VERY disappointed

What "thing" were you "stoked" to get????

 

-5 mpg fill up? You'll be at 0 mpg in 8 days!!!

 

Why mess with investigation, or subtlety here?

If you're already disappointed and referring to the vehicle as a "thing", then I'm not passing GO, I recommend selling it or trading it in, and moving on.

Sure you could monitor the MPG for a longer period. You could investigate sound deadening projects, and even check the suspension, but why bother?
I don't sense an essential enthusiasm for the vehicle. You'd probably be happier with some other thing.

 

If your info is correct, you're driving a base 2010.....which is a nine year old car with indeterminate mileage and condition, being driven under conditions that are unknown.
In fact...then only thing we DO know is that you say you're getting 39.7 mpg - which is valueless unless we know if this was an instantaneous value, tank value or lifetime.

Now for the really bad news!
If you're getting the mileage value from the "malfunction" display, it's known to be off by 3-5%....so you might not even be as fuel efficient as you think you aren't.

I also drive a base 2010, and I can get real-world tank averages of 50+ mpg...and without being "one of THOSE Priuses" that everybody hates because they're a rolling traffic plug.
We in this forum can try and get you there, if you're willing to learn a few things and if your car is mechanically sound.

Or?
You can just go back to driving more comfortable nine year old cars and not worry about the gas thing until the next time that fuel prices spike again.


Your call.

Priuses do some things really well.
They're reliable....if you take care of them.
They're efficient.....if you take care of them AND if you don't drive like a teenager.
They're really REALLY efficient if you take a little time to learn what makes cars more or less so, but this isn't something that you can just buy and drive like you want to and expect 50+ mpg all of the time........even new, and your car isn't new, and if the mileages you report are accurate, your not-a-new-car might not even be mechanically sound.

Priuses do NOT do other things quite as well.
They're less comfortable, less quiet, and they sit waaaaaaaaay down low in traffic so you're looking at bumpers all the time....and there are a ton of other things that I can mention (and have! ) that are going to either bug you even more than the displayed mileages...or not.
But you bought the car (presumably) to be fuel efficient....and it's as capable of doing THAT as any other 9-year-old car that you're going to buy, and more so than most of the NEW cars that you can still buy today!

Cheaply and reliably.


....so.
What's it gonna be??

 

i would be VERY disappointed as well. seems prius are not all they're cracked up to be. no wonder sales are flagging

 

There is also something called the law of diminishing returns. Your biggest gain, by far, is going from a vehicle that gets low mileage to 40 mpg. After that the gain is incremental. At today's gas prices, the difference between 40 mpg and 50 is about $10 per month (assuming 12,000 miles per year).

I have a 2010 and get 50 mpg on a good day in the right conditions, driving far enough for the engine to warm up (varies by outside temp) and taking it easy. Overall my year round average is mid 40's because I don't baby it and much of my driving is short runs. No car gets advertised mileage at 80 mph. Whether you like it or not, the laws of physics apply.

 

.... aaand I think we lost the OP.....

 

with any luck

 

I second this. Between the warm up penalty, and hiding in my car at lunch time, I’m in the low 40’s this tank. BUT, it’s only 55 more days to meteorological spring!!

 

Third that, 63 mpg average for past 6 months see below. Winter blend couldn’t touch this either. Can’t wait to see mpg avg once catch can is on.



Months are off because Im too lazy to fix it. But I check dip level every other day

 

You give NO information.
You might as well of said my "thing" is making a noise. What it is, what fix it?
Since YOU don't know where YOU are, YOU need to READ to try to figure out where YOU are and
give some information about what vehicle you have.
We feel sad for you.

 

OK.
Let's try this just one more time....

You've had your G3 for almost 150 days now, and so you've probably run a few tanks of gas through it - otherwise you sure as heck should not be driving a PRIUS, even in the California.
If your "mileages" are less than 40mpg either 'real world' or as reported by the goofy dash display, then something is wrong.
That "something" is either between your earlobes - or your car has mechanical problems.
Both of these items can certainly be true, by the way.

I've driven TWO 2010 Priuses and each of these cars were and are capable of 50+MPG, real world, tank average.
My current car (Goofy-too) has 75,000 miles and the former one (Goofy) had 160,000 miles on the clock when I turned it back into Fleet Ops....almost all of which were put on the car by me personally.
One more thing.
I didn't/don't own these cars.
As is the case with the type of vehicle in my avatar, my relationship with Priuses is one of deep love and deep hatred......all at the same time.

So....
You can either sit here in a PRIUS forum, bitching about Priuses, or you can do something to improve your reported mileages, but do not be surprised if you get a little counter-battery from some of the people on this forum, and do not be surprised if your mileages don't improve just by complaining about it.
I've already tried that and it doesn't work, and why the HECK would you be driving a Prius if you didn't want your mileage to improve????

If you're reported location is correct (CA) you live where Priuses are probably more expensive than they are anywhere else in the Continental US.
Sell it now.
If you live in the SoCal with 18 million of your closest friends, then you probably spend a lot of time looking at other people's rear bumpers, while stuck in traffic, in your Prius.
You can certainly find a car that's a little more comfortable to do THAT in, even on a budget.
However (comma!) do not expect that next car to be any more efficient or reliable unless you do something a little differently the next time around.

Either get a car you like more, or fix whatever is wrong with the one that you're driving.
If you decide to get another car, then begone with you!
Fair winds and following seas, and all like that.
Even though you do not seem to be the type to take advice, I will offer one last bit, if for nothing else than to inform someone who digs this post up a dozen years from now...well....unless AOC is right and we're not here anymore.....


Do a little more research on your next car BEFORE you pull the trigger on the purchase.



Good Luck!

 

(Munching popcorn...)
I really shouldn’t be enjoying this thread as much as I am, but I confess to having a juvenile sense of humor and laughing out loud (LOL in English textish) for many of these posts. My bad.
Seriously, I would agree with @ECT(SS) that getting under 40mpg in what should be a warm but not hot climatic conditions (CA), assuming relatively level terrain and traffic conditions better than “stop-and-go “ congestion, would seem to indicate either a mechanical problem with the Prius or a very inefficient driving style. It took us over a year to learn how to drive our Gen 3 efficiently, so I am sympathetic to OP if they are in that somehat odd process. But I would say that if you persevere, you may come to love your Gen 3 despite its, or perhaps because of its, quirkiness.

 

i'm still waiting for the o/p to ask a question

 

If you have a Prius that rides rough (what, engine? Suspension? Tyres?) than there is definitively something wrong with the car.
Priii don't ride rough. They're about the smoothest cars out there. There's no transmission jerking, if you keep your right foot in check there is no howling of the engine.
Or a Prius is not you and you should have taken it for a test drive before you bought it.

 

My wife can ruin a tank average with one trip to the store. I bet she would not be able to get 40 mpg.
What was the last car you had/ are basing ride comfort with? What was the actual MPG you got vs. reported MPG?
As shown above, you can view the avg. mpg for each of the last 6 months. What was the avg mpg's before you purchased it?
Many people on this forum report better results with 42 psi in the front tires and 40 in the rear.
Did you look at or drive any other Priuses before purchasing this one? The extremely rough ride and road noise should have shown it'self on a test drive.
The Prius is one of the few cars that can actually get the Government estimated MPG on a regular basis. Even with 150,000 miles on mine I can still manage to get an over 50 MPG tank.

 

Exactly how did the ride and the noise change from your test drive -- when you were stoked to get this thing -- and now, when you are very disappointed?

 

With man-made global warming, each present day is closer to the "old" spring than 60 years ago. When I was a kid, I loved our full wool baseball uniforms because Spring was always cold. As the decades passed, I was amazed that a few February days also got warm. Later, amazed again, I was, when more February days were warm. Now, we have warm days in January that make outdoor activities pleasant. Amazed, upon amazed, upon amazed,......I am.