The 35-40 Avg Mpg Club

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Mark Derail @ Sep 29 2007, 01:32 PM) [snapback]519080[/snapback]</div>

Not me, I don't think, but I'm glad the car does the job for you. So many people think that you 250+hp just to survive on the roadway which is complete crap. The Prius does surprise me the few times I do lead-foot it on the freeway, probably because of that high-torque grunt provided by the electric motors. It doesn't feel fast but the numbers on the speedo don't lie. It's much quicker than the uninitiated will believe. It may not be a sports car but at least it out-handles any of the behemoth SUVs that everyone seems to think are so great.

That said, I still prefer to take it easy in the right lane. Everyone else can pass to their hearts content.

 

Not me either....but probably will soon, unfortunately...with the modifications I have done....damn.
I am having a hard time maintaining mid 50's now...before it was a lot better. The mudguards, the hood deflector, the upgraded tires.... and the ever persistent tailgaters. :angry:

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(brick @ Sep 29 2007, 03:00 PM) [snapback]519146[/snapback]</div>

Not me either.

I drive and still have fun. Still I get 52 MPG city/highway with a 120 miles daily commute both ways. I can still engage any traffic situation and still get great numbers.

I'll just save the extra money on the next generation PRIUS rather than continuing to feed the oil companies' pockets.

 

Well I hate getting left behind at traffic light drags, so I don't! I'm always the first off the lights and I am always the first up to the speed limit, mostly half throttle gets me there too! I go through 40 sets of traffic lights each way on my daily commute, I'm not exagerating, from Woodcroft to Walkley Heights Adelaide Australia, look it up and count them. I get to work quicker in my Prius than I did in my Camry and getting home is the same story. My daily commute is about 34km each way so the engine is warm a lot. I never stretch the tank for the sake of it, I value the hybrid battery too much for that running out of fuel business, but I still get over 800km from each 40 litre refill! Oh there was one time I didn't make better than 5.0L/100km, that was when I went on a 650km round trip to Port Augusta and back. I traveled at the speed limit of 110km/h except when overtaking or through towns. Most people in South Australia drive at the speed limits which are enforced. When overtaking at one point I got up to 160km/h but normally 140km/h did the job. Still over 700km before I filled up and averaged 5.2L/100km.

Pulse and gliders must be a pain in the bum for those around them, and as for following slow trucks to reduce consumption, have you read the threads about stone damage to the bonnet and windscreen of the Prius? Why would you do it to your self? Those fat tyres pick up every little stone and fling them back at you.

Unfortunately I can't join the 5.5 to 6.5L/100km club because I always better 5.5L/100km! Even with my rev head ways, racing off lights and passing at up to 100mph I can't drive my average below 5.2L/100km even on a trip. I have never been one to race up to a red light, I have always tried to time the lights to keep the wheels turning even if it is very slowly. I don't tail gate so I have room to drive at a constant pace while others around me are always touching the brakes. Ny normal drive is mostly flat too fortunately, I have one good hill which I climb at 100km/h or a little more with power to spare. At half a tank this hill alone increases my average consumption by 0.1L/100km each time I climb it but by the end of the tank that affect is no longer evident due to higher km on the tank.

It is my belief that people who drive slow to achieve high MPG figures are doing the Prius a dis-service. Displaying the Prius to the population as a slow car wont encourage uptake of hybrid technology by the masses, but only adds to the miss-conception that Prius is a 1.5 litre engine in a small/mid size car which equals slow and economical. The concept was suposed to be 2.0 to 2.4L beating performance with sub 1.0L fuel consumption. So why drive at sub 1.0L speeds and acceleration?

Thanks for starting the high consumption thread but sorry I can't join your club, good luck and glad to hear you enjoy the hybrid turbine like performance! Gotta love it!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Tideland Prius @ Sep 29 2007, 04:23 PM) [snapback]519215[/snapback]</div>

Je me souviens.

B)

 

I'm in! I've been reading some of the crazy/rude driving tactics that it takes to squeeze every last mile out of a gallon of gas. Could you imagine the chaos if everybody on the road drove like that? I've played around on some back roads trying to see just what I'd have to do to get these high gas mileage numbers and there's no way I could feel good being such an obstruction to others (and I live in Amish country).

I'm happy that we are getting about 50mpg and polluting a bit less just driving the car like I would drive my regular car. I bought this high-tech car to help me with this compromise otherwise I could ride a bicycle.

On the other hand, I drive a bit nicer in the Prius. It's kinda gutless so undo acceleration is relatively pointless. I'll trim my desire to rocket off the line or race to the next light but I'll keep the goofy stuff to a minimum and never interfere with other drivers who are operating their vehicles legally.

Cheers to the new club!

 

My Prius is only 3 days old now, so its not really broken in, and I hear mileage improves upon breaking in, but I am driving this like a bat out of hell. I am REALLY getting a kick out of the MASSIVE torque of the electric motor. This car gets up and MOVES! And Even though I drive it like this, I cant get anything under 42 mpg!

Edit: Editing just to not sound like im being wreckless. I dont floor it, I let the engine run at the RPMs that are typical of the ECVT, not flooring it. but man does the motor have insane torque. lovin it.

 

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I read about people deliberately taking back roads to drive slow, people pulse to the speed limit then down to 2/3 the limit. This is a menace to others, then people who tailgate to slipstream or draft as I believe it's called there (USA) for a couple MPG (and a mass of stone chips).
You can pulse and glide in a conventional car too, it's not a Prius or hybrid exclusive. I was getting as good as 7.0L/100km from my Camry across town using the technique. Yes I was turning the engine off coasting down hills and yes it's suprising how far you can get on a slight slope. You lose the power steering but that's no big deal and the brakes have a reserve of a couple of stops with the engine off. The HSD will often glide or run in stealth on it's own I have noticed.
Enjoy the Prius and all the features that appeal to you. I bought my Prius after I was beaten at a traffic light drag on my way home from work, I'll stick to my 4.3L/100km bad habits even though I know how I'm missing out on a potential 0.6L/100km or 150 litres of fuel a year or $200AU a year extra for fuel. I'm still about 4.0L/100km better off than I was in the Camry or about 1000 litres of fuel or about $1300AU a year better off.

If I had purchased a 2004 Camry instead of a 2004 Prius I would have spent about $8000 less on my purchase so my break even point is a fuel saving of $8000 which I will achieve in a little over 6 years completely disregarding spiraling fuel prices. I had my last car for 14 years so the Prius should do me very well indead. In 14 years this car will owe me next to nothing.

 

It is possible to get less than 45? I don't hypermile but average about 54mpg in the summertime going 3 - 5 MPH over the posted speed limit. I usually have to TRY to get less than 50.
In the wintertime its a different story.

 

It's pretty easy to get 30-45 MPG in the car. Just limit all of your trips to 5 minutes or less.

This can be accomplished by having jobs such as a pizza delivery man, or just living very near to your work.

Stuff like pulse & glide, driving like a maniac, and tire pressure are irrelevant when it comes to getting very poor MPG, as each of these factors only will shave off 3-5 MPG.

The biggest key to great MPG in the Prius is to drive 10-15 minutes or more. The longer, the better. The second biggest key is tire pressure, which can lop off 5 MPG or more. Pulse and glide will only make a difference of about 3 MPG. Driving conservatively generally is not helpful at all, as pulse and glide dictates getting up to speed as quickly as you can and NOT driving like a grandma.

 

Yes I HAD a 2 litre wagon. Power steering isn't all that important if you need to turn the wheel you will. There is no power steering on my 1968 Toyota Crown and I can live with that. Yes the steering is heavy with the engine off but I am a big strong boy. I only did the coasting thing for a tank of petrol or 2 to see how good I could get.
Is driving with electric power called gliding or with no power to the ground? I thought the latter in which case coasting is the same as gliding. After all a glider is only gliding when there is no power just gravity and momentum.

 

When I first got the Prius and had never even heard of the terms "hypermiling" or "Pulse and Glide", and TP was whatever low value the dealer or Toyota had put (I think it was 5 psi below the Toyota specs) my first and second tanks were both around 52 mpg from the mfd. I drove just like I did the Sienna. Months later with 42/40 TP, EBH, and P&G where feasible its up to 57. I'm usually first off the line at the lights (not picking my nose or shaving or plucking eyebrows or whatever all the others do) and try to P&G in an unobservable fashion. As some others stated, what effects your mpg more than anything else is SHORT TRIPS. My commute is around 30 miles each way, half freeway, half 35mph side streets. And on weekends my average mpg drops due to SHORT TRIPS. You could call your club the SHORT TRIP CLUB. But I think you are naming your club due to your mindset... and that's just fine, different strokes for different folks. I actually enjoy driving my Prius to get the best mpg without anyone around me knowing what I'm doing. It's like a new hobby!