Not sure if anyone else noticed this or not but Ive had about a few months to test this for myself.

Ive drove my car in eco mode for about 2 months straight and put over a couple thousand miles on it. Same driving patterns and mostly the same route everyday. I drive around 150-200 miles a day mainly highway, only stop and go traffic on Fridays due to congestion. I drive no faster than 80 MPH and 70 MPH on the average on the freeway. I average 22.5 MPG while in eco mode.

For the last month and 1/2 Ive been driving in normal mode. Same driving pattern with the same route / milage. Whats weird is that Ive been averaging higher MPG, I get about 23.9 now. I feel like eco mode is useless just as far as MPG increase goes. Was wondering if anyone else noticed this or not.

 

The only thing that ECO mode is going to do for you is smooth out the throttle under acceleration and shift more smoothly at a lower RPM.

I have seen similar things happen. My guess is that because acceleration doesn't seem as pronounced, I am getting into the go pedal harder, which kills fuel economy under initial acceleration.

ECO mode is for old people who call it ECHO and think it's silly to have a SPORT mode.

 

That makes sense, but also isnt eco mode suppose to help as far as MPG goes since the tranny is always finding the highest gear possible to be in? Also throttle response is cut drastically. I do understand what you mean about having to push the pedal harder at times when you actually need to pass someone ect which probably kills it MPG but I rarely pass esp on the freeway.

 

That is correct. I would say that the differences are occurring during low speed driving and stop/go acceleration. While it is giving you better economy at higher speeds or mid range cruising because it constantly drops to the highest gear, it can also be detrimental at lower speeds because to achieve an acceleration rate that you desire, it will either have to downshift, or you will have to give it additional throttle input. Basically, I think ECO works against you around town, and helps during highway cruising.

Just as a test, run a week or so where you drive in NORMAL when around town and then swap to ECO for the highway runs. Compare the results.

 

I also read that in ECO mode it does mess with the AC settings.

Pg. 278 of the Owner's manual:

"Eco drive mode: Helps the driver accelerate in an eco-friendly manner and improve fuel economy
through moderate throttle characteristics and by controlling the operation
of the air conditioning system (heating/cooling)."

 

I've come to the conclusion that the only time to drive in "Eco mode" is when stuck in bumper to bumper traffic in weather conditions not requiring the a/c.

 

Im honestly starting to think eco mode is useless. I tried doing eco mode for 2 months in heavy to moderate traffic and it is literally the worst since the throttle response is cut so much. Like DrDDay said when you are doing a lot of stopping and going you are putting more load on the car just to keep up with traffic which has a reverse affect on gas mileage.

They could have done without eco mode IMO just from personal testing. Plus the car goes into eco mode in normal mode when you are in the "eco range indicator."

 

I never drive in ECO mode. I just put it in Normal mode while in traffic and that seems the best, at least for me it is.

 

Ya same here.

I dont want to complain about MPG since we didnt buy hybrids but the eco mode on the car is pretty useless haha.

 

I guess it's for giving those that want it a warm & fuzzy feeling that they are trying to be better about saving the planet.

 

This reminds me of South Park episode on Prius drivers...

 

I loved that episode. The "Smug Alert" Pious

 

What are you guys getting MPG wise in Sport + mode?

I drive 30 miles a day and mainly highway and am getting around 20 MPG - anyone else ?

 

I'm getting 22.5 mpg, and if I drive just highway I can get 31 mpg.

The trick to driving in Sport+ is to keep it in manual mode. In Manual mode and in 8th gear my tach is at 1800 RPM, but the same thing in Full Auto in Sport+ and my tach is at 2600 RPM at 70 MPH. Big difference and of course you get lower MPG in Full Auto mode.

 

Ah you RWD drivers in the sunbelt states. We can only dream of 22.5mpg here. Getting about 20 and thats with a mixture of highway/town driving and trying to go easy as much as possible when on boring roads. Although i will call it a positive since i was getting the same in a 328xi with 60 less horsepower and less weight. I do miss the handling.