Prius (Gen 3) Fuel :: MPGs Dropping From 51-53 To 44-47 Range In Cold Temps
Oct 29, 2013
Winter temps are dropping my mpgs from 51-53 mpg to the 44-47 mpg range. Snow, rain, slush puts drag on the car, as well as temps in the 20-40s causing the ICE to run more during warmup and during the 15 mile trip I make daily. Also mpgs in town on 1-3 mile trips are dropping into 29-33 mpg range. I guess the Prius isn't made to thrive in cold temps. I don't know if there is much I can do about it. I did remember to raise the pressures in my tires which has dropped also.
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Grill blocked today for the first time and have a couple questions.
Temps have been dropping more these last 3-4 days and have noticed my MPG dropping as well so I thought I'd try grill blocking.
Tempts have been and will be high 30s-low 40s in the morning and upper 50s to mid 60s for the high.
At first I just wedged the pipe insulation and drove one trip. I didn't feel comfortable that it would hold for the long haul so I added zip ties.
I used two pieces of pipe insulation 1/2 inch copper / 3/8 inch iron. Up close it looks like 2/3 or 3/4 of the grill is covered.
My two questions:
For fWT, at what temperature should it not exceed?
At what outside temperature should I remove the pipe insulation? In the Phoenix area, temperatures rise in March and sometimes we will have a short period of warmer than normal temps in February. I just want to make sure I do not cause overheating.
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While most of the emphasis I've seen on improving fuel economy seems to focus on warming the car up quickly in cool/cold weather, I seem to be experiencing significant mpg drops at the other end of the spectrum.
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Just traded in a 2012 Nissan Sentra SR on a 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport and have a question about the gas mileage.
My Sentra always read 28+ MPG, but it was a known issue that the reading was almost exactly 3 MPG off; thus, I was hitting about 25 MPG most of the time. I could typically get by for a week and a half, sometimes two on a single tank (which was about 11 gallons).
I took the Santa Fe home on Thursday night, filled up from the dealer and reading a range of 384 MTE. As of tonight (Saturday), my fuel meter is reading two notches over the halfway mark and the range has dropped to 232 MTE. I haven't driven anywhere near 150 miles since Thursday, FYI.
The MPG on the Santa Fe started t a measly 12 MPG when I left the lot, most likely due to sitting and idling and lots of stop-and-go driving on test drives. I've since managed to get it up to 22.2 MPG (and feel confident it should eventually read about 25 MPG, about the same as my Sentra). Even though the MPG reading is going up, I feel like I'm going to be filling up the tank again without hitting a full week of driving (and this is a bigger tank than the Sentra). I'm not getting the difference. Is there an issue that I'm missing here? After checking in with the dealer that the previous owners used for service to ensure there were no red flags, they did tell me that it had an active bulletin for a software update. I've read in other places here that this update can have some effect on the MPG. Any thought on if these things are connected?
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Here in the northwest the weather has been dry and temps in the 40's to over 60 degrees. The mpg's have increased about 5-7 mpg over just a month ago.
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I bought my 2007 Prius in July 2010 with 70k on it. To date it has 78k.
During the summer months I was in Colorado and achieving anywhere between 400-450 miles to the tank.
In August I returned to the Mid-West, running well and achieving the same mileage, but as winter has come along, it is now getting about 300-350 miles to the tank, but has gotten as low as 240.
The brakes have seemed to become more sensitive, and the car seems to rattle more when I come to a stop.
Are these just symptoms, especially LOWER MILES PER TANK caused by the cold Mid-West winter?????
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My wife and I were driving around town the other day. While merging onto the highway we hit a nail. I put the donut on and went to TiresPlus where I have gone since I started driving. I had been thinking about replacing the front tires due to wear and the nail wen in the side on the rear. Anyway I purchased 4 Firestone Affinity Touring tires and went on about my day. My wife drives 100 highway miles a day and then does some city driving. This week she has lost about 5mpg's according to the display average. Also the service light has come on. Can this all be tire related?
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First time Prius owner Aug 2012. First 2 tanks of gas very impressed at 50-51 mpg. Then going slowly (10mph) through a parking lot I heard a strange noise on passenger side underneath the car. The best description is that it sounded like a steel lawn rake being dragged under the car on the asphalt. It lasted for about 30 seconds, then quiet and I have not heard it since. No sign of issues. No dash warning lights.
My next tanks rendered 47.5, 48.5, 46.5, 45.75 mpg. Then in the last 2 tanks suddenly at 41.5 and 42.75 mpg. This seems like a very major drop in mpg. I have been reading the comments regarding outside temp etc. and I will make adjustments. It just seems extreme and the "noise" is now making me wonder if some electrical component failed and is adding to the poor mileage issue.
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What is the range is on these temps. Reason I ask is because long story short My truck did not come with a factory tow package and I have added the hitch and seven pin wiring, I am lacking the HD trans cooler. Recently purchased a travel trailer and am a little worried about getting the tranny too hot. I have an Edge tuner and set the gauge to read tranny fluid temp. Without the trailer I have been seeing temps that range in the 130's to 150's, with the trailer I have been seeing temps in the high 160's, with a spike to 176 when going up a hill. I plan to add the tranny cooler but cash is little tight at the moment. Just wondering how hot is too hot.
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=this is my first summer to own a prius, and I noticed this last week that my fuel economy seems to be slipping. I am averaging around 42 MPG instead of my usual 49. Only reason this worries me is I've noticed the car is charging the battery a LOT, and it's not uncommon to have my MPG drop down to the low 20's on a flat road if I am lightly accelerating.
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Last week I switched my wheels and tires out from OEM 15 x 6 wheels with 195/55R15 Good Year Fuel Max tires to 16 x 7 Drag DR9 wheels (16.55 lbs.) with 205/50R16 Good Year Fuel Max tires. ( I wanted a different look) At first I didn't notice any change in mpg's, but that soon changed. The temps went down into the 20's for lows and 30's for highs. I went from 48 - 50 mpg to 41 -43 mpg in just a few days. I assumed that the drop was due to the cold weather. This morning I decided to check the tire pressure in the new tires. 32 psi all the way around. I asked the guys that installed the tires to fill them up to 44 front, 42 rear. I guess that never happened. Anyway, I looked on the sidewall of the tire to check max pressure and I was shocked (51 psi). I ran 44 front, 42 front on my old set, because that was what I was advised to do.
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I have a 2012 Prius v, and over these past few weeks I have gotten the worst gas mileage ever. The car was recording mileage at about 35 mpg, but actual has been closer to 32. Yes, I know that it's because Wisconsin has bee recording temps. in the zero or below zero range; but it's still pretty discouraging. In summer I get the normal Prius ratings for mileage ( about 44). How to increase my winter mileage?
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I knew when I bought my car it wouldn't get optimum mpg as no car would with the many short trips I have to make every day but I have 5000 miles on it already and have averaged approx 46 with all the city and highway combined.
I took it into Toyota last week for the tire rotation and ever since it has been horrible. There were 120 miles on the tank and I refilled because I couldn't stand to see it staying around 39 on the computer. I have never seen that before. I checked the tired and they had brought them down to 32psi so I put then back to 40/38 and refilled.
Not noticing much of an improvement, sadly. Hovering at 40 mpg still. Weather has changed a lot. Temps much higher daily mid 80s to low 90s. This is my first summer with the car and yea the ac has been on nonstop with the higher temps.
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I am the owner of a new 2014 Prius Two as of three months ago. I have really been enjoying the car, and it is certainly more friendly at the pump than my old Chevy Tahoe. I have a question as to why my mpg has been getting worse of late.
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So I bought a used 2010 Gen 3 with ~26,000 miles on it in July 2013. I started out getting 48-52mpg depending on where I was driving. I live in Raleigh, NC and I did notice a drop in drop in MPG over the winter ranging between 44-48mpg but the mpg never rose again as the months warmed and I averaged 44-46mpg for most of the summer. After changing my tires a few weeks ago I've dropped to about 40mpg regardless of where or how I drive. I bought Pirelli P4 Four Seasons 195 65R15 91T and have them inflated to the levels recommended by Toyota. 35/32 or something like that. Is it the tires or is there some other possible issue?
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Typically here in the Phoenix area the coldest it gets in the morning is mid to upper 30s for about 2-3 weeks in dec/jan for the low and 50s for the high. Half of November, Jan, Feb & March temps are around 40s for the low & upper 50s-60s high
With these temps is it worth grill blocking?...and how much of a MPG gain would I get?
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So when I first got my car, the dealer had put in a full tank of gas and the miles to empty range was at 347~. After several fill ups since my purchase, the miles to empty has been dropping every time I filled up. A few fill ups ago, I remember it was 327. The latest fill up was about 318. What gives? Do the current MPG avg affect this number? What is the factor for the variance?
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Have had my 2011 Prius all of 4 weeks. Followed PC for months before the purchase, practice pulse/glide regularly and have really change driving habits to increase MPG. First tank was 51 MPG, than 48, 46 and now 45. each one was 75% city driving, 25% freeway.
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I've had my P3 for a week and have really been working on getting the max MPG using tried and true techniques and I've settled at 53mpg on average for the week.
During my commute, there is a long stretch of downhill - almost 3 miles - where I never engage the ICE but I notice my range ticks off with each mile.
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So this is the second time that has happened to me.
I had 145 km range left on my tank.
I decided to fill up $12 of gas, my bar was at 2, it went up to half tank full, around 6 bars.
However, my range didn't go up, it still showed 145km left.
Now I'm driving and the range is down to 79km left, but I still have 4 bars left, usually at 79km I would only have 1 bar left.
Usually I have to refill up the full tank for the range to change and goes to 645km
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Been driving around a lot trying to empty the gas tank in my new Prius and was wondering what the "Cruising Range" figure actually represents. Do the miles listed mean I have that many miles left until the tank is bone dry, or is that the range until the tank gets to the warning light?
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