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I refuse to be intimidated by "jerks" like this whose psychological gratification with speed borders on pathological. You can tailgate me and seethe with rage but i'm not pulling over for you until its safe to do so.
You fail to comprehend that in the US not every one shares your obsession with speed.If you think that the European system is better emigrate there.
Many drivers, hybrid and non-hybrid are content to drive at or 5-10mph under the speed limit in the right lane.Until the state establishes minimum speed limits this is their statutory right. To label these drivers as "behavioral vigilantes" shows your immaturity and ignorance.
Any cretin can push the pedal to the floor and pass the vehicle in front of him, it takes far more mental discipline to overcome addiction to the aggressive driving tactics that you apparently espouse.
although i hate ignorant people i still do it so everyone can breathe clean air. do you want to end up like mexico city?
and can we please get back to posting FE? i want to see some 60's number from regular drivers.
Here are some facts for you to think about.
In AUSTRALIA...
1/ Gas is currently $6.00 per gallon
2/ It is anticipated to rise to $9.00+ by the end of the year!
3/ At $3 per gallon all hybrids were considered a novelty.
4/ At $6 per gallon they are now a serious alternative to "standard" vehicles. No discounts are offered by car dealers on Hybrids!
5/ I can now sell my 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid for exactly what I paid for it 3 months ago!
As far as I can ascertian Americans are paying highly subsidised prices for their gas...this will not continue!
Trust me...when U.S. gas hits $6 a gallon (and it will be very soon), whatever your reasons for buying a hybrid, it will all boil down to one thing...you can actually afford to drive a motor vehicle at all!
I appreciate all to to & fro discussions about the merits of hybrids...pay back period...blah...blah...blah.
Your hybrid will go up in value versus all the others, and you will save lots of money.
Enjoy...oh...and say hi to dubelya!
-Comfort on long days approaches that of our last MB, which is impressive indeed.
-Power for passing and climbing hills is more than adequate, again, at least on a par with our C240.
-The Costco Michelins in place of the Badyear Integrity OEM tires makes the car fun to drive...it sticks in the curves and now can handle rain without skating all over the road.
Best fuel economy for a tank was about 48 mpg coming down the hill from Reno - also went from 2 pink bars to 8 green bars on the energy scale on the downhill run. Worst tank was about 38 mpg in the rain from SF to Yreka CA, climbing and falling [but mostly climbing], and with speeds rarely going below 70 mph.
Priuses are all over the SF area...practically the official city car....
Not even close, mate. The US does not have the high gas taxes of other countries. That is why the gas is cheaper.
On the positive side my 2006 Prius MPG average for the past 994 miles is 54MPG. 50/50 highway/city driving,average highway speed 60mph(95%),primary driving locale was Western NY with mild elevation.
While i'm pleased with the overall MPG i'm equally pleased with the accuracy of the MPG tripmeter. For the three fill ups the trip meter readings were 57, 56 and 52, the MPG reading as measured by visual filler pipe inspection were 55, 56 and 51 respectively. It is enough to inspire my confidence in the tripmeter.
"Ah come on. I just spent a week driving my big MB Cruiser around the Hill Country. I found TX drivers very courteous. "
LOL - Houston is flat as a pancake. You weren't cruising Houston, there is no "Hill Country"
Cheers,
MidCow
For example , if you signal to change lanes most Houston drivers try to close the gap.
Rush hour is a zoo! Unbelieveable drivers!
Gagprice, If you do come to Houston, I know of a least one person who will be courteous to you, me!. But then again, I am a transplanted Houstonian.
LOL,
MidCow
Thanks,
Chintan Talati
Corporate Communications
Edmunds.com
1) 90% of the time I drive at 60mph on the Interstate, in the right lane of course, and faster only when necessary to pass.
2) I try to keep the tire pressure at 42/40psi, 7psi over the placard recommendation. It is a stiffer ride but I can tolerate it.
3) avoid hard accelerations and do a lot of coasting, if I expect the traffic light ahead of me to turn to red instead of accelerating I try to time my speed so that I won't have to come to a full stop and accelerate from zero.
I'm not a hypermiler and really am not knowledgeable on "pulse and glide" but i'm always looking to learn.
My neighbor just got a honda civic and says they got 44 MPG on a trip to Indiana. I am jealous. That's without a hybrid engine and I know it wasn't as expensive as my loaded 2006 Pruis. But I have hopes.
Hopefully some user of this forum has an opinion on these issues.
As to your neighbor getting 44MPG on a non-hybrid Honda Civic it is not inconceivable but I would question him as to the methodology. Unless you cap your tank to the same exact level at least two or three times you won't be able to accurately meaure your MPG. Don't rely on the gasoline pump shut offs-usually you can squeeze another 1-2 gallons into the tank.
Higher pressures than recommended on the door post will usually wear the centre of the tread faster, and will usually slightly lower your traction. The vehicle will also ride rougher. It's been common to see recommendations in the owners manual to raise the tire pressure a few psi for highway trips or when the vehicle is fully loaded (to help keep the tires cool or perhaps better stated, to keep them from overheating). This should have minimal effect on tire life and vehicle handling.
Lower pressures than recommended on the door post will usually wear the outside edges of the tread faster, and will usually heat up the tire more than desired - this is a potentially dangerous condition and should be avoided. Lower pressures will also usually lower your traction as well and make the vehicle "wallow" a bit in corners.
You can get fanatical about tire pressures, and that's a "good thing" (tm). I recommend a digital tire pressure gauge - they tend to be more accurate than the rod type. Check the pressures at least once a month. For lots more info. check out the "tires tires tires" forum and the "tire pressure gauges" forum.
However all my previous and current cars have always been to max cold sidwall pressure and always wore evenly across the tread.
My HCH for example have the Dunlops and have kept them @ 51PSI since new. It's time for new tires at 75,000 miles and the wear is even, as usual.
The car still runs great with no problems. So Far only oil changes and a tire rotation and the recall on the steering shaft which the dealer did in about an hour and a half.
I believe there is something wrong with my Prius that Toyota is not diagnosing and there are others in the same situation.
I too want to get 50+mpg, but right now, at 35mpg, I'm questioning the logic of my green decision of 16 months ago.
I would love to know the percentage of Prius's that actually get 55mpg or more vs. those that get 45mpg or less - and those in the middle too.
Has anyone any insight? (Not the GM Insight - the electric that never made it out of Detroit! No one has one of those!)
Oh, and the Insight is the Honda hybrid that started it all here in the USA. GM built the all electric EV-1 then got pushed out by regulations.
The dealer said it takes 500 miles or so to fully charge the battery and that my MPGs should go up then. Is this true?
I know other Prius owners who do get 50 to 60mpg. They say that the A/C generally takes about 5mpg.
By the way, the mpg display on the dash is an estimate. You should calculate the actual mpg at every fill-up. My Prius over estimates by about 5mpg.
Enjoy your car! Mine is having problems right now, but hopefully, we will find the fault and I too will get 50+ mpg in the future!
After driving my Prius over 117,000 miles with the stuff, I'm having a very difficult time figuring out what the misconceptions are.
My average for last month was 51.9 MPG.
JOHN
If they had left out the 10% ethanol you might have gotten the EPA average of 55 MPG. There is no way for you to know if it decreases mileage if you do not run anything but E10.
Who are you trying to greenwash?
51.9 MPG using E10 is hardly anything to complain about. Whether or not it matches the silly EPA numbers that simply don't reflect real-world results in any way, shape, or form is meaningless.
The EPA average only applies to those that drive in ideal conditions, precisely the way they do with their grossly outdated tests... which don't take into account how fast people actually drive or the fact that they use the A/C or in my case carry 2 kayaks on the roof sometimes.
JOHN
How do you know that E10 is equal to regular unleaded if that is all you have used? My point being you may have done even better than your current overall average.
My truck has dropped off 1 MPG since they mandated ethanol use for CA. I have no idea what percentage is added. I always use Costco gas. I have no other explanation for the 1 MPG drop. It may be the heat. Though I run the AC year round.
I'm at my wits end.
Any information will be greatly appreciated.
I finally managed to get with the sales guy. He is the local Prius expert. He suggested several things to improve mpgs... Slower starts, try not to brake heavily at a stop, but let the car gradually slow down (= motor becomes generator and returns power to battery), and one thing that I did not know before, and this bothers me a bunch, keep the speed at or below 40. Apparently the car was designed for in-town, bumper to bumper driving, where 30 or 35 is as fast as it gets. The design starts the gas engine when you go above 40.
So I've been watching the energy and consumption screens while I drive. Over relatively flat ground, at 39, the display says I'm getting between 50 and 70mpg (it's not perfectly flat!) When I drive that same piece of road at 42, I'm seeing 40 to 60mpg.
My problem with this: Between home and work, virtually all the roads are posted at 40. And naturally, no one goes the speed limit. So if the sign says 40, 45 is the slowest you dare go.
I started my new driving experiment with a full tank of gas, so it will be awhile before I know the overall results. I will post more later.
Re: Oil changes: If you check the quality and color of your oil when you change it at 3000, you will see that it is nearly new! If you do the same at 5000, you will see that it has turned darker and does not feel as slippery between your finger and thumb. I change mine between 4500 and 5000.
If you're like me, target changing the oil at 4000, by the time you actually get to the garage, its 4500ish. And always use a good quality oil. And because most oils have additives today, always use the same oil. It has always worked well for me.
Also, use the color and feel as a guide. Use the dip stick to get a sample. If it seems to be turning color at a lower milage, get the oil changed sooner.
useful info would be like:
05 Pruis CVT
Seattle -> Salt Lake City
June 2006
2 people + luggage
91 octane Arco midgrade
846 miles 13.1 gal = 64.6 mpg
DB
There may be other reasons to use higher octane fuel, however. In my case, I use 89 octane "mid-grade" fuel from Husky/Mohawk, not for the higher octane rating, but because it has up to 5% ethanol added, and burns cleaner than most "regular" grade fuels. It may not be suitable for all cars, but it works well in mine. In another vehicle I use 92 or 94 octane rated fuel (that car calls for 92 min.) Husky/Mohawk as that fuel has up to 10% ethanol, and again, I use it because it works well and burns cleanly. YMMV