Jeff Epler's blog

One year in a Prius

For everyone not still suffering under the tyrrany of imperial measures, 44.4mpg is around 5.3l/100km and the distance driven is about 12000km.

That means ...

• 260 hours total driving time
• 43 minutes driving time per day
• 21 average miles a day (33km)
• 170 gallons of fuel (640l)
• 2/3 gallon per hour of driving (2.4l/hour)

Getting at 44.4mpg instead of the EPA combined fuel economy of 50mpg means using 20 extra gallons of fuel over the course of the year, 13% more than predicted.

Overall we're happy with the Prius. It's much roomier than the car it replaced and it has better fuel economy. However, I'm a bit sad we didn't get closer to the EPA fuel economy.

The main thing lowering the fuel economy is short winter drives. My drive to and from work is just 2.5 miles per direction, and I often drive a similar distance to and from lunch. In winter, that's too little distance for the car to warm up to the point that it enters the fuel-saving EV mode while stopped at lights. (this kind of driving is even classified as "severe operating conditions" by Toyota: "Repeated trips of less than 5 miles in temperatures below 32 degrees Fahrenheit")

Our summertime fuel economy (also the time of year when we make long driving trips on the highway) is closer to 48mpg.

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