I live on the east coast and purchased a 2007 Prius in Janauary. The mpg seems to be improving as the teemperature gets warmer. Is temperature a factor in mpg, or is the car breaking in?

 

Jeff,

Yes, temperature alone affects MPG. About 10-15% better MPG in the summer (assuming no AC) than in the winter.

JeffD

 

Welcome, Jeff, to Prius-dom and GreenHybrid! Where are you on the Right Coast?

The other Jeff is correct: You can expect to see fuel economy increase with temperatures. And he is correct that running the AC, especially on short trips at slow speeds, will cause a FE hit.

 

Outside temps have always been a factor in all vehicles for mpg gains.

 

Temperature makes a huge difference! I'm in Minnesota and my winter averages were in the 40mpg range, even with blocking the grill and trying not to use heater. Now that it's warm (May and 70f) I'm over 50 mpg for the previous two tanks