tedward155

Absolutely correct, Daryll. And you're right; it's nothing to sneeze at. And obviously, I can afford the gas. It's just that it has become an obsession of mine to reach that average. I know it makes no sense, and I should just enjoy the car. And I am, but I'm also a bit obsessive.

jfz219

The math gets fuzzy with higher gas mileage ratings. In the USA, we measure fuel efficiency by the ratio of miles/gallon. In. The EU and most other markets, efficiency is measured by the ratio of the quantity of fuel/distance, liters/100km.

Using gallons/100 miles, the difference in fuel consumption is less as mpg increases. Here are examples: 10mpg =10gallons/100miles, 20mpg=5gallons/100miles, 33mpg=3gp100miles, 40=2.5, 50=2…

In the case of my ES300h, my lifetime mileage has been 42.7mpg. Compared to a Prius with 50mpg, I am not using that much more gas annually.

R9000

I'm sorry to ask this.. But I've seen a few comments above that talk about having the car "warm up" while driving and reference to "bars". I take it this has something to do with one of the screens in the menu...? Once I find that view to look at.. What should I be thinking about the "bars"?

jahnjva

While I will agree that cold temperatures will decrease MPG's and make mileage closer to a conventional ICE, warming up an engine has been found to lower total MPG's vs just driving away at a moderate pace until the engine is warm. If my car is in the garage at around 60 deg and I start the car, the ICE usually won't turn on until the battery gets depleted. Why waste the energy in the battery waiting for the ICE to kick on?

daryll40

This is my thinking too. I just think that if hybrids are "so bad" while cold, the media would have been all over this. This thread is the first place I've ever heard this.

jahnjva

Yes Daryll and it's not just hybrids, regular ICE vehicles get way worse mileage when the are cold and full EV's have their range cut in half when it's cold outside. Cold=less efficient in ALL vehicles types.

Urlik

They’re talking about the engine temperature gauge on the dash itself.

daryll40

Ok, so I did an MPG test run. Went on the 9 mile stretch between Pennsylvania Turnpike exit 48, Oakmont/Harmarville to exit 57, Monroeville and back. The eastbound trip was at 55MPH and I got 38MPG. It was slightly uphill. Westbound return I tried to go 75, but traffic slowed part of that. The info screen showed about 35.5 for the 4-5 miles that I was able to maintain 75MPH (before construction aborted the experiment). So, overall, this agrees with the “sticker” estimated MPG of 34 highway. Maybe a little better although this was an “ideal conditions” experiment. I only use 87 octane (regular) gasoline. Outdoor temperature was 75 degrees (and sunny) and the car was set at 73 degrees with the A/C option “on”.

Dhill

I decided to drive in Sport mode for the freeway portion of my trip today. I was surprised that on the first leg I got 36-37 mpg and the return leg 41 mpg, freeway part only. On the first leg there were a few traffic jams, but on the return pretty issue free. I know in ECO mode I can get in the low to mid 40s, but for the extra acceleration I am thinking that I will drive on the freeways in Sport mode from now on. I also discovered that I can switch modes with just two buttons using the shortcut option. No more hunting through the menus trying to just change driving modes.

RolfK

After 5k miles our 350h is getting 35.6 MPG ( total MPG, taken from dasboard info ) which is better than I expected. It seems to be improving over time - after 1k miles we averaged 34MPG. We like our 350h and are a little more gentle with it than with our beaten up Honda Pilot ( which gets 17.5 MPG. ) but I think our driving style is fairly typical . Drive pulse ( a feature of the Lexus app ) tells us our driving style is 'excellent' - I would assume that also is pretty common. One other factor may be tire pressure - I found our tires are inflated at 39PSI. That is fine, but definitely higher than needed ( 34 PSI I believe ) . Higher tire pressure will lower fuel consumption. Note - we have the car in 'normal' mode and pump regular gas ( shell ).

tedward155

That sounds pretty good. However, I did lower the tire pressure in mine to 34. I just didn't like the harder, noisier ride with the high pressure. I'm still bouncing between 32 and 34 at 1,450 miles. But I've realized that as I live in the foothills of the Ozarks, (Little Rock, AR) that the hills I live in will have a negative effect on MPG. Overall I'm pretty darn happy.

ggebhardt

They over inflate our tires at the factory and the dealer failed to drop them to a more reasonable 33-35 psi. 39 psi might give better mpg but would be harsh with my 21” wheels.

Carbuff2

Higher tire pressure does NOT lower fuel economy. In fact, it lowers rolling resistance so you will get BETTER MPG.

You might see reduced tire life, as the tread will wear out in the middle, first.

Your steering response will be better with higher pressures. Higher pressure will also reduce the possibility of damage from potholes. (Especially important if you have the 21” wheels with their rubber-band tires. )

We are running 5 psi higher than the door sticker.

Dhill

I have the 350h. I do a lot of short trips, but not that short. You will get the worst mpg on the first leg, a lot of gas is burned while the engine is used to warm up the engine. In the first 1 or 2 miles I often get below 10mpg. But the farther you drive the better the mpg. In the next 2 to 5 miles I'm usually up to the low to mid 20's, and beyond that after the engine is warmed up I'm into the low to mid 30's. The longer I drive I get better mpg on the same trip. I have also noticed that on short trips I get much better mpg on the return leg. Five miles on the first leg maybe 25mpg and probably 35+ mpg on the return trip, same route. I know the 350h is different than the 500h, but the longer you drive you will notice the battery will kick in more and increase your mpg, much closer if not more than the official rating. Hope that helps.

GoBlue97

After 150 miles on our nebula gray/palamino interior 350h premium plus we are averaging 28.3mpg. Mostly driven by spouse. I expect that number to rise but it seems like the short drives don’t favor better mpg numbers. The four banger is growly. I‘lll get used to it but it definitely sounds like it is working harder than the v6 I traded in. That said, the power band is noticeably smoother. Cannot wait to road trip it in a few weeks.