Typically here in the Phoenix area the coldest it gets in the morning is mid to upper 30s for about 2-3 weeks in dec/jan for the low and 50s for the high. Half of November, Jan, Feb & March temps are around 40s for the low & upper 50s-60s high
With these temps is it worth grill blocking?...and how much of a MPG gain would I get?
Fall and Winter musing about fuel efficiency...warming up the engine and thermal efficiency of the Prius
View 12 RepliesRight now it's about 80 outside in SoCal and I want to go out soon with 100% grill blocking: is it gonna be overheating something?
View 4 RepliesTemps average maybe around 10-15F in the winter so mileage won't be great. Tires are up, grill is blocked. We're getting about 42-43 on the HSI which means about 40 mpg in reality (I've checked this many times and Toyota is off by 3 mpg on average in our car). But Mike in Maine shows up with a 60+ mpg in 15F temps, and I know my fellow Alaskan, Spiderman, is getting 50+ easily. My commute is more highway than stop and go. I don't use P&G but I'm very gentle with the go pedal. I feel that I should be getting closer to 50 here, even with the temps. Is this too much to ask? Maybe it is...
View 12 RepliesWhile most of the emphasis I've seen on improving fuel economy seems to focus on warming the car up quickly in cool/cold weather, I seem to be experiencing significant mpg drops at the other end of the spectrum.
View 8 RepliesLast week I switched my wheels and tires out from OEM 15 x 6 wheels with 195/55R15 Good Year Fuel Max tires to 16 x 7 Drag DR9 wheels (16.55 lbs.) with 205/50R16 Good Year Fuel Max tires. ( I wanted a different look) At first I didn't notice any change in mpg's, but that soon changed. The temps went down into the 20's for lows and 30's for highs. I went from 48 - 50 mpg to 41 -43 mpg in just a few days. I assumed that the drop was due to the cold weather. This morning I decided to check the tire pressure in the new tires. 32 psi all the way around. I asked the guys that installed the tires to fill them up to 44 front, 42 rear. I guess that never happened. Anyway, I looked on the sidewall of the tire to check max pressure and I was shocked (51 psi). I ran 44 front, 42 front on my old set, because that was what I was advised to do.
View 13 RepliesI knew when I bought my car it wouldn't get optimum mpg as no car would with the many short trips I have to make every day but I have 5000 miles on it already and have averaged approx 46 with all the city and highway combined.
I took it into Toyota last week for the tire rotation and ever since it has been horrible. There were 120 miles on the tank and I refilled because I couldn't stand to see it staying around 39 on the computer. I have never seen that before. I checked the tired and they had brought them down to 32psi so I put then back to 40/38 and refilled.
Not noticing much of an improvement, sadly. Hovering at 40 mpg still. Weather has changed a lot. Temps much higher daily mid 80s to low 90s. This is my first summer with the car and yea the ac has been on nonstop with the higher temps.
There is moisture or dirt blocking the part of my settings display on my dashboard. I can't see the "Trip A/ Miles left before empty" area. Dealer said it was glue inside the dashboard. They ordered a new plastic window. I think it looks like moisture buildup... How would glue have gotten up there? I am fearful that the area will spread and I will not be able to see more of this area.... Car is a 2010 Model 3 with 12,000 miles.. 10 months old...
View 1 RepliesGrill blocked today for the first time and have a couple questions.
Temps have been dropping more these last 3-4 days and have noticed my MPG dropping as well so I thought I'd try grill blocking.
Tempts have been and will be high 30s-low 40s in the morning and upper 50s to mid 60s for the high.
At first I just wedged the pipe insulation and drove one trip. I didn't feel comfortable that it would hold for the long haul so I added zip ties.
I used two pieces of pipe insulation 1/2 inch copper / 3/8 inch iron. Up close it looks like 2/3 or 3/4 of the grill is covered.
My two questions:
For fWT, at what temperature should it not exceed?
At what outside temperature should I remove the pipe insulation? In the Phoenix area, temperatures rise in March and sometimes we will have a short period of warmer than normal temps in February. I just want to make sure I do not cause overheating.
For those of you regular Gen3 (non PiP) that average in the low to mid 60's for MPG during the warmer months of the year....what do you average in the winter for mpg? And what is your yearly average?
View 19 RepliesI bought my 2007 Prius in July 2010 with 70k on it. To date it has 78k.
During the summer months I was in Colorado and achieving anywhere between 400-450 miles to the tank.
In August I returned to the Mid-West, running well and achieving the same mileage, but as winter has come along, it is now getting about 300-350 miles to the tank, but has gotten as low as 240.
The brakes have seemed to become more sensitive, and the car seems to rattle more when I come to a stop.
Are these just symptoms, especially LOWER MILES PER TANK caused by the cold Mid-West winter?????
Interesting tale. After parking my GX on Friday night, it wouldn't start on Saturday. Starter seemed fine, Battery was cranking away but something seemed to be blocking fuel from getting to the carburetor. The Lexus dealer (50 miles away) said they never heard of a fuel pump or fuel filter being an issue on a 4 year old GX with 60K miles. I did take the battery to be tested and found out it was getting weak so I bought a replacement, but still couldn't start the vehicle.
I had AAA tow my GX to the closest dealer (Toyota) and they determined that mice had eaten through two sensor wires. They had to remove the manifold to get to the nest (?) or whatever they call these little mice homes. This meant new gaskets, replacing shredded wiring and sensors plus 4 hours labor.
Since I moved from the city to the country last year, this is the first I heard of this issue. Long term campers tell me the way they keep mice out of their engine compartments is by putting Bounce (anti-static dryer sheets) under the hood as this seems to stop the mice activity.
I have a 2012 Prius v, and over these past few weeks I have gotten the worst gas mileage ever. The car was recording mileage at about 35 mpg, but actual has been closer to 32. Yes, I know that it's because Wisconsin has bee recording temps. in the zero or below zero range; but it's still pretty discouraging. In summer I get the normal Prius ratings for mileage ( about 44). How to increase my winter mileage?
View 8 RepliesWinter temps are dropping my mpgs from 51-53 mpg to the 44-47 mpg range. Snow, rain, slush puts drag on the car, as well as temps in the 20-40s causing the ICE to run more during warmup and during the 15 mile trip I make daily. Also mpgs in town on 1-3 mile trips are dropping into 29-33 mpg range. I guess the Prius isn't made to thrive in cold temps. I don't know if there is much I can do about it. I did remember to raise the pressures in my tires which has dropped also.
View 19 RepliesI like to have heat coming out of the vent. However, in the winter, when I click for it to come out of the vent (as opposed to the floor), it turns on the A/C full blast. I then turn off the A/C and turn down the fan speed. About a minute or less, it automatically turns itself back to floor heat.
View 11 RepliesFuel mileage dropped from 52 to 40 on several hot days and I heard a constant loud hum. In the shop tomorrow.
View 19 RepliesWas getting around 52.5 MPG in warmer weather, changed the tranny fluid and normally people report an increase in MPG. We're now getting around 50.5 MPG, so a 2 MPG loss. In addition, temps have gone from around mid-80s to mid-60s. Wondering if that would explain the MPG drop?
View 16 RepliesI purchased a brand new 2013 Prius 2 last October and I'm loving it so far.
However, I notice that even if it's slightly warm outside, and I have my cabin temp set at a higher temperature than outside, the vent blows cooler air.
For example, the other day it was 65F outside. Since it was warmer than usual, I turned down the cabin temperature to 65F as well. It was nice and cool, but a little TOO cold. So I turned it up to 70F. It was still blowing cold air. I had to turn it up to 72F before it was warm enough to feel comfortable.
460, stock RV motor with LT headers, Alum Stealth intake. Carb is brand new, Holley 600 cfm, out of the box.
Elec choke, vac 2nds. Timing is set to 12 BTDC.
Truck idles beautifully. Drop it in drive, it will ever so slightly stumble/hesitate then go liked a raped ape. Has great acceleration (for a 8k dually crewcab). In my mind, I'm thinking a slightly larger than stock accel pump to give a bigger shot.
However, it does have a 1" carb spacer. That and the hi rise stealth, is it leaning out for a sec and causing the stumble? Would pulling that 1" spacer work? I was thinking the higher the carb the better to get less heat dissipation from the engine's heat. Replacing the heater core now. So I have some time to sort it out. I'd like to road test a tank of gas through it, but gotta fix the heater 1st.
My Lexus RX 350 has a very low beep when I lock and unlock my doors. It was much louder before. I can only tell it's locker by the lights and not the sound
View 7 RepliesGot back from a three hundred mile trip and after washing the car I noticed that the chrome wrap on my 450h 2013 front grill is bubbling up? The last month temperatures have been around 10 degrees but no snow. Will take to dealer next time in Spokane. But would like to know how to prevent this in the future.
View 7 Replies