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Is my Prius Broken?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Fuel Economy' started by mchaconcr, May 20, 2008.

  1. mchaconcr

    mchaconcr New Member

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    Hello, I got a new 07 Prius last year, and no matter how I drive it, no matter what.... I can't make it better than 33 mpg between tank fillups....

    I already went for the 10.000 km checkup with the Dealer and they say everything's fine with it... but is not!!! I see people here that don't even pay attention to the display who are getting like 50 mpg!! I already tried that, turned off the screen, tried pulse-n-glide, tried punch-n-fly, tried the EV-switch once the battery is full....

    No matter what I do I can't beat the 33 mpg barrier!!!

    I started thinking that maybe it is because US traffic is different from Costa Rica (where I live and where I drive my Prius)... but well.... it is not that different!!!! Is a shame that there is not much hybrids around here (not yet) because when I see other Prius around I start flashing lights and waving just to get to ask them how much are they consuming.... but most of the times they flash, and wave back with a big smile and that "hello" stupid expression!

    The Toyota dealer says (the sales people) that the Prius makes over 60 mpg, but the mechanics there says that it is perfectly normal that mine is making less than 33 mpg!!!

    Is there any other Prius owner around the San José, Heredia, Escazú area in this forum?

    Thanks
     
    #1 mchaconcr, May 20, 2008
  2. efusco

    efusco Moderator Emeritus
    Staff Member

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    Tell us about your driving habits...how far, city, rural, top speed you travel in your usual commute. How often do you have cold starts for short trips?
    What tire pressures do you use? Have you had an alignment done? I know that in Costa Rica there are a lot of rough dirt roads...and even the paved roads are often rough....that's not conducive. I'm also aware of how people drive in San Jose...it isn't pretty and it can't be conducive to good FE.

    What fuel do you use...are you sure it's good quality?
    What oil and have you checked the level...too high can impact your FE.

    Have you tried taking a 20 or 30 mile rural drive (on paved roads) where you can keep a pretty steady speed of around 45mph or so? If not, do so. Reset the Consumption screen before you start so you can get a reading just for that run...let us know what your FE is for that.

    BTW, are you hitting the 'reset' button on the consumption screen after fill ups? If not then what you're seeing is a cumulative mileage since you got the car and that will change very very slowly...do you record each fill up and calculate the mileage?
     
    #2 efusco, May 20, 2008
  3. sleonardelli

    sleonardelli Junior Member

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    Location:
    Ruskin Fl
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    How far do you typically drive in one trip. From what I've read short distances are mileage killers. I have a 75 mile round trip commute every day, drive normally, don't speed or hard brakes and right now I'm getting about 42 mpg (not sure of the conversion) per tank. My biggest mpg killer right now is when I drive to MacDill AFB, about 1 mile (again not good at math for conversion) from the gate and then its stop and go (typically takes 25-35 minutes to drive that last mile). I lose about .5-1 mpg during this period. :( No way around it unfortunately.
     
    #3 sleonardelli, May 20, 2008
  4. mingoglia

    mingoglia Member

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    Location:
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    Having spent time in Costa Rica I'd say that your driving habits are more than likely quite different than ours in the states. I can consistently achieve over 50mpg on my commute. My commute is 40 miles round trip split up amongst highway and city. The city portion has stop lights located every mile and can be timed. The highway portion is light traffic where I'm sure my average speed is in the low 50's (MPH). When visiting friends in Costa Rica, at least on the roads in which I traveled, it's quite different. On the gas, on the brake, narrow roads with frequent stops, etc. On top of this our trips on average were much shorter in Costa Rica which kills economy. BTW, I used to have a call center in Costa Rica which is why I used to travel there so frequently. I've never personally drove as I always hired a driver for the time I was there.
     
    #4 mingoglia, May 20, 2008
  5. briansabeans

    briansabeans New Member

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    Location:
    San Francisco
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    I remember traveling to Costa Rica as a teenager. The roads were horrible, even on toll roads. I don't recall any true "smooth" roads, at least not what you'd consider smooth in the USA. The road quality is probably 1) causing you to use more gas, 2) deflating your tires quicker, and 3) messing up your alignment. The intense driving style probably hurts for fuel efficiency as well, not to mention blasting your AC when it's hot (although from what I remember, San Jose has a fairly mild climate.)

    I'm sure you do short trips, as I'm fairly sure people just don't commute 60 miles a day in Costa Rica.

    I'd compare your situation to mine in San Francisco, where I'm doing at best in the early 40s when I get around town, although clearly you are dealing with some worse conditions.
     
    #5 briansabeans, May 20, 2008
  6. mchaconcr

    mchaconcr New Member

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    Yes I reset the counter every fill up and the most common reading I get is 7l/100 km (33.6 mpg) +/-5....

    My daily commute is from Heredia to San Jose... Which means in plain english: About 16 miles... the first 3 or 4 miles is low-traffic, narrow-rural-well-paved roads most downhill (not too much, but I can glide good part of it, and slightly charge the battery to almost full (not green)) then I get to the ""''' highway '''"" (yes heavily quoted) the first 10 miles it goes kind of fast (50 mph), and then it slows down to about 10 to 20 mph, partially uphill, there's where I drain the battery... Most of the days the temperature in the mornings is 75 F.... so I try not to turn on the AC as well as on my way back.... A real gas-killer is when I go to pick up lunch to the nearest McDonnalds or Bk (a 1 mile roundtrip) at noon the average temperature is between 80-90 F.... so the A/C is a MUST for a short trip.... I know... my fault!!! :p

    So, most of my commute is involves a "highway" and low traffic areas... There is a lot of traffic jams, narrow roads, unpaved or potholes with esporadic appearances of roads over here.... but not on my commute.

    Once I met a guy who owned a Prius in the Guanacaste Area (near the ocean, in the Pacific Area) and he was getting about 50 mpg with his Prius, but driving conditions are way different over there!

    For how I see it... Highway driving in Costa Rica is better compared to city driving in the US... so I shuld be getting even better millage! But I'm not!

    Today and tomorrow I'll record the GPS track and I'll upload the Google Earth .kml file to see what I'm missing!!!! :) Is a shame that there's no way to record the energy mode used along with the GPS data!

    BTW I don't have the built-in GPS, I use my phone.... there is no such a thing like Prius -with-GPS over here.... they sell only one package, which is a hybrid (of course it is) but a hybrid between package #1 and Touring.
    I don't have JBL stereo, CD-changer, backup camera, neither GPS, but I DO have 16" wheels, 4 wheel disk brakes and every gauge and screen shows kilometers per hour, and Centigrades not Miles / Farenheith
     
    #6 mchaconcr, May 20, 2008
  7. sleonardelli

    sleonardelli Junior Member

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    Location:
    Ruskin Fl
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Seems like UR commute is too short. I know when I do shopping on Sat my mpg drops like mad. I am sure, in another car, it could be worse. Good luck! The Prius is fun to drive. I still have lots to learn about P&G, etc but I try to use every other tool recommended here.
     
    #7 sleonardelli, May 20, 2008
  8. mchaconcr

    mchaconcr New Member

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    I have attached the MorningRoute.zip containing this morning's commute... According to the GPS it took me about 40 minutes to get to the office but it is only a 10 miles commute.... I made 34.5 mpg, and spent 0.27 gallons of Gas. So the average speed is..... hahahaha wow! slightly over 12 mph !!! I think I'll buy a bike!!!
     

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    #8 mchaconcr, May 21, 2008
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