Toyota Prius MPG-Real World Numbers

tiff_c · March 2008

Lets not forget "other" factors while comparing any cars w/ the Prius. Resale is darn good w/ a Prius. Quality & Durability of a Prius is one of the best ( I can attest to that w/ 74K on an '04). I saw where roadability in snow was questioned...

Well maybe on plowed roads in the city it's ok but on the roads up in my area even my Civic had to have the traction control off to make it up the hills here.
No question resale is very high but as far as real snow on real hills and back roads which are plowed poorly. Even with snow tires it's bad here, so it depends where you live. I use Nokian tires, snowflake rated, and that is bare minimum. We have a lot of accidents around here from snow and ice. This morning there was a pickup truck stuffed way up and onto a 6 foot snowbank, not just the front end but the entire truck!
In the city the Prius works well but on these roads it's inability to shut OFF the traction control makes it a poor choice for my area. The rest of the city is fairly flat and lots of Prius's on the road. But in the boonies, it won't make it up the hills, and that only because you need to shut the traction control off.
That's why this is Subaru country. AWD's are a must in the winter and yet I bought a civic. :confuse:

stevedebi · March 2008

"There were several reasons I didn't buy a Prius, but I like the concept however I live in a hilly area and once the Prius traction control kicks in you aren't going anywhere in the snow."

That error was fixed in the 2007 Prius.

tiff_c · March 2008

That error was fixed in the 2007 Prius.

Well the one I test drove couldn't make it to my house and the dealer really didn't want me driving in a snow storm. It was unplowed so with the traction control on it just couldn't make it up the hill. Thankfully we were able to turn around and get back.
Maybe full blown snow tires would have helped.

baron64 · March 2008

What "error" was fixed? I live in the Black Hills and the Prius owners I've talked to haven't had any issues with winter driving--even with the stock tires.

snowboarder4 · March 2008

I am getting 52 MPG with my 2007 Prius on trips of 8 miles, uphill, from 9,000 feet to 9,600 feet in constant snow conditions. The Toyota Prius is the most fantastic vehicle I have ever driven in my life.

carlt1 · March 2008

58 mpg on short trip, winter, uphill runs. Amazing. I searched every review and message board I could find and have never heard the like of this. Countless posters get half that on cold start short trips. Go figure.
Finally got the car which was not the preference of my heart or my fun side, but my sober minded economical side. Buying American was also a factor. The Focus automatic (still on my first tank) exceeds my expectations on FE. Driving very carefully, I get in the low 40's on the interstate (55-60 mph) and 29-32 in pure town driving. These estimates are from the "Average mpg" read out on the message screen. The Focus is no where near as much fun as the Prius to drive. The only "wow that's neat" feature is the audio aux jack for my ipod.
Looking ahead to the lithium battery vehicles which will be introduced this year and, according to the WSJ, will revolutionize the automotive industry worldwide.

stevedebi · March 2008

"What "error" was fixed? I live in the Black Hills and the Prius owners I've talked to haven't had any issues with winter driving--even with the stock tires."

I don't own a Prius, so maybe someone else can confirm the following.

The original Gen 2 Prius could not turn off the traction control. When the car into snow environment, the owner could not "rock" the car to get unstuck. My understanding is that the traction control can be disabled on the current model.

The original design was meant to keep the electric motors from over heating, but it had the effect of keeping the car stuck...

kdhspyder · March 2008

Ask yourself how much for the Prius versus the Ford or even a Honda fit or that sort of economical car $22-23K versus $15K That buys a lot of fuel.

Yep this is was/is/always be true. That differnce in price though has little to do with it being a hybrid or not. It's more what you want in a vehicle.$22-$23K gets a semi-midsized vehcle with all the safety equipment possible. $15K gets a Yaris or a strippie Corolla 5M with rollup windows. Both are perfectly viable options but the major difference in price is the size and the features. Actually the 'correct' comparo for a Prius is a new 09 Matrix with all the safety features. Both are the same size and both are 5 door hatches.

Also the battery in the prius doesn't like the cold weather. In fact no battery does that why so many cars need jump starts in the winter.

Sorry this is just not correct. Otherwise the Canadian owners would be giving them back enmasse. OK yes if you are talking about months at -20C.

There were several reasons I didn't buy a Prius, but I like the concept however I live in a hilly area and once the Prius traction control kicks in you aren't going anywhere in the snow.

This TC situation was solved beginning with the 2006 models. Non issue now or at least no more than any other Toyota with TC.

kdhspyder · March 2008

This is correct. There was no 'TC OFF' switch on the Gen1 and first two years of the Gen2. What the TC system does is reduce engine output in order not to exacerbate a skid/slide. But on the original models that encountered deep snow the computer sensed a 'slippage' and thought that a skid was coming and thus reduced engine output creating the 'stalling'.

Beginning with the 2006 model the system now allows the wheels to slip and skid somewhat in order to allow for some 'plowing' and 'rocking' in deep snow. It was a programming issue.

tiff_c · March 2008

Yep this is was/is/always be true. That difference in price though has little to do with it being a hybrid or not. It's more what you want in a vehicle.$22-$23K gets a semi-midsized vehicle with all the safety equipment possible. $15K gets a Yaris or a strippie Corolla 5M with rollup windows.

You can buy a Honda Fit which has all the safety features and gets great economy for about $15.5K
The cheapest you'll get a Prius is $22K if you negotiate hard.
That still buys a lot of gas and after driving the Prius and driving it in snow and up hills etc...
It damn well ought to have a height adjustable seat and a few other things that you would normally get in a $22K car. My Civic Si cost me just under $22K and it has all that and more.
The Prius needs a few upscale touches to really boost it up a bit. The interior is low rent and just a few minor things would improve it so much.
My wife wants to drive one tomorrow so we'll be test driving cars I guess.

Gotta get a second car soon.

My neighbor has a Prius and she says the battery drains when it sits in the garage for more than a day. it charges right up again but the dealer told her that was normal due to the -5 to -10 fahrenheit weather we've had lately.
not the starting battery but the rechargeable one.

No idea about shutting off the traction control the dealer didn't know about an switch and many cars get stuck on these hills with traction control even my civic with snow tires. With traction control off it's not a problem.

kdhspyder · March 2008

Sorry there is no way that a Honda Fit is equivalent to a Prius in ride, room, comfort or amenities. The Fit is below the Corolla and Civic. It's more similar to a Yaris or Scion. Yes it is far lower in price and size and amenities but that's why the price is so much lower.

There are very real reasons why the Prius sells in the numbers it does well into it's 5th year. Others like me just will not consider any vehicle as basic as a Corolla or Yaris or Fit. When I was looking back in 2005 all the vehicles of that size were immediately eliminated as being too basic and too small.

Your neighbor needs to find a good message board on the Prius and the HSD system in order to ask some questions. The battery always 'drains' overnight. It recharges immediately within 15 min of startup in the AM. This is normal in all weather. It has nothing to do with the outside temperature. The HSD system is designed to go to rest at about 35-40% of SOC at the min ( about 3 red bars ) then to charge up to about 90% of SOC ( 8 green bars ). It just cycles back and forth in this range. The only time it's ever a concern is when the vehicle sits for a month or more. At that point the 12v accessory battery may run down due to the SKS sensors but this is little or no effect on the traction battery.

scottc3 · March 2008

You state... Sorry there is no way that a Honda Fit is equivalent to a Prius in ride, room, comfort or amenities. The Fit is below the Corolla and Civic. It's more similar to a Yaris or Scion. Yes it is far lower in price and size and amenities but that's why the price is so much lower.

While I somewhat agree with your statement, and the Yaris comparison is fair, it's not as different as you have it sound. I have a 2008 Prius, a few months old at this time.. love it - as most Prius owners do. After research, just bought my son a FIT.. it's a great little car, just like the Prius. Yep, there are some differences - perhaps the FIT has more room inside - at 20.9 cubic feet (if I recall correctly) - sure the Prius gets better mileage, but there is room in this world for both cars. The FIT was $17.7K out the door, the Prius was $27.6 (Package 5)... so for the $10K difference, the FIT is a great car. Seats are good (front) - it's roomy inside, the back seats fold up or down, nice design, and Honda is no 'run of the mill' car - it's proven reliable, just like the Prius.

sc

kdhspyder · March 2008

I didn't mean that the Fit or Corolla or Yaris are bad or unreliable...they're just too basic for my taste. I'm sure all of them will go 100K to 200K miles if cared for...it's just that I won't drive one.

As I mentioned in the prior post when looking to replace my Camry back in 2005 I immediately eliminated all cars Corolla/Civic-sized and smaller. The new larger Corolla/Civic are just at the lower margin for my taste. But that's just a personal preference. However Toyota seems to have tapped into this vein of buyers looking for ultra-efficiency but not willing to settle for 'econo-box'.

Besides there's no way to fit a 43" flat screen TV, golf clubs, briefcase, two pizzas and two occupants in any Corolla or Civic or Mazda3 or Yaris....only the Matrix and the other 5 door hatches can do this.

tiff_c · March 2008

Sorry there is no way that a Honda Fit is equivalent to a Prius in ride, room, comfort or amenities. The Fit is below the Corolla and Civic. It's more similar to a Yaris or Scion. Yes it is far lower in price and size and amenities but that's why the price is so much lower.

Don't get me wrong, I like the Prius and might be buying one soon. But my Civic Si is far more comfortable than the Prius will ever be and the price on my Civic is less than a Pkg 2 Prius!
If fuel economy is an issue then the Fit compares well as it's very good on fuel, but down a bit on power and i have driven a 1.3L Jazz/Fit for 2 weeks and a few 1.5L Fits as well both auto and stick.
The Prius is a low budget car with high tech gadgets. Comfort wise it isn't up to the level of say an accord or a Camry even tho the cost is roughly the same.
So again there is no excuse for uncomfortable and non adjustable seats in a $22K+ car. not when many cheaper cars have those same and relatively inexpensive features.

Your neighbor needs to find a good message board on the Prius and the HSD system in order to ask some questions. The battery always 'drains' overnight. It recharges immediately within 15 min of startup in the AM.

Well he doesn't like it and not everyone is into using the Internet for their problem solving.
He's unhappy it discharges overnight and feels it shouldn't do that. The dealer says it's normal but most people don't trust the dealers about anything regarding service problems any more. If you doubt me I can post a lot of forums just from here in other groups about lots of owners not trusting the dealerships.

kdhspyder · March 2008

Well even though I do work at a dealership I also have 68,000 miles on my own after 27 months, it is normal for the battery to back to min SOC overnight. It's not a problem. In this case the dealerperson was accurate, as they are most times.

Again personal preferences but I drove 4 Camry's, among others, from 1989 to 2005. The unadjustable seat in the Prius ... for me ... fits much much more comfortable than any of the prior Camry's which were too soft generally. In addition it's much quicker than my 89, and only a little less quick than my 93, 97 and 2000 models. It has far more features and more room than any of those prior vehicles. Then there's the fuel economy.

OTOH it is in no way as comfortable as our Highlander or my wife's Solara V6. But those are another $6000+ more expensive.

tiff_c · March 2008

Well even though I do work at a dealership I also have 68,000 miles on my own after 27 months, it is normal for the battery to back to min SOC overnight. It's not a problem. In this case the dealerperson was accurate, as they are most times.

many dealers lie like rugs, want examples? I will post a whole bunch if the moderator gives me permission. Toyota itself has had all sorts of problems they would prefer to ignore as well as many other brands.
This has nothing to do with the fact that I worked at a dealership many years ago and am fully aware of what really goes on in the service and parts dept.

I do agree with you about the seats in the camry however my wife can't drive the prius as she is short and no height adjustment is a killer. My back is in rough shape and needs supportive seats for long trips.
The Prius comment was made to a specific question and that is how I answered it and stand by what I said.
The Prius if it's just mileage you are after can easily be beaten by a Fit considering the price differential.
Someone else just posted that as well.
If you want a luxury car the Prius is out anyway. It's an econogadget car and gets great fuel economy. But it costs a lot more than many other cars that have similar or better features and those cars get very good fuel economy as well and the difference when computed out is trivial.

railroadjames · March 2008

Being a Prius owner for over 4 yrs there's many areas to be considered when comparing with anything remotly close to it. The Prius is highly advanced obviously in tech stuff but more importantly it is a quality car. I mean to say...trouble free as I have had absolutely nary a problem after 75K miles. Talk to anyone who owns one and you'll get great reviews. There are alot of good cars out there but few great ones. Look around car lots and ads for used ones . They rarely exist. As gas prices soar the demand for a thrifty high milage car is paramont. I personaly got 546 miles on a single tank on a trip to Atlanta, GA. last summer. One last thing. You just feel dang smart pulling up next to a 9mpg "Hummer" while you smile.

carbot · March 2008

My '04 just turned 188,000 miles. No problems, original brakes. Some people on this and other forums are comparing apples, oranges, grapes and pumpkins. If you just want mileage and a cheap car, get an econo-box. If you are concerned with emissions, mileage, comfort and quality, get a Prius. I drive all day every day. No back problems. I am a reasonably fit 63 year old. 6 ft, 175lbs. I consider myself average build. If you are very tall, very short or very fat, you may need a power adjustable seat. Myself, I just manually adjust it for my comfort and drive. Prius was named car of the year in '04, and it has only gotten better with each model year. Waiting for the plug-in.

kdhspyder · March 2008

An comment on both prior comments.

It's almost impossible to find a traded in Prius. People do love them. We've had less then 10 in 6 years.

For curiousity sake I recently did a 'what if' appraisal on a 4 y.o. Prius with no Navi and no leather but with 190000 miles on it based on recent auction values. Then I compared it to a similar vehicle a 4 y.o. Matrix XR with 190K on it. Ready
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/
/
/
/
Prius $7000 ????????? HUH
Matrix $4000

Essentially the 'hybrid premium' is almost fully intact from the time it was originally purchased. Most of this I presume is due to the relative scarcity of Prius' for resale.

It's also the best fitting auto I've ever had.

tiff_c · March 2008

Being a Prius owner for over 4 yrs there's many areas to be considered when comparing with anything remotely close to it. The Prius is highly advanced obviously in tech stuff but more importantly it is a quality car.

No doubt that there are many factors when buying a car and the Prius is a good alternative and it certainly is a quality car. But the specific question was relating to fuel economy primarily. So the answer remains the same. A Fit which is also a quality car for the price differential makes more pure economic sense if that is your primary concern.
There are many other factors but gas has to go up pretty high to balance out a Corolla or a Fit versus a Prius as the price difference is huge.
But if you compared a $22K car like my Civic Si to a $23K Prius well of course the difference is huge but the gap narrows quite a lot when it's a cheap car ($15-16K )that gets 37mpg versus a $23k car that gets 48 city/ 45 highway.
Fuel economy was the only issue for me before I switched jobs since I drove so much. The Prius would have been a marvel except I had to often drive in bad weather so AWD was a must.

kdhspyder · March 2008

[EDIT}

According to our buyer at auctions both vehicles get a 'double' hit for high miles...

Prius $4500-ish
Matrix $1500-ish

peakoil · March 2008

When the CA EPA forced refiners to add ethanol last fall to help fight winter pollution, my '04 Prius, 48,000 miles, mileage dropped from 51.1-51.4 to 47.9-48.3. Ethanol must be out again until fall, 'cause my mileage just jumped again to 51.7 so far over 326 miles.

tiff_c · March 2008

When the CA EPA forced refiners to add ethanol last fall to help fight winter pollution, my '04 Prius, 48,000 miles, mileage dropped from 51.1-51.4 to 47.9-48.3. Ethanol must be out again until fall, 'cause my mileage just jumped again to 51.7 so far over 326 miles.

Lucky You! We have to endure with 10% ethanol all year round from now on or so i'm told.

m2mazda6 · April 2008

Thinking of getting a Prius been reading a lot on here but seem to miss some, I take a trip or two to Florida from Mi. going 70-75 what kind of MPG should I get

kdhspyder · April 2008

It depends on time of year, weather and wind but I'd say that 44-47 mpg should be a reasonable estimate for the entire trip at 70-75 mph. At 72000 mi now I get 48 mpg ( on average ) all day long at 63-ish.

m2mazda6 · April 2008

Well that beats 26-28 mpg I get now with my Mazda 6. were replacing our 93 Buick and thinking of the Prius or Honda Civic this week we will takea test drive and go from there. We just want to get a good MPG car thats reliable

kdhspyder · April 2008

Yes drive them both. For smoothness of operation, features ( toys ) and utility I'm pretty sure which one you'll choose. Most people doing both back to back go right to the Prius.

BTW you can't beat the utility. There is no other vehicle on the road here with the combination of size, fuel economy and utility.

It's also one of the most reliable autos in the US now according to CR.

m2mazda6 · April 2008

Went for a couple rides today the Prius was really nice good pick up on highway nice handling, the Civic was nice also. The Prius seemed to be more solid and quiet, If I had to buy one today it would be a tough choice but I'm leaning to the Prius, glade I have some time before I buy

carbot · April 2008

You will not beat the Prius for comfort and reliability. My '04 has 191,000 miles on it. I drive it all day every weekday and a lot of Saturdays, mostly in town. I have taken trips from southeastern VA to Columbus Ohio, Newark NJ and Winston-Salem NC, all with passengers. It does great at 75 mph. Averages around 48 mpg at those speeds. I am still on the original brakes, and the service dept. says they are not even close to needing replacement. I replaced the plugs, serpentine belt and water pump at 155,000 miles. None of them were worn out. The water pump was "weeping". The belt was frayed. I replaced the 12 volt battery at, (I think) 130,000 miles. I am in and out of the car around 30 times a day. Some days it is never turned off. My car is my office. I open and close the upper "clamshell" glove box at least 40 times a day. The dampers gave up long ago, but I have probably opened the box more times than most people would in a lifetime, if they kept the car for a lifetime. The cover for the aux. power socket broke off long ago. Same reason. I use the nav. system all day every day. No problems with it. With the heavy use I have given the car, I can live with a couple of minor interior things breaking. They are still usable. Needless to say I am very very satisfied with my Prius. I too drove the Civic. There is no contest.
Still waiting for the plug-in.

kdhspyder · April 2008

The man knows whereof he speaks. How many 190,000 mi experiences are out there on the roads.

It appears that there is going to be some major announcement next Jan at the Detroit Auto show. I'm guessing that the CEO of Toyota will introduce the new Prius for later in the year and give a solid timeline for the eventual addition of Li-ions and plugin capability. But as usual Toyota is zip-lipped about it.

scottc3 · April 2008

I'm still a 'newbe' here - but I'm tracking MPG and prices paid for gas.. I'm very pleased with the car as a whole. Gas here in San Jose, Premium is at $4.10/gal, Regular is about $3.85.. so I'm loving the 50mpg (about) number on Regular gas.

sc

lroscioli · April 2008

Hello all,
I'm new atposting but just wanted to give som einteresting fact. I drove a friend's Prius for the first time and averaged 75.4 mpg. Normally, I drive a Ford ranger truck which is advertised at 21 mpg in the city and I drive in a manner that I coast to lights and accellerate very slowly and get 27 mpg... well, driving the Prius in that manner for 1.5 miles in city driving I got 75.4 mpg. I am truly impressed!!!

Hope I didn't intrude to this post!

L

lroscioli · April 2008

Correction, I drove for 10.5 miles, not 1.5

scottc3 · April 2008

You can't take a 10 mile drive, and go downhill, and coast, and make conclusions based on this! Don't think for 1 seconds you will average anything close to this. You will get about 50mpg like the rest of us. It will drop to 43-44 once in a while, and go a bit above 50 (51) once in a while. Drive it more, then let us know how it does. I hope none of the readers thinks this is a 'special' Prius - it's not.. the test drive was not very valid.

Sure glad you were impressed.

sc

v7sport73 · April 2008

I purchased a 2008 Toyota Prius 4/19/08. I have been pampering it and taking it easy around town. I've now have about 700 miles on it. I'm getting around 55 MPG. Most of my driving is on the freeway at around 65 MPH. Is this pretty normal? How many miles until the motor is broken in? How many miles should I drive it before I can share in the joy of pushing the accelorator pedal all the way down to the floor?

tothemaxx2 · April 2008

Just purchased a 2008 Prius on 4/18/08. 250 miles, averaging 46 mpg. Nothing else I would even consider driving comes even close. A Fit? The last car I test drove before buying the Prius was a Fit. Sure, 32 mpg overall, but comparing the Prius to the Fit is a joke. The Fit is a fine car for what it is, but even at a $6,000 difference it is a joke. Every day I have this car I am more amazed. Whether it is the technology, the comfort, the fit & finish, the ride, whatever. The overall quality of the Prius is better compared to a $35,000 car. It is a far better car in many ways, even without leather, than the $35,000 Volvo S60 I traded for the Prius, and I love Volvos - my other car is a XC70. Three days after buying the Prius I gave a co-worker a ride home in the Prius. Two days later he bought one!

rolin · April 2008

Greetings to all. I just purchased an '08 Prius, with the #5 package, which was how the car was appointed. Like many of you here, I could not rationalize filling my 2003 Pathfinder with gas to the tune of more than $350.00 per month, just to drive mainly to work. I finally saw the light as it were, and am a very happy owner of this new way of thinking about driving! I love the car, and the navigation screen, blue-tooth feature, etc. All I need now, is free time to learn it all! My question is this. The dealership filled the tank prior to me receiving the car. I have only driven a total of 18 miles so far. Yesterday I noticed, that one of the bars on the gas indicator is gone, which obviously indicates that this gas has been used. I am concerned about this, as I can't imagine getting the mileage that you are supposed to get. Also, the consumption screen shows a changing MPG such as 18.5, 22.7, 40.8, 33.4, as I am driving. I am a bit confused by this and want to know how many mpg I can expect to get driving the correct way, and how do I calculate how many actual mpg I get. I hope these questions are not dumb ones, as I find the consumption screen a little confusing and am hopeful that someone on these threads might have an answer for me. I would be most grateful.

Also, the book refers to "Type A" and "Type B". what is that?

Thanks again

v7sport73 · April 2008

I wish they had more detailed information on how the screen works as far as tracking milage. For one thing why does it stop at 99.9 MPH? I know that the meter is samping MPH all the time and storing and adveraging the information on MPH but how many samples does it use? Anyway I love my new Toyota! I haven't got the air kick thing down yet but I'm working on it.

katerhiner · May 2008

Hi Rolin - I just purchased an '08 Prius w/ the #2 package, and had many of the same questions you have about fuel consumption. I think I'm starting to figure it out. First, I was told that I would get about 600 miles to a tank of gas. NOT true! Ha. I get about 450 miles/tank. The computer tells me that I'm getting an average of around 45 - 46 mpg, but both times I've refueled, I've done the math myself (I reset Trip A odometer each time I refuel, so the next time I know how far I've gone), and I'm really only getting about 43.5 mpg. Not sure why. I know the tricks like accelerating as quickly as possible to the speed you're going to go, then staying there to maximize mpg, and coasting a lot, and all that. Don't know if the mileage will get better over time, or what. But it's not quite as good as I'd expected.

The way to calculate your real mpg is to set the odometer to 0 when you refuel. Then, next time you go get more gas, divide the # of miles you've driven - say, 423.9 miles - by the # of gallons you've just purchased - say, 9.8 gallons. That would be 423.9 / 9.8 = 43.25 mpg.

As for consumption vs. the other screen (can't remember what it's called right now) - one screen shows you what you're getting at any particular moment, and yeah, it'll go way down when you're accelerating hard or going up a hill. The other screen shows you your average over the past x miles (you have to reset it yourself, and it'll tell you how many miles you've gone since the reset).

Hope that helps.

cheryl06prius · May 2008

For what it is worth my FE stats for the first 3 months of 2008, with my '06 Prius, is 50.8MPG over 5227 miles. This is in Western NY and reflects the windy and cold winter conditions, 75% level, about 50/50 city/highway split.

My advice to Prius drivers attempting to calculate FE: develop a system of filling the tank to the same exact level, and not relying on the elapsed FE gauge. This takes great patience and it is very slow, don't attempt it when the gas pump line is busy. If you live in NJ where there is no self-service, you're out of luck.

My elapsed gauge fluctuates a great deal. One fill up it will show 57MPG and manually it calculates to 50MPG, the next fill up it will be 50MPG both ways. It will take many fill ups to establish an accurate FE figure. Don't rely on two or three fill ups.

That said it is still a great car and I plan to purchase an '09. I just wish the bladder factor didn't make it so difficult filling the tank.

johndjr · May 2008

I agree with you. I attempt to fill mine up to the inner ring each time so I know that it is full. Only thing, near the full level, the gas tank actually honks at me, then shortly afterwards, it burps up about a cup full of gas all over the side of the car. It looks as if there is a slight eruption in the tank.
The difference I have between the computer mpg and my calculated mpg is that the cal. comes out about 10% less than the computer has. Still, 46-48 mpg cal. isn't bad.

cheryl06prius · May 2008

I hear a distinctive gurgling sound as the tank gets full, guess you could characterize it as "honking". Sometimes I'll leave the nozzle in the tank for 60 seconds or more to allow the gas time to recede and not spill out. Still i've spilled my share of gas, it does take time and patience filling the tank.

carbot · May 2008

Why is it so important to know your mileage for each tankful? Just fill until the pump stops each time. Figure the mileage based on that. Then every 5, 10 or 100 fill-ups average the actual mileage and the gage mileage. That will give you a more accurate overall true mileage, gage mileage and difference figure. It will also save you money in spilled gas, and save the environment some spilled gas/emissions. Even given the difference in the stopping point in pumps, it will all average out in the end. My Prius is my office. I don't have time to wait for the tank to "burp"'. At 195,000 miles and over 420 fill-ups, can you imagine the time and spills I have saved?

cheryl06prius · May 2008

One reason for continuing to pump after the automatic shut off is that you can ordinarily pump another l to l.5 gallons. In a pinch that is another 50-75 miles you can drive w/o refueling.
I'm not concerned about the mileage for each tankful because I realize the bladder issue distorts the calculation. My main concern is knowing the same exact level for each fill up so that after l0,20 or more you can make an accurate calculation.

I'd rather take another 2-3 minutes flling the tank and having the extended driving range in addition to the "exact level" constant.

coupedncal · May 2008

I am not sure what reasons you had to buy your Prius, but if it was to help the environment, please consider this action is taking significant savings away from your motivation. There is a reason there is a shut off mechanism in place.

Of course, no offense is intended and none should be taken. This is just an advice.

mlaurenc · May 2008

Give your new car some time to "break in" - they require 6 months at least.

Lately (over last 1500 KM ) my 2006 Prius has achieved 54.5 mpg with once weekly driving between collingwood and niagara (140 miles)

Breakdown:
60% country roads (50 mi/hr) 40% 6 lane highways (60 mi/hr)

Also suggest you might want to look at the folllowing guide to how to drive a Prius:

http://www.hybridcars.com/gas-saving-tips/maximizing-mileage-toyota-prius.html

Also, I've learned that if the tank is totally filled (careful as it can shoot out if you don't stop as soon as you begin to hear the "gurgling") I get 120 miles before the first indicator bar disappears.

Mike

rolin · May 2008

Many thanks! I am starting to "relax" about this..

Linda

kdhspyder · May 2008

A number of points were raised above. Oh, I've been involved with selling them since they first arrived in 2000. My own is a 2005 with 75000 mi now.

First about filling the tank. Go to Priuschat.com and search for the sticky on 'topping off'. Don't. You risk a whole lot of trouble. Essentially when the pump shuts off just end it right there. Don't worry about individual tankfuls. It's of no issue.

I liken this to when I used to tell my wife that by the time the kids were ready for college none would suck their thumbs and they'd all be housebroken. It's fun to see how you're doing tank by tank but look at it in the long run. As one noted above, you will average 48 mpg for the life of your vehicle. There are tens of thousands of Prius drivers doing just that day after day after day.

Don't worry about the individual tank fillings. Just use a spreadsheet or use the database at GreenHybrid.com and enter your miles driven and gallons pumped and you'll have the best and most accurate summary. The MFD display is a good 'indicator' that;s all. In the end after owning the vehicle for 8 years and driving 135000 miles if you added up all the fuel you had used you'd come to this value......48 mpg!

kdhspyder · May 2008

In your manual.... the breakin period is 600 mi. But you don't have to do anything special during that time. Just don't tow a boat. At 700 mi you're done already.

There are two other 'break in' periods where you'll find that your engine is more efficient, one at 5K and another at 10K. Both are very small differences.

kdhspyder · May 2008

If you want a longterm record of your particular Fuel Economy save the receipts and mark the gallons pumped and miles driven since the last fillup. Then enter them in the GreenHybrid.com database. There are nearly 1600 Prius owners tracking their vehicles.

Don't worry about the FE. In the end it will be 48 mpg...with one caveat. If you only use the vehicle for short trips of 15 min or less then you will lose about 10% from the 'norm'. This is true for all vehicles on the road. It's just more obvious in a Prius.

Toyota Prius MPG-Real World Numbers

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