I am considering an '08 Highlander Hybrid when they come out, and I was wondering if there are any "must read" posts about how to get the best mileage. I would like to understand the techniques employed for both city and highway driving. If there isn't something out there already, please give me an overview of basic driving.

I am comfortable driving under the speed limit, accellerating slowly, and using whatever technological advantages I can to get good mileage (I have been getting 5-10% better than EPA mpg in our HCHII). What are realistic mileage expetations for hypermiling the HiHy in the city, and on the highway, assuming the 2008 gets the same mileage as the '07.

Thanks!

 

High 30's seems doable, given the right conditions. Mr Kite has hit a few of those tanks. Those are best tanks. Seems the average (if you put some effort into it) will be high 20's low 30's.

452 mi @ 36.2 mpg
552 mi @ 37.1 mpg

11011011

 

I haven't done much highway hypermiling. In the city, it is relatively easy for me to get in the 40s after sustaining the warm-up hit. My current tank is at 40.0 mpg after 250+ miles according to the display. My favorite fuel economy commute gets me in the mid 40s. Here are links to a picture of the second half of this commute.

https://www.greenhybrid.com/share/sh...hp?i=2543&c=22

So far, my best tank was 37.3 mpg according to the display. It was actually my first tank as well. My current tank should become my new best.

https://www.greenhybrid.com/share/sh...hp?i=2515&c=22

Of course, this has mostly been in nice weather. An engine block heater will help minimize the winter mpg hit. I already have that and will hopefully install it this weekend.

For my driving conditions, I think hypermiling the HiHy is a little bit more relaxing than hypermiling the HCH II. Doing what is basically the equivalent of an FAS in the HCH II is as simple as letting the engine shut off and shifting to neutral in the HiHy. Basically, I just take advantage of the terrain to glide in neutral with the engine off as much as possible. I think the HSD in the HiHy is very similar to the HSD in the Prius II, so you can get tips from Prius II hypermiling articles. It will be interesting to see what kind of improvements the 2008 HiHy has in the way of the HSD.

As for interstate driving with cruise, I found the fuel economy to be slightly better than the 2005 Honda Odyssey minivan it replaced. I described that comparison over at CleanMPG in the daily grind thread.

http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/showp...&postcount=114

You can click on my icon in my signature to see all of my tank data. I have decent descriptions of each tank.

(This is getting a bit off topic...) Also, I have found my odometer to be quite a bit off. I spent a fair amount of time to calibrate it. It turns out my odometer has to be increased by 3.4% to be accurate. Of course this is good for warranty purposes so I am not interested in getting it fixed. However, I use the calibrated numbers to calculate my fuel economy in the database. Anyway, the bottom line is that, at the end of the tank, the display fuel economy is extremely accurate. However, the miles driven is off. I detailed this over at cleanmpg as well.

http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/fuel-...eter-5005.html

 

Thanks for the replys--especially your comparison to the HCH John. The Highlander would see almost exclusively highway miles and I'm really interested in what I could eek out on a trip to the high country. The concept of getting 30+ in such a large vehicle is pretty amazing. I will do some poking around on the Prius boards and see what I can find.

 

I should point out that the HiHy engine will not shut off if your speed is above ~42 mph, so you don't get that HCH II style FAS by shifting to neutral above that speed.

For us, the HiHy was a very good choice because we need a vehicle that is capable of road trips for our family of four, but also capable of good fuel economy in suburban driving (where it will ultimately get most of its miles).

 

Interesting. I don't suppose you've driven in the mountains have you? If so, describe to me what the engine and HSD would be doing on a trip down I-70 from Genesee to Denver at 60mph. Would the ICE be running and using a small amount of gas or none? How easy is it going downhill to swtich from ICE to HSD? How much regen do you pick up? Does engine braking/regen slow you down? What if the SoC is full?

How about the trip up I-70 (average mpg going UP at ~55-60mph)?

 

I didn't have a ScanGauge at the time, but we made a trip from Denver to Grand Junction and back on I-70. Overall, we averaged around 31 mpg. I usually stayed between 5 and 10 mph below the limit.

I'm not sure if the ICE uses gas when it is forced to spin because of the speed. According to the ScanGauge, it does, but I'm not totally sure if this is correct. There are probably some Prius experts that know this answer.

You can get around the speed issue if you shift to N below the limit of ~42 mph while the ICE is off. Then if you speed up (on a decline), the ICE will not kick on. However, I do not believe this is a good idea if you will be going very fast and/or traveling long distances.

On steep declines, regen doesn't slow you down much. I think it is supposed to replicate a normal vehicle with your foot off the accelerator (similar to the HCH II). To get much regen, you need to put your foot on the brake. In the HiHy, there is a gauge that shows how much regen you are getting. You can shift to B to get additional engine braking.

The battery capacity of the HiHy is much more than that of the HCH II. It is a lot harder to max it out.

Also, you cannot really switch from ICE to HSD. The HSD is a very integrated system. You can drive with the electric motors only below ~42 mph, but you cannot ever drive with ICE only.

I hope this helps. Feel free to ask more questions. I'll answer as best as I can.

 

hi.

Congrats if u purchase the 08 ......

Heres a never talked about 'tip' for hypermiling.

- carpool

-ride a bike instead.

we get 24mpg in our 2006 highlander . We bought it in april 2006, and as of august 2007 we have just gone over 5000miles.

thus we have save more gas and the enviroment than anyone on this site, except for those who walk to work .

 

I wish this country had more people who embraced a minimalist lifestyle in terms of petrol. Too bad you've got such a condesending and pissy attitude, because I'll bet you turn off more people than you convert.

Now could we get back to the subject I am asking about: how does one drive the Hihy so as to minimize gas consumption?

 

I'm just getting started at this, but I googled "how to hypermile", and read about the pulse and glide techniques.

I also just follow the mileage and power source indicators on my dash to keep my mileage as high as possible! It's a fun new way to drive, and I learn a bit more every day.