Highlander Hybrid Ltd AWDi -- what is your mileage?

[John B in CA]

Hi...

I recently bought a 2007 Highlander Hybrid Limited AWD-i. My gas mileage
isn't what I thought it would be. I didn't expect to get the numbers on the
window sticker, but I thought it might be close.

On a recent trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles and back, I got 22.0
MPG -- that's 750 miles round trip, all freeway driving, much at 80 MPH. My
city driving is about the same -- sometimes a little higher, sometimes
lower.

If anyone else has a Highlander Hybrid, I would sure appreciate hearing
about your gas mileage experience.

Thank you.

John

[mark_digital©]

Post by John B in CA
Hi...
I recently bought a 2007 Highlander Hybrid Limited AWD-i. My gas mileage
isn't what I thought it would be. I didn't expect to get the numbers on
the window sticker, but I thought it might be close.
On a recent trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles and back, I got 22.0
MPG -- that's 750 miles round trip, all freeway driving, much at 80 MPH.
My city driving is about the same -- sometimes a little higher, sometimes
lower.
If anyone else has a Highlander Hybrid, I would sure appreciate hearing
about your gas mileage experience.
Thank you.
John

Do you have an idea what a regular conventional Highlander gets for fuel
economy under the same circumstances? I don't.

[John B in CA]

I stopped by the service department of my dealer and asked about the mileage
I'm getting. The service manager said my 22 MPG was fairly typical. He
also said that's a little better than what the non-hybrid gets, but he did
not say specifically how much better.

I searched Google for mileage information and found a few sites with user
comments. Again, my 22 MPG seems fairly typical, although others do much
better.

Post by mark_digital©

Post by John B in CA
Hi...
I recently bought a 2007 Highlander Hybrid Limited AWD-i. My gas mileage
isn't what I thought it would be. I didn't expect to get the numbers on
the window sticker, but I thought it might be close.
On a recent trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles and back, I got 22.0
MPG -- that's 750 miles round trip, all freeway driving, much at 80 MPH.
My city driving is about the same -- sometimes a little higher, sometimes
lower.
If anyone else has a Highlander Hybrid, I would sure appreciate hearing
about your gas mileage experience.
Thank you.
John

Do you have an idea what a regular conventional Highlander gets for fuel
economy under the same circumstances? I don't.

[mark_digital©]

Last night on our local news there was an elderly couple interviewed about
their _brand_ new_ Prius. "When I saw the EPA rating of 60 miles per gallon
I said to my wife, we got to get this car." He goes on to say he only gets
41 miles to a gallon. Then the couple is seen driving off with him in the
front passenger seat. I nearly fell off the couch laughing. I guess his wife
is determined to *make it work*.
----------

Post by John B in CA
I stopped by the service department of my dealer and asked about the
mileage I'm getting. The service manager said my 22 MPG was fairly
typical. He also said that's a little better than what the non-hybrid
gets, but he did not say specifically how much better.
I searched Google for mileage information and found a few sites with user
comments. Again, my 22 MPG seems fairly typical, although others do much
better.

Post by mark_digital©

Post by John B in CA
Hi...
I recently bought a 2007 Highlander Hybrid Limited AWD-i. My gas
mileage isn't what I thought it would be. I didn't expect to get the
numbers on the window sticker, but I thought it might be close.
On a recent trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles and back, I got 22.0
MPG -- that's 750 miles round trip, all freeway driving, much at 80 MPH.
My city driving is about the same -- sometimes a little higher,
sometimes lower.
If anyone else has a Highlander Hybrid, I would sure appreciate hearing
about your gas mileage experience.
Thank you.
John

Do you have an idea what a regular conventional Highlander gets for fuel
economy under the same circumstances? I don't.

[Greg]

Ha ha ha ha!

That is so he can get that rush when his wife lets up on the gas and
the display shows 99 MPG! (voice of experience)

I'd like to see the "real statistics" on how many accidents are
caused by the driver "studying" the neat graphics on the Prius display.

Post by mark_digital©
Last night on our local news there was an elderly couple interviewed about
their _brand_ new_ Prius. "When I saw the EPA rating of 60 miles per
gallon I said to my wife, we got to get this car." He goes on to say he
only gets 41 miles to a gallon. Then the couple is seen driving off with
him in the front passenger seat. I nearly fell off the couch laughing. I
guess his wife is determined to *make it work*.
----------

[Michael Pardee]

Post by mark_digital©
Last night on our local news there was an elderly couple interviewed about
their _brand_ new_ Prius. "When I saw the EPA rating of 60 miles per
gallon I said to my wife, we got to get this car." He goes on to say he
only gets 41 miles to a gallon. Then the couple is seen driving off with
him in the front passenger seat. I nearly fell off the couch laughing. I
guess his wife is determined to *make it work*.
----------

All the while not knowing it *is* working. Few people actually keep track of
the fuel consumption they are experiencing, and to see it presented is a
shock. My daughter was shocked to find her '93 Accord 4-cyl automatic
getting barely 20 mpg in town. Prius owners too seldom realize the in-town
economy they are seeing is twice what they had before and that few people
get EPA estimates in any car, especially on congested streets and with short
trips. (Hybrids are not affected much by stop and go but are hit just as
badly by warm-up.) That will probably get worse as efficiency gets better,
because efficiency rarely affects fixed losses. In the Prius, there is too
little waste heat from the engine in town to operate the heater at full
output, so the engine runs just to heat the occupants.

BTW - I agree about the multi-function display. I keep mine dimmed.

Mike (averaging 46 mpg commuting three miles in his 2002 Prius).

[mark_digital©]

Post by Michael Pardee

Post by mark_digital©
Last night on our local news there was an elderly couple interviewed
about their _brand_ new_ Prius. "When I saw the EPA rating of 60 miles
per gallon I said to my wife, we got to get this car." He goes on to say
he only gets 41 miles to a gallon. Then the couple is seen driving off
with him in the front passenger seat. I nearly fell off the couch
laughing. I guess his wife is determined to *make it work*.
----------

All the while not knowing it *is* working. Few people actually keep track
of the fuel consumption they are experiencing, and to see it presented is
a shock. My daughter was shocked to find her '93 Accord 4-cyl automatic
getting barely 20 mpg in town. Prius owners too seldom realize the in-town
economy they are seeing is twice what they had before and that few people
get EPA estimates in any car, especially on congested streets and with
short trips. (Hybrids are not affected much by stop and go but are hit
just as badly by warm-up.) That will probably get worse as efficiency gets
better, because efficiency rarely affects fixed losses. In the Prius,
there is too little waste heat from the engine in town to operate the
heater at full output, so the engine runs just to heat the occupants.
BTW - I agree about the multi-function display. I keep mine dimmed.
Mike (averaging 46 mpg commuting three miles in his 2002 Prius).

I haven't heard it in quite awhile but there was a time when a car was
brought in for safety and emissions they wanted your money and acknowledge
the car had been running for at least 20 minutes. If not, they'd say take it
around the block a few times and don't come back until then. Well, a lot of
inspection places around here simply bring the car into the bay without
asking because everything is by appointment. This goes for all types of
vehicles. Of course, the Prius emission test is a bit different. I know full
well how to have the engine run so they could test at the tailpipe but the
last time I made suggestions I was told in a nice way to go away.

[Walt & Lynda Johnson]

John and all...

We also have a 2997 Hylander Hybrid with 4WD-I. The cold weather
here in upstate NY is indeed hitting out mileage but for our
day-in-day-out driving with trips less than 15 miles we're showing
a consistent 23.0. On a 250 mile trip with a mix of interstate and
two lane highway (55 MPH limit) we showed 25.5 for the interstate
portion at about 73 MPH true, and 27.5 for the two lane portion
running about 58 true. This was largely level driving, following
the Mohawk River valley. Suburban driving, at 40-45 MPH, has
consistently shown 27-28 MPG. Our net consumption over the last
2000 or so miles has been 24.8 for all types of driving based upon
miles covered and fuel pumped, the most accurate of all.

Individual fill-ups has indicated that the car's computer is
just about right, as is the speedometer and odometer.
I'm impressed by this.

57 miles pulling a 1250# boat trailer generated 19.3 MPG at
73 MPH true. This was the average indicated by the car's computer.

Using the car's computer, I've found a few other data points.
At 59 MPH indicated, relatively level road, and with cruise control,
you can seriously discharge the traction battery in about 12 miles and
achieve, for that short distance, in excess of 33 MPG.

I live at the top of 1.25 miles of 9% grade, so I always start every
trip with at least 7 bars of traction battery. My short trips are
3-6 miles and seem to have little impact on battery charge. My longer
trips are usually initiated by the sequence in the previous paragraph.

I hope this answers some of your questions.

Walt

Post by John B in CA
Hi...
I recently bought a 2007 Highlander Hybrid Limited AWD-i. My gas mileage
isn't what I thought it would be. I didn't expect to get the numbers on
the window sticker, but I thought it might be close.
On a recent trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles and back, I got 22.0
MPG -- that's 750 miles round trip, all freeway driving, much at 80 MPH.
My city driving is about the same -- sometimes a little higher, sometimes
lower.
If anyone else has a Highlander Hybrid, I would sure appreciate hearing
about your gas mileage experience.
Thank you.
John

[John B in CA]

Walt,

Thank you for the reply. The information is very useful.

As one would expect, there's a huge hit in mileage on the highway between
55-70 and 80+. I live in the Berkeley hills (across the Bay from San
Francisco). Every trip I take starts and ends with a very long, steep
hill -- a cab driver once told me that our street is the steepest street in
the Bay Area, including all the San Francisco hills. Clearly, coming up
this hill once or more per day is taking its toll on my gas mileage. On the
other hand, compared to the car I replaced with the Highlander -- a 2000
Ford Explorer -- I am getting great mileage.

I was interested in your comment about the battery. I have not noticed the
battery bars ever going down more than two. Also, it seems that no matter
how gently I step on the "gas pedal," once the car reaches 15-20 MPH, the
engine starts. I'd never driven a hybrid before buying this car, but I was
under the impression that it used the electric motor more than mine seems
to. I will discuss all of this with the dealer when I take it for the first
service in 2,500 more miles.

John

Post by Walt & Lynda Johnson
John and all...
We also have a 2997 Hylander Hybrid with 4WD-I. The cold weather
here in upstate NY is indeed hitting out mileage but for our
day-in-day-out driving with trips less than 15 miles we're showing
a consistent 23.0. On a 250 mile trip with a mix of interstate and
two lane highway (55 MPH limit) we showed 25.5 for the interstate
portion at about 73 MPH true, and 27.5 for the two lane portion
running about 58 true. This was largely level driving, following
the Mohawk River valley. Suburban driving, at 40-45 MPH, has
consistently shown 27-28 MPG. Our net consumption over the last
2000 or so miles has been 24.8 for all types of driving based upon
miles covered and fuel pumped, the most accurate of all.
Individual fill-ups has indicated that the car's computer is
just about right, as is the speedometer and odometer.
I'm impressed by this.
57 miles pulling a 1250# boat trailer generated 19.3 MPG at
73 MPH true. This was the average indicated by the car's computer.
Using the car's computer, I've found a few other data points.
At 59 MPH indicated, relatively level road, and with cruise control,
you can seriously discharge the traction battery in about 12 miles and
achieve, for that short distance, in excess of 33 MPG.
I live at the top of 1.25 miles of 9% grade, so I always start every
trip with at least 7 bars of traction battery. My short trips are
3-6 miles and seem to have little impact on battery charge. My longer
trips are usually initiated by the sequence in the previous paragraph.
I hope this answers some of your questions.
Walt

Post by John B in CA
Hi...
I recently bought a 2007 Highlander Hybrid Limited AWD-i. My gas mileage
isn't what I thought it would be. I didn't expect to get the numbers on
the window sticker, but I thought it might be close.
On a recent trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles and back, I got 22.0
MPG -- that's 750 miles round trip, all freeway driving, much at 80 MPH.
My city driving is about the same -- sometimes a little higher, sometimes
lower.
If anyone else has a Highlander Hybrid, I would sure appreciate hearing
about your gas mileage experience.
Thank you.
John

[Michael Pardee]

Post by John B in CA
As one would expect, there's a huge hit in mileage on the highway between
55-70 and 80+. I live in the Berkeley hills (across the Bay from San
Francisco). Every trip I take starts and ends with a very long, steep
hill -- a cab driver once told me that our street is the steepest street
in the Bay Area, including all the San Francisco hills. Clearly, coming
up this hill once or more per day is taking its toll on my gas mileage.
On the other hand, compared to the car I replaced with the Highlander -- a
2000 Ford Explorer -- I am getting great mileage.

If that's the one from Grizzly Peak road, the one that's terraced at every
crossroad, that has to drag down the fuel economy of any vehicle. My partner
and I tried about a hundred yards of that while cycling; there was no way we
could maintain forward motion up those slopes. We started nearly every
riding day with the ascent up Redwood Road to Skyline, so we were in plenty
good shape. That is the steepest public road I've ever seen.

Mike

[John B in CA]

Mike,

Yes, that's the one! It's Marin Avenue and I live near the top. No wonder
my local gas mileage is so low. Redwood Road to Skyline is an impressive
ride, but Marin is as close to straight up as a road can get. I see a few
bikers doing it, but not many. Even walking the hill is a workout.

John

Post by Michael Pardee

Post by John B in CA
As one would expect, there's a huge hit in mileage on the highway between
55-70 and 80+. I live in the Berkeley hills (across the Bay from San
Francisco). Every trip I take starts and ends with a very long, steep
hill -- a cab driver once told me that our street is the steepest street
in the Bay Area, including all the San Francisco hills. Clearly, coming
up this hill once or more per day is taking its toll on my gas mileage.
On the other hand, compared to the car I replaced with the Highlander --
a 2000 Ford Explorer -- I am getting great mileage.

If that's the one from Grizzly Peak road, the one that's terraced at every
crossroad, that has to drag down the fuel economy of any vehicle. My
partner and I tried about a hundred yards of that while cycling; there was
no way we could maintain forward motion up those slopes. We started nearly
every riding day with the ascent up Redwood Road to Skyline, so we were in
plenty good shape. That is the steepest public road I've ever seen.
Mike

[Michael Pardee]

Post by John B in CA
Mike,
Yes, that's the one! It's Marin Avenue and I live near the top. No
wonder my local gas mileage is so low. Redwood Road to Skyline is an
impressive ride, but Marin is as close to straight up as a road can get.
I see a few bikers doing it, but not many. Even walking the hill is a
workout.
John

Ah, yes! How could I forget Marin Avenue? Tony and I decided not to try
riding down; it would have smoked our brakes and overheated the rims big
time. A blowout on that monster was something we didn't want to contemplate.
I never knew where it came out in Berkeley.

Mike

[John B in CA]

Marin goes straight down the hill from Grizzly Peak, all the way to the
freeway along the bay -- that's I-880, about four miles from where the
overpass collapsed earlier today.

I've ridden my mountain bike down Marin a few times. The brakes and rims
did fine, but my hands were really sore from squeezing the brakes so hard.
I tried going up a couple of times but couldn't get enough speed to even
stay upright -- I just don't have the strength!

John

Post by Michael Pardee

Post by John B in CA
Mike,
Yes, that's the one! It's Marin Avenue and I live near the top. No
wonder my local gas mileage is so low. Redwood Road to Skyline is an
impressive ride, but Marin is as close to straight up as a road can get.
I see a few bikers doing it, but not many. Even walking the hill is a
workout.
John

Ah, yes! How could I forget Marin Avenue? Tony and I decided not to try
riding down; it would have smoked our brakes and overheated the rims big
time. A blowout on that monster was something we didn't want to
contemplate. I never knew where it came out in Berkeley.
Mike

[Walt & Lynda Johnson]

All,

I've tried to experiment with making the car run on electric
only. I've found that if you observe the power meter on the left
of the dash, and only use power within the "shaded" area, you will
stay on electric (if the ICE is warmed up) up to 30 MPH or so. It
takes a while to get there and is definitely not quick enough for
traffic usage.

Like you San Francisco folks, I live at the top of a 1.25 mile
8% grade. Last month, coming home towing a 1200# boat trailer,
I stopped at the bottom and eased the electrics on up the hill,
making about 8-10 MPH. When the battery got down to two bars,
the ICE kicked on without any change on my part. Obviously the
computer won't let you run it dry!

Walt

Post by John B in CA
Walt,
Thank you for the reply. The information is very useful.
As one would expect, there's a huge hit in mileage on the highway between
55-70 and 80+. I live in the Berkeley hills (across the Bay from San
Francisco). Every trip I take starts and ends with a very long, steep
hill -- a cab driver once told me that our street is the steepest street
in the Bay Area, including all the San Francisco hills. Clearly, coming
up this hill once or more per day is taking its toll on my gas mileage.
On the other hand, compared to the car I replaced with the Highlander -- a
2000 Ford Explorer -- I am getting great mileage.
I was interested in your comment about the battery. I have not noticed
the battery bars ever going down more than two. Also, it seems that no
matter how gently I step on the "gas pedal," once the car reaches 15-20
MPH, the engine starts. I'd never driven a hybrid before buying this car,
but I was under the impression that it used the electric motor more than
mine seems to. I will discuss all of this with the dealer when I take it
for the first service in 2,500 more miles.
John

[Jay]

I live in the relatively flat east coast near Philadelphia, PA, and I have
been able to run just the electric motors for 5 miles starting from a full
stop and getting up to 40 mph. It did drain the battery down, but not once
did the gas engine kick in. If you nurse the pedal just right you can do
it. There were even small inclines, nothing like the bay area, but enough
that you do have to normally give a car a little extra gas to get up them
and not lose speed, and I was able to use just the electric drive system.

Post by John B in CA
Walt,
Thank you for the reply. The information is very useful.
As one would expect, there's a huge hit in mileage on the highway between
55-70 and 80+. I live in the Berkeley hills (across the Bay from San
Francisco). Every trip I take starts and ends with a very long, steep
hill -- a cab driver once told me that our street is the steepest street
in the Bay Area, including all the San Francisco hills. Clearly, coming
up this hill once or more per day is taking its toll on my gas mileage.
On the other hand, compared to the car I replaced with the Highlander -- a
2000 Ford Explorer -- I am getting great mileage.
I was interested in your comment about the battery. I have not noticed
the battery bars ever going down more than two. Also, it seems that no
matter how gently I step on the "gas pedal," once the car reaches 15-20
MPH, the engine starts. I'd never driven a hybrid before buying this car,
but I was under the impression that it used the electric motor more than
mine seems to. I will discuss all of this with the dealer when I take it
for the first service in 2,500 more miles.
John

Post by Walt & Lynda Johnson
John and all...
We also have a 2997 Hylander Hybrid with 4WD-I. The cold weather
here in upstate NY is indeed hitting out mileage but for our
day-in-day-out driving with trips less than 15 miles we're showing
a consistent 23.0. On a 250 mile trip with a mix of interstate and
two lane highway (55 MPH limit) we showed 25.5 for the interstate
portion at about 73 MPH true, and 27.5 for the two lane portion
running about 58 true. This was largely level driving, following
the Mohawk River valley. Suburban driving, at 40-45 MPH, has
consistently shown 27-28 MPG. Our net consumption over the last
2000 or so miles has been 24.8 for all types of driving based upon
miles covered and fuel pumped, the most accurate of all.
Individual fill-ups has indicated that the car's computer is
just about right, as is the speedometer and odometer.
I'm impressed by this.
57 miles pulling a 1250# boat trailer generated 19.3 MPG at
73 MPH true. This was the average indicated by the car's computer.
Using the car's computer, I've found a few other data points.
At 59 MPH indicated, relatively level road, and with cruise control,
you can seriously discharge the traction battery in about 12 miles and
achieve, for that short distance, in excess of 33 MPG.
I live at the top of 1.25 miles of 9% grade, so I always start every
trip with at least 7 bars of traction battery. My short trips are
3-6 miles and seem to have little impact on battery charge. My longer
trips are usually initiated by the sequence in the previous paragraph.
I hope this answers some of your questions.
Walt

Post by John B in CA
Hi...
I recently bought a 2007 Highlander Hybrid Limited AWD-i. My gas
mileage isn't what I thought it would be. I didn't expect to get the
numbers on the window sticker, but I thought it might be close.
On a recent trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles and back, I got 22.0
MPG -- that's 750 miles round trip, all freeway driving, much at 80 MPH.
My city driving is about the same -- sometimes a little higher,
sometimes lower.
If anyone else has a Highlander Hybrid, I would sure appreciate hearing
about your gas mileage experience.
Thank you.
John

[Jay]

I bought the Highlander Hybrid AWD-i. I know the window says 31 city / 28
highway, and I drive in a congested suburban area outside Philadelphia. My
average on roads that are about 3/4 mile sections of 40mph between lights or
stops. I average 27 mpg, I have gotten stuck in heavy traffic jam
conditions and gotten 31.6 mpg. I don't reset the mpg average on the
computer. I only have the small information display, not the big fancy ones
like the Prius or the Limited Hybrid. I knwo that if I drive like a sane
person and not constantly in a rush, i will continue to average around the
27 - 28 mpg mark. On the highway on trips over 100 miles I got an average
of 28 mpg, and that was using the cruis control, and doing 65 mph.

I think I made a wise choice, I traded from a Nissan Titan Crew Cab which
was averaging 13 city / 17 highway. I still have interior room and decent
fuel economy along with some pep if I need it.

Post by John B in CA
Hi...
I recently bought a 2007 Highlander Hybrid Limited AWD-i. My gas mileage
isn't what I thought it would be. I didn't expect to get the numbers on
the window sticker, but I thought it might be close.
On a recent trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles and back, I got 22.0
MPG -- that's 750 miles round trip, all freeway driving, much at 80 MPH.
My city driving is about the same -- sometimes a little higher, sometimes
lower.
If anyone else has a Highlander Hybrid, I would sure appreciate hearing
about your gas mileage experience.
Thank you.
John