Frustrated prius believer question

Hi everyone,

Here's a bit of a question...I have an 05 Prius from Nov 05 and just moved. When I lived in my previous location, I was getting between

48-52mpg regularly...like clockwork.

Since I moved, it's dropped to 39-42...quite a drop. I am taking similar roads as before (mostly highway) and my mileage will not improve...I tried different gas stations, new oil change (I use Mobil

1), checked the tire pressure. Nothing...

I'm getting a bit frustrated, because nothing has changed except where I live and that can't be the only factor for the mileage change...

I have 22,500 miles on the car, and was wondering if any others had similar experiences or solution suggestions?

Thanks...

Reply to
Rich
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Temperature different where you are now than where you were then? Winter gas (with 10% ethanol) vs. summer gas?

Reply to
Marilyn & Bob

Temperature...no, not colder by much, maybe 3-5 degrees max. When I got the car it was winter time and was getting 50mpg, so that's what's concerning me. I wish there was a reboot of the car, maybe it would reset anything that has adjusted itself.

Marilyn & Bob wrote:

Reply to
Rich

It may seem a long shot, but there was at least one report of a similar economy drop after the car was serviced. It seems the parking brake was set too tight; operating the parking brake forcefully a dozen times or so cleared up the problem.

Otherwise, is it possible the drop is from terrain near your new home, sucking down gas during the first mile or so of cold driving?

Mike

Reply to
Michael Pardee

Are your trips shorter now than at the old location ? Efficiency is poor for the first 10-15 minutes so if your trips are < 30 mins then this tends to drag down the average MPG quite considerably.

Paul

Reply to
Paul Russell

I think it is due to the locale and not the car.

Where I live, I get around 42 mpg.

If I venture to the San Francisco area it jumps to around 50 or better.

I go back home and it drops.

It's been consistant in its behavior so I no longer doubt the car, but the area has more impact.

B~

Reply to
B. Peg

Alignment?

Reply to
mark digital©

I would guess a combination of temperature and local driving conditions. My economy dropped by 10 mpg between September and December. The only difference is average temperatures in the 30s instead of 70s. Also, the first five minutes or so of driving can have a huge impact if you do mostly fairly short trips. If you sit at lights a lot or go uphill in the first few minutes, your mileage will really suck and it takes a lot of driving under more favorable conditions to make it up.

Reply to
Ill Eagle

Should I be letting my car warm up on colder days to minimize any gas sucking from driving?

Reply to
Rich

No, because it will suck even more gas while warming up.

Reply to
Michelle Steiner

No! When not moving you get *zero* MPG. The first thing a Prius engine does is run continuously, to warm up itself and the catalytic convertor; it does this to minimize hydrocarbon emissions. You might as well be moving while it does this.

The best way to warm up any car (including a Prius) is to drive it, gently for the first few minutes. When the cabin heater starts working then it's warmed up.

Reply to
richard schumacher

Gotcha...I thought that too, but you never know.

I still wonder if I need the car serviced though...when I first got the car, the engine would shut off much faster when I stopped, now sometimes it doesn't shut off at all, especially at stop signs. I used to slow down, and feel the engine turn off and I'd coast on batteries, then accel. on batt and continue to run on them for a while...now, it seems when I accel. from a stop sign the engine almost immediately starts, or at least more frequently than I ever recall. And I can tell you truthfully that I am making an effort to not push the accel. to much to "test the waters," but no difference.

Thoughts?

Reply to
Rich

Gotcha...I thought that too, but you never know.

I still wonder if I need the car serviced though...when I first got the car, the engine would shut off much faster when I stopped, now sometimes it doesn't shut off at all, especially at stop signs. I used to slow down, and feel the engine turn off and I'd coast on batteries, then accel. on batt and continue to run on them for a while...now, it seems when I accel. from a stop sign the engine almost immediately starts, or at least more frequently than I ever recall. And I can tell you truthfully that I am making an effort to not push the accel. to much to "test the waters," but no difference.

Thoughts?

Reply to
Rich

Last winter, I modified my route to extend how long I drove at 25 mph until the blue 'coolant' light went out. This made a significant improvement in mileage:

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This year, I learned about a thermistor hack for my NHW11, 03 Prius, and have been testing a manual version. So far, it looks to be pretty effective but I'm trying to get a microprocessor version working to capture some quality data:

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Bob Wilson

Reply to
Bob Wilson

Is the weather 20 degrees colder now than when you first got the car? When did you last check the tire pressures?

If all operating conditions are truly unchanged, then yeah, might as well have a dealer check it out.

Reply to
richard schumacher

Wow Bob, those are some really detailed stats...nice work. I did the modification with my commute distance and added and extra 12 miles, and it does help slightly. I went from 38-39 mpg to 42 mpg. My climate change since moving is ~7-10 degrees colder than before, but if that makes such a big deal with respect to the overall mpg, I might look into the hacks you've mentioned, because my last car (Honda Civic) got

33mpg, and makes me doubt the Prius a bit. Just a bit.

I also have 23000 miles on it in 13 months, and have done the following things: oil changes at ~6500 miles using Mobil 1 10W-30, tires have been rotated 3 times and that's pretty much it. I don't know if there is something from Toyota (or myself) that needs to be "maintained" at this mileage, but it's starting to look like it though...

Thanks again for the stats...

Reply to
Rich

Higher elevations tend to reduce mpg. Did you not read "Limited Participation" post replies?

Reply to
mark digital©

Higher elevations would be a factor except I live 5 minutes from the beach...even before I moved, I was very close to sea level. What is this "Limited Participation" you are talking about?

----------------------------------------------------------------------- Two doors down ;) you'll see a post from Greg. Subject line "Limited Participation"

For awhile, mandatory alcohol mix was suspended because it couldn't be made fast enough. Maybe that's why you got such good mileage. Believe me, fuel mixture and altitude plays havoc on all vehicles not only the Prius. While I was vacationing in Colorado my fuel efficiency dropped drastically. A Toyota dealer there said everyone is affected but don't realize how bad because they don't venture too far from home. For them it's normal. He also said if I planned to stay I would start seeing better fuel effeciency in a few weeks. The last day heading home I traveled 500 miles from the Great Lakes to Massachusetts. Once I reached the lower elevation of NY I immediately felt a better response.

There's also a possibility your batteries are taking longer to get to the warmer more efficient state simply because early sun isn't there. Days are going to get longer by what, two minutes each day? Before you know it, the ambient temp and sunlight will catch up to each other and you'll be back to

52 +. The thing to remember is everyone's mileage suffers in the cold climate. Don't compare someone else's summertime MPG. It's also probably a one time fluke and that's the tank they remember and talk about.
Reply to
mark digital©

Maybe I'm lucky. Here at 7000 ft our two 2002s manage upper 40s to lower 50s around town until the winter gets here.

Mike

Reply to
Michael Pardee

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