Day 2 - North On I-37 (Corpus to San Antonio)

There is a point in time when you sometimes wonder, "What was I thinking?" That question popped into my head around Pleasanton, Texas, this afternoon when the outside temperature gauge on my Prius reached three digits. I have no remorse in scheming up this great ride across our great state, but maybe we should have tweaked the timing a bit and stayed away from summer.

I really should not complain since I was riding in the comfort of a nice air-conditioned hybrid vehicle. My counterpart, however, was driving his Prius in his hypermiling style but with an added twist…no air-conditioning. But as I stated before this is all in the name of science and we continue to realize the benefits of driving one of Toyota’s hybrid models.

After doing several rounds of Corpus Christi TV and newspaper interviews early in the morning we hit the road towards San Antonio about 1:00pm. We said goodbye to the scenic bay views and welcomed a three-hour drive through a sea of nothing. But “nothing” is nice if you enjoy asphalt, yellow striped lines, barbed wire fences, cactus and mile marker signs.

Of the five legs of our Hybrid Tour of Texas, we knew this part was going to be a bit boring. But that was fine as we could concentrate more on testing the mileage and efficiency of the Prius cars Dan Bryant and I are driving. I constantly glanced at the GPS on my iPhone hoping for a decent sized town to stop off for a nice lunch and we did find one…if you consider a Valero truck stop to be “nice.”

We did not have a “crosswind to drag down the coefficient of the wind surface” like we did on Monday. After I deciphered what Dan meant after this statement I predicted we would get a better MPG average as we were going “downwind.” I major in easy speak. Sure enough by the time we reached the Alamo each of us had increased our fuel efficiency.

Dan’s 2nd day average MPG: 69.7
My 2nd day average MPG: 39.9

The increase in numbers from yesterday can be related in part to the wind going in our direction. But I was amazed at the difference of my mindset between yesterday and today’s trips. I found myself concentrating on the car’s functionality on the road during the first day. My thoughts and eyes wandered from the colorful dashboard display that shows the current energy displacement (engine or battery) to how hard my foot was pressing on the gas pedal.

Round 2 of my trip found my habits to be the similar to my driving style I have had for years. Like most drivers I don’t normally think about the energy displacement, cold starts or coasting to red lights. So while I forgot I was driving a high-tech automobile I was still getting the benefits of the hybrid synergy drive. In fact, I got a bit better mileage out of the gas tank today.

Dan’s hypermiling tips can be used by any driver in any car and I should probably look them over again as we continue to Austin, Dallas and Houston. Dan’s phenomenal MPG numbers are impressive but I estimate my stats could be improved by 10-15% had I not been caring extra weight in my Prius including a passenger, heavy luggage, camera gear and that all-import ice chest.

After all, when the temperature hits 100 degrees I find myself drinking a lot more water than the Prius sips gas.

Tomorrow: Our shortest hop. An easy 80 miles jaunt up to Austin. Hope you 're at home, Governor Perry, because we're knocking on your door with our own tips on fuel efficiency.


Hybrid Tour of Texas - San Antonio from Michael Garfield on Vimeo.