Stop in and say Hi next time you come in for service.. I've been there for 7 years.

 

I would be intersted in hearing about ways to tricle charge the traction battery. Last Friday I was able to acheive 152 mpg on a 7.7 mile segment from my bank to backing into my garage. I did this by starting at 6 bars and starting at 8 bars could have made a very significant difference. I'm getting a block heater installed this morning which will help on my morning commutes but won't do much good on my commute from work each afternoon.

 

I am averaging roughly 52 mpg right now. How in the world are some people getting 100+ mpg in segments? I think I understand pulse and glide and seem to be approving--but some of the figures and stats I see are mind blowing to me. What can I do better?

 

I live in a rural area with very little traffic. What little traffic there is, is used to farm machinery moving slowly so they go around without any problems. I did it by pulsing to 28 mph and coasting down to 20 or so. This will only work when there are no time constraints and light enough traffic. It would not always be practical commutes, errands, etc.
Edit: I got the above speed ranges from VaBeachPrius(Chris) and they have been very valuable in helping me reach the FE levels I'm at. Thanks Chris! Most of my friends(family too ) know that I'm not smart enough to figure things like this out on my own.

 

Elkhart, eh? I am familiar--I used to live in Middlebury so I understand your setting very well. A lot of horse 'n buggies as well as farm equipment too!

When one says "pulse," that is the acceleration to the desired maximum speed, correct? How do you determine, however, what the speed should be? For instance, if I am traveling on a street where the speed limit is 35, should I pulse at about 40mph and glide until about 33mph?

I am having a difficult time getting a good acceleration from a complete stop, such as a stoplight. Is it better to just take it slow, or should I gas it a little bit to get up to speed?

Thanks for your help everyone! I've learned so much from this website about driving my hybrid that it is insurmountable.

 

This is one of those things where you have to take the traffic into consideration. The range you mentioned would probably work quite well since, if it was done smoothly, probably wouldn't even be noticed by traffic behind you.

As for taking off from a stoplight, the best thing is to avoid stopping by timing the lights. Unfortunately though, life is not always that predictable. I'm relatively new to this site so I don't know exaxtly where the info is but, hobbit has some very good info about how to coax FE out of a Prius. I learned from his info that accelerating with the rpm's in the 1400-2200 range is the optimum FE range. And yes, this site is an invaluable source of information.

 

No 1..never drive on the Highway or over 50 mph. As soon as you do you fall from the mid 60's and higher to the mid 50's or lower. After that it's technique. I'll leave it to the experts beyond that.

 

Diamondlarry,

Did you get your P&G speeds from my suggestions? Did you refine what I said? Any suggestions for me?

There is a neighborhood that has newly paved roads and little traffic that features a 1.6 mile loop (25 mph speed limit) with three ways for traffic to exit the neighborhood. I can essentially run for hours with little traffic for 20-28 mph P&G activities.

I have considered using this area for a solo marathon over x number of days to get to 1200-1300 miles.

 

Yes, I did get that suggestion from you. I am going to go back and edit that post and put your name in there. I think that a 1.6 mile loop would be very challenging from a mental standpoint. If I did my math right, that would be ~52 hours and 812+ loops for a 1300 mile tank. You would certainly have my respect if you could pull that off, not to mention the ~109 mpg would be incredible! The smooth roads would definitely be a plus.

Anyway, the terrain in my area is often FE friendly if I choose the right route. There are times when my speed drops below the 20-21 mph level but I usually let that happen when I am cresting a hill and I will be able to get back into the 20-28 mph range again when there is a downhill after the crest. I'm also usually warmed up by the time I start the high FE segments and make sure I come to a complete stop at least once for long enough to let the engine shut off when I'm at operating temp to insure that I'm in S-4. I also try to start at 4 to 5-6 is even better-bars and try to make sure I have 4 bars by the time I get to my driveway. My driveway is ~.1 miles long and is a 1-2% grade and, if I keep my speed to 5 mph, I can make it up in EV.

 

Diamondlarry,

I wasn't asking for credit. I was just curious to see if I had helped you. I have seen what you can do with a Saturn and if I am correct, you are on your first tank with the prius and kicking butt. It wil be easier and slightly more accurate if I use a SG rather than comparing before and after MFD displays for segment mpgs. My best segment was with a cold start up, I didn't use my block heater and I still averaged 103.x mpg. That took me two hours. My mileage would be higher with more time on the loop with a block heater.

Good job right of the bat.