2012 Toyota Prius C Hybrid - 65 MPG? Seriously?

[@whathappenswhen4767]

i have owned a 2012 prius c for 4 years. my honest review is this: Pros: amazing gas mileage, great handling, good acceleration. Cons: 1.) loud as fuck! the engine is loud and sounds like a motorcycle engine. you can hear the outside sounds a lot. 2.) the speakers are complete garbage. 3.) materials are all garbage plastic. 4.) uncomfortable. my back starts hurting bad after 30 miles driven. CONCLUSION: if you don't care about luxuries and only care about 100% gas efficiency, then get this car. Otherwise there are other FAR better vehicles. I personally still love this car with all my heart and don't plan on selling it. not the best for long trips, but still doable. i drove it from Texas to Arizona 3 times. and its still great.

[@Moonface00z]

This is no joke or paid review. I drove my sisters prius C and already love it on my first journey. I was able to hit 72 MPG and only need to re-fill fuel once per two month. Travel more than 1600km

[@Herecomesthedreamerr]

If you’re going near 40mph yes

[@FixItYerself]

nice! i got 72mpg on my 40 like trip home, including freeway and city miles.

[@Steven-kc7id]

@@FixItYerself how in the world did you do that? Hills?

[@tbarela]

I bought the Prius C today and am saving money immediately! Amazing, when I pushed the button to start the car, there is absolutely no sign that you can start moving the car. Only a display that reads "Ready". Put it in D or R and it moves! I have driven around the city and back roads and almost did entire drive off the Electric Motor! Probably used 4 tablespoons of Gas to to my driving around city streets and I am talking miles and miles and miles of just driving off the electric motor!

[@FixItYerself]

I've gotten 80mpg in town more than once with the engine warmed up

[@manifestgtr]

I just traded my beloved 06 corolla that I put 235,000 miles on for one of these...my third day with it and it's been great...I'm able to stay electric for almost half my ride to work...word is its only gonna get better too...apparently "once the new car smell goes away" you can start squeezing these things for all their worth

[@bryannguyen8917]

They should put a rumble sensor in the gas pedal that increases in vibration as you get closer to leaving EV mode,that way you never need to look.

[@joshuaespinoza5082]

That would be annoying!

[@FixItYerself]

you can set it to 37mph on flat land for a mile until the battery dies if you really want to. With Torque connected, just keeping the throttle below 26% keeps it between 60 and 75mpg on the highway

[@markhansen173]

I bought the 2014 Toyota Prius C i-tech....did a lot of research...and totally pleased...the salesman (uninformed) told me to drive it normally. I've always had a bit of a lead foot so I was getting 5.7 L/100km...Since then I have been driving more like this driver..though I still have to perfect it...now getting 4.3 L/100km. Drove to a farm 15km on the other side of Orange from Liverpool in Sydney with 4 adults and a 12 year old child. Got there and back on a tank...Drove it hard on the Bell line of road (foot on floor)..Handling was brilliant....and gently in others....Amazing result :-) Averaged 7L/100km..Brilliant

[@markhansen173]

Oh, and driver and co-pilot ;-) are both over 120kg....lol

[@markhansen173]

And great video too..best one for driving ...I had to work it out the hard way....your on the mark ;-)

[@WackoKillerDan]

Most of us here have no clue what any of that is

[@ogalief]

+Mark Hansen This car can get amazing fuel mileage, depending on how you drive it. One time my dad's Prius C was extremely low on gas, and I managed to get 1.9L/100KM. It was 1AM (no traffic) and I drove about 10KM. I drove with an extremely light foot, and had all green lights. Since there were no cars around, I drove pretty slowly

[@albertobenelli]

Best way testing and reviewing a hybrid I have ever seen on the tube. Excellent. It would be very nice if you would review also other hybrids (Prius, Prius V, insight, etc) on this same road and keeping same kind of speeds etc. the way you use your cameras, and no music, describing what happens, excellent .

[@Trades46]

I find the Prius C personally to be more interesting than the full sized Prius. Yes the battery, electric motors & engine are kind of small, but Toyota did a through "Weight Reduction Bro!" treatment to the Prius C (it weighs nearly 400kg lighter than its bigger brother!) which makes it surprisingly light for a hybrid fitted with a complex powertrain & heavy batteries. At around 1150kg it is quite fun to to toss around in the twisty bits over the big Prius & trying to get high MPGs is also a challenge of itself. The biggest problem I have with this otherwise fine little car? Sit more than 2 adults in it and it becomes a bit of a Golf cart. This car shares many similar powertrain running gear as the gen 1 Prius (with updates here and there obviously) but the sluggishness associated with early Priuses having no power becomes a problem with multiple passengers weighing it down. Highway travel with 4 adults including the driver requires patience when merging & passing.

[@MarioRoussel]

Thanks a lot Dan, this review is awesome... Now anyone can easily understand how an hybrid works and how easy it is to drive one... Nobody else had the idea to do a road test like this before and I applause your imagination, your efforts, and your hard work you do in all your reviews... Driving efficient is gonna be part of our future soon, better get prepared now... lol

Real life? I drive my 2014 Prius c in Houston, no eco mode, and in about 18 miles, at 75 mph, among a bunch of in a hurry (don't know why) tailgating drivers (it's a polite behavior, here in Mexi... I mean, Houston) they are living, maybe, their illusion of driving an Indy car, and I always have 48 mpg, if I'm lucky, 51mpg, never taking care about how deep is my right foot, this amazing car reminds me my Daihatsu Sirion in my country (I think it's the same platform) both has tiny engines, yet capable emerging and keeping the others speed. About maintenance, it only requires less than a basic one. I'm not a huge truck fan, and this is, for me, an amazing car, Americans never will appreciate, because of its so Japanese.

[@Jacksirrom]

Roberto, I'm thinking about buying 2014 Prius C here in DFW. still working out well? How's maintenance? Handles the heat well? Thanks. Totally relate on being tailgatyed by a dualy pickup at 70mph.

[@motosporttouring]

Thanks for the video. I've had my C for a week now and love it!

[@mpgomatic]

motosporttouring Thanks! Good luck with your C!

[@hedgehogthesonic3181]

@@mpgomatic Do you still have the Prius C of this video?

[@shahabdmc7928]

Driving on empty road like this I have gone up to, a hard to believe 91 MPG! but driving on congested city road with bumper to bumper stop n go traffic with AC running on a hot day, I get as low as 20-25 MPG, I wish someone would upload a video on 'real world mileage under such conditions

[@jevinpavan2427]

I do not have a video. However, I drive my Prius C in traffic on a daily basis.. Using A/C and all. I manage to still get around 60mpg. Maybe something's wrong with the battery. Have it checked

[@pandarama67]

i have a 2012 prius v .I average 49.8 mpg and this is the station wagon version of the prius. 3 inches wider 6 inches longer and 300 lbs heavier. Its advertised to give an average of 42 mpg. Im an aggresive driver that is never in the rear of the pack. its my 2nd hybri, my first being a 01 insite that i beat into the ground and only gave me 39 mpg. being experienced how to drive a hybrid is definetly the key to efficiency but the toyota prius is the best i would buy this car many times over.

[@Zenstudent105]

Love the review. I've had my eye on the Prius since they first rolled off the line, and I'm looking forward to my first test drive of the C 1 tomorrow. Your video has really helped alleviate a lot of the anxiety other reviews brought up about the car's handling, acceleration, etc.

[@mpgomatic]

Many thanks, +Will Donnelly! Interested to hear your feedback after the test drive!

[@mpgomatic]

Thanks for the kind words and offer, ZedFable! I think I'm covered for the 3 minute review ... I have some short stable shots of the displays. I've been planning to switch to three-point camera rigs at some point ... that should eliminate the shake. I don't use the headrest-mount CruiseCam rig I used for the full dash shot very often. I had an HV40 with a JuicedLink sound box mounted underneath it and it was way too heavy ... I learned the hard way on that.

[@mpgomatic]

Many thanks for the kind words and support, along with the rational thought.

[@mpgomatic]

Thanks for the kind words and support! There's no charging port on the Prius C ... it's not a plug-in hybrid ... all the recharging is done through regenerative braking and the engine. The big battery packs on the plug-ins (Prius plug-in, Volt) add considerable costs ...

[@mpgomatic]

Thanks for the kind words and support, Ivarsrini!

[@mpgomatic]

Great to hear it ... many thanks for the kind words!

[@mpgomatic]

Thanks for the kind words! I've been shooting in HD, but exporting in Standard Definition. I'll start exporting in HD when this starts making enough money to pay for a new workstation (it takes way too long to render in HD on my iMac). One of the cameras in this piece (there were a total of four) was on a shaky mount ... won't be using that one again.

[@slofkosky7641]

Thank you for such an awesome video. It was as if I hopped in the passenger seat while my best friend explained all of the workings of the MPG/display information. Thank you and keep up the great work. I think I'm going to buy the Prius C over the Honda Insight 2001-2006. Mostly because my wife wants an automatic and something a little newer.

[@mpgomatic]

Thanks for the kind words, Todd. =) Best of luck with your next fuel efficient ride!

[@kelliefox333]

+MPGomatic kss?!w!levels low-level lol but we wlwlwwetyyyzdddlkd!d!dldlx xdxß s s slslw

[@riceoobxg]

I love this review! The split screen really helps me see how different techniques affect immediate mpg.

[@coledavid4376]

"Oh look a Prius" Should be a thing. I swear I've said that too!

[@guyportmonteau5021]

This was the most informative real-world scenario review. Thanks for posting. Now many buyers will know the most important aspects of achieving high efficiency. It has to be the perfect city car by these results. I was impressed, usually high efficiency around 60 m.p.g. seems great, but even the display showing 80 m.p.g. average was unexpected.

[@mpgomatic]

Thanks for the kind words, Guy Portmonteau!

[@ThabieMelvin]

+MPGomatic Hi do you know when ev mode stops working at what speed dose it switch back to the motor . I test drove one yesterday and the sales man said ev mode is for 35 mpg and below is that true.

[@mpgomatic]

Thabie Melvin EV-only mode? Or EV while in hybrid mode?

[@dazeja]

I get 60 in the city all the time without doing these strategies, but if it's cold or extremely hot it would be down to 48. Even on the high-way going 60mph I was getting 54 to 55. I absolutely love this car. You can get 500 plus miles easily on a 9.5 gallon tank. The only car I would trade for is the plug-in Prius. The one thing he is wrong about. This car is not quiet. Day one, I was getting loud draft noises that the regular Prius doesn't have.

[@dazeja]

you are right I found out about it when I researched it. It only adds 11 miles. I guess that's why they are coming out with the Prime which combines the battery with the Hybrid to get better mileage 100 + mpg. I'll stick with my C. 50 to 60 mpg is perfect. We took it to San. Fran this winter and still got 44 mpg in the city with all of those crazy hills. In terms of burn out.. Are you talking about electric cars or hybrids because the battery burn out on the hybrids is basically a myth. I know maybe 2 dozen people with different years of Prius cars and none of them have had to replace the battery. But then again no one keeps a car for 20 years anymore either.

[@splott8]

Beautiful tree lined streets. Where is this? My 2012 Prius C is in the shop for intermittent starting issues and I'm watching this video because I miss her-LOL!

[@mpgomatic]

Sueseajoy NJ! Hope your Prius C is back home soon!

[@mpgomatic]

Thanks! I'll be doing more of these, I think ... :)

[@mpgomatic]

Thanks for the kind words and congrats on the great mileage! =) The more experience you have at lightfooting, the better the numbers. That said, you can expect the numbers to drop in a few months, if you're in a part of the world where it gets cold in the winter ...

[@Thecarguy1254]

Your driving like my grandfather does with his 05 Prius. He maintains about 51 mpg average in the mountains. Its insane what that car does. Im almost temped to look into a C, if only it had a 6 speed manual!!

[@phenylxeon]

I really love the way this video looks with the interlacing

[@akarim909]

i rented one for 2 days and beat it to death but still got 40 mpg.hahahahahah

[@indianmilitary]

+Babu K if it were some other car, you would have gotten just 10 mpg

[@aujla7564]

+You Tube so if u go to 60 and then brake to 0 and 60 and 0, then tell me the mpg but take 10 secs to get from 60 to 0

[@mpgomatic]

Thanks for the kind words, Dave! Our goal with this channel is quite a bit different from most. Make that all ... ;)

[@mpgomatic]

Absolutely! I tested it four ways on the highway, up from the usual two ... adding a windows up/AC on vs windows down/AC off comparison. I'll have the standard review video/article edited and posted in the next few days.

[@mpgomatic]

Many thanks, Alberto! I will be doing more like this in the future. With luck, I will upgrade my workstation and cameras soon ... it took forever to render this. :)

[@mpgomatic]

Yep! That's why I use a consistent loop for highway testing whenever possible.

[@mpgomatic]

Thx! There were four cameras used to shoot this video. I'd reckon that you're referring to the one with the bad shake? It's a great little camera (Canon HV40), but it was on a dodgy headrest rig ... there was too much weight on it. I'm shooting most of this stuff in HD at this point, but processing and posting in SD (mostly). One of these days I'll get a beefy workstation and post everything in HD.

[@mpgomatic]

Many thanks, Bluetei! I might have to make the humps part of the routine. :) The Prius C (aka: the Yaris Hybrid) would be a solid choice for a city car ... it's well suited for stop and go traffic.

[@FARFolomew]

The blue area on the ECO screen (which the whole curved graph is called the Hybrid System Indicator, or HSI) indicates braking regen. When you brake hard enough to fill up that blue area completely, you've exceeded the system's max current capability at recharging the battery and proceeds to engage the regular friction brake. To get best recharge it's best to keep the blue bar 25% filled for a longer period of time (slow stops) vs having it 100% filled for only a second or two (quick stops)

[@hpkeong]

You did a good test drive and figure out how it really saves fuel. I am getting Priuc C for my son this month. We have been using Priuc for 1 and 1/2 years...excellent fuel efficient car

[@Daschickenify]

Originally I was thinking it was blasphemy that this prius C beat the 1st gen honda insight on the EPA cycle, but now i'm seeing how that is possible. Cool video!

[@occheermommy]

I really like the video and I love my Prius c. My husband usually drives it bc we share a car and he may be familiar with some of these techniques but I don't think so really. I tend to drive it like I'm in a race but still average about 45-50 mpg. I may try some of these techniques. And to the guy from Cali, I live in oc and most of the time u can't go 65-70 unless it is ten at night, there is just too much traffic. We have a few larger hills and u can coast at 65 on those. The freeway, never. Traffic sucks. I moved to az for 5 years and the traffic was the number one reason I didn't want to move back. And I think the guy who said for u to lose weight was rude, as are many of the people on here. It is a great review and these people need to stop arguing over breaking. Get a life people. 200 comments on regenerative breaking and Prius c vs. ??? Grow up. When he reviews those u can chime in.

[@markgray1772]

I got a 2012 Prius no C or V and it's currently reading on the trip 70.3 mpg. There's a good amount of equal uphills and downhills. During the downhill right after the crest, I put it in neutral and let gravity make the Prius accelerate. If it's close to 40 by the time it's on the crest going down, I'll have it in EV with no engine activity and place it in neutral so it stays at EV over 45 mph. Not sure where that eco score is in my Prius, but at the end of the trip, it'll show details. Absolutely love the Prius, no matter what it is.

[@radbcc]

I know I have criticized you in the past, but this is one of the better car reviews I have seen. Excellent work and video production and useful real life information. thanks...

[@Blah-blah-sure]

Great video description. I live in Connecticut and have a Prius c one. i travel 38 miles each way on route 8 and route 15/merit, and i get between 65 and 70 mpg's on a regular basis. I'm in no hurry to get to and from work so i keep my mph at 54 and 56 with an occasional 58/60 and have never dipped below 65 mpg. Great commuter car. i got mine from A-1 Toyota in New Haven Ct from Erik Tomin.

[@mpgomatic]

Thanks! Fear not ... I'll post the normal review in the next few days ... this video is intended to be more of a reference piece. I didn't get to finish up shooting for the review video until this morning (when it was raining, to boot).

[@dehsah]

I have a 06 Prius and I get around 50-53mpg in summer,spring, and fall ,44-46 mpg in winter(midwest below 32deg. ). I also enabled ev mode on mine, which works great for its intended purpose. Very fun car to drive especially if you are a techo geek. The key to max out mileage is to find the sweet spot, which for me around 42mph w/ slight throttle tip in. I am also an auto mechanic and have worked on many makes and models, and the Toyotas rarely came in the shop except for routine maintainence

[@StevenMorris]

Thanks for taking the time to make this informative video! Learned a lot about the car and was entertained :)

[@mpgomatic]

Steven Morris Many thanks, Steven!

[@MrJeff832000]

I agree with you steven morris!!!! I just got a 2013 prius-C 4 days ago

[@TheGOPASINGH]

GOOD JOB. it feels like a trustworthy review from a common man. not a fancy false presentation from car media person.

[@MasterYoshidino]

I am giving you mad props for very good pedal manipulation. You can only do this in "normal" mode.

[@NesperandJeffreyShow]

Finally a good video of someone driving a hybrid in the real world!! I'm stuck with an 05 accord v6 and with 60 miles a day of 40 highway and 20 city, I avg about 26mpg

[@mpgomatic]

Thanks for the link ... I was just about to add that!

[@ZedFable]

Being able to see the display at all times is perfect, thank you for that! Also, I like the idea of having a long and short form available for this kind of thing. My only suggestion would be that you stabilize the eco-display. If you don't have the means, I would be happy to volunteer. Just looking at it I'm pretty sure I can do a good stabilization on it with out to much work. I love the show, so it would be an honor. PM me if interested- maybe we can have it done in time for the short piece!

[@mpgomatic]

It's constantly regenerating ... once the charge level gets too low, the system limits the use of electric power until the battery level rises past a certain point.

[@mpgomatic]

Fuel economy results are based on many factors. While this wasn't 30 minutes downhill, the route is kind to hybrids. I was able to achieve similar numbers with the Ford C-MAX. Even the most efficient conventional (non-hybrid) vehicle would not score as high. I'll replicate the route with the next thrifty gasser that rolls into the driveway. We put over 650 miles on our Prius C test car. The full details are on the MPGomatic website. You'll find links in the video and description.

[@mpgomatic]

Nice! Kinda like the Jan & Dean song, "Little Old Lady From Pasadena?" =)

[@WackoKillerDan]

So this is why prius drivers drive so slow...I had no idea it was this complicated lol

[@indianmilitary]

+WackoKillerDan for 20,000$ you want a sports car!! huh

[@Escorpio123PS]

WackoKillerDan jaja haha so it's a thing huh? .

[@cosmicdust22]

When it comes to fuel economy, Mpgomatic is the most trusted source. As a environmentalist, I will be more exited driving a Prius to save a gas rather than riding a sports car. this video is really helpful to know how to drive a hybrid car. My next car would be Prius C. Great job MPGOMATIC , Way to go !!

[@hobizoli]

In 1989 a naturally aspirated diesel AX, using the 1360 cc all aluminium alloy TUD engine, managed a figure of 2.7 litres per 100 kilometres (100 mpg-imp; 87 mpg-US), totalling over 1,000 miles (1,609 km) from Dover to Barcelona.

[@74VDC]

It still performs brilliantly Charles, but as he said, you will see it dip down to 50 above 70 mph, and still lower in cold weather, just like a non-hybrid would. Driving moderately this car will easily deliver EPA numbers, even in the cold mountainous region I live in with alot of short trips. Last fall I averaged 63.4 over a 240 mile trip to Pittsburgh, 80% HWY, 20% City, with 2 toddlers and my wife and a stroller and small luggage. Amazing! Named CR most reliable car for 2012!

[@corpgovnet]

I've had mine for over a year and have averaged a little over 52 mpg. Includes lots of freeway driving.

[@JesusisLOVEJohn-]

Just Curious: How do you drive? Granny, Normal, or Nascar Driver? LoL

[@Liefpj]

I love those Prius computers. I was interested in getting one of these but couldn't afford 22k in Jan.13. I got a Suzuki SX4 for around 15k instead. Here in Winnipeg, I put about 5k miles/yr. and average about 25 mpg. I do most of my city driving in -2 to 50 f.

[@gene978]

Dan that was the most informative video on a Prius I've ever seen. A sales man could not of did what you did in this short tutorial. Now, I know how to drive. Lol. PS. I LIKE THE HANG UP AND DRIVE COMMENT. it pisses me off! There is NO REASON to hold a phone while driving. And TEXTING don't get me started.

[@jamiemcninchphotography431]

Would love to see a real world test drive. Where you are driving on all different kinds of roads, not just the 40mph roads.

[@ajbrown2013]

have you noticed driving without shoes helps keep you more sensitive to how hard your hitting the gas

[@mpgomatic]

Combined MPG should be calculated from tank fills. Whenever possible, we refill our test vehicles at the same service station and pump.

[@mdh6977]

Thank you for the great info... would love to see you do a highway video of same vehicle... thinking about buying one, I have a 56km/34mi commute each way... most of it long country and highway speeds... fairly hilly route, would be curious to see if you can charge enough going downhill to help much with the uphill at those speeds

[@Jbertrand1977]

Btw, I did test drive a Prius C for fun yesterday and loved it. Making a trip back to the dealership Monday ? Perhaps

[@mpgomatic]

Yep! It will ... or usually does ... but it didn't when I shut it off after this ride, for some reason. :/

[@mpgomatic]

Many thanks, Pedrof! It's a different approach, that's for sure. I have more hybrids coming up on the schedule and may follow the same path (literally). Interesting news about CR.

[@Jbertrand1977]

I also proudly own the Prius C.:) Anyways, my bf tried and succeeded on getting 100 mpgs in a 5 minute increment. It was about two miles on a street, no hills, no stops. We were going approx 25 mph. He just feathered the pedal during the entire drive. We may have pissed off the guy behind us but, hey, it was worth the challenge.

[@mpgomatic]

Many thanks! I wanted to do something different with this one ... a real world objective demonstration, not a commercial or subjective opinion. The Prius C is a highly efficient transportation device.

[@ChickensAndGardening]

Nice video! We just got a Prius V 2013 and we love it. Wish I could have gotten the C, but we needed the extra cargo space. Average mpg is 51 at fill-up, and it goes about 550 miles on a tank. I'm hoping to join the 600 mile club but not quite there yet.

[@michaelrogers1234]

Great video you really get to see what driving the prius would be like as an experience

[@adrianr8527]

I just got mine 2 days ago! Still learning:))

[@mpgomatic]

FP HybridTank Good luck with it!

[@cbrecht86]

Will you have a full on review for the Prius C at some point? I love watching your reviews because they are so unbiased! Thanks!

[@mpgomatic]

Many thanks, Cosmicdust22 ... we just put it out there for everyone to see. With just a little bit of effort, it's possible to save a substantial amount - no matter what you choose to drive. :) We should be spending our hard-earned money on stuff that's good for us ... rather than stuffing it in the pockets of the few that control the oil.

[@pedrof830]

Dan this is your best review ever!

[@stonesoffire9840]

I've got a Prius C 2014. I get 60+ MPG often. Not every time. I think the worst I ever got was 45. A few times I've got 70+. Probably I "average" 55 to 68 MPG. That is highway + city combined. I am *not* driving like a nut trying to prove that I can get great mileage. I also am *not* driving carelessly. I do drive "conservatively" but basically I flow with traffic. I drive the speed limit. That's slower than a lot of people drive, I admit. So on a back road if the speed limit is 35, that's what I do. On the highway where it's 65, I typically flow with traffic, albeit I like the right lane, so the traffic is not necessarily going a full 65 all the time. If it is going 65, I might go between 55 and 65, but I don't have a formula. I just do what seems "safe" to me. I've learned that 2 major things you can do to increase MPG are: a.) Don't accelerate so hard. Or course, if you have to merge unto a highway quickly, that's an exception: floor it. No kidding. Do it. It's OK. But otherwise, just be gentle. It's quick enough. Not as good pickup as a "gas-only" car, but it's acceptable. Don't act like a 17 year guy, OK? 2.) Do your braking gently. Don't zoom up to the red light and stop at the last minute. That's for road-rage-lovers. Let it slow down with light braking over a longer time. What this does is recharge the battery. That battery, as far as I can tell is *why* the car gets so amazing gas mileage. The battery works even while you're going fast. It just works a "little" then, but it makes a difference. End result: you can get much better MPG than EPA reports of 49 or whatever it is. They're probably not abiding my 2 rules above. It's not even "inconvenient" to abide by these rules, IMO. You don't really have anything to lose but "insanity" that prevails in the hot-blooded hot-rodders on the road.

[@cosmicdust22]

good information. good job

[@Jbertrand1977]

Wow you did a fantastic job! I've had my fun with the Monte Carlo during the last ten years and now looking to buy a fuel efficient car. I'll miss her dearly but I think you might have sold me

[@mpgomatic]

I can't count the number of times I've passed by a Prius going 80 MPH in the fast lane, while I'm cruising at 68 in the center lane. One time it was a state senator in a Camry Hybrid ...

[@ImAChristianFirst]

The paradox of the prius is cheaper the mpg the more I want to drive it which averages the miles out. But its great for road trips.

[@mpgomatic]

Many thanks for the kind words and support! There's a written review with more detail on the website. Link is in the description. Wish I had more for you, but it takes a ridiculous amount of time to produce these video reviews with any amount of quality and I'm literally going broke producing them.

[@74VDC]

You'll be happy if you pick one up. At least now you can probably find one easily. I bought mine a year ago and to get what I wanted had to travel to the ends of the Earth looking for one available. Most were sold before they came off the truck.

[@ablebasher17]

In the last six months I am still averaging over 60 mpg. For people that don' t believe me I tell them to watch this amazing review.

[@charlesmacgilchrist3648]

It is excellent considering the size and weight of the car. Although a 1980 1.0 Austin Metro would do 83mpg at a constant 30mph in 4th gear, but that was a 700kg tin can with no room in the back. Overall driving costs though for someone who does short trips totally 3000 miles a year the metro wins because even the least power prius is £870pa insurance for me vs. £136pa for metro (or any 80's classic).

[@mpgomatic]

We're about to get a crop of new diesels, starting with the Jeep Grand Cherokee, Chevy Cruze, the Mazda6 Skyactiv-D, and a bunch of Audis. We might see a diesel hybrid eventually, but the costs will be high.

[@74VDC]

With the "C", I get considerably better mileage in the summer, and about the same in winter. During a brutally cold January here my mpg fell all the way to 43 for 2 weeks of short driving (10 miles exactly to work). I've average over 60 mpg across a full tank in the summer with normal/moderate driving. I live in mountains of western MD.

[@manoman0]

If you have checked the 2013 PHEV Prius, it's actually the case that the Prius is competing the Volt now: A bigger battery, a bigger eMotor for more eRange. I'm stating that GM got it right this time - and yes, I share your concerns about GM as well. I wonder if they have the guts to keep it up.

[@manoman0]

I guess both cars have their place. There's one thing about the Volt: The Voltec platform is set for future configuration (other than an ICE as Range Extender). The Prius needs to be completely redesigned to compete with the Voltec-Platform. Nonetheless, both great cars for that matter.

[@74VDC]

Actually in "B" mode the Prius C does also employ engine braking. This is why (as you said) it should only be used for excessive LONG, LONG downhill runs. Actually, I live in the mountains and I never use it. It will not encourage any more aggressive dynamic braking effort than that which can be obtained from the brake pedal, because this is already the maximum software allowed battery charge rate.

[@maiacorbin7879]

I do a lot of highway driving for work (like 15k miles a year easily) and as far as I can tell the biggest factor in my mileage is tire pressure. In the city yesterday I got above 60mpg, and on a 122 mile highway stretch it was just under 50. Same trip last week in different weather ergo different PSI in my tires, barely made 40mpg.

[@mpgomatic]

Yep! Next time ... :) I've done a couple of similar videos that include maps: "Get Better Gas Mileage - Pick the Right Route" and "Mitsubishi i-MiEV : NJ Electric Car Adventure" Animated maps would be super cool. Need to find an app to do that.

[@mpgomatic]

Thanks, Matt! The WRX is wicked cool. I hope to have one in my garage, one day ...

[@ScottAxel01]

When living in Belgium a few years ago.. I had a 2004 Renault Modus - 66 mpg with a diesel and it was fun to drive (well.. for what it was).

[@ToyotaforCorolla]

I got 71 MPG as a record high in my HCH III in a 17 mile loop that consisted of of speeds between 35-45 MPH. The HSD is more advanced than the IMA but the HCH uses a much more technologically advanced battery. The HCH III can travel from 10 MPH to 43 on electric only

[@zaqwertyfish]

Great video... I'm considering picking up a 2014...

[@memex56]

I loved it! Should you decide to do a followup include your speed limit too, that would be helpful too, don't you think? Again, very straightforward, loved it!

[@74VDC]

Obviously, the display showed "ODO" indicating odometer, but it IS the average, at least for that run as you say. His question was whether it was the avg. or actual. Most cars showing actual (you can select this in the "C" also) show the avg. mpg in real time. The answer is YES...it is the average.

[@74VDC]

Our (N. America) version of the Prius C (Aqua in Japan) does not have Li-on batteries, but are supposed to in I think 2014 or 2016. Presumably with even better performance. Hard to believe it can get better than this. I bought my Prius C in April 2012 and it is BY FAR the best car I've ever owned. CR just rated this the most reliable car for 2012.