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Hi All:

___Start of this week’s daily grind ...

___Another one of those wonderful commutes :( 11 - 14 degrees F with 10 - 15 mph head/side winds and she allowed just 42.4. Of course the winds are shifting from the WNW (I head NNE home) to winds from the SW as the morning wears on. Guess which way I head going to work? Yup, SSW which means yet another strong head/side wind tomorrow :( There has got to be a payback for this head/side wind battle day after day and I cannot wait to be on the receiving end of that payback soon :)

___Good Luck

___Wayne

It's definitely Monday for my Insight. I'd put par at 30F on the work commute at about 75mpg, but got only 71.4mpg.

10 degrees this morning. The car sat outside all weekend so it started up with the little starter motor this morning.

Managed 61.5mpg because of headwinds, light snow, and speeding into work today. (That's right. Speeding. I saw 69 miles per hour a few times. :eek: )

44.1 MPG @ 20F degrees, 12 minute commute. Ugghh!

I slept in this morning, so I had to take the freeway route into work this morning. 48.x MPG at about 23ºF.

Somewhere between 9 and 12 degrees this morning depending on who you ask. Light snow falling but not enough on the roads to need to slow down around corners, etc. Managed 50.8 for my 6.1 mile city route. Is winter over yet? :rolleyes:

Drove up to NH on Saturday with my wife to do some recon for a bicycle ride...some highway miles on the way up and back doing 60-65 (to keep her happy) with some DWL and drafting. Once up there, she drove the last ~125 miles in the tank while I checked the cue sheet; she has no interest in hypermiling, but is a decent driver and near the end of the tank I noticed her DWB at least once to stretch the tank to civilization because the fuel light was freaking her out (it comes on with at least a couple of gallons left.) So without the warm-up hits from commuting, it was the best tank I've seen in months -- 36.5 MPG. :D

Some short trips yesterday to get a van to haul a couch, then cruising at 72 over hills to get her home in time for bowling. 34.x for the tank, last I checked.

This morning was about 20°F, no wind...3 Warm-up P&G to start, a couple of downhill glides, a couple of glides to stoplights, one on the off-ramp and another for the last block into my spot. I muffed the lights (restart while gliding for green, then kill and brake for red); the lights are on short, traffic-controlled cycles, so they're tough to time correctly. DWL on the expressway, no P&G or drafting. Traffic was decent on the back roads, so I held 40 MPH with the TCC locked on the main uphills, which is good for ~30MPG while climbing. 37.x for 15.6 miles on the inbound commute, which is probably about as good as I'll do this time of year.

I haven't noticed much difference in mileage between P&G vs NICE-on coasting and conditions may be similar tomorrow, so I may try the NICE-on coasting again tomorrow and see if I can tell a difference. I seem to get pretty much the same mileage regardless of the effort I put into it. :(

One thing I haven't tried yet is using trip MPG instead of instant because I've needed the other SGII readouts, especially battery voltage on these cold dark mornings. Perhaps I need to use it instead and check it at various points along the route so I can get a good baseline. It sounds like that's what others are doing.

Two bad things started my week off. The SG lost it's mind and I had to re-set EVERYTHING.:mad: On top of that, the temp was 7F. :brr: I spent the first leg of my commute getting the SG back in order so I don't know how bad it was but, the second leg(9.6 miles) to my work came in at 50.3. This afternoon, there was a few inches of new snow to deal with and the trip to pick up my wife was a poor 46.9. From there to home I had 47.9 by the time I got backed into my garage. How long again is it until spring?:)

I'm stricken with plague so no commuting for me today. But I was forced to make a quick run to the store for more supplies. That makes three short trips on a 9-mile old tank, for 40.x mpg at the moment. Kinda sad but it will average out.

Hi Jim:

___Excellent intro the other day!

___Bruce, keep up the great trips and segments as we are all cheering for you!

___Tim, enjoy your day off and get well soon.

___You guys and your Insight’s … Again ;)

___Those predicted head and side winds were as advertised plus a little snow to throw into the mix. Temps were hanging in the 22 - 25 degree range until about 15 miles south of O’Hare when they started picking up. Head/side winds were still strong but the temp had increased to 32 degrees by the time I arrived at work. 43.8 was the displayed result with the normal 3 - 4% under report … a touch over 45 hopefully.

___Good Luck

___Wayne

I was checking out Gmaps-Pedometer after HCHCIN suggested (http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/fuel-economy/t-google-maps-topo-mashup-3366.html) it recently, and found a couple of alternate full time commute segments that were right under my nose but I had never considered. Each adds about a mile and a half, but with a lower speed limit and probably less traffic than the segments they replace. I tried one on the evening commute home and got 63 MPG for the trip. Not a completely fair evaluation -- that was with a partially warmed engine after a couple of short errands around the office -- but I'll be watching and calculating whether the extra distance leads to a net fuel savings.

EDIT/UPDATE: Looks promising. 56.4 MPG at 25F degrees this morning. This new segment is mostly through an industrial park with light traffic at 6:45 a.m., and about half of it four lanes. Between that and it being late in the run (i.e., fully warmed ICE), I have some great P&G opportunities.

I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one who has problems with the SG self-resetting...I thought it was the module, but exchanging it for another didn't fix the problem. It usually does it when I'm checking trip stats after a ride and the key is accidentally in IG-I (Acc) instead of IG-II (Run). I have yet to make it through a full tank without accidentally resetting it...not so far this tank; I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

I tried watching trip MPG instead of the normal instant stats whenever I didn't need the instant stats the last couple of commutes. The homeward commute was at 32.x by the time I left the expressway after the first five miles. I went past the house to a car wash (closed, unfortunately) a couple of towns away that has a substantial elevation gain to get there, so the trip MPG stayed about the same to get there, then raised to 34.x with a glide or two going back down the hills toward home. 34.7 for the trip. Traffic seemed noticeably heavier than usual, although there weren't any significant delays.

This morning, I tried just NICE-on coasting instead of warm-up P&G and only one FAS on a long downhill; temps were around 15°F, or about 5° colder than yesterday. I had ~22 MPG by the time I hit the main roads, and was hitting around 32.x by the expressway. The car seemed like it was going faster on the expressway than yesterday (55-60 vs 50-55) for the same TPS (17), even though it was colder out...perhaps because the engine was significantly warmer and running more efficiently. I was going fast enough that I spotted a box truck in the right lane and tucked in behind it -- usually the trucks are passing me in the right lane instead. I netted 35.2 MPG for this morning's ride vs 34.7 yesterday, even though it was colder. I guess I'm generally better off leaving the engine running unless I'm completely stopped in traffic.

EDIT: Oops...It was 37.x yesterday, not 34.x. So maybe the P&G is helping. I'll try it again tomorrow.

Hi all, I haven't posted in a while, but I've still been contributing my mileage logs. Cold weather has really affected my HCHII. I've gone from tanks around 47-50 MPG back in warmer weather to tanks in the 44-46 range in the colder weather. I'll be glad when winter is over and my mileage starts to climb again. Filled up this morning, 46.3 MPG, my best tank since October or so.

Was above par (77mpg), but disappointed a very slow 18-wheeler going up a ramp stole my momentium....and 2-3mpg.

50.4 on the way home last night (6.1 miles) at 23F, in very light snow...
51.5 on the way in today at 6F. Had to take it a little slow because of more snow overnight.

Tank sitting at 55.0 / 338 miles, just went to 2 pips.

62 mpg going in to work on Monday a.m., which is not that "good" given my temps (45-50 in Austin) & elevation change (downhill). 54 mpg coming back.

Last night I cleaned out the garage and gave my Prius a new home indoors. Tuesday's commute was 71 mpg with similar temps as Monday. Noticeably improved was the first 5 minutes of warmup. I believe the garage parking will stay :)

Current tank is sitting at 57.3. This tank's goal? beat the EPA 55mpg for the first time. As we get warmer, 60mpg will come. I don't know if this is the tank though. Maybe in March.

55.7 MPG at 27ºF

Traffic was great this morning. I left the house about 5 minutes early and was able to time the lights and have little to no traffic to deal with for some stretches. I could P&G to my tank's content. I had a nice 1/4 mile glide at one point! I'm pleased that I could make up for yesterday.

Hi Mparrish:

___A 71 mpg segment in a Prius II anywhere but the Florida Keys or Phoenix during the winter months is white hot in my book!

___Skwyre, it sounds like you are going to punch out some great tanks come summer if the traffic is this light already!

___13 - 16 degrees w/ strong head/side winds in the snow allowed just 41.3 last night. Same thing coming in but it was slightly warmer. A balmy 16 – 19 degrees F w/ a 41.4 shown :(

___Good Luck

___Wayne

3 trips (same as last tues/thurs):

50.3 MPG/6.1 miles - air temp 14, starting from a 34F garage
67.1 MPG/11.6 miles - air temp 11, starting coolant temp 94 (40 minutes after above)
49.7 MPG/11.6 miles :( - air temp 8 (notice a trend here? low tonight is a big fat 0...), parked outside for ~2 hours. Nothing went terribly badly on that last segment, but I'm convinced that MPG drops in "bumps" with temperature (rather than smoothly), and 10F is one of those "bumps" - the others being around 30F and around 50F, give or take.

Doesn't look like it's going to get above 20 for the next 7 days! Oh well, more time to practice the cold weather "MPG-fu" I guess. :D

Hi All:

___7 - 11 degree F temps, slight side wind and a whole 40.9 to show for it :( I didn’t peak until I was over 35 miles out this morning!

___To add a little fun to the post … I got pulled over by a female State Trooper this morning. I was driving at 49 - 52 while DWL in a 55 at 01:00 AM which apparently caught a suspicious eye from one of Illinois finest. All she said was they were checking for inebriated drivers and then let me on my way after the std. License, Registration, and Insurance checks. I wanted to thank her for doing her job but it costs me 5 minutes of time all the while the ICE was cooling down in the 8 degree temps at the time and my FE was slowly eroding away ;)

___Good Luck

___Wayne

Well, it was a balmy 29 degrees with the same winds Wayne had I think, but no interference from the police. But, saw a meteorite streak across the sky on the way in this morning. It was a pleasant spectacle to behold for a few seconds.

But the real entertainment was later when I got toward the end of the commute. The last leg of the drive is a 4 lane divided secondary highway with lots of traffic lights. The posted speed limit is 55 mph, but the timing of the lights really supports something like 40 - 45 mph cruising. This morning a pack of 6 or 8 vehicles, including a semi, came up behind me all hell bent to keep the hammer down, Good Buddy. They all passed me in the usual way, but the semi was shifting gears to beat the band and for some reason this caught my attention. Anyway, I just moped along trying to keep the iFCD pegged as high as I could as they blasted their way around me. But it was hilarious, as in a minute I could see each traffic light turn red in front of me and about 3 dozen brake lights would come on. I'd coast up behind them and about the time I caught up to the pack, the light would turn green. Once I went around the semi to try to keep a constant speed and I could hear the engine just winding up - drop - shift, winding up - drop - shift - he was just thrashing that machine!

This - I don't know - comedy show(?) repeated itself 5 or 6 times until it came time for me to turn off at a left hand traffic light. Sorry, but I couldn't help but smile as I came up behind the pack, all waiting at the light and I switched into the left lane for the turn. A clear shot to the head of the turn lane, gliding past the semi and everyone else, followed by the leading green turn arrow coming on just as I hit the intersection was just - priceless?

62.x coming in this morning.

Yesterday afternoon, I had an appointment after work, close to work with lots of stop and go to there and to home -- only 20 MPG getting there, but had recovered to 32 by the time I got home. About 25°F. At least it was still above EPA combined, and I never saw expressway.

This morning was 25 with warm-up P&G by the time I got to main roads vs 22 with NICE-on coasting yesterday, 31+ MPG by the last police station before the expressway vs 30 yesterday, and 36.2 for the trip vs 35.2 yesterday. Temperature was comparable. So, I guess P&G instead of NICE-on is buying an extra 1-2 MPG in my case so far.

There was some utility work at the top of a hill on the main highway I use this morning and the road was down to one lane, so the wolf pack ahead of me rushed into it and all hit the brakes; I just rode fuel cut up the hill and they were moving by the time I got there. I missed my usual FAS on the backside because I was accelerating down the hill, but it wasn't too much of a hit overall.

I muffed the first light again today...coast down, start the ICE to try to make a stale green, then brake and kill for the red. I guess I need to FAS until I'm right at the intersection.

I lost a couple MPGs from yesterday. Traffic was not as light as it was yesterday.

53.7 MPG at 27ºF

This morning was my first commute of the week. My first surprise was seeing the trip computer at 14.x mi rather than the 9 mi I could have sworn I left her with. Strange, but I was probably more interested in getting back to bed with my meds than paying attention to the numbers. (And no, not on any meds at the time...promise.) Anyway, 21F with a light frost on the windshield meant a bit of idling before I could see well enough to go anywhere (40.1mpg down to ~37.5ish for the tank) but I brought it back up to 44.9mpg over the next 17 miles, for an estimated 50mpg-even on the segment. Not as good as 0mi and 0gal but I'll take it. ;)

Some tailgaters are in an angry vegetetive state while others might be taking it out on hybrids - you decide on this story of my morning commute.

I leave before dawn to avoid most of the raging idiots. Someone was it seemed about two feet from my rear bumper and I adjusted my rear view mirror. It was one of the worst tailgating in five years since....then he passed by (http://static.flickr.com/51/141548483_466e1b7f5f_m.jpg). Yeah, about five years ago, someone in an identical yellow vehicle was only inches from my rear bumper and this is within a mile from where that happened, so it might be the same guy with the same hangup. My Animal Friendly Texas license plate and website plastered across my rear hatchback probably hissed him off a bit, too. I got 73.5mpg on the commute - would not be suprized if he got 7.35mpg.

I have to confess I did give some gas to discourage him from cutting in front of me - around a 2mpg penality.

If it's any consolation, remember that if the front bumper of the car behind you is already touching your rear bumper when you slam on the brakes, there will be no impact. :D Not that I'd recommend trying it.

The H2 driver did not upset me as much as some other drivers. Figured he saw the polar opposite of his vehicle and broadcasted his inadequacies....well I was initially upset when he was behind and not for sure what he was driving.

But it was hilarious, as in a minute I could see each traffic light turn red in front of me and about 3 dozen brake lights would come on. I'd coast up behind them and about the time I caught up to the pack, the light would turn green.

LOL :D That is the best! I think I've heard the term "rabbits" used for this - other people race up to the next light, as if pacing you, and they have to brake just so it turns green as you're gliding through. After 5 or 6 repetitions you'd think they'd catch on. :D

A big fat 0F air temp (brrrr!) made for a longer than normal warmup period and forced EV not being possible for the first 4 or so miles. I rerouted the first part of my commute today, and I think when it's just a little warmer it will really shine - today was only 49.0MPG. Basically for warm-up I go through one stop sign, one light, and up a decent hill (maybe 0.8-1.0 miles total?) and then get the most beautiful unimpeded glide for the next at least 3/4 of a mile. Today it was cold enough that I couldn't force EV so I was idling the whole way down that "glide". I think total distance is slightly longer, but I'll have to see if I can manage the same or less total consumption.

Somewhat unrelated, but I finally entered all of my tanks here so I actually have an MPG signature now. :flag:

Hi All:

___These winds are getting real old. I have been nailed with strong side winds at night and headwinds heading to work almost everyday for over a week now :mad: Temps from 16 - 23 degrees and a 15+ MPH headwind with a 41.8 result. This weekend is going to be real fun with the coldest temps of the year headed our way and I will be driving at just the right time to experience the best of it :(

___Good Luck

___Wayne

Massively low mpg for me as well. I think I got about 35mpg on the way in today.

The temp was 4F for me this morning. I decided to drive the whole first leg of my morning commute with only n-ICE coasting. I came up with a 39.9 as a result. From there to my work was 48.3 with a slight headwind. The temps only got into the mid teens by this afternoon but I was able to manage 49.5 going back to pick my wife up. From there to my mom's(10.8 miles), I managed 51.0. Then we took her grocery shopping and I ended up with 54.3 after 12.2 miles with a slight tailwind. The return to mom's was 47.7. From there back to my house, I had 57.7 by the time I plowed through the snow and got turned around. I was seeing 61+ before that.:(

Finally, something went right. I turned that 40.1mpg-->37.5mpg into a 46.5mpg @ 50 miles or so by the end of the day. The weather was pretty nice (32F this afternoon) and a couple of shameless EVs through slow stuff helped me out.

Pulling it up to 50mpg by the end of tomorrow would require nearly 60mpg for the day, which is pretty well out of the question I think. But maybe by Friday if this snow storm passes to the south? That would be sweet. :D I need to get these tanks pulled back up into EPA land.

Hi Tim:

___A little something went right my way as it was not 5 degree as previously forecast :)

___A 10 mph tail wind helped although not much to show for it? 19 - 23 degree temps while snowing and snow/slush covered Interstates allowed a 43.0 result. This will be this winter’s worst tank by far :(

___Good luck

___Wayne

Left late yesterday, went up the hill to the car wash after work, then home. A perfect FAS coming into the wash...Started just before the last lights, then glided through the lights, around the corner into the gas station, around the pumps and around a 180 to the entrance, just barely touching the brakes to stop. Some FASing going home, but not much...it was tough to get a read on traffic. 34.x for the whole trip. The wash takes a bit of gas, since I have to drive at a near stop for about a minute total when entering and exiting (entering slowly for the underbody wash, exiting slowly for the drying).

I dialed in a couple more places this morning...23 MPH at the top of the first climb, 23 MPH at the top of a climb in my subdivision to FAS to a stop sign, 40 MPH at the top of the last hill before the first traffic light to FAS to the light. I timed the first light almost perfectly today! I was in a FAS all the way to it, but was a bit hot for the start of the green and had to hit my brakes at the last second.

TPS of 17 on the expressway as usual, although it's tough to find. There's a bit of stiction in the throttle; perhaps I should lube the cables and pivots at some point.

I tucked in behind a passing semi and followed him to the 4-3 lane neckdown, where I had to let in a Saturn from the right lane. Started a FAS just after the last downhill, then the semi turned off at my exit. I usually hit the curve around 45 in the FAS, but he was doing about 30 so I had to scrub off quite a bit. Had I known in advance, I would've just ridden fuel cut instead.

37.5 MPG for 15.8 miles at 17°F. Probably the best I've seen so far at this temperature.

Still no significant snow here in Boston. We've had some dustings here and there, but they just sublimate after a day or two. Not that I'm complaining.

21-23F temps and the tank is up to 48.6mpg as it sits in the lot, meaning approximately 55-56mpg for the segment. Creeping on up....

71mpg in 38F, with a stop on the way to work.

56.4 MPG at 32ºF this morning.

47.0 MPG on the way in today with temps anywhere from 24-32. Not bad...not great either. I'm sitting at 44.6 MPG through the first 120 miles or so on this tank. I almost feel bad about complaining about 44-45 MPG when my 96 Taurus got maybe 20-22 MPG. :)

Hi Bruce:

___Wow, you are starting to come around! The details, the mindset, and the technique are all starting to show through. Just keep it up and by summer, you will be slicing and dicing with DiamondLarry!

___Wes, just driving an HCH-II vs. the Taurus is a plus let alone the vast increase in FE and reduction in emissions.

___Good Luck

___Wayne

Temps started out at ~19F and with n-ICE on coasting I had 40.5 when I pulled into my wife's work. From there to my work was 51.0. This afternoon with a temp of ~23F I had 50.7 goig back to the wife's work and 51.5 from there to when I got backed into my garage. I noticed a bit of a shake when I get to 50-55 mph so I may have to see about getting them balanced. Hopefully it's covered since I just bought the tires last October.

Up to 49.0mpg, and nearly watched a family get creamed by a truly reckless driver. I was doing my usual traffic thing...hold a steady pace at the limit, no P&G or other disruptive stuff. I was probably 200 yards ahead of the pack, so whoever was behind me was perfectly content to be there. Eventually we were on a straight stretch and I saw this purple F150 dart across the double yellow and back over, apparently passing someone who was ~500 yards behind me. (Always watching that rear view!) We caught up to a school bus and waited for it to let kids off, at which point the bus turned and we kept going. Well, four or five minutes later I caught site of this flaming ******* again in the other lane, passing the entire line of 5-7 cars at what must have been 50-55 in the 35mph zone...with oncoming traffic less than a quarter mile ahead of me! He made it with **MAYBE** a couple hundred feet to spare, these poor people in an older Accord just hanging on and hoping. His plates were out of visual range before I could even think to write them down.

I've &#*)*$ had it. I need full-time video monitoring and I need it yesterday. The cops have got to see this crap with their own eyes before they will do anything about it. How is it that the most dangerous drivers in the country seem to live in supposedly-educated Connecticut? I was better off in MA where I grew up, home of the "M*******"

A day off today, with a doctor's appointment in town. It was a chance for good daily MPG (60+) to bump the tank average up a tad, which currently sits at 56 and some change. Got home and put the Prius to bed for the day not long after snow started falling.

This has got to be the worst tank of the season coming up. I'll be lucky to pull in a 40mpg tank. Today even with warmer temperatures (24F) I barely managed to get 40mpg.

78 MPG going in to work, 55 MPG coming back. Tank sitting at 60.1 for the first time! Woohoo. Yet more route modifications seem to be helping.

Best part of the trip going in? A fellow Prius driver waved to me at a stop light. Either she thought I had it going on, or we shared an "MPG moment". Probably the latter :(

Brick - I lived in Boston for 7 years before moving to Austin, and the thought of hypermiling there amongst the locals scares the crap out of me. :)

Brick - 3 words, "rear camera mod". ;) Utterly crazy, but as you said it looks like nothing's getting done about it until you have documentation. Wow.

mparrish - you make me sick. :D What have your temps been down there? I'd take a round trip average >65 in january, that's for sure. :cool:

Unfortunately, it's been cold here and around this weekend into early next week it's going to be even colder! Low on saturday is -10F! :eek:

A bunch of trips to add, none of them particularly impressive...
- 47.7 / 6.1 miles home from work yesterday, 16F air temp, parking garage was a bit colder than normal (or maybe my spot was a little worse!) at 28F
- 49.8 / 6.5 miles, slightly rerouted, to work, 16F air temp - unfortunately I think the super-long glide I have about a mile into the rerouted trip is too early in the trip for these temps. EV refuses to engage down it so I'm needlessly idling. Stage 2 high-idling too. :( Oh well, I'll definitely reconsider that route when it's warmer, but for these temps it seems slightly worse overall.
- 48.0 / 6.1 miles, 14F, garage at 32F - meh.
- 64.8 / 11.6 miles, 14F, starting coolant temp 94F.
- 52.3 / 11.6 miles, 6F, return trip of above (after sitting outside for ~2 hours).

Tank is hanging onto the last pip at 419 miles, showing 54.9. With this weekend's temps I think 55 for the tank is shot.

This morning I tried the alternate route (mentioned in post 12 in this thread) from my fiancee's house for the first time, with very promising results. Monday morning (the last time I made this commute) saw 44 MPG. Today was 54 MPG, more than enough to justify the extra mile and a half if it works out over the long haul. Today is not an entirely fair comparison: temps 14° warmer, but with a light rain; hopefully the two factors balance out. There will be a learning curve on this route: a lot of hills and curves that I need to learn and anticipate, but that makes the long-term prognosis even better.

Finally, brought it up over 50! Yesterday I had to make a quick run to the store (5 or 6 miles) but I thought of it while the engine was warm and actually managed to go from 49.0mpg to 49.4mpg. And this morning the temps were a tropical 30F which was just enough for Prius to enter EV! 1.1miles of coasting before I even lit the ICE. 50.6mpg for the tank at 106mi for an estimated 58mpg segment despite a steady-state approach due to following traffic.

Thanks for the encouragement, Wayne...I can certainly use it.

I'm starting to think a Saturn S-series would've been a better choice for mileage, but it is what it is. A friend has one and uses essentially the same commute with DWB only and gets 38 MPG tanks in the summer.

My whole reasoning for getting an auto is shot at this point...I had expected to be doing recon for bike routes on my own. I've been working the routes with my wife this season, so I'm free to drive without taking notes at the same time.

Temperatures last night were around 37, so I took off my removable chunk of grill block before heading out.

I think I had around 36 by the time I got home last night for ~15.6 miles; a few long ICE-off glides at opportune moments. I have a nice one on a 30 MPH road that I've done a few times...start at the edge of the dropoff at 35, drift down to 40, up to the top of the hill at 20, then down to the lights, which are usually red anyway. Once it turns green, light up, accelerate down the hill, across the intersection, down the hill some more up to 40 MPH, FAS for maybe 1/2 mile to a 20 MPH school zone, then light it up for the next ascent.

Once home, I piled some insulation on the hood to keep the radiator warm in the garage, then took off a couple hours later for my wife's place. Slow speed roads were the same as on my commute, but with the warm engine I had 37 MPG by the main roads vs 32 with a cold one. I think I held around 37 MPG for the ~7 miles.

To work from my wife's place this morning, 37.7 MPG for 19.1 miles at 25°F. Some long ICE-off glides, some drafting on the expressway. The engine starts out colder when I stay over because it's parked outside, but it also has a longer distance to warm up so the overall mileage stays about the same.

The trans doesn't shift out of second until everything is warm, so I tried just cruising at the lowest speed in second gear to start and was getting 15-20 MPG. I eventually got sick of going slow and just went to warm-up P&G instead -- better efficiency at a better average speed.

I went by a cop while doing 45 in a 45 zone this morning, instinctively lifted the foot and blew the TCC lock. I need to relax.

49.6 MPG going home yesterday at 34ºF. Traffic was awful.
59.1 MPG going to a gathering last night across town (85% highway speeds). 34ºF
50.8 MPG coming home last night. 34ºF
53.8 MPG in to work this morning at 36ºF.

My tank is around 55MPG, but it's only 60 miles in, or so.

The 1st 8 miles I was getting 40mpg, but very happy not to have been in a wreck (lot's of them). It was 77mpg the remainder, so I'm probably in the low 60s for today.

Ran a mid-morning errand...9 miles each way, 33.7 MPG out and 41.7 back. :D

Amazing what it'll do with a warm engine...I had some great downhill ICE-off glides both ways. Unfortunately, one of the best ones I'd planned on the way back was foiled by a Mini Cooper doing 45 going downhill in a 50 zone. Solid traffic passing in the other lane, so I rode fuel cut and hit the brakes instead.

I may have a temporarily much longer commute soon, in which case I may see several 40+ MPG segments if I do it right. :D

Yup, I think you're going to do just fine :D

Filled up yesterday and recorded a 52.8 for the tank since January 11th. Then in consistant 21F temps did a 54.4 40 mile round trip for the commute. This morning 9F temp and the 20 mile commute in to work only dropped me to 54.1.

Wayne

Temp started out at ~19F this morning. I had 42.3 for the first leg and 51.6 for the second leg. This afternoon the temps fell a bit to just over 13F and I had 50.6 going back to pick up my wife and 50.0 by the time I got home.

I was a total underachiever this week compared with what I read here. I don’t have anywhere near the weather everyone else has and yet I clearly can’t drive out of a paper bag.

Got to work Monday at 61mpg. That was OK, but I had to go to a group luncheon, it was late and nobody I could catch a ride with so I had to drive myself. So I go down this gorgeous steep downhill normally I never get to take that’s by my office, and because the engine’s cold I gain basically nothing out of it, maybe 1mpg. Ugh—to see such beauty, wasted. Of course there’s no way I can avoid climbing up again on the way back to work no matter what route I take, so I end up taking a hit of 7mpg for this stupid 4 mile trip. Then when I leave to go home, subtract another 4mpg hit after the first mile just to warm up again. That leaves me at 51mpg, so I flog the car and myself all the way home just to get up to 57mpg. Next time I tell myself, you only going to lunches in someone else’s car.

Yesterday was another no-good terrible day. I was on the 405, a freeway I don’t usually travel much on. It slowed to a crawl and then down to stop and go, and then mostly stop. It was 10am not a bad hour and I kept thinking it must be something minor like a traffic ticket so I didn’t get off. It turned out to be a 5-car pileup, with most lanes closed. I finally exit off after sitting, losing autostop every couple minutes and having to key the car off and on to move up 20 feet and still blowing >10mpg. Then I have no idea how to find the next freeway on ramp. I have to go a couple miles this way then that way before I finally find it and I’m now at a really dismal 42mpg. The day ended at 53 stinkinmpg, a new low.

Yesterday was another no-good terrible day. I was on the 405, a freeway I don’t usually travel much on. It slowed to a crawl and then down to stop and go, and then mostly stop. It was 10am not a bad hour and I kept thinking it must be something minor like a traffic ticket so I didn’t get off.
Be glad it wasn't something like this:

http://www.405themovie.com/view.asp

:)

Two trips in single-digit temps to finish off the tank:
49.7 / 6.1 miles at 5F
45.4 / 7.5 miles at 3F, starting from 18F (ugh)

Flashing "0 pips" at about 423 miles, ended the tank at 433 miles with 54.6 showing. Unfortunately according to distance drove/fuel pumped it's going into the database as 52.0.

Starting the new tank on the way back from the gas station (1.5 miles) was a source of some amusement. The MFD currently shows a ridiculous 94.3 MPG :eek: , even though my SG tells me I only came out with a more reasonable 55.6. That's by far the largest discrepancy I've ever seen (I calculate trip MPG range based on MFD start/stop and ODO start/stop in addition to recording the SG).

Oh well, it will get clobbered on Sunday when I need to drive again...

A tip for Prius drivers. If the ICE won't shut down when the car hasn't warmed up try shutting down the heating system if your windows will stay clear, this works well for me especially at stoplights. Also there is a point where the car is partly warmed up where you can sometimes get the ICE to shut down if you get to 35 MPH or higher and try to get into glide mode, when the temps get to 10 F or lower it is tough to get the EV button to engage (if you have this mod) until the car gets quite warm. The main point is turning the heating system off completely seems to help in getting the ice to shut down, just wear a hat, mittens, scarf, and maybe some ski goggles :) .

Hi Dcoyne:

___I have not seen you around lately … You should jump into the fray with Jerad and Tim as they have been knocking out excellent segments and tanks in temps that would freeze a witches T …oe. I know what you thought I was going to say ;) Its nice to see you back!

___Drive in tonight wasn’t as bad as I thought since temps have not completely bottomed out … just yet. Strong headwinds of 15 – 20 mph and temps from 8 – 12 degrees F. 41.6 to the parking lot. Tomorrow mornings 6 degree projection is cold but not as cold as the – 4 degree lows for Saturday and Sunday nights and 0 for Monday night. I cannot wait for those three drives :(

___Good Luck

___Wayne

Also there is a point where the car is partly warmed up where you can sometimes get the ICE to shut down if you get to 35 MPH or higher and try to get into glide mode, when the temps get to 10 F or lower it is tough to get the EV button to engage

I've seen exactly this behavior at ~10 degrees or below. Once WT is up to high 150s I can get the ICE to shut off at >35 MPH "normally" but not at lower speeds with the EV button. Of course then you also get up to a stop, start to pull away and the ICE engages at like 0.2 MPH instead of the 8 or so you'd see in normal temps. Somewhat comically, I've tried hitting the EV button when slowing from a >35MPH top speed with ICE-off when I know I've got a stop coming up (from EV mode you can better control ICE-on coming away from a stop in these temps), only to *still* hear the dreaded 3 beeps! :confused:

Since we are under a blizzard warning here, I decided I better go out and get some supplies before it got ugly. The wind is coming out of the SW at 15-20 mph with gusts as high as 41 and the temp is 6F. On the trip there, I was travelling generally north and east(tailwinds) and had 55.0 by the time I pulled into my face-out spot. On the way home, I was travelling into the winds. By the time I got unstuck from the drift in front of my garage and got into it, I only had 39.8.:(

I have just realized I failed to say anything about my FE. I don't have a scan gauge and haven't been keeping close track of my segments lately, but my current tank is at about 52 mpg with about 350 miles on it. In the winter I am lucky to get 8 gallons in the tank when there is one pip (of 10 for non-prius owners) on the fuel gauge so if I can get 400 miles on a tank I am doing well. Mostly I am struggling to get 50 mpg on a tank these days. Temps lately have been pretty cold in Maine, lows in the single digits (F) and highs in the teens most days. I do have a block heater and my car is garaged and I have blocked the front grill, but alas 60 mpg will probably not be seen until March. I'll start keeping closer track of my segments, maybe it will motivate me. After all a tank is just a long string of segments good and bad.

Dennis

I've been silently whining about what we expect to be the coldest temps of the season in a couple of days: highs in the upper 20s, lows in the single digits. But then I read about Dennis' results, Larry's blizzard, and Tony's report on PriusChat of changing a flat in sub-zero temps.

I had one of my of part time jobs today with a 27 mile one-way commute. With a couple of stops on the way home, daily MPG was 60+. I'm still keeping this tank at 57. Three pips left at 370 miles.

As I whine, I'm sure I'll get no sympathy from those in the Midwest or New England. :)

Actually, you should continue "commenting" as you have been. I can take comfort by remembering how good things can be.:D

Wow, Jimbo, you're fast. I just posted that this evening.
My mileage is down to around 47.5 right now. I took a couple hits to my mileage this evening driving to the tire place and back. It's less than a mile and Priapus was none to thrilled about firing up at -2F. Turns out they were really busy and I have to go back tomorrow morning. :(

Hi All:

___No Internet Access at home for over 24 hours but still pulled a 41.6 home in 7 – 11 degree temps and the normally extremely strong side winds. Tank finished up at 42.97. Tonight’s drive in was best described as humbling. Just 36.2 in temps of 2 to – 2 and 15 – 20 + mph side winds.

___Good Luck

___Wayne

We went out for lunch today and after~12 miles, I ended up with 49.7 mpg and there were 5 of us piled in the Saturn. Oh yeah, I had a 10-15 mph tailwind.:) On the way home(headwind:( ), I managed a 39.8 by the time I got backed into my garage.

Edit: I forgot to mention that the temp was -3F.

Not a good day, but for -5 to -10F and short trips maybe not too bad either. EV mode via the button was 100% denied at these temps today.

- 38.2 / 4.6 miles / -7F, after sitting for 1 1/2 days, and obv. not being able to warm up completely in <5 miles. One little segment at the end where coolant hit 159F and I got an ICE-off glide.
- 30.2 / 2.1 miles / -5F, just 2 hours sitting outside but still coolant started from like 30F. Not much I can do here with only 2 miles.
- 34.7 / 2.8 miles / -5F, 45 minutes after above. At this point the MFD was reading a whopping 37.9 for the tank I just started. :(
- 69.4 / 5.2 miles / -5F. This is actually an extension of the above trip - I had to make a quick stop but I left everything on. This looks awesome until I note that in the summer this identical segment has been 95-110MPG. :eek:
- 43.9 / 5.2 miles / -4F, 40 minutes after the above.

MFD reading 44.9 / 21 miles for the new tank. A few more ugly days to endure (tonight's low is -14F :( ), then we're supposed to start seeing at least 10-20F again.

I've heard -15°F from MN these days. We haven't had the subzero temps in Boston yet, but we'll be getting pretty close this week...mostly single digits the next few mornings.

Some more endurance bicycle ride route recon with my wife on Saturday...about 200 miles to western MA and back on unfamiliar, snowy, icy back roads with steep hills and curves, about 25°F while we were out. I had to brake a lot on downhills to keep my speed down so I wouldn't slide through unanticipated turns and stop signs. Best I could do in most spots was just DWL and accelerate down the hill when everything ahead was clear. I tried a few ICE-off coasts on the more familiar roads without much grief from the navigator apart from her legitimate concern over increased starter wear; my take has been that long starts are the real starter killers and these have pretty much gone away with electronic fuel injection, so I'm not too concerned about it.

I filled up at the start with my best tank yet -- 37.1 MPG! -- but managed 32.3 for the rest of the trip. I tried to hit the carwash on the way home (closed again) and had it up to a 34.x tank with the more familiar roads (41.8 on the way back from the wash).

Got rear-ended on the recon, but it was fortunately just a relatively minor tap from a senior driving by Braille. I was stopped at T intersection waiting for traffic to clear and got a pretty solid smack. There doesn't appear to be any real damage -- just some surface scratches on the cover. If it has a styrofoam insert, it probably got compressed, but my father (ex-GM engineer) seems to think it'd return on it's own anyway. It's probably not worth the bother of a claim, but for perhaps raising her rates to get her off the roads sooner. Her car told the story of a bumper-car's life...banged up on all four corners, cracked and scratched bumper covers.

Went on a driving demo of my commute with hobbit this afternoon, then back to the car wash. Rides were in the 37-38 range, tank's up to 34.7. It was interesting riding in his Prius, although the techniques are a bit different than in my car.

Hobbit's main technique suggestion was that I react sooner to traffic. I'm usually pretty good about this from years on the bike, but I'm not very good at driving while talking, and the traffic patterns were very different today than they normally are on my commute (for example, I don't usually encounter cars entering and exiting the supermarket at 6AM on a weekday.)

He also suggested an injector cutoff switch, but I didn't see much point because I have to key back to IG-I for a couple of seconds to kill the automatic headlamps/DRLs anyway.

I guess I mainly just need to keep refining my technique for my particular route, add some potential aero mods, and perhaps do some acceleration testing.

Hi All:

___Same old broken record. Still no Internet Access at home going on 3 days. 2 to – 2 w/ 15 + mph side winds and a 39.0 result home this morning. 38.5 coming in. Tank is completely shot as we still have at least 2 or 3 days of this cold nightmare left. Glides are shot, ICE-On consumption is pathetic, and I am just getting beat to a pulp trying to come up with a way to beat these temps :(

___Good Luck

___Wayne

When I filled my tank yesterday I ended up at 51 MPG, display read 52.6 MPG avg, with the up and down temps we have been having here (30 F one day 10 F the next for high temps) and the bladder tank, the fills are very inconsistent, long term the display seems to read about 2 % high on my car so the 51 is probably close to the true FE. I only needed 7 gal at around 360-365 miles, but I don't want to run out of gas when the wind chills are about -15F. On my way home from skiing I pulled off a 107 mile segment at 61.5 mpg with temps averaging about 18 F, but there was a net downhill of approx 1170 feet over the trip so its not really that great, I will take it for winter after the car cold soaked outside at temps as low as -5 F overnight from 6 PM Friday to 2 PM Sun with no place to plug in the block heater. We will see where this tank ends up, it is going to be a cold week here, but warm compared to Minnesota ( we will see mostly single digits to teens with a few nights below zero overnight.)


Dennis

Hi All:

___It wasn’t 3 weeks ago when 20 to 30 degree temps had me crying in my beer. Given my -9 to -5 degree F ordeal this morning, I can only call those the “good ole days” :( 38.5 was the result. I am approaching ½ a tank and will barely touch 400 miles. New all time low.

___This below 0 degree crap from MN. all the way through Chicago has simply got to come to an end! I saw San Francisco at 60, LA at 65, Billings, MT. at 49 and Denver at 52. WTF is up with that :confused: :)

___Good Luck

___Wayne