AlphaRat, the electric compressor on the TCH does draw a good amount of current. That is why the engine wants to stay running, supplying power to the compressor. When the ice is off at a red light then the compressor draws from the traction battery.

The compressor power drain does seem sensitive to the temperature/fan settings.

 

The traction battery runs from 40% low to a high of 80% charge. You can see a 100% charge if you use your brakes enough coming down a mountain. If you use the gear selector in the brake position it can also charge the battery up to 100%.

Toyota allows 20% extra charge over the usual 80% for the regenerative braking to work properly. The traction battery won't go below 40% discharge. That was done to protect the nickle hydride (NiMh) traction batteries.

Max EV mode may be up to one mile. Maybe two miles on a full charge and level or slight downgrade road. I find it best to let the TCH do it's own thing.

My favorite is the engine running with the battery assist while driving at 50 mph, it will show 60 mpg reading.

 

It's really fascinating to me how these cars work. A Tesla !!!???? Heck yeah !!!!

So do you guys have that "Econ" button for the air conditioning?? I push mine and nothing happens - it may not be functioning.

 

The Econ button may set you AC or heater to a comfortable temp and fan level. This is to aid the engine/battery to give you better economy while driving.

I been keeping a eye on the future electric cars. My thoughts are they may be compacts and not the midsize cars were used too.

Could be the car manufactures are still waiting for the Lithium traction batteries to be perfected.

 

Before you have the Eco button checked out, make sure the AC isn't set to "High" or "Low." The Eco mode won't work under those conditions. I was about to return the car to the dealer for service when I read the manual and found that little nugget. When I took delivery three weeks ago, it was a hot day in June, and the dealer thoughtfully left the AC in "Low" mode. I was lazy and didn't change the setting. When I tried the Eco mode, I thought it wasn't working because the light below the button didn't light and there was no Eco indication in the AC display. After reading the manual, I took the AC out of "Low" mode, and voila, I could use Eco. It does seem to make a slight difference in fuel economy, but I suspect you could achieve the same result by keeping the fan on low and raising the temperature slightly during the first few minutes of driving and then dropping the temperature after the car has warmed up.

 

Not sure about that high / low thing. I thought for sure I had tried it in low, but maybe not. You mean fan speed, right??

I can't imagine I got a brand new car that has something that doesn't work....

 

If you turn the temp up or down to a certain level, the display shows HI or LO and then the eco is off.

 

I figured out the Eco button!!!! Turned up the temperature one click off Low and BINGO !!!! Thanks guys !!!!!

P.S. - just took a trip to a baseball game and got 43 mpg in the TCH. That is a record for me - I had never achieved over 40 mpg. That is not a tank, but about a 60 mile trip

 

Glad to see you got over 40 this time. Perhaps you can make 43 mpg your new combined goal.

 

This page has an interesting analysis of tread contact on wet surfaces illustrating underinflated tires. Unfortunately, they didn't highlight overinflated (or worse, significanltly over maximum recommended PSI) tires, but I'd guess there would be similar findings.
I haven't done the research on the topic, nor have I experimented, but if my car was in a dangerous situation on a wet or icy surface, I'd prefer to have the level that the manufacturer recommends.
It's possible that an extra 15-20 PSI of air pressure will enhance traction, but until I see evidence to prove the point, I'll spend an extra buck or two on gas.
I'm not trying to debate the issue, nor prove anyone wrong, but rather present the other side of the story. I imagine a new user wanting to get better mileage will assume that over inflating tires is an easy way to boost their mileage. I'd hope that they would see that there could be a downside to the strategy. Again, I keep my tires at recommeded air pressure, so I am definitely NOT an expert on this issue.
I saw that off-road racers over inflate their tires, so if I ever race in the Baja 1000 I'll top them off.