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Miles till empty has dropped to around 470 from 560

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Fuel Economy' started by kpence73, Oct 11, 2010.

  1. kpence73

    kpence73 Junior Member

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    My miles to fillup has changed by almost 100miles since I got my car. The car only has 2700 miles on it and when I first got it (dealer filled it up) I was looking at 560 or so. Next two refills were about the same. I then made the mistake to leave the car on (I thought I hit the power button but I guess I hit it twice and it was only a power on, not engine on thing). I think at the time I had about 120 miles before I really had to fill up. After filling up (can't remember how much I put in now), I noticed the miles till fill up remained the 120. It never adjusted itself. The fuel gauge was at full bars. As I drive the miles till fill up began dropping but at a much LOWER rate until I had one blinking bar (fuel gauge) and it showed I had about 30 miles to go. Since then on every refill of around 9 to 9.5 gals, the miles to refill has only been about 460-470. I reset trip A for each refill (habit from other cars) and it showed an average of 46.9mpg before I reset it today. At an average of 46mpg, 9.5gal (that was topping) plus whatever was in the tank should have been a full tank (11.9gal). 46*11.0=574.4. I called Toyota and they said to do 2 more refills and if the miles to refill don't go over 500 to bring it in because a sensor may have been messed up by accidentally leaving the car electronics on during a refill.

    A friend just a got a 2010 prius and his was 564miles to refill when he drove it off the lot.

    I drove a 2010 prius with 20k miles on it while on vacation (over 2000 miles round trip) that I rented and it also was about 540 on a fill up. So I a not sure what is up with mine.
     
  2. kpence73

    kpence73 Junior Member

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    Just an update. Over a month later and I still cannot get a fill up with over 470 miles till empty. The gas mileage has dropped to about 40MPG from the 48MPG I used to get. Two of my wheel covers fell off while driving so I had to take off the other two. Toyota swears that is the reason and has offered to replace the two missing ones at no charge. They reset the computer but still no change.
     
  3. E Street Shuffle

    E Street Shuffle Pa-Pa-Pa-Prius

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    So, the problem is more with gas mileage than the computed "miles until empty" reading?
    Seems reasonable that if the fuel economy has dropped, then the computer knows this and is adjusting the miles until empty accordingly.
    It seems unlikely that wheel covers would cause this decrease in mileage - a lot of folks around here take them off and don't notice a difference. Could this be the effects of recent cold weather?
     
  4. ksstathead

    ksstathead Active Member

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    I suggest you focus on the low mpg, and let the miles till empty fall where it may.

    Now, if you would answer the questionaire done by swerdna here:
    http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii...-answer-these-questions-esp-if-youre-new.html
    and post it in this thread, folks will help with the mpg issue.

    40 is not unheard of, depending on conditions. Press up your tires and read here and at cleanmpg to learn to drive it efficiently in your situation. Then decide which techniques you are willing to do.

    In Georgia, you probably need just one 8' length of 1/2" pipe insulation to do a 50% lower grill block during your mild winter. This would be helpful if you have a shorter commute like mine.

    Good luck!
     
  5. JimN

    JimN Let the games begin!

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    I leave the car on every time I fill up. (trip odo + MTE)/10 is a fair rough estimate of fuel economy and the displayed FE runs ~7% higher than that calculated.

    Without specifics here's the general advice:

    Don't overfill the oil.
    Inflate the tires to max sidewall pressure.
    Block the grill.
    Manage your route.

    It takes 1 or 2 minutes (by the empty space on the graph) to have a tank of gas pumped. I don't see how a sensor or battery could be damaged in this time.
     
  6. thbjr

    thbjr Member

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    Looks pretty simple to me. Milage at 48MPG vs. milage at 40MPG w/11 gal tank = 88 MPG per tank less.
    560 - 470 = 90
    So what's the problem, 2 MPG in the calculated to empty? Not enough differance for me personally to want to spend quality time with my friendly dealerships service department.
    By your own admission, your milage has dropped to 40 MPG. The computer is doing exactly what it is supose to do. In order to see 570 till empty, you'll need either a 14 gallon tank or to increase you MPG to around 50+, just about what the EPA mileage rating for the car is and where the computer would likely be set as a default from the factory, before anyone ever drove the car.
     
  7. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    40 MPG?
    That's pretty spirited driving. I'm a reformed gear head who is used to using the throttle like an on/off switch, and I'm knocking down 55+.

    OK....No "Prius Snobbery" intended, but if you only have 2700 miles on the car, it's probably your driving.
    If you're happy with the 40-MPG, then I'd say keep doing what you're doing. You'll certainly get better fuel efficiency in the Prius than you will in any other car---especially if you have to battle the lunatics on I-285 (Atlanta's "other" international speedway!)
    If you're principally interested in joining the rarified ranks of the hypermilers out there, you're going to have to do some homework and 'learn' how to drive this car. When I first got my company car, I was getting about 43 MPG.
    Since then I've reefed my mileage well into the 50's by managing the gravitational attraction that my right foot has for the right pedal.
    I've managed to do this without spreading "Prius Hate" by becoming a rolling road block, drafting, or by pulsing and gliding on busy roads. I've also eschewed running my tire pressures up to the point that I can run over a dime and tell you whether it's heads or tails, blocking my grill, sweating like a pig because I'm afraid to use the A/C, or any of the other hypermiler fads.
    No antipathy intended for the grill blockers, sweat sodden, or swollen tire crowd....:D

    Like I said...if you're happy in the 40's---vaya con DIOS, and happy motoring.
    If not, then it's pretty easy to break into the 50's, once you get the hang of 'driving' a Prius.

    Good Luck!!!!
    And a belated WELCOME ABOARD!!
     
  8. kpence73

    kpence73 Junior Member

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    My issues are that I am comparing this to another other Prius that I drive. There is a second Prius in the family and it is reporting the same MPG (about 40-45) and it reports about 570 to empty on a 9.5 gal refill. I just filled my up this morning (9.562 gal) and the average (computer given) MPG was 44, but calculated was (41), and the miles till empty was 465. I cannot understand why the two cars are so different when they are reporting the same MPG.
     
  9. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Any numbers either car is giving you are based on the programming. Likely it varies between the 2 cars. It's a given that Prius give falsely optimistic mileage readings, for starters.

    Do some calcs, based on distance travelled and gas consumed, this will allow you to to see how the 2 cars actually compare for mpg and distance travelled per tank.
     
  10. Flaninacupboard

    Flaninacupboard Senior Member

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    The miles to empty thing is crap, they always are. just ignore it. when the car beeps and starts flashing the fuel indicator, put in more petrol.