John Steck wrote:
BTW, has anyone else noticed the MPG on a standard / non-hybrid Toyota
Corolla? 30/38 mpg for automatic 32/41 mpg for manual. Not bad for
standard technology in a reasonably sized 4-door sedan IMO.
This is a good point. There are standard cars with excellent gas mileage.
I assume these are the official government ratings. The comparable numbers
for the Prius are 60 and 51 mpg. Supposedly it gets more miles-per-gallon
during city driving, but that has not been my observation so far. Very few
cars actually achieve the official MPG ratings in actual use. This is
understandable. The tests have to be made under controlled, invariant
conditions, which tend to be optimal. It would be difficult to design
standardized tests on rough roads or in artificial stop-and-go traffic.
(How rough? How long do you stop?)
The Prius has an onboard computer that reports miles-per-gallon. It appears
to underestimate mileage. I computed mpg based on the number of gallons I
added during refueling, and I came up with a higher number; around 45 - 50
mpg versus 41 mpg on the computer. In online discussion groups of the
Prius, other drivers have also reported this.
I tried using premium gasoline, and it seemed to yield significantly
greater mileage. I read somewhere that it works well with this car. I have
never purchased premium gasoline for any other car.
As for features, I have not driven a Corolla so I cannot compare it. The
Prius looks small outside, but it is a surprisingly large inside, with
plenty of room for people in the backseat, and lots of cargo capacity. My
impression is that Corollas are smaller. Or less handy, because they are
not hatchbacks, are they? The Prius also has every safety feature I have
ever heard of. When you start to slide on the road it practically takes the
keys away from you and drives itself. (Actually, it does not have keys. It
has a RFID gadget, which you never take out of your pocket.)
- Jed
