I got my TCH last week with 85 miles on it..It was a swap and driven about that much to my dealer. At that time it said 25.1 MPG UGH...I have now put on it another 115 miles and am up to 28.7 mpg ..OK but NOT hybrid status...Does the car need a period of time to 'break in' to reach its peak????THANKS>>>
I would like at least the mid 30's....But I do love this car

 

From what I heard, it will improve after the first oil change, and if Seaford is named for Seaford, NY, you might wait for the weather to warm up a bit.

 

LOL warm up a bit? You mean June?????
Seriously its 50s here on LI today but not for long....First oil change... so after 4 months???

 

The biggest improvement will come as you learn how to drive a TCH. Check out links on gas mileage improvement. (Ex. Pulse & Glide)

 

As an ex-New Yorker from Seaford, NY, be patient. My last highway trip I got 40 mpg with a tailwind while averaging 75mph. I'm getting at least 35 mpg around town. Even during the winter in San Diego mpg drops. My first tank I did better than you.

 

I broke mine in by doing moderate takeoffs from stops. One that many uses is to coast (in drive) to a red light or stop sign. I drove mine from 30 to 45 miles per hour when in the city. It may be best to not use the cruse much till you get about 1000 miles on the car. With the TCH you can use the cruise control starting at 25 miles per hour.

You might want to use a quality brand of gas from this list. Click, Retailers. http://www.toptiergas.com/

Try keeping your tires aired to about 35 psi when they are cold.

Remember when driving under 42 miles per hour, if the car has a chance it will shut off the engine. (ice) It will then run on batteries usually on a level road. The speed has to remain steady or the engine will start up again. With experience you should be able to drive about 2+ miles on batteries alone. After the batteries get down to about 40%. At that point the engine will start up. It takes about a mile for the traction batteries to auto charge back up.

 

Frequent starts and stops and short trips work against your mileage.

 

If you have the NAV display and a route that is uniform, you can watch the gas mileage double as the engine warms up. The colder it is, the longer it takes to warm up, but I've managed 40+ mpg in 35 degree weather on 2 hour drives. If I used it for work commutes, I don't, I'd be getting low 20's because the distance is 3 miles and it takes the full distance to reach operating temperature in cold weather.

 

Confused newbie here again..

I thought the better mileage was with city...stop and go...driving...So I've been doing several little trips the past few days....
Actually I drive highway 25 miles each way to work so perhaps when I go back to school Jan 2 I will be getting better mileage...if its not too cold...
Should the car be 'warmed up' before driving?????
Also seems people can do the 75 highway driving and get good ileage..Is that with coasting high?
Also do you mean the Consumption screen with the bars? Watch that and the mini screen on dash board showing the battery vs the gas VERY often...
so many qluestions... .thanks all............

 

Trips should be combined so that engine doesn't have a chance to cool. In general they should be arranged so the longest leg is first.

Don't warm up first -- that's basically 0mpg. 25 mile drives will do much better.

Greater wind resistance will cause mileage to drop at high speeds, but if they are traveling long distances they can still do well.

Yes, the consumption screen.