Gen II owners- what did you have to "unlearn" when you got a Prius v?

Agree. The learning curve has the biggest impact on any hybrid's fuel economy. My first two tanks were sub 40 mpg due to my learning curve. Nowadays, I don't get anything less than 45 mpg (except for one where I topped it off - darn it ).

 

Today I fuelled up and switched to ECO mode for commute to work. I didn't think it would really change much especially when I found myself just pushing the pedal harder to achieve what felt like the same result in terms of accelerating and maintaining speed. But the indicated MPG for the single trip ended up 55.0MPG. For comparison my BEST trip going from the gas station near my house to my office in normal mode was 50.1. It will be interesting to see how the whole tank averages out, but it's a promising start.

 

I have owned and driven the G2, G3 (Lexus CTh 200) and now the vagon. I did not find anything to unlearn for the newer cars, and fuel economy has been as expected (in my hands much better than EPA, about EPA when my wife drives.)

 

I have found on mostly level terrain, 73mph seems to be at the top of the limits for trying to get 50+ MPG. (little wind also).

For best results I have found that using my cruise control on the interstate, even in town seems to do better on MPG. Most drivers tend to speed up going down hill when the V wants to let off and sip gas. The car's Hybrid system also seems to charge the battery at a higher rate when traveling downhill when the cruise control is engaged.

If you have the time, find a highway or multilane road home that does 40-45 mph instead. Enjoy getting 50+ while you scoot along towards home.