Posted by DBLZOOM on December 13, 2005, 8:45 pm
A question for all who drive a Prius in cold and snow country. This
summer I was consistently getting 50+ miles per gallon with my 2001
Prius. Now that it's Winter in Ohio I can barely get 42. I realize
that this is still pretty good. I also realize that there are a lot of
factors that affect gas mileage such as wind, road conditions and the
amount of time the engine has to run to warm up the car. This is my
first Winter with the car. Is this typical? Can I expect to go back
up to 50+ MPG this summer?
Posted by Michael Pardee on December 13, 2005, 10:53 pm
>A question for all who drive a Prius in cold and snow country. This
> summer I was consistently getting 50+ miles per gallon with my 2001
> Prius. Now that it's Winter in Ohio I can barely get 42. I realize
> that this is still pretty good. I also realize that there are a lot of
> factors that affect gas mileage such as wind, road conditions and the
> amount of time the engine has to run to warm up the car. This is my
> first Winter with the car. Is this typical? Can I expect to go back
> up to 50+ MPG this summer?
Yes indeed. The shorter the average trips the worse the hit is, and 42 is
pretty good for such cold weather.
For a graphic indication of how much the temperature affects fuel economy,
try running the heater full blast and controlling the temperature with the
windows. I got a 25 mpg 5 minute bar in the display when I tried it in town!
Mike
Posted by David Norton on December 14, 2005, 1:18 am
I have a 2004 that I'm going into my 2nd winter with. My mileage
recently dropped in the mid 40Mpg range too. Had the same issue last
winter. A major factor this time of year is the winter fuel formula.
Yes your mileage will improve with the weather/fuel formula change.
-dn-
DBLZOOM wrote:
> A question for all who drive a Prius in cold and snow country. This
> summer I was consistently getting 50+ miles per gallon with my 2001
> Prius. Now that it's Winter in Ohio I can barely get 42. I realize
> that this is still pretty good. I also realize that there are a lot of
> factors that affect gas mileage such as wind, road conditions and the
> amount of time the engine has to run to warm up the car. This is my
> first Winter with the car. Is this typical? Can I expect to go back
> up to 50+ MPG this summer?
>
Posted by Bill on December 14, 2005, 3:52 am
>A question for all who drive a Prius in cold and snow country. This
> summer I was consistently getting 50+ miles per gallon with my 2001
> Prius. Now that it's Winter in Ohio I can barely get 42. I realize
> that this is still pretty good. I also realize that there are a lot of
> factors that affect gas mileage such as wind, road conditions and the
> amount of time the engine has to run to warm up the car. This is my
> first Winter with the car. Is this typical? Can I expect to go back
> up to 50+ MPG this summer?
I hope so. I live in MN and experience the same thing.
Posted by Jean B. on December 14, 2005, 12:38 pm
Bill wrote:
>
>>A question for all who drive a Prius in cold and snow country. This
>>summer I was consistently getting 50+ miles per gallon with my 2001
>>Prius. Now that it's Winter in Ohio I can barely get 42. I realize
>>that this is still pretty good. I also realize that there are a lot of
>>factors that affect gas mileage such as wind, road conditions and the
>>amount of time the engine has to run to warm up the car. This is my
>>first Winter with the car. Is this typical? Can I expect to go back
>>up to 50+ MPG this summer?
>>
>
> I hope so. I live in MN and experience the same thing.
>
>
Oh, good (I think). I was always in the low 50s and was a bit
chagrined to see the upper 40s for my last tank. And this
tank, just started, seems to be even worse. Of course, it is
0F this morning. I just need to remind myself that this is
still about 3x as good as I was getting with my last car. How
quickly our expectations change!
--
Jean B.
> summer I was consistently getting 50+ miles per gallon with my 2001
> Prius. Now that it's Winter in Ohio I can barely get 42. I realize
> that this is still pretty good. I also realize that there are a lot of
> factors that affect gas mileage such as wind, road conditions and the
> amount of time the engine has to run to warm up the car. This is my
> first Winter with the car. Is this typical? Can I expect to go back
> up to 50+ MPG this summer?