How does the Prius get such good mileage compared to its fellow hybrids?

[Mommy]

I have just started doing research on hybrid cars and the second car on the list was only 40 mpg compared to the Prius's (average and city, not highway) 48 mpg. BTW that car is the Honda Civic hybrid. is it the size of the car, is it built differently, etc etc... please help...tell me all the info you know about it, and if you own one, how you like it. )

[emdee]

The Prius is even more of a turd. Race a Honda hybrid and a Toyota hybrid and you will see what I'm talking about.Greater Turdiness = Improved Gas Mileage

[CW]

Honda's hybrid system is what is called an assist hybrid. That is, the electric motor's primary function is to assist the gas engine in acceleration. This allows Honda to use a smaller gas engine that is tuned for fuel economy instead of performance, since the electric motor is there to help. Toyota's hybrid system allows the car to be propelled solely by the electric motor at speeds as high as 42mph. The Honda system can propel the Civic on electric-only also, but during my test drive, I had a difficult time achieving this. It is pretty easy to get the Prius to run on electricity only if you have a gentle right foot. Since the Prius can spend more time being propelled by electricity only, it will achieve better fuel economy. BTW, the electric motor in the Prius can also act as an assist, helping the Prius to achieve a 10.7s 0-60 time.

[StuartKing]

The Prius gets better gas mileage than other similar hybrids because it has a smaller gasoline engine.For instance, the Highlander Hybrid gets only 18 city / 24 highway because it has a 3.5L gasoline engine coupled to its Hybrid Synergy Drive.The Prius on the other hand has only a 1.5L gasoline engine coupled to its Hybrid Synergy Drive, so it gets 48 / 45.Comparison to other types of hybrid systems (Such as Honda's Integrated Motor Assist) is well-explained by Geog_nerd.Personally, I prefer Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive to Honda's IMA system, because the Toyota HSD is a more reliable setup.The Honda IMA uses a belt-driven CVT transmission, which is a more complex transmission, using pulleys and friction belts-- More things to wear out. The Prius HSD uses just one planetary gearset (using metal toothed gears-- No belts, no gear shifting, no clutches), which is a lot simpler, which in turn means it's more solid and reliable.This is the reason why the NYC Taxi Fleet uses Hybrid Synergy Drive vehicles (Highlander Hybrids) and Ford's similar Power Split Device vehicles (Ford Escape Hybrid) rather than Honda IMA hybrids-- The HiHys and FEHs have taken daily abuse heaped on them by cabbies but can still run 200,000 miles with no problems. I doubt you can do that with Chris N's turdy Honda IMA hybrids, who obviously has absolutely no clue how the various hybrid systems work.EDITED TO ADDamp_55: The Prius has a 1.5L engine, not a 1.0L.top gun: Toyota isn't the only car maker offering a full hybrid. Ford also offers the Ford Escape Hybrid, which uses a full-hybrid Power Split Device drive system very similar to the Toyota Hybrid Synergy Drive. Nissan also offers the Altima Hybrid, which also uses the Toyota HSD.

[emdee]

http://www.plusaf.com/prius/prius.htm .... I bought my '04 in 4/04 and have "only" 33+ thousand miles on it... including towing a trailer across the USA with it FIVE TIMES in the past two years.it's great. handles well, turns in the mid 40s of mpgs with average driving [i don't try to "hypermile" for extreme mileage, but i don't lead-foot it, either].with the passenger's seat down and the back seats down, i can put 8' 2x4's in it or 2'x8' sheets of plywood. and it still goes as fast as i want it to and accelerates very well, thank you! with its low center of gravity, it corners as fast or faster than i'm willing/able to... it once beeped at me on a fast sweeper of an on-ramp... i think it was the anti-skid warning me that we're going about as fast as we can... which was plenty for me...also try greenhybrid.com for lots of chat and blogs about hybrids in general and also priuschat.com for a more focused group....my wife is seriously thinking about replacing her '98 Camry with an '08 Hybrid Camry, too. 22 mpg goes to 30-35 and the only loss seems to be the trunk space. they gobbled a lot of trunk for the battery. but, well, she virtually never carries that much in her trunk, and if she needs the space, we have my Prius! enjoy, whatever you choose. oh, and as for your original question, the best way to think of how the Prius works [or the other Toyota hybrids, too...] is that the car is a computer that figures out the most economical use of the gasoline engine under all driving conditions..... switching from gas to electric and back automatically or sharing the load between the engine and the motors based on whatever keeps the engine in ITS most efficient operating region! and it does a great job of it, too!

[chasefranklinsbcglobalnet]

it gets better gas mileage because it has a 1.0 liter gas engine. The other hybrids were made (in my opinion) for people that want fast, fun to drive cars but are also good on gas (other hybrids gas engines are like in the......well past 2.0 liter.) hybrids were made for saving gas. My dad has one and I think its pretty fast for a 1.0 liter gas engine.

[suvi]

Prius is the only real hybrid made. The others basically have a gas engine with an electric boost. toyota has the rights to a part that is needed to make a hybrid. Honda civic ("hybrid") gets 40 mpg while gas Corolla gets 38MPG.

[julistar]

The first thing to consider is that the Prius was engineered as a hybrid from the start, so low emissions, good fuel economy, and aerodynamics were primary when designing the vehicle. (See the book "The Prius that Shook the World" - originally in Japanese, but reprinted in English. used to be free from Toyota, but they ran out. You can still find PDF versions of it online at several places...) The Toyota Prius has one of the lowest coefficient of drag of any production vehicle, at 0.26, which is better than some sports cars (like the Corvette and Lamborghini Diablo), so great aerodynamics. The other hybrids for sale currently were regular models that had a hybrid system slapped onto them.The Prius is not the most fuel efficient hybrid. That award belongs to the (now discontinued) Honda Insight. Again, another model that was created as a hybrid. (Cd of 0.25, BTW.)In general, a hybrid system will allow a manufacturer to use a smaller gasoline engine (which uses less fuel) and using electric assist, to achieve the performance of a larger gasoline engine. For example, the Toyota Camry Hybrid uses a 4-cyl engine, and is equipped and has the performance of the Toyota Camry XLE which uses a V6 engine, but the hybrid has far better fuel economy as compared to any of the 4cyl or V6 normal versions of the Camry.Size is not necessarily the difference in fuel economy, although it is a large contributor. In general, the larger/heavier the vehicle, the less fuel efficient it is. But, the hybrid system used on the vehicle makes a large difference. Is the hybrid system there just to claim that it is a hybrid? (like the GM pickups, which get auto-stop and that's about it) Is the hybrid system used primarily to improve the power/acceleration of the vehicle? (like the Honda Accord hybrid and the Lexus hybrids?) Is the hybrid system there primarily to improve fuel economy? (like the Toyota hybrids or the Honda Civic Hybrid?) How much electric assist or propulsion does the hybrid system allow for? (GM BAS, Honda IMA, or Toyota THS (licensed to Ford and Nissan) Manual transmission, conical CVT, or planetary CVT? 2WD or 4WD? (4wd has less fuel economy than the 2wd versions).2-seaterHonda Insight (now discontinued)Compact carHonda Civic HybridLexus GS450hToyota Prius (NHW11 model, US model years 2001-2003)Midsize carToyota Prius (NHW20 model, US model years 2004-current)Honda Accord hybrid (now discontinued)Toyota Camry HybridSaturn Aura Green LineNissan Altima hybridChevy Malibu hybridLexus LS600hLTrucks/SUVs:Toyota Highlander hybridLexus RX400h hybridSaturn Vue Green LineFord Escape HybridMercury Mariner HybridMazda Tribute HybridGMC Sierra hybrid (discontinued?)Chevy Silverado hybrid (discontinued?)GMC Yukon hybridChevy Tahoe hybrid