No, I only managed 55mpg on the way home. Headwinds were tough, traffic was tough getting out of the parking lot, and we needed some AC. My wife was having trouble breathing in the hot ozone action day air. I ended up getting down to 0 bars of fuel on the way home. I drove like 20 miles on empty before I got to my favorite gas station. I ended up with 57.1 showing for the tank. It calculated to 54.1.

 

Thanks again Wayne for your lesson in Pulse and Glide, I took the long way home and managed to raise the Prius up to 62.4 mpg over 50 miles, and that was just in practice of the technique. If only the tank would stay that way; sadly its primary driver is far behind the hybrid learning curve. If I ever get a chance to have a tank all to myself I'll post the results using P&G. The tip about not shutting the car down every time paid off too.

Also, much thanks to Eric for organizing this event: we look forward to the next one. I'll post the few pictures we took, hopefully anyone else who has any will share them soon.

Happy Hypermiling,

Bradlee and Justin Fons

 

I posted a few pictures in the share section. I also created a brewers gathering 2005 section for us to put the photos

 

Thank you to all the members who participated in the 2005 Madison Hybrid Group event in Milwaukee last Sunday. Although it was hot as blazes, the event was a big success.

A few of us drove in a hybrid “convoy” from Lake Mills to the Wauwatosa staging area. By the time we arrived in Wauwatosa, a other members were already there taking pictures and were deep in hybrid car discussions.

The trees next door provided a bit of shade for our initial greetings and soon we were on the way to the stadium parking lot.

I was pleased that the caravan of hybrids from the staging area to the stadium went well. We didn’t lose anybody - even though I had to stop to reconfirm directions part way through the drive.

While tailgating I had many engaging conversations, learned new things, saw people sharing tips, and ate some good food. Mmmmm…and that Prius-powered blender for making daiquiri’s is a welcome addition to any gathering. There were longtime members present and newbies too. It was nice to connect in person with people that we usually “see” only on the internet or via email.

Thankfully the seats in the stadium were out of the direct sun, and the occasional breeze helped keep us cool as well. The game was fun and the Brewers won!

A few members were not able to participate in all parts of the day’s events, but most people stayed until the end. I had to leave abruptly and apologize for not being able to properly say good bye to most members. (My sons wanted to “run the bases” after the game and I belatedly found out we had to quickly get in line.)

As we returned to our car, a few members were still in the parking lot. Some jet fighters in formation flew overhead as part of a Milwaukee air show; a big bonus that my kids loved.

On the way out we also met a Hummer owner who said he was getting 9 mpg and he let us take a few photos of an Insight next to his Hummer. A pleasant hybrid car discussion ensued.

Members have begun posting pictures of the event in the “Share” section. Take a look and feel free to add your own.

We are always looking for ways to make the MHG events even better so feel free to send suggestions.

Thanks again for everyone who came, as well as everyone who helped plan the event.

I look forward to seeing you next year.

Our next local Madison Hybrid Group event will be in September. The date is not yet determined.

As always, if you want to be notified of our events by email, drop us a line with your name and year/model/color of your car.
Email address: MadisonHybridGroup at gmail dot com

 

Hi xcel, ericbecky and others from the event,

I tried the "stop and go" vs. "stop, restart and go" mentioned last Sunday and described in detail in this thread:

https://www.greenhybrid.com/discuss/...-tip.2828.html

...but I found no significant difference in the first 5-minute bar. See my results here:

https://www.greenhybrid.com/share/br...imageuser=1607

Here is my full method:

1. Drive 15-20 minutes to make sure ICE is completely warm.
2. Stop and put in park (do not power off).
3. Wait until next 5-minute bar appears (this was ~2 minutes).
4. Drive a 10 minute loop. (See last 2 bars in first image. First bar of those is ~75 MPG.)
5. Stop, put in park, and this time power off. Wait ~2 minutes.
6. Power on, drive the exact same 10 minute loop (see second image - again, first bar is ~75 MPG).

So... what gives? The original post on this topic and discussions on Sunday made it seem as though the first bar after the full power off would take a large hit (perhaps be below 50).

At any rate, my "assignment" was to see if it was possible to leave the Prius in ready mode without having the smart key, not to test it out (although I hope someone can shed light on this ). Here's what I found:

- The fob is locked in the ignition for as long as the Prius is in any state except off.
- Using a second fob, the Prius refused to lock from outside.
- Using the mechanical key, the Prius would lock from outside, and remain in "ready" mode.

Having the second fob be able to lock while the first is in the ignition would be great, but I have not found a way around that yet... and I will keep trying, if it is worth it... anyone get different results from trying this?

 

Hi LocutusOfBorg:

___Why don’t you post this info in the other thread? Krousdb might be able to look it over?

___As for the P&G technique, Eric nailed a 47.1 mpg segment in the Toyota HH the other night. I just got back from an 11.1 mile round trip test segment (driveway to driveway) in the non-hybrid PZEV Accord and nailed a 74.7 mpg per the display. I am awaiting an HCH and Escape HEV owners results before I create a thread about what Krousdb has perfected with his Prius II. Either way, it sure is something special on a slower speed roadway in which it can be used. I will be taking the MDX out tomorrow night for a 10 + mile segment to see what she is worth. I cannot just let a Toyota HH ruin her reputation … Not without a fight anyway

___Good Luck

___Wayne R. Gerdes
___Waynegerdes@earthlink.net

 

I have been using P&G whenever I can (roads permitting - not all are 30 or 35 mph roads, and there are lights and stop signs and all manner of other real world mileage-killing things), and this tank at 190 miles is at almost 60mpg, up from 56 mpg after getting back from the event (at about 140 miles). It does work.

I'll post the info from earlier on the other thread.

 

Hi All:

___Another item I wish I would have seen while I was at the meet. Bradlee told me that the black Prius II with the Prius Hybrid sticker on the side had some very interesting seat covers. The best he has ever seen in fact given the glowing description. Does anyone have the contact information of that particular owner as I would love for him to post a pic or two as well as the details for other Prius II owners to consider for their own as well?

___LofB, I hear you loud and clear! I was in a perfect traffic jam for the Prius II driving home from work tonight. I was in the Ranger using my normal Forced autostops at an almost perfect 45 mph (the Ranger doesn’t care about top speed before a Glide maneuver because it doesn’t have the ICE to synch with an MGSet above 42 mph ) and Pulsing at 25 mph on up. The traffic ebbed and flowed with this 25 - 45 mph range for ~ 3 miles before it headed right on back up to up hyper speed. It is to bad I did not have a Prius for that 5 - 10 minutes as the technique would have worked fantastic tonight vs. the more usual stop and go for 50’, stop and go for ½ a mile at 5 - 20 mph, stop and go for 1 block, and stop and go right on back to 65 + just before Halfday Road all the way to Route 60 on I-94 Northbound just North of Chicago … The Ranger does not have an instantaneous or averaging display of any kind so I haven’t a clue as to what she actually received but she does pretty good regardless

___Good Luck

___Wayne R. Gerdes
___Waynegerdes@earthlink.net

 

xcel,
just522 is his son, Justin.

 

Hi Ericbecky:

___It wasn’t Justin’s or LocutusOfBorg’s Prius II’s with the seat covers I missed, it was somebody else’s?

___Good Luck

___Wayne R. Gerdes
___Waynegerdes@earthlink.net