Amory Lovins + Prius
March 8th, 2006
Image: Rapidcars.com
From: Amory B. Lovins of the Rocky Mountain Institute
To get this state-of-the-art 4/5-seat hybrid sedan to perform at ~53-55 mpg (it’s rated at 55) rather than in the low 40s, it needs “pulse driving,” which differs in two ways from our old driving habits:
1. When you see that you’ll need to slow or stop up ahead, start braking gently and as early as possible so you recover the most braking energy back into the battery. Prius recovers 62-66% of braking energy in its regenerative mode, but if you brake too late, hence too hard, the mechanical brakes will override, and they do nothing but turn motion into heat.
2. Contrary to what we were all taught in driver’s ed, when you’re accelerating up to cruising speed, do so briskly. The engine is most efficient at high speed and torque, so you’ll use less fuel accelerating briskly for a short time than accelerating gently for a long time.
Consistent with attentive driving, you’ll also find it very instructive to keep an eye on the real-time mpg display and (like a videogame) adjust your driving habits to maximize mpg. Don’t worry about the complex display showing power flows between the various components—that’s just eye candy, and you can’t change the programming anyway.
Note that hybrids tend to turn off the engine when it’s not needed, then instantly restart it when it’s needed again. I think there’s a dashboard light showing when this has occurred, so you’ll remember not to try restarting. You’ll need a little instruction on key use and starting—it’s more advanced than practically any other car on the road, so there are some little procedural differences.
Related Posts: Plug In Prius, Civic Hybrid, 4Runner=>Hummer, 330MPG Car
Popularity: 1% [?]