Hybrid mpg

We love it. It's our first hybrid. We bought it used September 2020. It's my wife's daily driver and our go to vehicle when the two of us are out together. We leave the gas guzzling Taco in the driveway as much as possible. So far, her best fuel economy has been 2.9 L/100km (81mpg) on a 50 km commute home from work.

 

I have friends that own a pair of his and hers Prii, as they call them. They also love them. One of these days I'll probably sell my Vette... I love it but it is really just a toy... and get something electrified. Not sure yet if it will be battery or hybrid but needs AWD. Maybe even something like the Mustang Mach E? I dunno.

Meanwhile I just saw on Car and Driver that the 2023 Sequoia is being dropped soon and of course since it is on the same platform as Tundra it will essentially be a Tundra with a full body. The one interesting point is that it will only come with the hybrid iForce Max powertrain. They also say that MPG is not yet available.

2023 Toyota Sequoia Arrives with a Standard Hybrid Powertrain (caranddriver.com)

 

While I don't expect the hybrid to get much over the motor only trucks, I do wonder if we'll see big improvement in mpg with lifts, bigger tires, and towing.
Say motor only ends up being 16 mpg on 35's. With the way the system adds power it's possible the hybrid could be 18-19. Same when towing.

 

Let’s assume it takes full power to drive 35 mph, 1.9 kWh will get you 1.8 miles.

math is (1.9 kWh /36 kW)*35mi/h = 1.85 mi.

Definitely can drive the Tundra iforce max more than 18 mph in EV mode. The system is completely different than the Prius. The newest Prius drivetrain was redesigned to allow EV mode in higher speeds. The EV mode max speed is a function of the motor speed and power available from the motor. The CVT forces the motor to spin at high speeds and low torque. Whereas the Tundra electric motor will spin at low rpm and keep high torque to maintain speed.

 

Sounds reasonable. But you'd never get that in the real world. Battery capacities are calculated to totally empty, a state which the BMS or other firmware will prevent you from reaching to avoid damaging the battery. So about 20% less is a good starting assumption. There is also the matter of max current, say accelerating or going up a hill before the ICE kicks in. Again the truck's systems are going to limit that, especially considering this is a NiMH battery.

 

Yeah that’s for sure. Let’s assume you can use ~40% before the engine turns on to charge the battery, then range is only 3/4 mile. In my experience with F150 Powerboost I found it hard to accelerate with just electric motor. But it was easy to back off and cruise at 40 mph in electric. I expect Tundra to be the same. But after battery is drained, the engine stays on for awhile. Still, electric motor is adding power when it is needed based on what’s shown on the power flow screen.

 

This is my hope as well- erases 35's, lift, topper, rack and gets stock numbers.

 

Yes I meant 0-18 mph. It is not wrong, the Sequoia release has the same information about the iForce Max.

 

Yeah, I know what the Toyota information says. I don’t think it’s right, but we’ll have to wait until someone actually tests this out in a Tundra hybrid. My reasoning is this:

• F150 hybrid can hold 50 mph in electric only on flat road
• F150 hybrid electric motor spec is identical to the Tundra hybrid motor spec (both 36 kW)
• Tundra is heavier but not by much so will require similar driving torque to keep a constant speed on flat road

I don’t see any reason why the electric only cruising speed can’t be 30 or 40 mph.
In this video at 5:00 we can see the speed is ~23 mph and the tach is at ~1200 rpm. A few seconds later the tach needle disappears and goes to 0 rpm, meaning electric only driving, and he keeps cruising around 23 mph. https://youtu.be/QjztMrF3mUs

 

Here is F150 hybrid driving in electric at 30 mph (2:35 minute mark) https://youtu.be/XmkvIaVyBAM

 

I don't know what to tell you other than that is what Toyota is saying. They can lock it down to 0-18 on the computer even if the motor is capable of doing more. Also, the video is a pre-production Tundra. In any case, 3 more days and we will know for sure

 

In 3 days we'll have the EPA numbers... finally!... then another typical wait for "real world" MPG data to trickle in as testers and eventually customers get their hands on. More data is good but it'll be awhile for the final answer.

 

FWIW….Spoke to My Salesman today. He just returned from Tundra Training. Wouldn’t say Hybrid MPG, but grinned and hinted EPA will be 25-27? Also Hybrids will be out sooner than expected..“Early March”

 

We will also get pricing on Monday, right?

 

He wouldn’t say when pricing and EPA numbers would be available.. And said the Hybrid option was “Less $” than he expected? Again wouldn’t say $$$.

 

My salesman said 21mpg after his training.
We all find out February 1st

 

i called two dealerships in Orlando and spoke with two different salesman. Both were total guesses but one said 25 combined and one said 28 combined. Also told me hybrid availability not until late spring- early summer.

 

Well, apparently every salesman went to a different training session…

 

None of those dumb asses knows.

 

How do you like a comment more than once?

 

Quote it more than once.

 

LOL... These salesmen aren't the brightest crayons in the desk... and probably didn't even pay attention to the training.

 

Also, anyone who believes a salesman…I have some wonderful beachfront property in Kansas for sale. Call me.

 

LOL... or maybe some nice beachfront on Grand Island Nebraska.

 

Hey, all I 'm saying is that my dealership's Sales Floor Manager emailed those of us that signed up for Tundra updates to say that during their training they were told that the "estimated" value for the iForce Max is "11.2 L/100km combined" (21mpg) vs the gas, which is "12.2 L/100km combined" (19mpg). Obviously 4X4 numbers, but he didn't specify.

I'm not saying that I agree with him. I think we all agree that 21mpg combined is not a great number. Why would he be so keen to share a disappointing number? That said, I wouldn't be surprised if there is some confusion when folks are getting second and third hand information. Some may be quoting city, some highway, some combined, some 4X2, while others could be quoting 4X4 values for either of these scenarios. I'd think that the city 4X2 would provide the highest mpg and the highway 4X4 would provide the lowest.

I will say, that YouTube sensation Steven Welch's 30mpg is f@cking out to lunch IMHO.

 

If Toyota had released a Tundra with the V6 hybrid system that was in the Highlander, maaaaybe 30 mpg was possible but the truck would be shit to drive.

 

Don't know if anyone's seen this yet but...

 

I-Force = gas only
I-Force MAX = Hybrid

 

Highlander hybrid ICE part is a 4 banger. It doesn't share the V-6 with the rest of the Highlander lineup.

 

The previous gen highlander hybrid, changed to a 4 cylinder in 2020.