Just bought first hybrid 06 AWD FEH
#21
09-25-2014, 01:46 PM
Re: Just bought first hybrid 06 AWD FEH
It sounds like you do occasional short trips. This is the worst scenario for mileage with these hybrids. They are set up to keep the catalytic converter hot, which is done to minimize exhaust pollutants. So every time you do a cold/cool start, it will burn lots of gas just to get the catalytic converter hot. This may save pollution, but it hurts mileage that you can't make up without doing long drives.
In fact, if I have to drive a few blocks, I will use our less efficient vehicle instead of the hybrid.
The second thing is that if you fill up the tank, and compare the amount of gas you bought to the tank capacity, you'll find that when the gauge said you had half a tank, you actually had more than half a tank. When ours reads at the empty mark, I still have about 20% of a tank left.
With time, you'll also get better at the mileage game. One thing you should avoid doing is shifting into "L" to slow down. Just use the brake pedal. And make sure the tires are well inflated. I'm running mine at 40ps, some are running considerably higher pressure.
In fact, if I have to drive a few blocks, I will use our less efficient vehicle instead of the hybrid.
The second thing is that if you fill up the tank, and compare the amount of gas you bought to the tank capacity, you'll find that when the gauge said you had half a tank, you actually had more than half a tank. When ours reads at the empty mark, I still have about 20% of a tank left.
With time, you'll also get better at the mileage game. One thing you should avoid doing is shifting into "L" to slow down. Just use the brake pedal. And make sure the tires are well inflated. I'm running mine at 40ps, some are running considerably higher pressure.
And I mentioned my fear of bad mileage, and turned out it was 24.6 - not bad, I thought. Well my next tank was 24.8. I was expecting better. It's a 4WD, mostly city driving - is 25+ a realistic expectation, or should I be happy with beating the Subarus I was considering buying before this FEH came along?
#22
09-25-2014, 04:20 PM
Re: Just bought first hybrid 06 AWD FEH
My lifetime average at 65k miles is 30.1mpg for a 2007 AWD, probably 70/30 hwy/city. Best tank was 34.6mpg. I'm in Calif, so possibly up to 10% ethanol.
#23
09-26-2014, 03:05 PM
Re: Just bought first hybrid 06 AWD FEH
I have a 'new' 2008 AWD FEH and I'm somewhat confused about the tips on using 'L' and 'D' for slowing down. Is it a good idea to use L or should I stick with 'D' and heavier brake application?
My first tank is 26.4mpg, (50% highway) so I'm hoping for some improvement...
My first tank is 26.4mpg, (50% highway) so I'm hoping for some improvement...
#24
09-26-2014, 04:19 PM
Re: Just bought first hybrid 06 AWD FEH
Thanks for the response and info. Yes, most of the trips are short mileage. I thought it was better to take the hybrid for short trips, since I can keep it in electric mode pretty long, most of the time. It doesn't switch over to electric as fast as I'd hope though. Any thoughts on how long it should take to switch over after idling? It's at least a few minutes for me, or perhaps a mile or two down the road before I see it shut off at a stop light.
And I mentioned my fear of bad mileage, and turned out it was 24.6 - not bad, I thought. Well my next tank was 24.8. I was expecting better. It's a 4WD, mostly city driving - is 25+ a realistic expectation, or should I be happy with beating the Subarus I was considering buying before this FEH came along?
And I mentioned my fear of bad mileage, and turned out it was 24.6 - not bad, I thought. Well my next tank was 24.8. I was expecting better. It's a 4WD, mostly city driving - is 25+ a realistic expectation, or should I be happy with beating the Subarus I was considering buying before this FEH came along?
How long it stays in, and how soon it switches to, electric vehicle (ev) mode depends on a lot of things. But in general: The closer the ambient temp is to "room temperature", the less time the FEH has to run the engine to warm things up, or at very high temps, cool the hybrid battery. Warmup from a cold start uses a lot of gas. It's best to be moving rather than sitting during that time. Warm weather allows more ev mode than cold weather. Driving at a steady 30-40 mph on flat ground seems to be the sweet spot for the FEH to spend most of the time in ev mode, and will return amazing mileage.
My FEH takes twice as long to be able to go into ev mode in cold weather than warm weather (such as is typical around here).
For the year, awd and typical use of your FEH, I'd say your mileage would be as expected. It's not great, but it would still be a lot better than a non-hybrid being used the same way. I don't think the Subarus would come close in this sort of driving.
If I interpret correctly what another poster said, I retract my advice to avoid braking by using "L". It sounds like in the pre-'09's it doesn't matter if you drop speed while in the ev range by downshifting or using the brake pedal.
For a bit of extra mileage, you could try, say, 40lb tire pressure. If you can, try to be in ev mode as to discharge the battery as much as you can as you reach home. That way, all that wasteful gas-guzzling engine operation on cold startups can also be used to charge the battery.
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