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Toyota Prius MPG-Real World Numbers

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Comments

  • prius2007prius2007 Member Posts: 41
    How long is your typical drive (minutes)? Do you make a lot of short trips? What is your typical first 5 minutes MPG?
  • goldenfuelgoldenfuel Member Posts: 3
    My Toyota Prius seats five adult passengers ans is about the same size as the popular Toyota Camry. Larger than the Honda. Toyota Prius is still one of the most efficient cars on the road and can travel more than 625 miles (1000 km) without refueling. A fully conditioned hybrid gas-gas electric Toyota Prius gets about 60 mpg (25 km/l) on the highway.
  • bobw3bobw3 Member Posts: 2,989
    The best I've ever got with my '06 Prius was 55mpg average going about 65mph on the highway on long road highway only trips. What year is your Prius? Also, the gas warning light blinks and when I fill it up I can at most put a little more than 10gal, even though the fuel tank is supposed to be 12.9gal. I suppose I could drive another 100 miles with the blinking low gas light on, but I'd be nervous to do so.
  • bdubya2008bdubya2008 Member Posts: 3
    My wife's commute is 15 to 20 minutes one way. I think that may be the biggest factor. I've read that it takes nearly that long to 'charge' the battery system so that it may take over more often and save gas. Does that sound correct?
  • bobw3bobw3 Member Posts: 2,989
    No, the battery system will be charged pretty quick. The main factor is the type of driving on the 15-20 minute commute (speeds, highway, city, style of driving, etc).
  • prius2007prius2007 Member Posts: 41
    You're on the right track. 15 - 20 minute drive is fairly short and your first 5 minutes will drag your average down. Typically your first 5 minutes is ~25MPG (unless you prewarm your car with an EBH). The battery should not be a factor. I typically end up with a low battery at the end of the day but able to charge it back up in the first 5 minutes. I figure this is a good method as the car is warming up that the battery charges at the same time.
  • killianagkillianag Member Posts: 3
    edited September 2011
    What I did for my 2008 Prius with 100,000 miles:
    1. Increased tire pressure to 42 PSI in 51 PSI tires
    2. Use the recommended octane
    3. Use a top tier gas (see http://www.toptiergas.com/retailers.html)
    4. Use full synthetic oil
    5. Use a K&N air filter (lightly oil it)
    These are in order of least to most improvement. Items 1-4 were made this year.

    Best results thus far with all 5 changes:
    • 57 MPG driving 55 MPH
    • 56 MPG driving 65 MPH
    • 55 MPG at fill-up with a mix of city and highway driving

    I use cruise control for most of my highway driving. I have no results for any speeds over 65 MPH.

    The basics of my city driving:
    • Normal acceleration from a dead stop to get to the speed limit.
    I do not baby it, but I do not hot rod it either.
    • Use the Consumption monitor to know when to ease up on the gas pedal.
    I want to get the best MPG and maintain speed.
    This applies when NOT driving up a hill.
    MPG is pretty much out of your control when going up a hill.
    The purpose of using the Consumption monitor is to cause the ICE to stop running and the electric motor to take over, or to at least enable the ICE to get the best mileage possible.

    A word on tire pressure... I believe low rolling resistance (LRR) tires are the better option. Consider LRR tires when you need to replace your tires. You should do some research to find good tires. I found where some tires marketed as LRR actually hurt the fuel economy (http://www.inautonews.com/test-best-low-rolling-resistance-lrr-tires).
  • jayriderjayrider Member Posts: 3,602
    Always travel with a tail wind and avoid going up hills. ;)
  • killianagkillianag Member Posts: 3
    Plan your trips according to wind direction.

    Only choose routes that are downhill.

    Drive towards the equator to reduce the pull of gravity.

    Follow sarcastic people to take advantage of the vacuum they create.
  • killianagkillianag Member Posts: 3
    Failed to add this

    • 71 MPG city
  • hansjhhansjh Member Posts: 2
    I have driven about 6300 miles sofar and kept stats.
    1. According to Toyota, (i keep one trip meter without ever clearing it) I am averaging 53.1 mpg.
    2. I reality i have driven 6301 miles and used 124.249 g. That is 50.71 mpg.
    3. Using the Toyota stats, i should have used 118.663 g. Difference of 5.6 g. Who is right? Either the gas stations are ripping me off or Toyota is measuring fairly inaccurately!

    Another note: The dashboard indicators show an indicator gauge from 0 to 100 labeled mpg. Are they kidding? Do they know what mpg means? 100mpg is easy to do on that dial but how do they know it is not 1000? Would be nice to have meaningful labels!

    Still i love this car.
  • dmathews3dmathews3 Member Posts: 1,739
    I think it is all about when the pump or you shut it off. On my car I can get another gal. of gas in before it is full even though I don't do this as they say it can cause troubles.
  • backybacky Member Posts: 18,949
    The dashboard indicators show an indicator gauge from 0 to 100 labeled mpg. Are they kidding?

    I don't think so.

    Do they know what mpg means?

    Pretty sure they do. ;)

    100mpg is easy to do on that dial but how do they know it is not 1000?

    Does it really matter? It's for an approximation of instantaneous mpg. You'll never average anything close to 1000 mpg (or 100 mpg for that matter) on a 2011 Prius. Think about how big the dial would need to be to go up to 1000 mpg... if it could ever get that high. I suppose a digital readout could be used, but then folks might think it's more accurate than it really is. My Sentra has a digital mpg readout, but then I get to wondering, is it really 35.2 mpg? Maybe it's 35.0 mpg, or 35.5 mpg...
  • bobw3bobw3 Member Posts: 2,989
    The MPG estimate show on trip computers for most cars isn't as precise compared to manually calculating MPG (miles/gallons actually used). From what I've read, most are 5-10% inaccurate, so if your trip computer shows 53mpg and you calculate 50mpg that means the trip computer is 6% higher than your manual calculation, which isn't bad.

    Instant MPG readouts can be very inaccurate, unless you're driving with the cruise control while on a flat road, since even slight variations in road or foot pressure on the gas pedal can greatly change an instant MPG. Remember MPG is Miles Per Gallon, so an instant MPG is looking at the MPG for one second and in one second at 60mph you've only driven .01667 miles, so when that .016667 mile is driven, only a tiny fraction of a gallon of gas is used. When that tiny fraction of gas is multiplied up to equal one gallon, any error is also multipled up. That's why in general estimating MPG is more accurate when calculated over greater distances...sort of like increasing the sample size in a survey to make it more accurate. You're wouldn't believe a survey if only one person was asked the questions, but you need hundreds or thousands of samples to get an accurate survey.
  • aghoshaghosh Member Posts: 21
    edited December 2011
    My 2010 Prius is now giving me about 42 mpg in city. This used to be at least 45 in the summer with the AC on. I have changed my tires from the original goodyear assurance to michelin primacy mxv4. Is that the reason? :confuse:
  • backybacky Member Posts: 18,949
    What are temperatures now? Also do gas stations in your area switch to an ethanol blend in the winter? Those one or two factors could by themselves explain what you are seeing on mpg. I know where I live, with temps now in the teens to 30s, I've seen my average mpg for urban driving (not in a Prius, but a Sentra CVT) drop from low 30s to upper 20s.
  • bobw3bobw3 Member Posts: 2,989
    Our 2006 Prius goes from high 40s to low 40s MPG every winter due to the winter gas blend that in our area runs from Dec - April, as well as the colder temperature requiring longer engine run times to keep everything warmed up. You may notice that at stop lights, in the summer the engine may have been off but in the winter it may be running, especially if you're running the heater, since the heater needs hot water (hence hot engine).

    Also, my Honda Fit's MPG also goes down in the winter, from the mid 30s to the low 30s, so this isn't unique with the Prius. I think that that Prius owners just track MPG more closely, so they notice the winter MPG drop more.
  • jsp9999jsp9999 Member Posts: 9
    I think reading too much forum raised my expectation too high. My first tank full of gas will get me 500 miles, mostly local 15 to 20 min communte. Display shows 48 mpg but if the full tank is 11.9 gallon, I will be getting 42 mpg. If dealer only filled up 11.5, then 43.5 mpg. Not too bad but not like what some report. Should I check tire pressure? Any suggestion to boost up mpg more?
  • jayriderjayrider Member Posts: 3,602
    Drive for 5 minutes to get the car warmed up and then reset the mpg button. See if that helps.
  • bobw3bobw3 Member Posts: 2,989
    You need to fill it up and divide the miles by the gallons to get your MPG. For that 500 miles of driving you did, you probably only used a little over 10 gal of gas.
  • jsp9999jsp9999 Member Posts: 9
    Guess I have to check what next tank will do. thx
  • aghoshaghosh Member Posts: 21
    edited December 2011
    Thanks Backy and Bobw3. Bob, you are right on the money-the engine rarely shuts down at stoplights now, but earlier it seemed to shut down if I had to stop for more than like 10 seconds.
  • maximus43maximus43 Member Posts: 14
    Just aquired my gorgeous 2010 Prius for $15,400 (has 45K on the oh-do). So far, after just 1/2 a tank, my car seems to be averaging only 47mpg according to Prius trip computer )which means I am probably getting just 45 mpg). I just placed more air in the tires and am learning from all of you how to goose more mpg from the beast. Janaury is a horrible time to set the bar for this car, so perhaps with warm weather and a few tankfuls I will see something over 50 mpg. The problem is my city commute is only 8 miles one way, and the car is barely warmed up by the time I get to work or to home. I have started to carefully track my gallons per fill-up and my odometer readings, so I should know in a month what my true MPG is going to be.

    On the freeway I easily achieved a mpg over 50 mpg . . .which i find a little odd given the EPA estimates--but I realize athose estimates are based on paritial usage of the EV mode in the city, something that can't be accomplished on the freeway.

    Anyway, I am a total computer/mileage geek, and so I am completely in love with the "geek-out" experience offered by the Prius computer readouts and such. It truly is an engineering marvel.

    I dont think my tires are low rolling resistance tires . . .they are Westlake SP-06 . . .seem to be a softer tire made more for traction and/or quietness versus low RR. Seet this link and maybe you can comment on them? and recommend another tire? Is the "Michelin Energy Saver A/S" my best best?

    http://www.westlaketire.com/car-and-minivan/84-sp06

    Thanks so much.
  • jayriderjayrider Member Posts: 3,602
    If you are averaging 45 mpg on an 8 mile commute you are doing great -- really great. The $500 you will spend for new tires won't change much. Wait until you need them.
  • bobw3bobw3 Member Posts: 2,989
    edited January 2012
    i agree with jayrider...45mpg on an 8 mile commute in cold weather is really good.

    One trick I learned with my '06 Prius in cold weather is to keep the temperature high on the heat setting (about 77 deg) but after the car is warmed up inside to turn the fan to the Off position. This seems to prevent the car from running so much at stop signs and traffic lights, but keeps the warm air "floating" inside the cabin as the car is moving.

    Or you can just turn the fan to the OFF position when you come up to a light and then turn the fan back on when you start driving again. Personally I wish the Prius had an "ECO-CLIMATE" control setting that would automatically do this to prevent the engine from running when stopped just to keep the hot air blowing in the cabin.
  • maximus43maximus43 Member Posts: 14
    Sorry folks--when I typed that I am averaging 47 mgp, I should have made clear that this is reflective of ALL my driving to date, not just my 8-mile commute; the average for my 8 mile commute is much lower and is screwing up my overall average. As you all know, the first five minutes in the Prius gets you about 25 mpg. My 8 mile commute is about 15 minutes in length with Atlanta's typical city traffic stop and go.

    I brought the car home from the dealer with about 1/2 a tank and averaged 47 mpg on what was left of that first tank, as I reset the trip odometer when I took possession of the car. I then tanked up the gas on Saturday and so far have driven 98 miles . . . and so far my average has dropped to 44.5 mpg . . .my 8-mile commute makes up a fair share of my driving. If i had realized that the first five minutes of running time gouged the MPG this severely, I wouldnt be as disappointed as I am now . . . I would sure like to average 50 mpg and realize the cost savings . . . maybe I should move to the suburbs and do the 45 minutes commute :-)

    Anyway, i tend to do longer drives on weekends, and with the 3-day weekend coming up we will see what my MPG turns out to be on my first tankful. In the meantime, thanks to all of you for your suggestions. The fan suggestion is a good one that I hadn't thought of, so thanks much.
  • kurt3000gtkurt3000gt Member Posts: 1
    On two tanks I only got 43-44 mpg via miles/gals to fill. The TripA CONS display showed 47-48, so about 10% inflated. I'm guessing most Prius reviews are using the inflated value vs actual mileage calculation.

    Still pretty happy, but not as astonished as I once was.
  • maximus43maximus43 Member Posts: 14
    OK the verdict is in: I drove 405 miles on my first tank (was down to one bar, but the bar had not begun to blink yet---I was supposedly 40 miles from empty but I know this car has a 2 gallon reserve tank, and for good reason). Anyway it took 8.886 gallons to fill it up. So 405/8.886 = 45.6 mpg. My Trip A display showed 47.2 mpg. I am happy that I got 45 mpg, but gosh I was hoping to be one of those lucky folks who owns a Prius that gets 55plus mpg.

    However:

    1) dealership where I purchased the car (non-Toyota dealer) did not put synthetic oil in the car, so I intend to do that and perhaps see some increase.

    2) the cold weather of late has not helped the mileage. Even Atlanta gets to freezing temps every now and again

    3) I'd like to hyperinflante the tires and see what happens.

    Time will tell. But I know the single biggest factor in my own mpg are themany short trips I take (very short work commute, etc).
  • maximus43maximus43 Member Posts: 14
    So far, I have driven my used 2010 Prius 1,343 miles on three fill-ups of a total of 27.35 gallons of regular unleaded fuel (10% ethanol). Those numbers yield an actual MPG of 49.10. However, in keeping with the optimistic tendency of the computer, the car calculated my mileage to equal 51.1.
  • gazformilezgazformilez Member Posts: 2
    :( I just purchased a Prius 2011 a few weeks ago, have only 200 miles and change on it and so far the MPG shows as 32.4, what am I missing? My commute is only 3 miles long each way...can someone help with some guidance?
  • prius2007prius2007 Member Posts: 41
    It is your short commute (3 miles) which is hardly enough to warm up the car. On the bright side the same occurs with conventional cars except that you still get better MPG with the Prius. Take it for a long drive (a trip on the HWY and another trip in the city) and see if it is better.

    Enjoy your new wheels!
    Gabe
  • maximus43maximus43 Member Posts: 14
    I hate to be the one to break it to you, but I found out the same thing; a short commute kills gas mileage as it takes the Prius 10 minutes or so to charge the battery so that you can run on battery assisted power. After that 5 to 10 min interval passes, your mileage will increase significantly. Take it on a long road trip and watch what happens.
  • gazformilezgazformilez Member Posts: 2
    Wow, thank you all for your responses, I thought I was going crazy... Thanks, really. :D
  • chiplchipl Member Posts: 3
    Would hate to see what my Subaru 2003 Baja would get doing a 3 mile commute My commute is 10 miles taking 20 to 30 minutes depending on traffic along back roads.

    Right now I get 20mpg in the Baja, the 32mpg by prius2007's experience would be nice to see. And looking at the www.fueleconomy.gov site, the low of 37mpg on the 2011's I have sights on would be even better.

    Thinking of doing a rental from the dealership I plan on buying from for this coming weekend to see what my typical driving might bring. Hefty price tag for the Prius for some of us.
  • sthogesthoge Member Posts: 28
    On my 2008 Prius IV, I get around 45 in the winter and 52 in the summer. I also have a 10 mile commute each way to and from work. It is mostly flat with a couple of hills. The speed varies between 35 and 30 mph. It usually takes around 10 to 15 minutes for it to warm up, then the graph shows a great increase in mileage. Mileage is calculated by hand and tends to be around 2 to 3 mpg below the displayed average.
  • maximus43maximus43 Member Posts: 14
    I agree with you Chip, it is a hefty price tag. I found a 2010 Prius II with 45,000 miles on it for $15,400, and I am very happy with it . . . averaging 49 mpg (51 mpg according to the optimistic Prius computer).

    Also, the rental is a good idea and you can see what kind of mileage is delivered by your commute conditions. As they say, "Your mileage may avary".
  • gopriusgoprius Member Posts: 15
    51 mpg calculated after fillup. car's computer said the MPG was 54.6 MPG.

    Trip A will be reset after each fillup and Trip B will be used to look at the long term mileage...
  • hansjhhansjh Member Posts: 2
    I have done this for the last 13000 miles (bought it new). On average, my calculated mpg are about 3 less than Toyota calc's when measuring just one tanks worth. (Your Trip A) I get anywhere from 51 to 48. (Significantly lower in winter when temp is down). My longterm (your Trip b) measures 51.8 over last 13000 miles, but calculated it is more like 49.2. Toyota does not calculate averages very accurately.
  • tyme4summertyme4summer Member Posts: 1
    New to this board and have found it incredibly helpful while choosing a new car! I just bought my 2010 Prius III last week. After 1 tank and around 470 miles, here is my data:

    Computer 54.3 mpg
    Calculated 50.2mpg

    My drive is 60-70% freewaY. My primary job is 60 mile commute on primarily flat highway. My 2nd job is 20 miles on hilly backroads. Hoping to get my next tank closer to 55mpg... been working on driving techniques I have been reading about around the boards, yt, etc.
  • bobw3bobw3 Member Posts: 2,989
    For your 60 mile highway commute, what sort of speeds are you driving. For me there's a pretty big MPG difference between a constant 65mph and a constant 75mph. If you can keep your speed closer to 60mph even better.

    And if you think about it, driving 60mph for your 60 miles will take one hour. If you drove 72mph, then it take 50 minutes. If you drove a constant 60mph you'd probably get close to 60mpg, so that would be on gallon of gas. At 72mph it might be down to 45mpg and you'd use 1.33gal of gas, or about $1.25, or about $2.50 round trip, or about $12.50/week or $600/year.

    The question is whether or not the $600/year is worth the extra 10 minute commute each way. That's a personal decision. My commute is only 20 - 25 minutes depending on my speed, so for me I keep the speed down to increase my MPG, plus it gives me a chance to listen to more news on the radio driving to and from work.
  • litesong2litesong2 Member Posts: 44
    Use 100% ethanol-free gasoline. 10% ethanol in gasoline loses 2-4% btus compared to 100% ethanol-free gasoline. Also, gasoline engines do not have high compression as actual ethanol engines would have, to be able to access the full energy in ethanol.

    Go to pure-gas.org to find the 5100(& rising) stations that sell 100% ethanol-free gasoline. Thousands of drivers switching to 100% ethanol-free gasoline show mpg jumps of 6-8%..... some people say they get even higher mpg jumps.

    Also, gasoline engines running on 100% pure gasoline(no 10% ethanol blends need apply) will run smoother, quieter & have less need to shift down while ascending hills.
  • time4summertime4summer Member Posts: 3
    For my 60 mile commute, I would say I typically have the cruise set at 65mpg. There is a 5-6 mile stretch where the speed limit is 55, so i tend to slow down to at least 60. I wouldnt care about a 10 min longer commute, but i might have someone up my you know what if i slow down that much! LOL :)
  • time4summertime4summer Member Posts: 3
    2nd tank info-
    Calculated 53mpg Computer 56.5mpg. I was doing really well on my current tank. Computer was reading 61.5... then it got hot out and I succumbed to AC! Now down to 58.5 per computer.

    Question-what are the "ranges" for rpm based on the eco bar? Sometimes i feel like i need alot of umphh, even into power zone to accelerate up any incline.
  • gt50mpggt50mpg Member Posts: 2
    Just traded my 2009 Prius II with 36000 miles for a 2012 Prius III. I have a vanity license plate GT50MPG and I hate to lie. Over the 36000 miles I averaged 52.2 MPG hand calculated. Was very happy with the 2009. Only [non-permissible content removed] was the "bladder gas tank". I Drive to Columbia Maryland every year and have been averaging 54.1 MPG until this year when I got 55.1 MPG and that is through the mountains, all hand calculations not Toyota computer. I get this because I have discovered the great benefits of drafting on the vehicle ahead. My favorites are Semi's but any vehicle with a slightly higher profile will work, and contrary to popular belief, you get the benefit of the draft (5 to 10 MPG) up to 5 car lengths behind the lead vehicle. I live in Michigan and another trick I learned is when the weather turns cold, consistently less than 50 F, block off about 3/4 of the front grille air intake to help the engine warm up faster and stay warmer during your trip. My results were 47.5 MPG without blocking the grille air intake and 49.2 blocking the grille air intake, again hand calculations. I also increased my tire pressure by 3 PSI which did not seem to effect handling or tire wear. I anticipate that my new 2012 Prius will be everything and more than my 2009 Prius.
    Any Comments or new tricks appreciated.
  • time4summertime4summer Member Posts: 3
    Help!!! I took my car to the dealer thinking it was a bad wheel bearing. I had just purchased the car 2 weeks beforehand so they offered to repair free of charge. It ended up being just 2 tires unevenly worn so they gave me two new tires. Yesterday I noticed my gas mileage creeping down from 58 to 56mpg. On the freeway, I normally get 60-70 mpg and last night was barely 50. I inflated all tires to 40psi like I had previously. The 2 new tires say a max psi of 50 unlike the old ones (and current other 2) that say 44. Any thoughts?!! :surprise:
  • skycaptainskycaptain Member Posts: 33
    XCEL,
    Another great techique is what I call "Fuzzy Cruise Technique." First never use cruise control on the highway. Cruise T your chosen speed and do not maintain your target speed. For example say you are on a 65 mph freeway. On the flat you maintain 65 MPH or use the Pulse and Glide technique. As you approach a hill do not press down on the accelerator to maiintain 65 mph. Try and hold a fixed throttle position and allow the speed to slowly decay as you climb the hill. Usually you will lose 5 to 8 moh depending on the size of the hill. Once at the apex of the hill keep the steady throttle position and the vehicle will accelerate back to 65 mph or higher. Bank the speed. Also if the downhill is steep enough on the backside you can glide downhill and charge the battery.
    I have gotten 13 mpg over the rated Highway mileage using this technique on a 65 moh highway. (60.8 mpg on a 200 mile leg)Of course, this technique should only be used in the slow lane(right lane) of the highway and don't do it if you have tailgating traffic behind you in a 2 lane road.
    I wish Toyota would give us a a two stage cruise control with a choice of a Hard or Soft cruise setting. The Soft setting would allow the speed setting to be fuzzy and allow a decay of speed down to a certain limit. Instead of soft cruise they could call it maybe, Eco Cruise. The problem with Hard Cruise is as soon a the speed drops the engines revs up high trying to maintain set speed. A waste of gas in my mind. That is why you should never use cruise control on hilly terrain. :shades:
  • bobw3bobw3 Member Posts: 2,989
    So now you have two different sets of tires on your car, plus the new ones have more tread/traction, hence more friction and worse MPG. Maybe those two things combined accounts for your worse MPG. Plus it's getting colder out and maybe in your area they've started using the winter blend of gas, and in general colder weather increases the need for the gas engine to run more often.
  • gilvkonagilvkona Member Posts: 31
    I just filled up my new car for the second time. I discount the first time since it was filled by the dealer and a hand calculation was in the low 50s. This time, I got about 8 gallons in the car. Hand calculation showed 49mpg. The computer read 51.6. That all seems consistent with what I have read here.

    This is a great car. The ride is great. I have to learn how to ignore the displays. I tend to use the one that shows EV, ECO, and PWR modes. I try to keep it near the middle if possible. To get where I live, I have to drive up 1000' for about 5 miles. I get in the 20s when I do that. On the way back down, I get close to 100mpg. I note the car seems at its best when you are going in the mid 40-50mph on fairly level surface. Most of my driving is "open road" at about 60 or so. It appears I will get near 50 on the type of driving I do. I think that is great.
  • docadam71docadam71 Member Posts: 1
    Awesome its is so nice to see others who are knowledgeable about ethanol. Plus I might add. Scientists knew that adding ethanol will decrease the shelf life of gasoline and cause massive damage to older cars if left sitting longer than 6 to 8 months without flushing the gas lines & tank.. Ethanol is one big lie and people are starting to realize this.. Ethanol causes billions a year in damages. Yet they say its good for us.. yeah driving food prices through the roof.... Everyone needs to boycott Ethanol. And yes I see a 10% increase in mileage in my 93 civic vx "45 mpg" but soon will be adding a 2010 Prius to my collection. I love that car.
  • dmathews3dmathews3 Member Posts: 1,739
    I like you just filled mine for the first time. Except I put 4010 miles on it and only added 4.9 gal of gas. Oh ya, I own a Chevy Volt. :shades:
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