High gas prices = hypermiling?

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absolutely. It's not as much fun as gunning it, but easier on the wallet. I'm trying to teach my wife how to get better gas mileage. she likes to brake hard and accelerate fast.
 
I have tried to employ some of the techniques discussed by hypermilists. Starting off slower, coasting more, etc... I will not power my truck off on the road and have to worry about how much brakes and stearing I'll have left before I turn it on. And I'm not going to shut off my AC. I also don't support going under the speed limit in order to save gas.
 
Hypermile all you want in the slow lane. BTW-I was following a Prius at 85 MPH yesterday. Doesn't that defeat the purpose of a Prius?
 
I have started to do a few of these things, but most of them are not safe, or very effective anyway. I've started to go 60-65 instead of 70-75 (unless I just got to be there overnight!) I've not noticed a huge improvement in milegae ( I live like 1 mile from work), but it is certainly a much more relaxed and enjoyable trip when I have to go somewhere far away. Now I am no longer picking on my friend for driving like that all these years.

Now, if I could ever see myself gettign by with a small car, I could save some money. But, since my Jeep and Durango are both paid for, and I might need them for pulling my camper or trailer or packing up the family and dogs and maybe the boat... I guess I'll still be driving an SUV for a while...
 
Biggest thing I've changed (manual trans) is RPM. By the time I'm at 35-40 I'm already in 5th gear in the city. Used to never use 5th unless on the highway. Don't downshift to slow down much anymore either.

Rarely on the hwy since i don't need it for work anymore but if I am; it's still 75-80 for me.
 
I've almost always used the cruise control on long trips, set at 75-85 mind you...

Recently I set it on about 71 for back and forth from home to work (32 miles). Doesn't really add more time. So why go any faster?

OK, there was that one night I went 143 mph for a couple of 6-7 miles...but no more...




Hey, I got a Full House post...12112...aces and deuces...
 
I quit driving my tundra months ago.

I bought a 50cc genuine scooter. My commute is 9 miles each way so I don't get on the freeway. $65 a month for the payment, $10 a month for insurance. Bout $20 in gas every month.

I was spending $160 a month in gas just to commute. I actually saved money by buying a scooter. It gets just over 90mpg.
 
I don't hypermile, but I've routinely gotten better than the EPA rating on all of my vehicles. My Civic wagon was rated at 27/34 and I would get 42-44. I would drive around town at 35 in 5th gear. I also ran it for 204,000 miles and replaced the brakes twice.

My Sprinter only gets 26.8, but it's an automatic. Not much you can do there.
 
I really haven't figured out how to hypermile in my 2002 Nissan Frontier. Seeing as how it only gets about 14mpg in town, the best solution is to probably walk my lazy a$$ the mile to work. It gets around 19-20 on the freeway.
 
McKBrew said:
I really haven't figured out how to hypermile in my 2002 Nissan Frontier. Seeing as how it only gets about 14mpg in town, the best solution is to probably walk my lazy a$$ the mile to work. It gets around 19-20 on the freeway.
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No one will like this, but on roads with a passing lane, like the typical 4 lane roads around here I have taken to driving 55 mph. My economy has improved by 25-30%. Its pretty amazing. After getting passed by like 18 gazillion cars you stop noticing other vehicles, its like the road is yours.
 
noisy123 said:
No one will like this, but on roads with a passing lane, like the typical 4 lane roads around here I have taken to driving 55 mph. My economy has improved by 25-30%. Its pretty amazing. After getting passed by like 18 gazillion cars you stop noticing other vehicles, its like the road is yours.
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...if you read the FINE PRINT...most of the mileage ratings they tell you that THEY achieved that mileage at 35 MPH!!!

Who drives that??? :confused::confused:
 
DesertBrew said:
Biggest thing I've changed (manual trans) is RPM. By the time I'm at 35-40 I'm already in 5th gear in the city. Used to never use 5th unless on the highway. Don't downshift to slow down much anymore either.

Rarely on the hwy since i don't need it for work anymore but if I am; it's still 75-80 for me.
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That actually can be bad for milage. You can put a tremendous amount of load on the engine especially if you try to accelerate while in 5th. Its kind of like trying to get going on your 10 speed bike in a really low gear. Sustaining a speed is a different story so long as it isnt too slow.
 
Virtuous said:
That actually can be bad for milage. You can put a tremendous amount of load on the engine especially if you try to accelerate while in 5th. Its kind of like trying to get going on your 10 speed bike in a really low gear. Sustaining a speed is a different story so long as it isnt too slow.
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Yea, I typically go into 5th only after I get to the speed I want to maintain. Which is usually 45 around here on most streets. Basicaly shifting around 2500 rpm
 
I swithed my A/C from 72 degrees to 80 degrees (still comfortable) and I went from 32 mpg to 38.5 mpg.

Forrest
 
I've got to question that. Your AC compressor on your car spins at the same speed and absorbs the same amount of your engines power regardless of what your temp is set at. It doesn't cycle on and off like the compressor at home. It runs as long as your AC is turned on. The temp setting operates a "blend door" that controls the amount of cool air vs. warm air that enters the cabin. I can't see how your cabin temp would make a difference in your MPG at all.

Maybe I'm druck and need to go to bed, but I'm thinking you have another major variable that entered the picture around the same time you noticed your MPG increase.
 
Many of those techniques border on dangerous and, at a minimum, are discourteous. So, if you save a few gallons of gas per month at the cost of decreased safety and increased accidents, is your tactic effective?

I'll agree that there's a lot to be said for driving without a lead foot, but there's no need to start driving like an a$$hole or turning the engine off while the vehicle is at speed.
 
bgrubb7 said:
I've got to question that. Your AC compressor on your car spins at the same speed and absorbs the same amount of your engines power regardless of what your temp is set at. It doesn't cycle on and off like the compressor at home. It runs as long as your AC is turned on. The temp setting operates a "blend door" that controls the amount of cool air vs. warm air that enters the cabin. I can't see how your cabin temp would make a difference in your MPG at all.

Maybe I'm druck and need to go to bed, but I'm thinking you have another major variable that entered the picture around the same time you noticed your MPG increase.
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Actually a clutch engages when the AC is needed-so yes,you can save gas by not using the AC in your car. Similarly,if you have a high powered stereo or light package,you'll reduce the amount of load your alternator has by not using those items. All the accessories on an engine are parasitic by design.
 
Yes, you will save some gas by not using the AC at all. But if the AC is turned on, the clutch is engaged, thus robbing power regardless of what the temp is set at. I just wouldn't think that raising the air temperature would make a difference at all, since even at a higher temp setting, the compressor is still engaged.
 
bgrubb7 said:
Yes, you will save some gas by not using the AC at all. But if the AC is turned on, the clutch is engaged, thus robbing power regardless of what the temp is set at. I just wouldn't think that raising the air temperature would make a difference at all, since even at a higher temp setting, the compressor is still engaged.
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Once the thermostat in the car has reached what ever temp you have it set to the compressor is turned off. When the AC system is on the compressor runs to maintain a pressure in the system. Basically it turns on when the high side pressure gets too low and then off when it gets too high. But if you set the car to 80 versus 72 then the compressor does not need to run longer to cool the car an additional 80 degrees. it isnt any different than your home AC. but instead of paying for electricity it costs gas.
 
I'll probably burn in eco-hell, but...No. My car is way to fun car to be "hypermiling" (Audi RS4). Besides, since it's a new car it's current value is pretty much freefalling - a saved gallon here and there is marginal at best (economically, that is...).

So, at the end of the day I just think "f**k it" and floor it at least a couple of times a week...

H
 
My wife and I were just having a discussion about fuel mileage the today. In her car (99 VW Beetle) She averages about 24 MPG. We took a trip to the NC Mountains on July fourth. I was driving and I got almost 27 MPG. And that was mountain driving. My wife is a very slow driver but she takes off like somebody dropped the green.
 
My son was telling me that he saw on TV a story that turning off the AC can actually hurt fuel mileage. In some cars, opening the windows increases wind drag enough to negate any gas savings that turning of the AC achieves. I guess it depends on the shape of the car and aerodynamics.
 
kornbread said:
My wife and I were just having a discussion about fuel mileage the today. In her car (99 VW Beetle) She averages about 24 MPG. We took a trip to the NC Mountains on July fourth. I was driving and I got almost 27 MPG. And that was mountain driving. My wife is a very slow driver but she takes off like somebody dropped the green.
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A friend of mine works with engine development and I think I recall him saying that if it's a "suction otto engine" (non supercharged gas engine) it will get the highest efficiency when it is giving max tourque (basically flooring it). So it's not the accelerating hard that is uneconomic, it's the breaking that kills the efficiency.

The most economic scheme to run an otto motor is to floor it and then turn off the engine and let it roll to a near stop, floor it again and so on (that's how the Prius works -it uses the "left over" torque to recharge the batteries).

Oh, btw, do NOT try this on an ordinary car if you're not absolutely sure what you're doing:

A couple of years a Swedish guy decided to try this out but when he shut down the engine at top speed he accidently removed the ignition key and the steering wheel lock kicked in, he crashed and killed him, his wife and two kids...

H
 
Well Iam the A hole thats still doing 95 in a 45, weaving through traffic with reckless abandon, and believe that the shift light must come on to change gears :D


j/k...kinda
 
dirtymike1 said:
Well Iam the A hole thats still doing 95 in a 45, weaving through traffic with reckless abandon, and believe that the shift light must come on to change gears :D


j/k...kinda
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LIAR! You live in NoVa...since when did you drive over 45mph on any road :p

I hypermile awesome...I've been driving stick since the beginning...and I drive like a bat out of hell and I still get 31mpg...hypermiling is gay, driving is so much more fun...and so what eveything costs more...remember 39 cent cheeseburgers at whack arnolds?
 
dirtymike1 said:
Well Iam the A hole thats still doing 95 in a 45, weaving through traffic with reckless abandon, and believe that the shift light must come on to change gears :D
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Oh, you mean like this guy driving to work:



/
H
 
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98EXL said:
is that another turbo busa video? Those rock
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No, I think a "busa" is a bit to bulky and heavy to manouver at these speeds, I beleve he is using an all carbon Suzuki GSX-R1000 (or perhaps a Suzuki GSX-1300R).

What he do is just wrong, dangerous and jeopardizing other's lives, but somehow I just cant deny that just the sound alone maxing out this bike gets the adrenaline going...

H
 

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