Thanks for the helpful hints. I hadn't realized that this thread was still going. I have put a couple of thousand new miles on it during the last two weeks, but I couldn't recreate this.
Currently I am trying to determine if Top Tier Gas is worth it's name or if ARCO carries me just as far. So far it's still inconclusive. I have gotten my best tank on ARCO with lots of tailwind. On the same stretch of Freeway I can get anywhere between 20mpg to 60mpg depending on wind alone, so making a meaningful judgement on Gas will not be easy.
I will try hitting the Eco button next. I drive a lot at night and I still can't remember the ECO button's location. It is right next to the gas door release and I don't want to hit the wrong one.
I haven't yet seen a button to adjust display brightness. I am used to turning everything way down when I drive on a lone, dark stretch at night and it bothers me that the instrument panel and radio lights up like a christmas tree. The TCH is the most hight tech car I ever owned, yet it lacks some fairly basic things.
Now my center console rattles, my seat belt rattles and squeaks (on both ends) and a few other annoyances started to show up. None of those spoil the fun of getting better mileage and the pleasure of gliding down a hill while charging the battery.
Is there a way to discharge the battery below the - sign with the ICE on? That could be useful going up a hill, with a long downhill glide just after that. I find that it keeps the battery at this level, but when I cruise in EV it legs me go much lower. Going uphill in EV is not what I need though, just need the maximum assist all the way up.

 

Always remember the "eco" button is to the inside and the fuel door release is to the outside, just like the car....All I do at night is feel the two buttons and hit the one towards the inside of the car. By the way, if you are still under warranty, there is a TSB to fix the center console rattle that I believe will cover your car.

 

I don't have any factory warranty anymore, but I bought Toyota's extended Platinum Care plan, that is as good as it gets up to 100k miles. Not sure if they will cover this as well, but I will check. Thanks for the tip!

 

You should be OK on the warranty. If you have any other issues, let them know about it and get them fixed also. The only things that are not covered under that warranty are normal wear items (tires, windshield wipers, filters, etc.).