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

Mileage to expect for commutes

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Fuel Economy' started by blfuller, Jul 17, 2008.

  1. blfuller

    blfuller Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 14, 2008
    25
    3
    0
    Location:
    Eastern Washington State
    Vehicle:
    2009 Prius
    I am a prospective buyer for a new 2008/9 Prius and I thought I'd pose a question to you Prius owners, so here goes...

    I live in a rural area and have a 30 mile one way commute that goes for approximately 10 miles at a speed limit of 55 mph, then through town for a stint of 5 miles at 35 mph, then onto the freeway for the balance of 15 miles at 60-65 mph. The trip to work is an early one so there's no stop and go in the city, but the return trip does have the stop and go.

    The roads are fairly flat and some down hill on the inbound trip in the rural area but everything else is fairly straight and flat.

    So the question is what might I expect for mileage? Also is there any advantage to the touring option or not for a commuter car? If I would be getting in the low to mid 40's, it would appear this is the car for me. Please let me know your thoughts. Thanks.
     
  2. narf

    narf Active Member

    Joined:
    Mar 15, 2005
    611
    45
    4
    Location:
    Colorado
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Four Touring
    Depending on the weather and your driving style, you should get between the high 40s and the low 50s for mileage. I have an 08 touring that is not broken in yet, and on my daily 23 mile commute at 65 mph I get a bit over 50 mpg. On a windy day it drops down to the 47 or 48, and in a snowstorm it may drop down to the low to mid 40s.

    The touring has a much better handling suspension. More controllable. think of the standard Prius suspension as similar to an old Buick, the Touring is more like a newer Audi. Some say the touring has a slight MPG hit, but I've owned both and get the same mileage on both. For my tastes the Touring is a much better suspension and a bargain for the small extra price.
     
  3. skruse

    skruse Senior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 6, 2004
    1,454
    97
    0
    Location:
    Coloma CA - Sierra Nevada
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    II
    I commute 30 mi each way - 10 mi @ 65 mph on freeway, 20 mi @ 48 mph on a lightly traveled 2-lane highway.. I earn 48 mpg in the coolth of winter and 55-62 in the warmth of summer. I use hypermiling techniques whenever possible - pulse and glide, cruise control, not using the AC, etc. I refill the tank every 2.5 weeks. I keep complete records on a spreadsheet (Currently at 30.9k mi).
     
  4. bushface

    bushface Junior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 11, 2008
    41
    0
    0
    Location:
    Spruce Pine NC
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    I drive 40 miles one way much like you do except constant rolling hills. 3 miles at 45 mph, 3 miles 12% grade at 35 MPH, 3 miles at 45 MPH, 11 miles at 55 MPH, 18 miles at 65 MPH and 2.5 miles at 35 or less MPH. My killer is the 3 miles of 12% grade going home. I still average 49.2 doing miles driven divided by gallons purchased for a true gas mileage. All of my driving is rolling hills that are hard on mileage no matter what you drive. I do not trust the screen for mileage but do use it to help me retrain my gas (lead) foot. If you drive fairly conservative to average you should beat my numbers. On vacation in the flat lands near SC beaches I average about 53 MPG even though i was running the air conditioner constantly, The air conditioner probably drops my MPG about 2 MPG on my commute. I noted this drop in mileage after comparing the before verses after I started using the air every afternoon on my way home. I will learn more this fall as I had my car just 3 months but have 9500 miles on it.

    I do not tailgate but I watch my instantaneous mileage to keep it above 55 MPG as much as possible. My speed will vary but I maintain 55 MPH if the speed limit allows it. I will hit 78 in a 70 speed limit if I am maintaining 55 or more on the instantaneous MPG. I flow with traffic on multi lane roads if traffic is slightly heavy or maintain the speed limit if someone is behind me on a 2 lane road> Plus I will coast to stop signs and red lights using the "B" on the shifter.

    Hope this helps you.
     
  5. catgic

    catgic Mastr & Commandr Hybrid Guru

    Joined:
    Jul 7, 2007
    586
    140
    1
    Location:
    HTTP 404 Not Found
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Five
    HTTP 404 Not Found
     
  6. blfuller

    blfuller Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 14, 2008
    25
    3
    0
    Location:
    Eastern Washington State
    Vehicle:
    2009 Prius
    Thanks for the input. Now all I need to do is put my deposit down.;)
     
  7. Sheepdog

    Sheepdog C'Mere Sheepie!

    Joined:
    Mar 12, 2008
    1,125
    15
    9
    Location:
    Sanford FLorida
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    II
    Yes definately get that car! You may thank us later! :usa2::canada:
     
  8. a priori

    a priori Canonus Curiosus

    Joined:
    Aug 14, 2007
    3,083
    407
    23
    Location:
    Chicagoland (West)
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    V
    I like the fact that you are getting fairly straight-forward and conservative responses so far.

    Your initial mileage will not be as good as you would have hoped if MPGs are your thing. Still, you'll never have seen anything like it before.

    When you get the car, just spend some time enjoying it and "worry" about maximizing mileage later.

    Given your commute, you have the option of getting mileage as low as the upper 40s and as high as -- well, as high as you'd like. By driving 30 miles, you'll get to experience the higher-end mileage figures, because you'll be able to get the car properly warmed even on cold days.

    If you read up on how to increase mileage, and you are willing to follow a few basic instructions, you should find that it is hard to get the car below 50 MPG (except in the dead of winter). If you keep your car at 45 to 55 in the first zone, and you learn how to anticipate lights and drive in a coasting-type mode through town (the 35 MPG zone), you'll find you will get incredibly high mileage going just before you hit the final 65 MPH zone. If you are a lead foot, you will kill all of your MPG gain in less than one minute. I suggest you slow down for the last stretch and keep the mileage in mind.

    On flatlands, where the temp is fairly high (above 80), you should be getting close to 60 MPG when driving 60 MPH. Drop to 55, and you'll see 65 MPG (after the engine is fully warmed). If you go up to 65, then MPGs will drop to 55 -- if you use some hypermiling techniques. If you just for 65 to 70 mph, you will see very low MPGs.

    Winter really could kill your mileage (it put a damper on my experience), but the length of your commute should allow you experience less MPG drop due to the ability of the engine to fully warm.
     
  9. PriusSport

    PriusSport senior member

    Joined:
    May 20, 2008
    1,498
    88
    0
    Location:
    SE PA
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    I now have about 1000 miles on my Prius. I just returned from a trip north to the mountains--about 150 miles--mostly highway. Going up--which is somewhat uphill, I got 55 mpg on the readout. Returning, more downhill, I got 60 mpg. I used the AC for short times on returning. Averaged 55-65 mph. My tire pressures are 38/36.

    In suburban driving, I average about 48 mpg--short trips to the store. Longer trips on local roads (non-highway), I average about 52 mpg. Using the AC will drop these numbers 2-3 mpg. I'm looking for further improvements after 5K miles or so.
     
  10. bmg21

    bmg21 New Member

    Joined:
    May 16, 2008
    22
    0
    0
    Location:
    Rochester MN
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    I've driven the prius 1000 miles as well and what I have found is your commute would probably be ideal. Your highway stint would definitely warm up the engine to 70 C in less that 4-5 minutes. What I've found, the quicker I get into stage 4 of engine operation, the better. I don't have a link for how to get into stage 4, but basically you raise the engine temp to 70 C then come to a stop and let the ICE turn off. This can be either done before you get on the highway or when you go through town. But I don't see any reason you couldnt get 55+ on that commute through the summer as long as you follow some simple techniques that have been posted, especially by efusco's hypermiling tech's.

    Brandon
     
  11. kazots

    kazots LifesaBeach

    Joined:
    Apr 10, 2008
    262
    0
    0
    Location:
    CALIFORNIA
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    It really depends what car you would compare it with. I get great mileage with my Prius and great joy in driving. I know I am saving money on gas and feel better about not giving money to countries that hate us.
     
  12. N3FOL

    N3FOL Member

    Joined:
    Dec 2, 2007
    891
    16
    0
    Location:
    Stewartstown, PA.
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    This summer I am getting between 52 to 55 mpg per tank. I now have over 10K miles and I wonder whether my Prius is officially broken into or not yet?
     
  13. PhilT

    PhilT Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 6, 2008
    7
    3
    1
    Location:
    NorthEast
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    I have a question regarding hills. My highway mpg is better than my city mpg, and I am assuming that is because I live at the top of a very large hill. Every place I go in town, I travel about two miles downhill, but then have to drive a steep two miles uphill to get home. Lots of these in-town trips take place - the effect is smoothed out over a long highway trip, and therefore is the reason for my better mileage on the road (I think?)

    Am I correct in assuming that the mpg I save going downhill is more than wiped out by the extra work the engine has to do going back uphill? I.e., is going down a hill two miles (coasting) and then back up for two miles more work for the gas engine than going 4 miles on a straight-a-way?
     
  14. abq sfr

    abq sfr New Member

    Joined:
    Mar 28, 2007
    690
    3
    0
    Location:
    Albuquerque, NM
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    I'm sure its preferable to live in a flat area, as opposed to hilly. But in a hilly area, I think its better to live at the top like you do, you'll be using less energy in the morning when your engine is least efficient (you'll be going downhill with the ice idling), and similarly, your engine will be warmer and more efficient when you drive home uphill. That's my situation, I live higher up, i think thats better than living at a lower elevation and commuting up. But it would be more efficient with it flat.
     
  15. rwhoyle

    rwhoyle Member

    Joined:
    Aug 19, 2007
    227
    2
    0
    Location:
    Tulsa, Oklahoma
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Both my wife and I drive the Touring Model and we both average between 45 and 52 MPG on 60 % city and 40 % highway driving. Go for the Touring as the handling, cornering, shorter braking distance and "feel" of the road is worth the extra cost over the Standard Prii.