It's bothered me since before last Oct. 2, when I purchased the 2006 HCH-II, that my favorite reference for most purchases was only listing
the gas mileage for the HCH-II at 37mpg. This site and others currently
are listing it at 46mpg which is a significant difference and could affect
a purchase decision.

Today I filled out CR's auto survey and included the note below:

The37mpg for the Honda Civic Hybrid stated in your 2006 & 2007 April issues seems quite a bit below what I have achieved for my 2006 model which I've driven for over six months since last October. Most of this was during winter months in upstate New York. The worst tank I filled was about the 37mpg you listed with most of my tank driven with temperatures in the teens. My last tank was 44.5mpg in 30 degree F. temperatures. Most of this driving has been to the Post Office or grocery store, 6 and 12 mile round trips respectively and during the cold months.

However, recently on my current tank I've attained over 51mpg on a 78 mile round trip which included some hilly Interstate driving and some use of the cruise control. Consistent with the posts I've read, I was getting better mileage on the Interstate WITHOUT USING CRUISE CONTROL. Temperature for this trip was around 38 degrees F. Recent local round trips have yielded gas mileage in the 50(mpg) range.

I attribute my improvement in gas mileage to the following:
The car is getting broken in.
Warmer temperatures.
Longer trips.
Experience, experience, experience!
Most of all, the kind help from the the group at
Greenhybrid.com. and from Tarabell at Cleanmpg.com

For all the previous reasons I believe the 46mpg and 48mpg for the Honda Civic Hybrid and the Prius as shown inreen Hybrid real life gas mileage tabulations are a truer to life set of figures than the ones listed in your magazine.

I thank you for steering me to the Toyota Camry when it came out in 1983 in this country. I bought nothing else for the next 24 years but Camrys. I was always sure I would buy a Prius when it came time to get a Hybrid. If I had relied on gas mileage alone and I went by your figures that would have been the case, but after researching the real world numbers on-line I realized the true difference between the Honda Civic Hybrid and the Toyota Prius gas mileage figures was insignificant.

This time Honda won me over on price and rear visibility. We already have a 1992 Toyota wagon with ONLY 99,000 miles on it so we don't require the larger cargo space the Prius provides.

It is the most fun I've experienced in 58 years of driving. I know it saves on oil imports, reduces harmful emissions, etc. But now let me express it my way:

Driving a Hybrid car: "PRICELESS"

Ken
Clarksville, NY

 

I agree 100% with what you say. I have not had lower fe than 45mpg. during the winter mths.. I drive my car like any other car I have owned. All my driving is on two lane roads and in the mountains. I really like the CVT, it is so smooth!

 

Unfortunately to CR, you'll come off as fringe. Just because YOU'VE learned how to drive the car to get great mileage, they won't tell the average joe HE can.

I do agree that 37 mpg is low, and I attribute it to an "unbroken-in" engine.

I hope it's hard for CR to ignore all the positive press on the HCHII. Also, I hope they will retest the car.

 

I think 37 MPG is what they got from their own test using very aggressive driving. In the April issue of CR the HCH still gets the best MPG rating of all cars except the Prius. I trust that they test all cars the same, with the same "unbroken-in" engines, so that's not the issue. They just assume that driving with the pedal to the metal is normal.

The one thing that mystifies me is how they got 44 MPG in the Prius and only 37 on the HCH. My guess is that they test a lot of city stop and go driving with heavy acceleration. The HCH doesn't maintain a charge well in its small battery pack in those conditions, and you soon lose the hybrid benefit. The Prius has a larger battery pack and uses it more in city driving. If they didn't make sure that their test began and ended with the same SOC, then the Prius could get better mileage by using more energy from its batteries.

 

It's CR, not C&D. I don't buy your "pedal to the metal" hypothesis.

 

Its easy to get 37mpg or less. Floor the car from every stop, brake hard and run the a/c.

I find CR a good source for information but not always good in their reports - case and point, their report on the HCHII.

If you look at the data base here, there are many people averages around 40mpg. Some are getting around 30mpg. For the average person who turns the key and drives, this may be about what they get. I live in South Florida and generally average in the mid to high 50's. We have had some cold weather for 2 days and I have been getting low 40's on some trips.

When my wife first started driving our Prius, she averaged 30mpg. She now is getting 44. She drives it as she would drive any car and runs the a/c 100% of the time.

They should have put a disclaimer "Mileage not typical - Your actual mileage may vary."