City driving
Created November 10, 2004, at 9:44 pm by Anonymous
I love my 2004 Prius, which I got at Beltway Toyota in Maryland. But in driving through the streets of D.C., when I'm often stopping at just about every block or two, I find I'm getting about 35 mpg. My mileage goes up when part of my trip includes a bit of freeway driving, so I suspect the mileage killer is the continual stop-and-go. Am I right? Are there stop-and-go drivers who are doing better than 40 mpg?
On the plus side, the fact that I'm not burning any gas and spewing hydrocarbons into the air when I'm at a stop light or stuck in traffic is a great feeling!
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7 years ago
I get around 50 miles to the gallon. I find that the city driving is more efficient than the highway driving. I find that the car was more efficient in the city when I wasn’t in a hurry to stop (accelerating and then immediately going to the break petal).
7 years ago
With a full Hybrid, you should have better fuel economy in city traffic - unless you are driving with the A/C on. I understand that keeps the gas engine running when you could be operating in electric motor mode only.
7 years ago
Patrick - The Honda hybrids and the upcoming GM trucks are not full Hybrids. They move from a standstill only if the internal combustion engine is engaged.
The Ford Escape and Toyota Hybrids are "Full" and can operate on electric power for several minutes and under 25 to 30 MPH before the gas engine starts and provides power to the wheels and recharges the battery.
7 years ago
Still, even a "mild" hybrid should get better city than highway mileage. At high speeds, rolling and wind resistance will eat fuel, no matter if you have an electric motor. In stop-and-go driving, regenerative braking will recoup most of the energy, and rolling and wind resistance are negligible. However, there is a limit on how hard you can brake before the generator cannot absorb all the energy and the (friction) brakes need to help out. This limit will be lower for mild hybrids (the generator is weaker) than for full hybrids like the Prius). In other words, even with all this brilliant technology, "your mileage will vary", depending on your driving style.
7 years ago
Martin, I thought the philosophy behind the Honda system was that you can use a small gas engine with relatively good highway fuel economy and agument it with an electric motor when additional power is needed (acceleration, passing, etc.) It also permits the engine to shut off completely at a stop until power is needed to start up again. Just as gas engine only vehicles get lower fuel economy numbers in the city, so does the Honda. Regenerative brake/charge systems can't make up the difference.
Frankly, if you were willing to live with slower acceleration, you can find vehicles with small gas or diesel engines that get comperable fuel economy numbers to the Honda Hybrid.
7 years ago
I thought hybrids were supposed to get better city mileage than highway because of the regen braking and the engine shut-off when you stop. Why does the manual Civic Hybrid have a better highway than city rating?
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