Hey everybody! Proud first time owner of a 2014 Prius looking for some starting out tips. Just picked her up from a used Toyota Dealer in Philly, Central City Toyota. Below are the car/ purchase details: - 2014 with Moonroof/ Solar Panel, unsure which trim level it is yet. - Silver Ext - Light Gray cloth Int - 83k miles - Purchased for $13,599.00. - Typical exterior wear for an 11 y/o car. Looks very clean from a light visual sweep but you'll find some acorn dings on the hood/ roof and some decent bumper scratches under closer observation. That doesn't kill me but these are things I would like to clean up. Here are the most recent service records as done by the dealer: April 2025: - 4 wheel alignment done - brakes checked - Oil/ filter changed - One tire balanced - Tires rotated - Drivers side rearview window repaired - Wipers replaced June 2023: - Brake pads replaced - Front brake rotors replaced/ resurfaced - Cabin air filter replaced/ cleaned Some things I'd like to point out after about a week of ownership: - When I drove off the lot, the MPG was at 36 mpg over a 2,200 mile trip. Previous owner must've had a heavy foot. - After some steady and mindful driving I have easily gotten it up to 45.3 mpg - Initially, when the ICE kicked in and I was coasting, my real time "MPG Meter" to the left would drop to 60-80mpg, which made sense and helped me improve the MPG significantly. - As of the last day or so, as soon as the ICE kicks on, that meter immediately drops to the 10-30 mpg mark and, regardless of whether I'm accelerating or coasting, that meter stays well below 50mpg, which doesn't feel right to me. -The only time I can keep the meter steadily above the 50 mpg mark is when I have it in "EV". Because of this, I haven't been able to improve my MPG any more than 45.3. I am getting the car inspected on Monday by my local and very trustworthy mechanic. I've asked him to inspect the common mechanical components- EGR, air intake/ filter, thermostat, inverter coolant, spark plugs, and PCV valve. I just ordered an OBDII reader off Amazon and will check the hybrid battery once I get it. Given all this context, I would greatly appreciate any guidance the forum can provide, as I intend to best set myself up for many miles and years of successful Prius ownership. ALSO- the car came with a pair of rims with a "P" in the center, which I can't find much info on. They are clearly going to need a clean/ refinish given their current condition and amount of curb rash. Are they good rims worth keeping or is there a better rim/ wheel combo out there for quiet, smooth and economical driving? Thank you all in advance! Max
congrats and welcome! best thing to do is calculate your mpg when filling up. the gauge is all over the place and not an indicator of anything important. get on the egr circuit asap, and read up about it. think about diy, as paying someone to maintain it will negate all the gas savings. and get ahold of the toyota maintenance schedule, you don't need anything else major until 120k. consider changing the tranny fluid and doing oil changes every 5k. test the engine coolant for acidity and change it more often than toyota recommends. all the best!
If you do an image search on those wheels, you will find posts staying they were a dealer installed option for third gens. I think you will find the original wheels will give a quieter ride with better fuel economy.
Good point. My first trip with the car I traveled 383 miles and brought the tank to near empty. Fill up was 32.50, so I filled about 11.78 gal. 383 / 11.78 = 32.513 mpg. This seems awfully low for a Prius then, huh? I’ll get on that egr and possibly make the switch back to stock wheels?
Many parameters affect fuel consumption: driving style, trip duration, duration of breaks between trips, temperature conditions, use of heating in cold weather or air conditioning in hot weather, etc. You can find statistics on your car by year of manufacture. Fuelly - Track and Compare your MPG › car Since you are recently using a hybrid, your results may be slightly lower than the majority of cars of this year of manufacture. Over time, you will learn to use the efficiency of a hybrid to greater advantage.
Oh that’s good. Barring odo roll-back. Have a look in my signature*, maintenance items. Extras, not mentioned by Toyota USA: EGR cleaning (first and foremost, and at least every 50k miles thereafter) Transaxle fluid change (at least one) Brake fluid change (every 30k miles recommended by Toyota Canada) attached is a spreadsheet translation of the event-by-event schedule in Toyota USA’s Maintenance and Warranty Booklet. Note also, that, owners manual amd various other publications can be downloaded (in pdf format) from Toyota Tech Info (Google that). * (on a phone turn it landscape to see signatures)
Thanks for sharing! It will definitely level out in time. I also got a scanner last night and my hybrid battery is at 59.6%, so not the best but seems on par for an 11 y/o car.
This is going to be very useful, thanks for taking the time to share! I'll get on the EGR, transaxle fluid change and brake fluid change first and foremost. Next may be stock rims/ tires. I tested my hybrid battery last night and it has 59.6% life left. Good to leave alone for the time being?
you could consider a grid charger to try and prolong the life of the battery, i'm not sure how much they help. 32mpg is low, but the first tank isn't always useful. look for stock wheels and low rolling resistence tyres. have the 12 volt load tested for free at most auto parts stores. check the engine air filter
The high-voltage battery is quite good. For training and prevention, you can use the homemade device described in the topic. Build Hybrid Battery Maintenance Gear For Under $100 | PriusChat
