Quote:
Originally Posted by Chrysler kid
The prius seems like a good car but is already at its peak potential. They get 51 mpg out of the box but don't seem to go higher than that.
|
I disagree with that assessment, especially having lived with a Prius for almost a year and a half now. Aside from
evidence like this, I find it relatively easy to beat the EPA rating as long as one drives mindfully--the same as any car. And you can beat it handily; on that Priuschat thread, there are four cars that have returned
tank averages over 90mpg.
Another misconception is that hybrids are great for in-town mileage, but can't compete in steady-state highway driving. But, hybrids almost universally have lower drag coefficients than their conventional counterparts, LRR tires, inherently more efficient combustion engines, etc. The last highway trip I took, last October, my car returned 70.7mpg (according to the Scangauge, not the optimistic factory display) on a 500-mile, 60-65mph, all-freeway trip, and all my highest tanks so far came when my commute was 100+ miles of freeway commute.