCO likes this.