Gallons per Month

I'm a school teacher, so in the summer, I have one month at home (much less driving), and one month on the road (visiting family in other states, doing supplemental university teaching, etc.)

I realized in the past few weeks since school has let out, that my MPG is declining terribly, as I change from a daily commute to short errands (groceries, mall, etc.) However, this to me is misleading, because I am actually using much LESS gasoline!

I know others have mentioned before about trying to live near where you work, bike, walk, etc. I think those of us who are seriously concerned with fuel conservation should be looking at "the bottom line", or how many gallons we use per month. This way, hypermiling, alternative transportation, good trip planning, and short commutes are all figured into the picture! Obviously, it might be harder for some of us (who live in the middle of nowhere) to compete with someone on a mass transit line, but it would be a good way of checking with yourself.

Anyways, I did my numbers, and since the Prius is only 2 1/2 months old, there's not a lot of data yet:

March (second half)
17.8 Gal
April
32.6 Gal
May
48.2 Gal (this is a statistical blip because I filled up on 5/1 and 5/30)

Total average Gallons per Month (take the total gallons and divide by the number of months): 39.4

I'm hoping it will go down over the summer. I also applied for a closer teaching position, but was supposed to be called today <_< nothing yet...

If you feel like sharing your G/Mo, speak up!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Bob Edwards @ Jun 18 2007, 02:40 PM) [snapback]464188[/snapback]</div>

Hi Bob,

Thanks for the feedback. Actually, I'm quite aware of why the MPG went down on the shorter trips. That wasn't really the point of this post, however. My point was that, even with lower MPG, I'm using less gasoline when not commuting that the rest of the year, when I get a higher MPG.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ystasino @ Jun 18 2007, 03:29 PM) [snapback]464215[/snapback]</div>

A lot of the people on this board compare Prius to Prius, therefore it is all about their own driving, not about the vehicle per se. They use the MPG to see how well they are doing personally, and if they can improve their own efficiency.

And if the goal on buying a high MPG car is to help conserve gas or protect the environment, then G/Mo would be a more inclusive statement of one's efforts.

I mean, if a guy buys a Prius, and decides, "Gee, I can go twice as far on the same gas. I think from now on I'll drive to the big grocery store across town instead of walking to my local store." This isn't saving gas, but he could say, "hey, I'm getting great MPG".

I have seen several people share how they have arranged work and home to shorten their commute, and to me this IS valuable information, because it gives me ideas and shows more of the big picture.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Highly ImPriused @ Jun 19 2007, 01:40 PM) [snapback]464810[/snapback]</div>

Is that 45 miles roundtrip, or one way? I'm thinking it must be roundtrip, because you've got me beat on gas usage. We'll see if my summer numbers bring me down enough! Thanks for sharing.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(pinball @ Jun 22 2007, 05:39 AM) [snapback]466255[/snapback]</div>

Hey Pinball,

Good luck with the hypermiling and looking for that 600 mile tank. I personally haven't hit a 500 mile tank, but my commute is mostly highway. I drive right at the speed limit, 65, and get mid 40's MPG. I think if I could find a back road to commute slower, I could get way better gas mileage, but I haven't mapped it out yet. Plus, I'm not sure if I want to spend two hours a day in my car, much as I love it!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ystasino @ Jun 22 2007, 12:09 PM) [snapback]466405[/snapback]</div>

That's pretty good savings, and another good way of looking at it. I'd say my savings is right around the same 10 gallons a week.

Here are some of my problems:
1. Heavy head or cross winds (prairie).
2. No serious hills to use engine efficiently up, then coast down. So I'd have to be constantly monitoring my pedal. Possible, but I'm not sure I want my eyes off the road that much.
3. I like Cruise Control. It lets me focus on the road and listen to the radio, not worry about my speed. Too bad no one invented a fuel-efficient mod for CC!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Stev0 @ Jun 22 2007, 04:07 PM) [snapback]466564[/snapback]</div>

I take it you have a short commute? That's about half what I'm using.

I think this is similar to the "carbon footprint" idea, except it's only looking at the vehicle.

 

I couldn't wait. I actually haven't filled up yet, but the last time I filled up was June 8th. So my summer non-commute will bring down my numbers a lot. Somewhere around 33.3 for avg G/Mo at the end of June. Of course, then I'm driving to NY and back next month, so that means something like 40 gal that month. August should be lower again, because school doesn't start until the third week.

 

June: 18.2 Gallons

Avg. G/Mo: 33.4 (took my average down six G/Mo!)
Avg. MPG: 43.5 (this went down about .5)

So theres the proof that you can use less gas AND have worse gas mileage.

I'm going to add G/Mo to my signature line...