ElliotB

Markwill12, Congratulations on your new car! Enjoy!!!

I drive the same 9 mile route to work everyday and I have as much as 10-12mpg differences in FE sometimes following the same route(on the low end, occasionally the mid to upper 30s, typically the mid to upper 40's, on limited occasions low 50's..

Krelic

I'm considering a ES300h but I only drive about 8 miles to work pretty flat road, 6 lights about a mile or so apart but I will usually only hit one or 2 reds on my way to work. Other than that and the occasional soccer practice about the same distance that's mostly going to be my driving.

Is it worth getting a hybrid or just sticking with the regular ES350?

ElliotB

"Is it worth getting a hybrid"

There is no simple answer, but by the numbers only (savings in gas), it would take you years to save enough to pay for the hybrid system. The ES350 can, with careful driving get just under 30mph, while typical fuel economy will be around 25mpg. With normal driving, you can expect 10-12 mpg more (typically) with the 300h.

So, for example, IF you drove 10K miles per year, and averaged 25mpg, compared to getting 40mpg, at $4 per gallon, you would save only $600 per year with the hybrid. The hybrid costs about $2800 more than the ES350 so you are looking at about a 5 year payback.

But, when you sell, trade your car in, the hybrid model is worth more than the non-hybrid model so you get a lot of your initial investment back plus you get the benefit of better fuel economy for the entire time you drove the vehicle.

Krelic

Thanks ElliotB, I plan to keep my next car at least 8 years so I guess on fuel savings alone it'd be good. From reading the rest of this thread I'll still average around 35 mpg easily no matter what kind of driving I'm doing, which will be better than the regular ES350.

jklodner

I am lucky to get over 30, especially with my wife doing the majority of driving. I have had my 300h in 3 times for mileage, the last having nitrogen put in my tires. The Tech showed me 40MPG on his test drives. I didnt go with him but I cannot duplicate. I was given a 250h and had no problem getting 39-41...not on my 300h.
Last 4 fillups.27.3, 29.9, 29.9, 31.1 using tank to calculations

mkhart

I'm in Washington also and am amazed with your mileage. Mine started out that way but seems to have declined after my 10,000 mile service at my Lexus dealer.

What's the air pressure in your tires? My service center likes to set it higher than I would normally.

Anyone else out there have a decline in mileage after their 10,000 mile service??

Arty101

Nope, you're not alone. My FE has dropped too after the first 5K service, by about 1-2 mpg. Then again, I'm not keeping an eye on the fuel consumption graph nor being as careful. Overall, FE at around 37 isn't bad.

CurryPot

661 mile gas tank. Dang, I could have got it to 700 for sure. I only put 15.4 gallons in giving 42.9 mpg.

http://www.fuelly.com/driver/currypotter/es300h

I have the rev meter showing 100% of the time. I seem to do better than using the regen info.

Frank1934

My mileage has varied from 37 to 45 on everything from big city to small town to cross country driving I have not zeroed out the Average Mileage display now in more than 4,000 miles and it shows an average of 41.7 mpg over those 4000 miles. Leaving the display on Average Mileage also has taken the stress out of - ]how much mileage am I getting now. If I do want to see how I'm doing lately I can always switch the display over to Average Mileage After Refill. My car now has 9000 miles on it and I run my tires at 39 psi.

djrobsd

I think the one thing people are missing here is terrain. If you live in a place like Southern California where the terrain is hilly and you're constantly going up hill and then back down again, your mileage is going to suffer. When I took my car out to the desert where it was completely flat I got much better MPG.

Perhaps some of those who live in flat areas can comment on this...

First tank from the dealer just filled back up last night.. Avg 33mpg driving to Palm Springs and Back... Lots of uphill and downhill action on the 15 freeway.

When I had my CT200h, and I filled it up in Palm Springs, I was averaging 50+ mpg while in PS, and then once I got rolling back to san diego it dropped.

Hybrids are generally designed for stop and go driving. The more stop and go you do, generally better mpg with a hybrid, but highway miles - not so much as the engine is using a lot more gas to push the car to 65 or 75mph.

So.. who knows.. but I, for one, would like to see the EPA crack down on these fuel economy ratings. I don't know how companies are able to claim such high numbers, and their average customer never sees them. I've heard the same complaint about the MKZ Hybrid and the Fusion Hybrid, Ford is claiming 45mpg, but most people are getting in the high 30s.

cfpb

Consider yourself lucky in the US with your fuel ratings, Here in Canada they are even more inaccurate. The same ES 300h rated 40 MPG in the US is rated 59 MPG (imperial gallon) here which is the equivalent of 49 MPG (US gallon). I have never gotten anything close to that. I am happy if I get the 40 MPG it is rated in the US.

kepper

The US Department of Energy has several standard tests that are used to determine the mileage estimates given by car manufacturers. Testing is not done on every single model style manufactured but is done for a representative sample on pre-production prototypes, and is done by the auto manufacturers themselves. The Department of Energy claims to test 10-15% of models at its own laboratory in Michigan.

All of this from the US government- the very best government that money can buy.

ElliotB

The ES300h, for many drivers exceeds the EPA ratings. Not all drivers will have the same results of course.

Per the US Dept of Energy website:

"No test can accurately predict fuel economy for all drivers and all driving conditions. Driver behavior, driving conditions, vehicle maintenance, fuel characteristics, weather, and other factors can all affect fuel economy significantly"

I have been driving Toyota vehicles since 2006 and each one has exceeded its EPA ratings.

Arty101

Hyundai on the other hand, got their hands slapped on their overly optimistic FE for their vehicles. Something Ford and Lincoln hybrids may also need, based on feedback and articles reporting the lower FE people are getting.

CurryPot

Tire pressure at 65 F is around 37 PSI. At 10,000 miles and with the current weather here, you should be hitting 35 MPG with no issues. The few days of 85 F here have forced me to use the aircon which robs me of about 10% on my MPG. I use the aircon for around 30 mins each week as recommended.

I modified my commute to work a few months back. Before I was struggling to get 36 MPG in the morning (4:30 am) but with the new commute I am hitting 41 MPG. The new route is longer, 12.5 miles instead of 12.2 miles but the MPG makes up for it and hitting two less traffic lights reduces my stress level!

The magic numbers are 39 MPH and 46 MPH. Anything over 46 MPH and the engine will not shut off, even if you are rolling down hill. My commute is 45 MPH max. On the flat, you can do 39 MPH before the engine kicks in. At 4:30 in the morning, I am able to do 39 MPH without upsetting anyone using radar cruise control.

Are you tracking on fuelly.com?