[Traveling]

Our exact mileage for our trip was 38.95 miles per gallon. Here is some details for how that was determined.

Clearly we quickly exhausted our electric capability early (43 miles into the trip), and the remaining 1,750 miles were all gasoline. We were motoring briskly on many interstates — some with 80 MPH speed limits which yes we routine exceeded by an average of about 5 MPH, then went into the Grand Teton Mountains of Wyoming. On part of our trip we were going up and down 10% grades, and many others 5% and above grades. Our RAV4 was flawless (though yes the ”booming exhaust” is not pleasant when floored going up steep mountains roads — in fact downright unpleasant). All the roads were paved which we were on except probably a total of 20 miles which were gravel. Two more major factors about the mileage on our trip and that is it was very, very windy the entire trip and second it was at times not just hot but quite a bit in the 100 degree range —peaking at 112. Our AC was on about 85% of the entire trip, quite a few hours on absolute max.

Considering the R4P is a 4,350 pound AWD vehicle (BTW ours is an XSE with 19” tires/wheels), before we added our own luggage, traveling and safety gear, we are thrilled with its mileage. For those ”exact-ist’s” who want to precisely know how we calculated our mileage, it was taken by the total miles from our home to the far end of the trip (Grand Tetons) and then home. Gasoline was determined by average when we got home every single gas fill receipt (each one providing the gallonage to the third decimal place e.g., one fill up was 7.856 gallons. As to mileage accuracy it was checked several different times comparing the miles on the interstate signs (such 246 miles from where this sign is to city “X”), was additionally compared to the mileage listed from our Mapquest print outs we started home with — which in the end was between a 1 mile and 2 mile deviation from our course the third measurement being our odometer (again out of the trip‘s total of 1,793 miles.

A key variant one must consider is that we were not on OEM tires, but you can see that there was/is little difference between the stock Yokohama Avid GT’s which I replaced at 100 miles, with their having 716 revolutions per mile and my IMO super excellent Michelin CrossClimate 2’s which are 713 revs per mile. This should put to rest the fears I saw in another post that the latter CC2’s replacement tires would eat up the miles per gallon. And of course for all who have researched the CrossClimate 2’s, you already know that in tens of ways they are a far superior tire (understatement), For those who are still considering getting replacement tires but have not yet seen this linked thread on the CC2’s, here you go.

Initial Review Of Michelin’s Cross Climate 2s (Comparing...

Initial Review of Michelin CrossClimate 2’ Here are my two-week-in thoughts. I am comparing them to the Yokohama Avid GTs that came with our R4P. As we have an XSE, our tires are 235/55/19’s. Advantages: Yokohama Avid GT’: A small amount quieter: Not much but a little amount. The...

www.rav4world.com

Lastly, our current mileage as it now sits in the garage and is being charged up for the first time since we left home to start our trip, is 5,418 miles. Considering that AAA states that vehicle fuel mileage on a ICE increases until its maximum average on all vehicles is obtained about 15,000 miles, and considering that even with this trip our RAV4 only has about 3,500 miles ICE usage, our RAV4’s gas mileage still has has plenty of ICE mileage break-in — and probably better gas mileage coming from it yet for many more thousands of miles.

Since day 1 we have been thrilled with “Sparky” — and this trip’s mileage, comfort and practicality further confirmed why we continue to have a crush on it.

 

[ColoradoPrimeTime]

Awesome post, thank you for sharing!

I have also been eyeing the CC2s (“Optimus” is still on its crappy stock tires) but my only concern was mileage impact. You just sealed the deal for me! Now if only to find a deal on the CC2s…

 

[Primestraw]

Our exact mileage for our trip was 38.95 miles per gallon. Here is some details for how that was determined.

Clearly we quickly exhausted our electric capability early (43 miles into the trip), and the remaining 1,750 miles were all gasoline. We were motoring briskly on many interstates — some with 80 MPH speed limits which yes we routine exceeded by an average of about 5 MPH, then went into the Grand Teton Mountains of Wyoming. On part of our trip we were going up and down 10% grades, and many others 5% and above grades. Our RAV4 was flawless (though yes the ”booming exhaust” is not pleasant when floored going up steep mountains roads — in fact downright unpleasant). All the roads were paved which we were on except probably a total of 20 miles which were gravel. Two more major factors about the mileage on our trip and that is it was very, very windy the entire trip and second it was at times not just hot but quite a bit in the 100 degree range —peaking at 112. Our AC was on about 85% of the entire trip, quite a few hours on absolute max.

Considering the R4P is a 4,350 pound AWD vehicle (BTW ours is an XSE with 19” tires/wheels), before we added our own luggage, traveling and safety gear, we are thrilled with its mileage. For those ”exact-ist’s” who want to precisely know how we calculated our mileage, it was taken by the total miles from our home to the far end of the trip (Grand Tetons) and then home. Gasoline was determined by average when we got home every single gas fill receipt (each one providing the gallonage to the third decimal place e.g., one fill up was 7.856 gallons. As to mileage accuracy it was checked several different times comparing the miles on the interstate signs (such 246 miles from where this sign is to city “X”), was additionally compared to the mileage listed from our Mapquest print outs we started home with — which in the end was between a 1 mile and 2 mile deviation from our course the third measurement being our odometer (again out of the trip‘s total of 1,793 miles.

A key variant one must consider is that we were not on OEM tires, but you can see that there was/is little difference between the stock Yokohama Avid GT’s which I replaced at 100 miles, with their having 716 revolutions per mile and my IMO super excellent Michelin CrossClimate 2’s which are 713 revs per mile. This should put to rest the fears I saw in another post that the latter CC2’s replacement tires would eat up the miles per gallon. And of course for all who have researched the CrossClimate 2’s, you already know that in tens of ways they are a far superior tire (understatement), For those who are still considering getting replacement tires but have not yet seen this linked thread on the CC2’s, here you go.

Initial Review Of Michelin’s Cross Climate 2s (Comparing...

Initial Review of Michelin CrossClimate 2’ Here are my two-week-in thoughts. I am comparing them to the Yokohama Avid GTs that came with our R4P. As we have an XSE, our tires are 235/55/19’s. Advantages: Yokohama Avid GT’: A small amount quieter: Not much but a little amount. The...

www.rav4world.com

Lastly, our current mileage as it now sits in the garage and is being charged up for the first time since we left home to start our trip, is 5,418 miles. Considering that AAA states that vehicle fuel mileage on a ICE increases until its maximum average on all vehicles is obtained about 15,000 miles, and considering that even with this trip our RAV4 only has about 3,500 miles ICE usage, our RAV4’s gas mileage still has has plenty of ICE mileage break-in — and probably better gas mileage coming from it yet for many more thousands of miles.

Since day 1 we have been thrilled with “Sparky” — and this trip’s mileage, comfort and practicality further confirmed why we continue to have a crush on it.

I gather it was MPG's not MPH's right????? We still like you guys. It would have been a very sloooow trip.

 

[ColoradoPrimeTime]

I’ve been thinking about road tripping from Denver to see my friend in Chicago (1,000 miles exactly) and was pretty amazed to realize that I’d only have to stop for gas one time along the way. What a great car <3

 

[surfstar]

Curious what the "computer" said your HV mpg was? Hopefully it isn't overly optimistic by more than a couple %...

 

[NoelinColorado]

Our RAV4 was flawless (though yes the ”booming exhaust” is not pleasant when floored going up steep mountains roads — in fact downright unpleasant).

A key variant one must consider is that we were not on OEM tires, but you can see that there was/is little difference between the stock Yokohama Avid GT’s which I replaced at 100 miles

What's 'booming exhaust' and what did you do the w/ 4 brand new tires you removed? That just sounds bizarre unless you were able to sell them for a decent price. To recoup the cost/value of those would be impossible to justify it would seem.

 

[hopes2]

After driving with the stock tires and now the CC2s it's money well spent. IMHO tires are not the place to look if you want to save money.

 

[northwoodshyun]

After driving with the stock tires and now the CC2s it's money well spent. IMHO tires are not the place to look if you want to save money.

Penny wise and pound foolish. Tires affect safety thus it is not worth it to save a few bucks for your life.

 

[Traveling]

Exactly as hopes2 posted. My safety and my family’s is far more important than keeping tires I had zero faith in. Also the CC2’s have better than twice the life expectancy of the Avid GT’s. Also I did get a modest amount of trade in.

The harsh sound of the RAV4’s motor is so noticeable when one is going up a steep grade and the engine while able to keep up the speed we wanted, was working its ass off to do so.

 

[Traveling]

Curious what the "computer" said your HV mpg was? Hopefully it isn't overly optimistic by more than a couple %...

When I filled up the amount of gas it took was way less than I expected based on the HV gauge of mileage left — and this was true on every single tank.

And that is one reason why I never accept as accurate the fuel mileage based on what the car tells me, only relying on actual gallons of fuel put into the tank (and to three decimal places) and the actual road-covered miles (verified by at least two sources to insure my odometer was/is correct).

In computing mileage I am far from a trusting sole, as far as to believing what the car along tells me. And by the way, this is true of every single vehicle of every brand I have ever owned, that the OEM’s telling me my mileage is not something that I trust nor turns out to be closely accurate either.

I love the old saying TRUST AND VERIFY.

 

[RussC]

Exactly as hopes2 posted. My safety and my family’s is far more important than keeping tires I had zero faith in. Also the CC2’s have better than twice the life expectancy of the Avid GT’s. Also I did get a modest amount of trade in.

The harsh sound of the RAV4’s motor is so noticeable when one is going up a steep grade and the engine while able to keep up the speed we wanted, was working its ass off to do so.

Traveling,

I think the Prime is quiet and a smooth transition between EV and ICE compared to our Ray 4 Hybrid 2019 which we just sold for a second Prime.

I felt like there was more engine growl from the hybrid and the ICE worked more with our hybrid vs our Prime when in HV mode accelerating.

Congratulations on 39 mpg on your road trip.

We went to Death Valley National Park in March and averaged 34 mpg over 1,500 miles between Northern Utah and Death Valley National Park.

What I found interesting entering the decent into Death Valley on the East entrance coming from Nevada we added 9 miles of EV range when we hit the bottom.

 

[Traveling]

Thank you. I have nothing to compare our R4P with. And again it was loud going up 5% and greater mountain grades.

 

[RussC]

Thank you. I have nothing to compare our R4P with. And again it was loud going up 5% and greater mountain grades.

Beautiful country you experienced. Amazing you got 39 mpg.

I did quick math from Mesquite NV to our home in Kaysville Utah is 359 miles and I blew through one tank of gas and drove way past 0 DTE

359/14 gallons is 25 mpg.

We did climb from 1,500 ft to 4,400 ft above sea level and I drove 85 mph to 90 mph most of the drive snd there may have been a wind.

I love the power in the RAV 4 passing semi trailers.

I can get our Rav 4 to 105 mph from the time I lane change to pass a semi and clear the front of the semi trailer.

There is a lot of semi trailers between Nevada and Southern Utah on I-15 and a lot of the drive is just two lane interstate and Utah does not have the rules like California where semi trailers must stay in the right lane.

Drives me nuts when a semi will pull into the left lane when you are trying to pass and slow you down. That is why I love the quick acceleration passing semi trailers before they can think about cutting you off.

 

[northwoodshyun]

@Traveling a super nice review! How do you get less Revolutions per mile with CC2 than Yokohama since the size is identical? Don’t they have identical diameter?

 

[NoelinColorado]

Exactly as hopes2 posted. My safety and my family’s is far more important than keeping tires I had zero faith in.

Zero faith just seems massively over the top unless you're literally racing your R4P. Maybe people are but having owned 2 hybrids and being an avid motorcyclist I drive and ride in order to get decent fuel economy and avoid collisions and would never want to depend the slightest on the rather small difference between the best street tires and the stock tires to improve 'safety'. As asked, what happened to the brand new tires, donated, or was there trade in value? I have the same tires on our 2015 Forester and they're totally fine on that car, but again I drive with safety in mind always, which of course means fully respecting conditions and traffic. Riding a motorcycle has taught me to be a far better car driver.

 

[Z06]

Drove 468 miles from TN to Maryland to pickup our second RAV4P. Driving our 2020 RAV 4 Hybrid. All Interstate at 80 to 85 MPH. Got 42.3 MPG. Trip back with new car at 65 to 80 got 37.2. There was no battery charge when I picked up the new one so Hybird mode all the way back. Did a 300 mile trip last weekend to swap the older Prime with the Hybird trade and saw close to same results between the two cars. The Hybird seems to do about 10% better in just Hybrid mode than the two Primes we have.

 

[David AA]

When I filled up the amount of gas it took was way less than I expected based on the HV gauge of mileage left — and this was true on every single tank.

And that is one reason why I never accept as accurate the fuel mileage based on what the car tells me, only relying on actual gallons of fuel put into the tank (and to three decimal places) and the actual road-covered miles (verified by at least two sources to insure my odometer was/is correct).

In computing mileage I am far from a trusting sole, as far as to believing what the car along tells me. And by the way, this is true of every single vehicle of every brand I have ever owned, that the OEM’s telling me my mileage is not something that I trust nor turns out to be closely accurate either.

I love the old saying TRUST AND VERIFY.

Yes, the safety on the gauge is extreme. We have a new Prime SE. currently doing 3 trips a week, 120 miles round trip driving, two thirds HV mode on highway, one third EV mode city -country road. ( Charging between trips of course.). So after 700 miles the gauge read right in between the E and the first 1/4 mark, so 1/8th of a tank. We went to fill it up and it clicked on full at 10.1 gallons. Topped off at 10.4. ( So 67 mpg combined ev and hybrid)
Driving at 70 mph on highway.
So we still had 3.5 gallons at the 1/8th point on the gauge, and could have gone over 200 more miles with a new charge. ( Getting 48 miles EV per full charge) So some of the highway is ev only as we use all the ev each trip. 900 plus miles each tank; very pleased.

 

[Traveling]

@Traveling a super nice review! How do you get less Revolutions per mile with CC2 than Yokohama since the size is identical? Don’t they have identical diameter?

Guess in one place TireRack rounded them identically to their diameters being equal in terms of “tenths of an inch” but when on looks up the technical specs on each on that same TireRack.com site, one is 716 whereas the other is 713.

 

[Traveling]

I was thinking further as to how come some as finding that the CC2’s are getting one electric mile or two less range with their CC2’s when they converted to from the Yokohama’s Avid GT’s while no difference that I can compute on my long round trip.

The answer came to me that it is weight, that the CC2’s weigh more. That because of getting the great mass up to speed requires more force, but when one is rolling along hour after hour at interstate speeds and country curvy road speeds that there is no greater force required to get the heavier CC2’s up to speed, e..g, resistance from a stop to rolling along is not block to block from stop light to stop light. To me the benefits of the CC2’s far outweighs the slight electric range lost, but as they say your priorities may vary.

I prefer better handling, better safety, more than twice the tire wear mileage and such things….

 

[NoelinColorado]

...twice the tire wear mileage and such things….

I had just purchased a of CC2 for our Forester primarily for its alledged superior behavior in snow and I'm pretty sure the tread wear rating was 60K miles, whereas Avid Ascend GT is at 65K. We had no trouble in snow in that car w/ Avid Ascend prior version but as the car needs tires and we're selling the car to our daughter we though we should upgrade it snow handling to hopefully save her from doing snow tires specifically. Real world tests indicate the CC2 is closer to its rated spec, but twice the stock tires? Where did that come from if you will?