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Approx Mileage hit for non technical spouse

Discussion in 'Prius v Fuel Economy' started by Colin, Oct 20, 2012.

  1. Colin

    Colin Junior Member

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    Hello, I am thinking about buying a shiney new Prius V for my wife. I am comparing it to some small SUVs and I am trying to figure out if the Prius would save me money long term.

    I have checked out the mileage threads, and I am seeing a lot of great, EPA stomping mileage figures. I was wondering though, if you have a non technical spouse, how much worse fuel economy do they get then you? The car would be primarily for my wife, and she just drives cars.

    Thanks for your help, (the other car is an outlander 7.0/9.0 l/100)
     
    #1 Colin, Oct 20, 2012
  2. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

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    There's more to the cost of ownership than just fuel costs. Depreciation is the biggest part.

    From your figures, I'm guessing that you don't live in the US. You'll want to find equivalents of 2012 Toyota Prius v Two 4Dr Wagon | New Toyota Prius v Two 4Dr Wagon 2012 Research at IntelliChoice.com and Gas Saver Hybrids, Diesels vs. Standard Cars | Which Are Most Affordable? - Consumer Reports.

    Here are FE figures on Consumer Reports' own mileage tests.
    The most fuel-efficient cars | Consumer Reports
    The most fuel-efficient SUVs | Consumer Reports

    Last page of http://www.consumersunion.org/Oct_CR_Fuel_Economy.pdf describes their tests vs. the old (pre-model year 08) EPA tests. Their very short city test is likely why city numbers are quite poor vs. EPA figures at Compare Cars Side-by-Side. (To learn more about the EPA tests, see Car and Driver: The Truth About EPA City / Highway MPG Estimates | PriusChat.)

    Keep in mind these are in US gallons which are smaller than Imperial gallons. You can use Google as your calculator (e.g. Google for 41 miles per us gallon in liters per 100 km).
     
    #2 cwerdna, Oct 20, 2012
  3. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    my wife fits that category and gets 35-45 in her hycam. bit of a leadfoot too. but don't tell her i said so.:)
     
    #3 bisco, Oct 20, 2012
  4. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

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    ^^^
    Is it a '12 HyCam or a previous gen?
     
    #4 cwerdna, Oct 20, 2012
  5. fotomoto

    fotomoto Senior Member

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    On my old 3gen I got 45-48mpg while the leadfoot wife usually got 39-41mpg. Yes, 39...... sigh. (all figures calculated at pump)
     
    #5 fotomoto, Oct 20, 2012
  6. umichioe

    umichioe Junior Member

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    5.9L/100km. 50/50 highway city. No hypermiling. Just drive as a normal car.
     
    #6 umichioe, Oct 21, 2012
  7. Colin

    Colin Junior Member

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    Thanks for all the replies. At 5.9 L/100 (40mpg) the car would still save about 1k per year. I think I'll probably be picking one up next week sometime.
     
    #7 Colin, Oct 21, 2012
  8. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    previous - '08.
     
    #8 bisco, Oct 21, 2012
  9. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    op, when you say, 'wondering if it will save money long term', what suv's are you comparing it to and how many miles per year does she drive?
     
    #9 bisco, Oct 21, 2012
  10. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

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    #10 cwerdna, Oct 21, 2012
  11. Colin

    Colin Junior Member

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    I live in Victoria, which is a nice temperate part of the great white north.

    Our local mitsubishi dealer has a 2011 Outlander with CVT and AWC (read all wheel drive) for sale. The sticker says 7.0 L/100 hwy 9.0 city, which works out to 29 MPG (US) combined. After all taxes and fees I could drive it away for 27k, driveaway for the V is 32k (base). Fuel where I live is about $1.25 L or $4.72 gal/US.

    The wife drives an astonishing 400 km (250 miles) a week. 50/50 highway city, with a small traffic jam in the afternoons on the highway (they put traffic lights on it).

    TCO is a difficult thing. How much will gas cost in 5 years? 5 years ago it cost less then it does now. If I drove the Prius for 10 years, barring massive social upheaval, I would save about 5k. Resale value of a Prius with 130,000 miles in 2023? I've been saving up and the dealership is offering 0.9% financing, so for math purposes I can buy either vehicle outright.

    As an interesting aside, "The Man" will pay $2250 if they can crush her old car, which is about what it's worth, but I feel bad crushing something that's not broken.

    Thanks for any insight. I've been pondering this for a couple of months now.
     
    #11 Colin, Oct 22, 2012
  12. fjpod

    fjpod Member

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    When my wife drives the Prius, she gets at least 10% worse mileage. Not that she has a lead foot, but she doesn't anticipate stops. She accelerates into a red light just to catch up to the car in front. When she drives our iMiev, it's worse. She's not a bad driver, but unless you care about your mpgs, you are not going to excel.

    This isn't a Prius fault, as she would get less mpgs even in a traditional ICE.
     
    #12 fjpod, Oct 22, 2012
  13. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

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    From what I understand, Canadian FE ratings are wildly optimistic compared to US estimates. See ours at Compare Side-by-Side.

    I highly doubt you'd see 29 mpg (US) combined, likely closer to the 21 or 24 mpg combined, depending on the engine. With the drive you describe, but not knowing the speeds (assuming not much faster than 100 km/h) and whether it's made up of a lot of short trips (I'm assuming no), I'd wager she could achieve close to the v's 42 mpg (US) combined rating.
     
    #13 cwerdna, Oct 22, 2012
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