Hello Prius fans,<br><br>I ordered my Prius the very first day they went on sale and took delivery Sep. 2000. I've got 12,500 miles on the car now. <br><br>I've had a few small problems (tires, a failed power steering unit and a gas cap that wasn't scewed on tightly enough) which were all cheerfully fixed by my local dealer. <br><br>My beef is with the mileage. I have never gotten the gas mileage I see you all bragging about. Even when my consuption readout showed I was getting "50," keeping track at the pump I find that I get an average of 39mpg w/o using the air (goes down to 32 with air). I have a 20 minute work commute, all streets, no freeway. <br>The funny thing is that I actually get slightly better mileage on long FW trips.<br><br>The dealer doesn't have any answers for me. Any of you have some? Is this lack of mileage enough to claim "lemon"? I'd sure like to see the mileage you guys are getting.

More info on increasing MPG: <a href=http://groups.yahoo.com/group/toyota-prius/message/24252 target=new>http://groups.yahoo.com/group/toyota-prius/message/24252</a><br>

Do remember, the EPA states (check your window sticker!) "City MPG: 52, Highway MPG: 45, Actual Mileage will vary with options, driving conditions, driving habits and vehicle's condition. Results reported to EPA indicate that the majority of vehicles with these estimates will achieve between 44 and 60 MPG in the city, and between 38 and 52 MPG on the highway."

<a href=http://groups.yahoo.com/group/toyota-prius/message/6299 target=new>http://groups.yahoo.com/group/toyota-prius/message/6299</a><br>Check this out it is fairly accurate.<br>Tire Pressure of course. More PSI = More MPG = harsher ride. Find your own "zone". <br>I guarantee your dealer is using the wrong oil. 5W-30 is recommended for a reason. <br>Majority of state lemon laws are not applicable after 12 months of ownership.<br>Good Luck

what state are you located?

We have a similar situation-we got our car Right before thanksgiving and the only time we got 49 mpg for a 200+ mile trip was when it was 90% freeway. In town we are struggling to stay at 39 and we have put 1200 miles on it so far. Since we got it when it was cold (we are in Oregon) my husband thinks its because we have had the heater on, also the tires are at 32 psi which makes me think its the tires. But with the holiday shopping we would turn the heater on low and cruise around parking lots on electric. <br>I will say the majority of the reviews did state NOT to get this car based on gas savings alone-you won't see much of anything. Mainly because there are other cars out there that get up in the 40's (like a geo). However, it is a GREAT car for the enviorment and pretty damn cool to show off, and I really enjoy driving it. So, we are in the same boat but accept it, because we understood it wouldn't be the necessarily the only point to buy this car.

Currently have about 7,800 miles and owned<br>my Prius since last June. My overall mileage<br>calculated from the pump is 38 MPG. The long<br>trip of over 600 miles totaled averaged 48MPG.<br><br>A good portion of my daily driving is short<br>trips of 5 miles between stops which greatly<br>affects your mileage since the Prius gets very<br>poor mileage at the onset of starting it and<br>commencing to drive.<br><br>Last weekend drove 200+ miles all freeway between<br>LA and San Diego and averaged 48 MPG.<br><br>Early on talked to Toyota customer service and<br>my dealer and could not get a good explaination<br>of my local mileage.

32psi on the tires is much too low and definitely would impact your MPG. Try 40/40 or 42/40 F/R and see if it makes any difference.<br><br>I haven't had my car for a full year yet (10 mos.), but have driven a significant number of miles (27K) and my lifetime MPG per the pump is slightly above 50. My driving conditions are nearly ideal for the Prius -- long daily commutes in a temperate climate. The only way it could be better is if I did not have to contend with hills.

I received my Prius in March 01 and have also been quite unhappy with the mileage. Because I work at EPA and was chatting with someone from our vehicles group, that office encouraged me to do detailed calculations of mileage and driving conditions. As I'm not an automotive junkie this was not fun, but through three tanks of gas got 36, 41, and 37 mpg, driving in the DC metro area. EPA contacted customer service in CA and we've had lots of phone calls, and I've had several frustrating trips to the dealer, but no one has been willing to address the core issue: Are mpg readings like that acceptable in comparison with the EPA-rated mpg statement? One of the customer service ideas was to lend me a 2002 Prius for a week to compare mileage, which I did -- it averaged 42. It's a fine car and I agree with the person who stated that its air quality benefits are tremendous, but why can't the battery work harder?

I have had my Prius 1 year 3 months. Since the 2nd tank of gas I have kept records of gas mileage. In brief I get avg 52 mpg in the summer and 44 mpg in the winter. I drive over 100 miles a day. I have 38k miles. For the last 10k miles I haven't reset the mileage computer and it says 47.8 mpg. <br><br>I also noticed lower gas mileage since the 92 octane fell to 91 octane. <br><br>There is a big variance of gas brands also. <br>My worst mpg was 37. Best was 54.

&gt; that office encouraged me to do detailed calculations of <br>&gt; mileage and driving conditions. As I'm not an automotive <br>&gt; junkie this was not fun<br><br>Sorry it wasn't fun, but it really will be appreciated to hear about. What were the driving conditions you documented?<br><br>My MPG changes a lot. My Prius has seen temperatures between 98F & -13F, and it has experienced a huge variety of driving conditions. So I've seen MPG from 33 to 62. Tire pressure, distance of drive, speed of drive, flat vs. hills, internal & external load, type & octance of gas, type of oil, SOC at particular times, and even variety (or lack of) can all affect MPG.<br><br><br>&gt; why can't the battery work harder? <br><br>It can. But then it wouldn't last 10 to 12 years. Deep, hard discharges would shorten the life by quite a bit.<br><br><br>JOHN<br><a href=http://john1701a.com target=new>http://john1701a.com</a>

Putting 92 octane gasoline in this car goes a long way toward undermining its impact on oil consumption. There is no reason to do it.

&gt;Are mpg readings like that acceptable in &gt;comparison with the EPA-rated mpg statement?<br><br>No. EPA "estimates" of a car's fuel economy are less accurate than the 10 day weather forcast. Question is--what's wrong with the EPA? Too much corporate influence from the automotive industry?

coinprospector said on 1/3/02 6:43 pm:<br><br>&gt; For the last 10k miles I haven't reset the mileage computer and it says 47.8 mpg. &lt;<br><br>Wow. and I thought that I had a high consumption screen odometer reading of 8300+ miles. (it'd be lifetime MPG if the service tech didn't reset it on me when I had ~5000 miles on it, mostly last winter/spring...) With this winter (cold) driving, my mileage is slowly going down. It's somewhere around 50 MPG now.<br><br>Which is getting closer to my current lifetime MPG (as by my last fillup): 12,684 miles, 48.8 MPG. Per tank MPG: minimum is 38.2, average is 48.9, maximum is 68.7.<br><br>For more statistics on my Prius, see:<br><a href=http://www.kluge.net/~felicity/prius.php target=new>http://www.kluge.net/~felicity/prius.php</a><br>Use the "Go here to see more raw information" to see a nice per-tank, 3-tank average (~1month), and lifetime MPG graph. Both pages update with every fillup, and info is calculated daily.<br><br>&gt; I also noticed lower gas mileage since the 92 octane fell to 91 octane. &lt;<br><br>Why are you using the "premium" gasoline? The Prius works on 87 octane "regular". There have been several cases of the Prius getting a "Check Engine" light because people used a higher octane gas. Also, typically your MPG will be lower with a higher-octane fuel than using regular, as there's more energy from the lower octane fuel than the higher octane... So, save your gas money and use "regular" 87 octane. (a little lower octane in the HIGH elevations is OK...)<br><br>Perhaps your "lower gas mileage" since the change in octane has to do with winter reformulations?

not correct.<br><br>when my car is cold and I start the engine I can see the avg miles go down rapidly.<br>Note I am not driving yet.<br>I am just starting up, putting on my seat belt and then go.<br>The time I sit still, the engine is running and the Average Miles go DOWN&gt;<br><br>I can see it clearly and it happens rapidly.<br>50.1, 49.8, 49.4, 48.7, etc.<br><br>It's like seeing a count down.<br><br>So while my driving average is good the cold start and just sitting there for a few seconds eats heavily into my aveage.<br><br>46 miles is my average around NYC.<br><br>Don't know how anybody could do better.<br><br>Hans

Now that winter has arrived, my MPG has gone down nearly 18 percent, I assume because the demand is on the electric heater which drills the battery and the engine has to run more to keep the battery charged.<br><br>Bob