2013 Subaru Crosstrek HYBRID - I just bought one

[mannydantyla]

I did a search and I don't think there's a thread about the first-generation Subaru Crosstrek Hybrids on this forum so I thought I'd start one, and so there's a space for us to share and ask questions about this model.

A few weeks ago my wife and I bought a '13 Subaru Crosstrek XV Hybrid to replace my gas guzzling SUV, a '08 Toyota 4Runner v8 getting a horrid 14mpg in the city. I really wanted an all electric but hopefully we'll be able to trade this in for one in a year or two.

The Subaru Hybrid has a very small battery and electric motor. Truth is it's barely a hybrid at all. I think the electric motor is connected to the CVT transmission and I think it either takes the place of (or is) the starter motor, or there's two motors - one for starting and one for propulsion. So very different than the hybrid system found in a Prius for example.

EPA testing shows it gets a combined 30mpg, only 2mpg more than then non-hybrid.

However, I'm getting a little better than that. Driving around the city, I rarely get less than 30mpg but on shorter trips it does happen of course. And on the highway it gets 35 to 40mpg depending on how fast I'm going. 50 to 55mph seems to be the sweet spot. (this is all assuming the car's MPG display is accurate).

I've found that if I'm very clever with the throttle pedal, I can get better fuel economy, especially in the city and especially around hills. When going down hill, I'm able to get the car to move forward without the ICE engine running at all. But on flat ground, even the tiniest tap on the throttle peddle will set the ICE engine running again. There's a learning curve to it. And going up hill, forget about it.

And I have to have both heater and AC turned off or else the ICE engine will almost never turn off.

Of course, the battery is so small that it can run out, especially in heavy and slow traffic.

Does anybody have any advice on how to maximize fuel economy with this car? Or mild hybrid cars in general?

Does anybody have an experience with an aero or engine mods with this car?

Thanks!

[UFO]

First thing I would do is verify or calibrate the vehicle fuel mileage reporting. Ensure your odometer is correctly measuring distance traveled, then log fuel consumed and compare to the mpg reported.

With my first tank I found my Chevy Colorado reported optimistically, vehicle computer reported 24.6, actual mileage 23.0, 6.8% high.

And definitely verify reported vs. actual when you are using different driving techniques. When I had not set up my Scangauge correctly on my previous vehicle, I was getting really high mileage numbers reported that were in fact worse than with my old driving technique. Fuel computers can be faked out.