Best Ways To Maximize Fuel Economy In Your Toyota Hybrid

Toyota Hybrids are, far and away, some of the best vehicles that have ever been sold. Since the first Prius Hybrid model that Toyota sold in America in 2001, it’s been a race for everyone to keep up. Currently, Toyota produces almost their entire vehicle lineup as Hybrid models. In fact, it would take you less time to name the cars they don’t make as a Hybrid. Fourteen, by the way. That’s how many Hybrid cars Toyota makes. 

All Toyota Hybrids have the ability to change the driving mode, and one of those modes is EV mode or standard Eco mode. 

A New Internal Study

Recently, Toyota took it upon themselves to run a little science experiment. From April 19 to the 23 of 2023, they asked employees and their family members driving 2,000 corporate-owned Toyota Hybrids to engage either EV mode or Eco mode for every drive that they took. The results of this internal test were interesting, and of those 2,000 vehicles, they covered 483,000 total miles. 

Scientists then took those results and compared them to data they had collected of daily driven vehicles they had from before the new project. This helped them to understand the differences in efficiency for each mode. 

There Can Only Be One

According to the results of the study, one of those modes was 4% more efficient and cut the amount of CO2 the vehicle produced. Non-Hybrid cars using the Eco mode were 26% more efficient overall. 

So which one actually helped the Hybrid cars gain a 4% efficiency increase with a decrease in CO2 emissions? Standard Eco mode. 

Eco Mode

When in Eco mode, a Toyota Hybrid is changing the sensitivity of the throttle and, according to the owner’s manual on the RAV4 Prime, “more smoothly generating torque in response to accelerator pedal operations … and restraining air conditioning system operations (heating and cooling).” 

Depending on the vehicle you have purchased, you may have to manually select Eco mode, while in others, it is the default mode the vehicle uses when you start it. 

EV Mode

So then, why do Toyota Hybrid vehicles have an EV mode, too, if it is less efficient? Well, to put it simply, that mode is specifically designed to decide, using various parameters and data maps, when to use the gas motor or when to use only the electric motor. A Toyota Hybrid has been created specifically to be incredibly efficient as it sits in its standard Eco mode. 
When asked why this is, Toyota spokesperson Jacob Brown said, “EV mode is not specifically designed for fuel efficiency. The vehicle can be driven in residential areas or indoor parking lots early in the morning or late at night without worrying about noise or exhaust emissions.”

At Valley Hi Toyota, we have a wide selection of Hybrid and non-Hybrid Toyota vehicles. We have hundreds of new and pre-owned vehicles for you to choose from. Our talented sales team will work hard to put you in the right car at the right price. And our amazing service department will always be ready to take care of you and keep your vehicle in the best possible condition. We look forward to seeing you soon. 

Tags: Corolla, efficiency, hybrids, informative, Prius, rav4
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