Gas tank half full pros/cons?

Good point. I haven't reached that point yet, and don't expect I ever will. I have frequent enough road trips that I don't expect to ever reach the limit specified in the owner manual. One good road trip of a few hundred miles will suck out all the old fuel and make room for some sparkling new fuel.

" For plug-in hybrid vehicles, fuel may remain in the tank for a long time and undergo changes in quality depending on the how the vehicle is used. Refuel at least 5.3 gal.(20 L, 4.4 Imp.gal.) of fuel every 12 months (refuel a total of at least 5.3 gal. [20 L, 4.4 Imp.gal.] over a 12-month period), as this may affect components of the fuel system or the gasoline engine."

 

Curious when that will happen on my car. I have 8500 miles on the odo and have only used 6.5 gal. since I bought the car in Dec. of 2017.

 

kinda funny, the EV is slanted toward short local commuter type car, but the fuel capacity is definitely pushing the prime towards long haul type car.
would have been better to put a smallish 5 or 6 gal tank in, lower the super long range to just normal range, and give it another 30lbs of battery... like 10+ kw total size. for 40+ (50 mile maybe) EV range.
much better overall usability for most situations.
better fed tax rebate, probably better for them too with the ev credit exchange or whatever they do...

 

5 or 6 gallons would make it a 'short' range car, by my current standards, not 'normal' range. That would knock it out of contention as a replacement for my Gen3.

I started out with a short range car. Never again for a road trip car, which my Prius is.

 

That would be a Honda Clarity. 47 miles EV range, and only ~7 gal tank to give a total range of ~340 miles. Would be fine commuter for me but I may be frustrated on my longer trips.

 

This would be a deal breaker for me. I bought the car for the range and even with the 8.8 KWh battery I do 95+% of local driving on EV. But a long trip with a tiny gas tank would not cut it. Super long range to me is 700+ miles, normal is 450-550, short is less than 400.

 

Sure would. I miss the second glove box in the Gen II, not sure the single one in the Prime is even as big as the lower one in the Gen II.

I didn't add any when I got back from New Brunswick on April 20th, still have close to half a tank. Not planning to fill up until I get down close to empty unless there is an unplanned longer trip.

Which they aren't at the moment.

And chosen to get gas at the cheapest station on the route. When we were doing the 1,100 mile each way trips to Wisconsin (daughter at Beloit College there) in the Gen II I only had to pay Canadian gas prices once per leg. Cheapest gas is/was at Chester's Gas Bar in North Bay, Ontario then in Marinette, Michigan just north of the Wisconsin border. So we'd leave home full, get gas at Chester's twice and Michigan twice, get home near empty. Would have been much more expensive if I had to hit more stations between home and the WI border.

 

That's one of the reasons I like the long range. I'm looping up through Canada in a few weeks, and I don't intend to buy any fuel there.

 

I did not read the whole thread.
Not certain if the Prius gas system is sealed.

Pro: Yes, less weight...increases acceleration and fuel mileage
Con: Possibility the rust will form in the gas tank above the gas level.

Other comments:
Some say modern gas goes bad after 3 months. So regular use/changing of fuel is a good thing.
In some cars, in tank fuel pumps are "cooled" by fuel...keeping the fuel pump submerged in fuel is a good thing.
Keeping a gas tank with only one gallon in it increases the possibility of "grit"/ debris in the fuel tank being sucked up by the fuel pump.

Good luck with your decision.

 

It is sealed. All recent cars have a vapor tight gasoline system with evaporative capture back to the engine. The most common cause of check engine lights is loose gas caps.

 

The tank is likely plastic.

 

i've been putting in 4 gallons from empty for a few years now, since i only burn about 4 gallons/6 months, which is the pip recommendation for fresh gas.

haven't had any problems with moisture (that i know of)

 

wow you guys are a high milin' bunch !! i was used to 275 to 350 miles range per tank with most of my previous cars. most suv's only get that kind of range also. so its not like its a ridiculously low range compared to what many are used to. i was thinking most people do most of their driving within 25 miles of home, so a bit more EV range, and a bit less gas tank range would be a good trade off. for that once every few months you go 300 600 1000 miles, you just fill up with gas one extra time. but the daily commuting is greatly enhanced and cheaper because you could stay on EV the whole time.
i bet toyota is monitoring usage in our vehicles EV vs HV and length of trips... they will know what is the ideal battery size for the market. heck maybe 8.8kw is the ideal size ; ) but from listening to those posting here at priuschat, many find the gas lasting multiple months, so they must not be going any long distances, and many people could use just a few more miles of EV range. it would make sense to me to exchange some gas range for improved EV range...

 

How would they be doing this?

 

I am sure they keep all the records in the "black box". How easily they will have access to the record is another story, especially if you do not take your car to a dealer for any service after purchase and your car is not equipped with safety connect. Here is an excerpt from the manual.

 

This is looping data kept in the vehicle for purpose of crash analysis. Constantly overwritten with fresh data.