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

Lifetime mileage?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Fuel Economy' started by Rickster, Oct 18, 2004.

  1. Rickster

    Rickster Junior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 30, 2004
    51
    2
    0
    Location:
    Vancouver, WA
    I see lots of people posting about their lifetime MPG figures... does the Prius calculate this and display it somewhere, or are you doing it by hand? If it's the former, I still haven't found it... just the tank average on the consumption screen.
     
    #1 Rickster, Oct 18, 2004
  2. efusco

    efusco Moderator Emeritus
    Staff Member

    Joined:
    Nov 26, 2003
    19,891
    1,191
    9
    Location:
    Nixa, MO
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    By hand.
     
    #2 efusco, Oct 18, 2004
  3. rflagg

    rflagg Member

    Joined:
    Jan 5, 2004
    947
    9
    0
    Location:
    Springfield, VA
    Yeah, it's the one thing software-wise I'd like updated more than anything - having a lifetime mpg on the display, since the tank mileage on the consumption screen will auto-reset after fillups.

    -m.
     
    #3 rflagg, Oct 18, 2004
  4. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

    Joined:
    Jan 6, 2004
    12,747
    5,243
    57
    Location:
    Minnesota
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    Lifetime MPG becomes pretty much useless by the time you reach my mileage. The number barely ever moves at that point. And between pump error, bladder effect, and rounding, the value could be deemed worthless.

    Sorry to mention that reality, but someone's gotta do it.
     
    #4 john1701a, Oct 18, 2004
  5. DaveinOlyWA

    DaveinOlyWA 3rd Time was Solariffic!!

    Joined:
    Apr 13, 2004
    15,140
    611
    0
    Location:
    South Puget Sound, WA
    Vehicle:
    2013 Nissan LEAF
    Model:
    Persona
    i agree with john. too many variables to really use it as a measure unless you divide it into "lifetime winter" and "lifetime summer" which is something i have been thinking about doing.

    i have yet to see a winter in my Prius but this morning it was 46º when i went to work (that is getting near the normal overnight low in winter around here)
     
    #5 DaveinOlyWA, Oct 18, 2004
  6. TonyPSchaefer

    TonyPSchaefer Your Friendly Moderator
    Staff Member

    Joined:
    May 11, 2004
    14,816
    2,496
    66
    Location:
    Far-North Chicagoland
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    These people who change their signatures every time there's a fluctuation in their mileage are crazy. Oh, that's right, I'm talking about you. :)

    I maintain mine in Excel, save it as an HTML file and upload it to Geocities where I can just refer to it by never changing my signature. Some family members and an Insight friend in Pennsylvania check it every now and again. For me, that's the easiest way.
     
    #6 TonyPSchaefer, Oct 18, 2004
  7. DaveinOlyWA

    DaveinOlyWA 3rd Time was Solariffic!!

    Joined:
    Apr 13, 2004
    15,140
    611
    0
    Location:
    South Puget Sound, WA
    Vehicle:
    2013 Nissan LEAF
    Model:
    Persona
    i maintain my with excel too. but why upload the whole thing when i only really want just one tidbit of info from it?
     
    #7 DaveinOlyWA, Oct 18, 2004
  8. Frank Hudon

    Frank Hudon Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 11, 2004
    4,147
    18
    0
    I disagree Lifetime is lifetime plain and simple It's my lifetime mileage for my car. I also do a tank average as well as I compare it to the MFD display which is the one that varies on account of the bladder and pump cutoff etc. But for the Lifetime the MFD say's 5.2 and the spread sheet say's 5.19 Liters Per Hundred Kilometers. Pretty close. Now if some thing goes wrong I get to see it on the MFD in real time and on the tank average. Maybe I'm just a bit anal about it but I want a life time.
     
    #8 Frank Hudon, Oct 18, 2004
  9. Frank Hudon

    Frank Hudon Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 11, 2004
    4,147
    18
    0
    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(john1701a\";p=\"45857)</div>
    all of these factors make the tank average worthless also.
     
    #9 Frank Hudon, Oct 18, 2004
  10. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

    Joined:
    Jan 6, 2004
    12,747
    5,243
    57
    Location:
    Minnesota
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    Tank average?

    Most of use have been using MONTHLY for the standard of measurement.

    Try it. You'll like it.

    By the way, the Lifetime calculation for my 2001 the only fluctuated by 0.6 MPG the entire third year. The monthly difference had a 10 MPG difference though. So the value of each is pretty obvious. Check out the data pages on my website. Start with these...

    http://john1701a.com/prius/prius-data05.htm
    http://john1701a.com/prius/prius-data06.htm
     
    #10 john1701a, Oct 19, 2004
  11. Frank Hudon

    Frank Hudon Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 11, 2004
    4,147
    18
    0
    the only monthly that interests me is $
     
    #11 Frank Hudon, Oct 19, 2004
  12. bruceha_2000

    bruceha_2000 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 2, 2004
    3,054
    301
    19
    Location:
    Northwest VT
    Vehicle:
    2018 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(DaveinOlyWA\";p=\"45918)</div>
    Lighweight! ;-) 35F this morning and we aren't even close to starting "normal winter overnight lows" :) I guess you won't be seeing that snowflake on the road icon much.

    I agree with John that when the car gets lots of miles on it, the fill up to fill up, or month to month lifetime avg won't change enough to care. Even month to month tank avgs won't really do me any good since I will fill up every 2 or 3 weeks unless I do a trip. I'll just track tank avgs and can calc lifetime if Iwant to. Gotta have that number, at least for awhile, so when peole tell you "Those hybrids don't get the mileage they are supposed to" you have a number to give them :)

    Like Dave, I will be tracking winter / summer. In my Odyssey I just did a quick "in my head" calculation every time I filled up and know there was a consistant ~2 MPG drop in winter.
     
    #12 bruceha_2000, Oct 19, 2004
  13. efusco

    efusco Moderator Emeritus
    Staff Member

    Joined:
    Nov 26, 2003
    19,891
    1,191
    9
    Location:
    Nixa, MO
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I'll probably continue to track my mileage carefully, just for the fun of it, for at least 1 more year.

    I feel like the first several months I had the car are poor representations of what is really possible. It was my first hybrid, I'd just gotten the car, and the weather was already good then got cold by the time I 'learned how to drive' most efficiently, and it got broken in.

    I'm curious to see how my winter mileage compares this winter to my first. I don't think spring/summer mileage will change much. If it doesn't I'll probably quit tracking so compulsively by next summer.
     
    #13 efusco, Oct 19, 2004
  14. DaveinOlyWA

    DaveinOlyWA 3rd Time was Solariffic!!

    Joined:
    Apr 13, 2004
    15,140
    611
    0
    Location:
    South Puget Sound, WA
    Vehicle:
    2013 Nissan LEAF
    Model:
    Persona
    well i for one, do not think tracking gas mileage is compulsive at all.

    i also track the cost of gas in cpm (cents per mile) and that might be something to track now before the gas starts going up again..

    then we can reminiscence about the good ole days when it was only 3.5 cpm to travel.
     
    #14 DaveinOlyWA, Oct 19, 2004
(You must log in or sign up to post here.)