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How to drive more efficiently

11K views 46 replies 5 participants last post by  Old Mechanic 
#1 ·
I see this section of the forum is almost dead, but reading about what members get for mileage on the newer cars, I thought it might be a good idea to discuss the strategy of driving for great mileage.
You don't have to ride down the road with your engine shut off to get very good fuel mileage although I do. Basic techniques can provide a very nice reward and if you get into it the strategies are safer, easier on brakes and tires and generally keep you car in better shape for longer.

I went to the drive in at Wendy's today with my 94 year old mother, who needed a break from Pop, her husband of 73 years. She asked me when was the last time I went to the drive in window. "At least 20 years if I was driving". Park walk in and eat, then leave , no idling. We did not do that today, but I stopped and restarted the engine and did not idle.

Avoid idling your engine. I told my neighbor. I can drive at 40 MPH and get 80 MPG on the gas you use sitting there idling your V8 pickup (.5 gal per hour), which is true. I average 40 MPH at 80 MPG in two different cars. Even better without having to deal with traffic.

Red lights, slow down, unless you can go through the light without slowing down after it turns green. Try timing lights if you commute, this MEANS you reach the light when the traffic is now moving without getting nailed by a stale green light if you approach to slow. Your objective is to go through the light at the highest speed possible safely.

Never waste your momentum, get going with the normal flow of traffic, but always try to avoid throwing your momentum away. It calls for real situational awareness. Be a smooth operator without sudden acceleration or deceleration. I slow down so gradually when the light is red that people fly around me and race to the red light, with traffic already there. STUPID, was energy speeding to the light then destroy your brakes throwing away that energy, as well as sometimes blocking me from going through the green light a few seconds later. THANKS DUMBASS. I once passed the same car 5 times in 5 miles, they raced off the light after I COASTED PAST THEM WITH MY ENGINE OFF, only to slam on the brakes again, rinse and repeat ad stupidium. I once drove through 62 traffic lights in 45 miles and never completely stopped for a single one!!!!!!!!!! You had to average 2 mph OVER the speed limit to do that, not slow at all, and no one got there faster. They just got themselves jammed up at the next red light, while I never missed the greens.

Take advantage of hills. Driving through the college town of Williamsburg yesterday, I was coasting almost 75% of the time. I can do that with my engine off because my car drives fine without power steering or brakes, but you can do almost as good by just letting off the gas. Here is why:

When you car is coasting, above idle speed, the fuel injectors are shut off and no fuel is delivered, AS LONG AS YOU HAVE YOUR FOOT OFF THE GAS, YOU USE NO FUEL WHEN YOU ARE MOVING.

If you drive in heavy traffic, then find a drafting partner. At 70 MPH simple sitting behind a larger vehicle with a t least 3 stripes separation (130 feet and safe) you will get 5-10 more MPG than alone pushing your way through the wind. It's called the corridor effect, when average separation gets down to 3 stripes or less and you have no choice but driving that route, take advantage of the corridor effect. For me it's good for 10 MPG.

Always try to NOT create issues for other drivers near you. The worst possible scenario is a group of idiots following too close to each other and hitting the brakes every time someone changes lane (on interstates and other major highways). Back off a little and find the true AVERAGE speed of the traffic and let the morons get in front of you where you can keep an eye on them but at a decent distance.

I'll post more if I can remember all that crap.

Basically ANITCIPATE traffic issues, maintain your momentum SAFELY and let the idiots get in front, just pass them when they crash and go about your business.
 
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#2 ·
 
#3 ·
I think the term hypermiler, coined by one person long after the techniques were developed, has earned a bad reputation which makes many people leery of the techniques some use, myself included. Looking at videos helps people understand that efficient driving at all levels is engaged driving, using situational awareness to avoid situations where accidents typically occur. It amazes me how accident videos show the drivers actually taking the video are contributors to the accident.

I know I could be involved in an accident daily if that was the objective. Just today I see a driver tailgating me and the speed limit is 55, still being tailgated at 65 plus and I need to be in the left lane to turn in .5 mile. My speed increase or pulse gets me separation and the resulting glide allows the tailgater to pass me on the right and get ahead of me just in time to move over again to my lane to not be next to a cop with lights on. My actions and anticipation, even without slowing down to the speed limit, made the whole sequence of events move along smoothly, made my left turn without even having to stop for the light and the tailgater probably thought it was her skills that got her in front. I don't really care as long as I didn't have to pick her teeth out of my rear bumper. .Last speeding ticket for me was the week Princess Diana died, don't need any more. If I drive over the limit I always try to have a bird dog driving faster in front of me.

Accelerating at the normal pace of traffic is actually the best rate, which also promotes blending in with traffic versus standing out like lots off "hypermilers" do when they ignore other drivers in proximity to themselves. Today I was driving down I64 east to help out my parents and I hit 55 MPG using a technique I call pulse drafting behind larger vehicles. coming back I was actually moving forward in traffic since people were driving too slow for the traffic light timing, on route 17, six lanes at 45 mph and you have to average 47 to stay in the green light window, I caught 10 lights in a row green with the last one by just a second and that really improves you mileage, did 50 miles total at 55 MPG in conditions that would typically put you below EPA city mileage, almost 20 MPG lower than what I got today.

Dong that safely in congestion takes some effort and understanding of how it is done, thus this thread. Maxing out my mileage gets me 120+ MPG. Hypermiling on public roads in traffic is inconsiderate driving. The techniques I am trying to describe accomplish neither extreme fuel mileage nor extreme traffic disruption as the examples given today demonstrate. Maybe when they perfect self driving cars that can incorporate some of the strategies here, who knows?
 
#4 · (Edited)
Using a decades worth of experience today on a road that has no traffic or other obstacles. Started reset my gauge and drove around 3 miles to the other end and stopped at the same speed I started at. This is in my 2015 Mirage with a 74HP 3 cylinder engine, 5 passenger sedan. 119.9 MPG. I have a photo but am having trouble (of friggin course) downloading it here. GOT IT. Pulse to 35-40, glide down to 25, bump start and repeat, taking advantage of any downslopes, pulsing on uphill grades, small elevation changes (20 feet). Got 117 coming back on the same route. EPA rating on the Mirage is 42 highway, so almost 3 times the highway rating for mileage. Engine was running about 20% of the time vehicle was in motion, if that. This is absolutely an extreme example of "hypermiling", Wayne Gerdes" 4 decades late term for ultra high efficiency driving. Average speed close to the same as EPA city average speed.
Last tank average was 52.5 MPG every mile then refilled, miles/gallons. The gauge you see was reading 52.7, actual was 52.5 so reading is very close to actual mileage. Going at a slower (than 30MPH) average speed would get even higher mileage.
 

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#5 ·
PZEV+partial zero emissions vehicle, basically this type of car or truck, shuts off all fuel when you take you foot off the gas. When combined with modern automatic transmissions you can actually come close to coasting in neutral in a manual equipped car, with the engine off. Whenever you are forced to slow down and loose the precious inertia you spent fuel obtaining, always coast for the longest time you can when approaching a red light or a stop sign, or for that matter any situation where you HAVE to slow down. If you have an instant fuel economy try this a get that graph to the full maximum by letting off the gas pedal completely.
Most modern transmissions in higher gears coasting will allow you to "coast" for a very long distance. Example is my car on flat ground in neutral (engine off for me leave it on with an auto) will coast a mile.
Waiting until the last second and applying lots of brakes, is one of the most wasteful things you can do. Coasting downhill can also give you infinite MPG if you can let off the gas completely, even if you slow down a little or not on a downhill glide in either case you should see infinite MPG, which can make a big difference in average MPG.
Of course everything must work with traffic. Never create and obstruction to the flow of traffic, there are always better options and it's dangerous.
If I follow a larger vehicle, particularly a truck at a reasonable distance, it can improve your fuel economy by 15-20%. Not close enough to be dangerous, about 3 stripes (129 feet) is good separation. In traffic around here it can be much less than that, had some woman 20 feet of my back bumper today, going 5 over the limit. I don't like that especially when there is no more distance in front of me. Sometimes when this happens I just speed up and do "mini" coasts that frustrates a tailgater but also gives you some separation between vehicles.
 
#6 · (Edited)
I once drove 45 miles through 60+ traffic lights and never had to stop for a single light. That's rare but it reflects a part of the technique of driving efficiently. I physically get mad at traffic lights that nail me and make me slam on the brakes. On routes you drive that are familiar. make a mental note about the light timing. Adjust your speed approaching the light, know when your red light is going to turn green with the objective being, to not have to slow down at all when you go through the light. This is where most drivers fail miserably, with the worst being those who race to the light to get past you and then slam on the brakes in some stupid "get there first competition". One time I passed the same pair of cars at 5 different lights in sequence. They two took off when the light turned green, while I coasted ast them IN NEUTRAL WITH MY ENGINE OFF. THEY CAME FLYING BY ME AT 20 OVER THE SPEED LIMIT ONLY TO GET JAMMED UP BY THE NEXT LIGHT. While the imbecile show is playing, I am pulsing and coasting in neutral with my mileage climbing above 52 MPG, while theirs is in single digits just because they drive like idiots. The road is one I have driven so long I know my target speed is 47 MPH, 2 mph ABOVE the limit, so that is what I am averaging, for those who think I'm driving slow. Coming in to my neighborhood I make the initial turn at 27 mph so I can coast the last .3 mile with no engine help, just inertia. The last coast is a mile long, with the engine no running and using no fuel.
Also, the heavier car has a higher sectional density (more mass behind the same frontal area) which amplifies the coast distance AND CAN ACTUALLY MAKE FUEL MILEAGE BETTER. i CAN GET THE SAME OR BETTER MILEAGE WITH MORE PASSENGERS ON THE HIGHWAY.
Modern cars almost always have some form of fuel economy gauge, in some cases both aN instant and average. Carefully monitoring the instant reading will show you how to do "mini coasts" that are almost imperceptible to traffic around you. I actually find a lot of drivers speeds vary considerably, playing stupid games in traffic. Why not use the technique to get much better mileage. Never "pulse" TO FAST if it makes your transmission downshift, that wastes fuel, always accelerate at a rate that avoids downshifting, keeping your RPM at the lowest possible speed, staying in the highest possible gear.
It's possible to get your average mileage 25% above EPA highway ratings in an auto transmission car using these techniques. I averaged 56 MPG in my Mirage for 30,000 miles. Cost $1000 for fuel to travel that distance, cheaper than a Tesla.
3.3 cents a mile. Compare that to a Suburban at 15 MPG average and that would cost almost $4000 for the same distance. $9000 more for the same 100k, to say nothing about the difference in total emissions.
 
#7 ·
The MPG picture in a post above was in my Mitsubishi Mirage, bought new. I'll be selling it tomorrow morning to my neighbors step daughter for $5k. I originally bought the Echo to give the Mirage a break so it's 10 year 100k warranty would last. Recent events and the reliability of the Echo have led me to this decision. I'm going to keep the Echo and sell the Mirage, the mileage difference is maybe 2% the way I drive, so the higher insurance and property taxes on the Mirage are history. Still have my Suzuki GZ250 ($600) and the Tacoma ($2500) can carry me through any down time fixing the Echo if the thing ever breaks, closing in on 170k miles, it's got plenty left and I have spares for almost everything you can name, except fuel tank and rear axle. I'll get a MPG reading for my Echo after I transfer the gauge and other stuff this weekend.
Most reliable car I ever owned at close to 20 years age and with the Mini Cooper wheels and 185/60/15 tires the damn thing flies around cloverleafs. Tailgaters are left in the dust when I exit the Interstate on a cloverleaf.
 

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#8 ·
My dad used to suck the mileage right out of my vehicles whenever he borrowed them, and the primary reason was he's one of those "milk the cow" drivers constantly--and uselessly--hitting the accelerator and backing off, hitting the accelerator and backing off. When using my Highlander he'd literally get half the mileage I got in the city. The observations you posted in your first posting in this thread are totally relevant and good advice.
 
#10 ·
One of the first totals I rebuilt was a 77 Accord(first year), hit hard enough in the right front wheel to push the windshield 1/4 the way out of the frame (unibody). The windshield never broke and I reinstalled it with the same gasket. I had to plastic weld the heater box back together. They were selling for something like a grand over sticker. Pop bought it. He had retired at 54 and moved to the Florida Keys, volunteered for the American Cancer Society. He drove that car close to 50 k miles and averaged 40 MPG writing every mile off his taxes. The road in the keys, US1, can get so congested, I've seen people wait 15 minutes to make a left hand turn. I learned to turn right and u-turn when there was a gap in traffic. He drove that car 50k miles and traded it in for $2800 on a Toyota Celica.
In the time he drove that car inflation (Carter era) drove his retirement from $22.5k to $40k. Now 40 years later he makes more than $400 a day for 5 days a week retirement. He recently decided he may live for a few more years so he got his license back. it will expire when he is 103, but even today he is still a better driver than most on the road. He learned over Berlin with 500 88s trying to take him out. His 83 Tbird broke a valve spring, he babied it to the dealership and they fixed it without pulling the head. The tech could not believe it did not bend or break the valve. Pop was just limping home from another mission with a badly shot up plane. He flew home once with a cylinder head completely shot off the Wright Cyclone, 4 hours with the oil pouring out of the engine. Each engine had a 35 gallon oil tank, total loss system. 6 months ago he wanted to die, today he can drive if he wants and I went to verizon and got him a flip phone so he can call or answer when he wants.
We went to eat out and walk around the antique mall today about a 20 mile round trip, 55 MPG, rainy cold, nasty, coasting my ass off lOl.
I never replaced the wheel bearing on the front of that Honda even though it was hit precisely on that wheel and it never failed in another 45k miles.
Amazing!!!!
 
#9 · (Edited)
Well the "sale" of the Mirage was a flop. My neighbors youngest step daughter was supposed to know how to drive a manual. At first I thought it would happen. I generally start with clutch engagement "get the car moving without touching the gas pedal". After 5 tries she nailed it, perfect. Then I asked her to try to get off the line a little faster, total disaster.
She started out letting off the gas and of course got the bucking stall. She comes to a stop and forgets to push the clutch in. I tried to get her to feel the engagement point by holding the car's position on a slight hill, wasn't going to happen.

After an hour and a half I have other people interested in the car and will pursue that, so we will see what happens.
I tried to make it simple and step by step, but soon realized that it had become forgotten step by forgotten step. At least 6 times she never touched the clutch when coming to a stop. How in the hell can this be a driver who can operate a stick, and trying to explain the mechanics of manual trans operation, was like talking to a sunflower.

My step granddaughter using the same technique drove away after an hour and twenty minutes into the worst Friday afternoon rush hour traffic Tidewater has to offer and she called me and apologized for a single sloppy start even though it did not involve a stall in traffic. She has an agile mind and learns very quickly. Compared to that yesterdays effort was an exercise in frustration.

My wife is a superb driver and she averages 31.9 MPG in her Rogue, very close to the highway rating for that car, for every mile she drives. Her tires and brakes last longer than almost any other driver of the same vehicle. The original tires and brake pads still passed inspection at 55k miles when she traded it in. The only criticism is her "situational awareness" is nowhere as high as mine and when I say anything it is about things some distance away from us that need her attention. In her defense she never gets aggressive or does anything to piss off other drivers. She drives perfectly with the flow of traffic and very smoothly. In 30 years she had one accident, gal in front of her pulls out into the road leaving a walmart, the wife pulls up, looks to her left starts out and bumps into the same car at 5 mph, because the driver stopped instead of continuing to accelerate. No ticket just pay for the damages. Ford Tempos total at a few hundred dollars.

Pop always told me, keep the idiots in front of you. I now understand his statement better than ever in my life, but I've changed it a little. "Let the idiots provide you with an aero advantage by going past you and pulling over in front of you then follow them at the same distance they pulled over until they slowly pull away, although some of them loose their courage when they are in front of the crowd and slow down to a lower speed than you were going when they passed, so they get drafted even longer. I now prefer to be the "tail end charlie" to the crowd playing the "i'm going to pass all of you then pull over and slow down". I just sit back at the rear of that stupid rolling circle jerk and get the advantage of a lower aero drag.
 
#11 ·
Thanks for the info on PZEV, have seen that many times at my car auction job and thought it sounded ridiculous... Now it makes sense. But, if it cuts off the fuel when you take your foot off.the gas, how does the engine stay running? Just wondering, thanks.

Also I am wondering since I have noticed turbulence behind semis, that driving with another car between me and the semi is better.
 
#13 ·
The turbulence you are feeling is the result of the air trapped behind the truck interacting with the air passing around the truck. I use rain x and if you get close enough to the back end of a truck the raindrops will actually start going DOWN your windshield TOWARDS the truck in front of you. I use the 3 stripes rule, which is the best balance between benefit and danger. You can go closer and mileage will go even higher, but the danger level grow exponentially. Sometimes I have been in traffic where 3 stripes are not possible or some other driver will pull over in front of you. In the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel there are traffic cameras where you can actually watch the traffic going 55 MPH with barely 3 car lengths separation, 45 feet. Fortunately all traffic in the tunnel is going the same direction.
 
#12 ·
The fuel is shut off when the inertia of the vehicle is making the engine rotate. In my manual it happens when I let off the gas, but I can shift in neutral without the inertia making the engine rotate and turn my engine off, which the Prius does under specific conditions. The newer 8 speed transmissions make it possible to keep the fuel shut off at lower rpm using the taller gearing which allows the vehicle to "coast" further without slowing down as quickly. While that coasting distance is not quite as long as a pure coast in neutral with a manual, it's much closer than it used to be and variable valve timing allows delayed intake valve closing to even further extend in gear coasting distance, by reducing engine braking.
Decelerate Fuel Cut Off also drops emissions to 0 for that period of time since there is no fuel used to create pollution. Thus the PZEV.
I guess you could call my Mirage a MZEV or Mostly Zero Emissions Vehicle. At lower average speeds with the hills here that enhance coasting almost perfectly I can cost almost a mile in many areas. This is where the mileage numbers skyrocket. A 20 MPG pulse followed by a coast of 3 times that distance quadruples the 20 MPG for an 80 MPG average. Lower the average speed and the pulses get shorter.
On a hill where you can coast and gain speed I try to reach the crest of the hill slow enough so the I will not go too fast at the bottom of the hill.
There is a couple of hills here that you can coast like a roller coaster does after it's initial climb. One starts at a light, which you want to go through at 25 MPH, gaining speed at the bottom you are at 45 MPH, which allows you to climb the second lower hill and once again at the bottom you are close to 40 MPH then the speed limit drops as you pass William & Mary College, with the third hill dropping your speed where you need to reengage the engine. I think that sequence may be more than a mile.
I keep my tire pressures at sidewall max which is 44 PSI, never seen center tread wear at that pressure. Remember the same pressure is acting on the tread and both sidewalls of the tire. The balance of force remains the same. You glide further, tires last longer and you mileage goes higher. I have driven on snow and ice and I actually prefer the higher pressures in every situation.
My Mirage is so sensitive to any grade, I have to pay attention when sitting still or it will start rolling. I actually coast past my driveway to a point on the next slight hill, where I can coast back and the down my driveway to my garage, without ever starting the engine for the last mile to my home. I start at a light 1 mile away hit 55 MPH, shut the engine off and coast .7 mile (slight downhill grade) then left turn into my neighborhood, timed to get through oncoming traffic, turn right, turn left, just past my driveway, slow to zero speed and back up the down my 10 foot drop 80 foot driveway and into my garage and stop inches from the exterior wall. I have a piece of cardboard to provide a "scuff area" is I get. The engine has not run since the 55 pulse almost two minutes ago.
 
#14 ·
About warming up your engine. I used to own a 1937 Ford Coupe with original drivetrain and 6 volt system. The engine cranked 100 RPM with the starter, new cars are over 200 RPM. When the car had sat for a while it took about a second to see oil pressure and it got to 60 PSI very quickly with a cold engine. It had a push button for the starter and a key for the ignition, original oil pressure gauge, no oil filter. I never have believed in letting my engine run for any period of time, just start and go, knowing the oil pressure is already at max before I ever move. The lowest hanging fruit in driving efficiently is to eliminate 100% wasting of fuel and letting the engine run until it is warm takes minutes when the thermostat opens and a I get to temp in 2.5 miles driving down the road. When pulse and gliding, the distance to full operating temperature doubles in colder weather. Your cooling system looses 1/3 of the fuels energy, with your exhaust system loosing another 1/3. leaving a 1/3rd to actually move the car and operate all the accessories.
I drove my favorite road last night, so headlights were on coasting (engine off) on a 5 year old original battery. Last time I hit 117 MPG in daytime. This time I had to work harder but managed 100 MPG right on the dot.
As you make the car operate more efficiently that it was designed to operate, You see the cost of running accessories differently when the cost of that is 17% of your potential economy.
I have driven the last few miles down route 143 west at 55 MPH pulsing and coasting with the engine idling during coasts, get home to change the oil. Thinking it would be hot enough to burn my hands, I was surprised to find it not that hot at all, not even close to 120 degree hot tap water. That much cooler oil was due to much higher amounts of energy being used to move the vehicle.
I want to see my gauge hit 128 MPG, which means I am moving a ton of vehicle a mile on one OUNCE of fuel (US measure).
Only one vehicle has done better. A 1965 Honda CUB 50 in original condition, bought it from a seller that intercepted two of the at the DUMP. Paid $200. It did 170 MPG but scary to drive that down a 4 lane 45 MPH road in traffic, just waiting for one cell phone distracted idiot to kill me.
An invitation to other board members. If you are near Williamsburg Va give me a holler and you can see that mileage for yourself.
 
#15 ·
So Old Mechanic, your Pa flew B-17s then? I'll bet he has some interesting stories.

Re: manual transmission fuel economy, when I am coasting in neutral up to a stop, I am getting lower gas use due to RPMs drop from shifting out of gear, right? Just wondering, thx.

Have heard people say coasting in neutral is dangerous... Well so is down-shifting. In both cases you're trying to find a different gear just by feel (coasting though it is only when you want to get back in a gear.)
 
#17 ·
His book is titled "feather merchant", the nose art was donald duck in a zoot suit, swinging a 500 pound bomb on the mother of all watch chains, clipped to the suit jacket i think. "feather merchants" were those who stayed home and went after your girlfriend when you were gone to get yourself killed.

Coasting is the key to efficiency. You use your cars mass as a battery, adding some speed( inertial battery charged), then coasting while you get 100s of MPG, peggs out most instant mileage gauges over on newer cars My Mirage can't comprehend over 100. But it remembers until it drops below that number. On my private road, the first coast goes to 70MPG, then 90, then it will go over 100 and stay there. Best so far is 139.5, but it peaked at 150 before I finished. Total engine run time in 3 miles, maybe 30 seconds TOTAL.

Let me put it this way, no one has EVER slammed into my ass when I was coasting.
 
#18 ·
My CPU keeps crashing, makes posting difficult, so bear with me. Coasting in a manual is one thing, in an auto quite a different thing. I coast in places that some would consider (cpu crashed) dangerous but my under 2k pound car retains its braking and steering abilities far better than most heavier vehicles with more power assist on the brakes and steering. The Echo has manual steering so engine off means nothing changes, except it takes more effort to stop
Coasting properly is better driving and shutting off the engine it better that sitting there with it running and doing nothing. If you drive a light car with a manual you can take coasting to a different level, but manuals are an increasingly rare set of options in newer cars with some categories unavailable like the Ford F150. I find that sad, but it seems like the way we are headed.
Automatic vehicles require a greater situational awareness to achieve better mileage. Acceleration in an auto should always be at the pace of traffic around you. It can be more or less rapid with little effect. My preference is slightly quicker then get it into the highest gear possible. I used to recommend accelerating so you did not delay normal shifting, but these days the ratios are much taller and taking 30 seconds to get to your cruising speed is bad for higher MPG AND it lowers coasting opportunities.Look at it, get to speed quickly is better than get to speed slowly. Driving like granny is the worst way to get good MPG, Briskly getting to your target speed and then getting the revs to the lowest is best, because lower revs means higher load, greater cylinder filling with lowest throttle restriction equals greater efficiency. CPU crapping out badly and repeatedly, so be back later.
 
#21 ·
I've been reading your posts (for a while) and wondering why you would want to sell something that is easy enough to drive to hyper-mile? What is your next "ride" gonna be? Thinking about how long can a starter last starting 20 times a day, unless you let the clutch out in 5th, 6th however many gears it has? I'm reminded of a story my Dad (92) told about a guy back in the 50's that shut his car off at red lights....until it needed a starter.... I'm not giving advice, I know that you have been working at this for years....it's like golf in that you are "playing against" yourself. I get 45.6 on my 2016 TAH Limited, was as high as 46.3 before cold weather. (this by the avg mpg on the dash, on 1200 mile reset, hwy, city, hills...can't be bothered to write fill ups all down. (I know it is a few mpg less in reality) So far it is the best I can do until warm weather comes back. As you know the car starts and runs when it wants, it's like herding cats.

I was looking on fuelly for the Mirage and saw one person at 66mpg, a few 54's, bunch of 48's down to 20mpg...gee how can somebody screw that up so bad??? 3cyls and getting 20mpg...wow
 
#22 ·
Still no crashes on the laptop so it seems like you hit the nail on the head with your diagnosis. 45.6 is fantastic on your highlander, shows real skill. Most of my restarts are bump starts in higher gears. I have done this on numerous cars, for over a decade and not had a starter failure, or any other part. There is an owner on the Mirage forum with over 280k miles on his 2014. It's an interesting read with over 50 oil changes, he drives it about 6k miles a month or more.
The 66 mpg owner lives in florida i think. I used to post there religiously but it got to the point where I had reached a plateau. I can do the mpg in the photo, even hit 139.5 mpg on my favorite road, but not tank to tank in every scenario. Winter hammered me this time, not much better than your highlander. The Mirage was bought new but I was going to hit 100k miles in 6 years so I bought a 2000 Echo and drive it half a year then the Mirage the other half. I can actually get over 100mpg in the Echo not quite what I get in the Mirage but the Mirage insurance taxes and repairs are going to be much higher than the Echo and a I have almost every spare part you can imagine. Its resting in the garage until March 2020.
 
#26 ·
Still no crashes on the laptop so it seems like you hit the nail on the head with your diagnosis. 45.6 is fantastic on your highlander, shows real skill. Most of my restarts are bump starts in higher gears. I have done this on numerous cars, for over a decade and not had a starter failure, or any other part. There is an owner on the Mirage forum with over 280k miles on his 2014. It's an interesting read with over 50 oil changes, he drives it about 6k miles a month or more.
The 66 mpg owner lives in florida i think. I used to post there religiously but it got to the point where I had reached a plateau. I can do the mpg in the photo, even hit 139.5 mpg on my favorite road, but not tank to tank in every scenario. Winter hammered me this time, not much better than your highlander. The Mirage was bought new but I was going to hit 100k miles in 6 years so I bought a 2000 Echo and drive it half a year then the Mirage the other half. I can actually get over 100mpg in the Echo not quite what I get in the Mirage but the Mirage insurance taxes and repairs are going to be much higher than the Echo and a I have almost every spare part you can imagine. Its resting in the garage until March 2020.
2016 TAH Limited= 2016 Toyota Avalon Hybrid Limited....sorry, easy enough to mistake.....car spent a few nights out in the cold instead of the garage....now a little colder yet outside.....mileage slipped to 45.1 mpg. I had thought that I was talking to the ''Jack Nicholas" of hypermiling, and kinda thought that you could be bump starting it, but just trying to see behind the screen in the "Wizard of OZ" as it were, to figure out your hypermiling "tricks". I'm thinking that it is a lot more about knowing your trip (A to B) and learning it like in the movie "Groundhog Day" where Bill Murray spends decades in the "time loop" and "masters" so many of life's skills. With the hybrid cars, the computer only allows so much, as you know. Thanks for the "peak behind the curtain".....
 
#23 · (Edited)
No problem Old Mechanic... What causes the crash (or the extreme slowdown) on the PC is the software trying to save the CPU from being ruined by overheating. I thought you had a tower, not a laptop, those are way more hard to clean out. XD

So the last few comments make me ask another question. I see semis in the winter with part of the front grill blocked off. I also see some Ford pickups out of Canada at my car auction job, with a front grille you don't see in the U.S., that has all these 1/8'' slits in it but other than that, quite a bit blocked off also.

The Ford front grill seems designed for year round, but anyway the question is, can I get better winter MPG by blocking off part of the grille and/or other openings down below the bumper?
 
#28 · (Edited)
When done well the popping of the clutch is almost imperceptible. At 48k miles I have never had to adjust the clutch and can smoothly start out in 1st,2nd and 3rd gear, with the engine idling, no gas pedal. I generally do not bump start at higher speeds, finding the MPG difference is negligible versus engine on coasting with a drafting partner at 3 stripes separation.

Traffic here can get much heavier than that separation and I may reduce that separation so I avoid other drivers merging between us and hitting their brakes to exit.

I use a technique at high speeds called reverse passing where you create opportunities for faster drivers to get by you without even realizing it was an intentional move on my part. A pulse provides separation and the faster driver can move safely past me, versus tailgating and trying to intimidate me into speeding up, or I move behind another vehicle and allow the speeder to get by in the lane I was in before I moved, I only drive with speed oscillations when there are no others behind me, the conga line chain reaction of brake application is VERY DANGEROUS. Smooth operation eliminates that as well as smooth speed when in heavy congestion, I even got out once on the interstate and pushed my Echo in a backup behind an accident (with fatalities) that lasted 3 hours.

The record backup here was 14 miles taking 14 hours when the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel (1957) sprung a leak.

Virginia had a law against coasting in neutral going back to the 1930's when Plymouth had a "freewheeling" option that could not be disengaged without stopping the car. The brakes at the time could not stop the car repeatedly and long downhill grades caused total brake failures and cars going down the sides of mountains and killing people.

With your instant MPG reading try finding that sweet spot and your instant mileage will go to infinite in your car and that is the same as my engine off coasting as far as distance travelled without fuel consumed.

Sorry about the highlander call.

Next time you are on a road with gradual downslopes try feathering the gas pedal and see if you can find that spot where the instant reading goes infinite, but you may have already done that. If not it is a useful tactic that can make your MPG even higher.
 
#45 ·
With your instant MPG reading try finding that sweet spot and your instant mileage will go to infinite in your car and that is the same as my engine off coasting as far as distance travelled without fuel consumed.

Sorry about the highlander call.

Next time you are on a road with gradual downslopes try feathering the gas pedal and see if you can find that spot where the instant reading goes infinite, but you may have already done that. If not it is a useful tactic that can make your MPG even higher.
Accidently reset the avg mpg feature on the car while fidgeting with the different screens.....oops. So, on the return trip 35.1 miles I got 53.1 mpg, as the computer figures it on the dash. It was a gain in elevation, but I don't recall getting any better before this. I really put some effort into letting off the gas, watching the EV light up, coasting, as it read 99.9 mpg here and there. I get a reading as I shut the car off for like 2-3 seconds of how far the last segment of the trip was, and the mpg for that segment....if I remember to look. It's a lot for a big car, no A/C, 70° and dry. I'm really expecting and overall avg of 47mpg as the best I did last Fall was 46.3mpg. It doesn't feel like so much success when gas is $1.38 a gallon...but if it were $5 a gallon it would be a winner. 2016 Toyota Avalon Hybrid
 
#30 · (Edited)
Grille blocks:

I just refreshed my grille block in the Mirage. In wintertime blocking your grille can help your mileage, especially where it gets really cold. Some drivers complain about the heater not working well in the winter and this would also make the heat work much better in those situations, while improving your economy.

I have a block heater for the Mirage and that helps me with starting temperatures in the low 100s versus the 50 degree average in my garage.

When the temperature of coolant leaving the radiator to the engine is lower due to cold outside temperatures, more engine heat is required to get that coolant up to thermostat temperatures. This means more energy is removed from the engine to heat up the coolant. The radiator exit temperature in summer is about 40-50 degrees cooler than the coolant passing the thermostat when it leaves the engine. The colder it gets to colder the coolant after it passes through the radiator.

Blocking air flow through the radiator lowers the coolant temperature differential (inlet to outlet) to closer match the summer temperature. Radiators are designed for the "worst case scenario" which is climbing the steepest sustained grades, in the highest temperatures expected no matter where the vehicle operates. This obviously has the effect of greatly reducing coolant outlet temperatures. I like to use pipe insulation and wire ties to install my grille block. It covers most of the lower grille opening on the Mirage, while leaving the upper "mail slot" completely open.

How do you tell when it is the right amount for your average temperatures. The best way is to listen for your cooling fan operating, but some like better information and use a light to indicate when the cooling fan is running. I have a gauge that shows my coolant temperature so I can monitor it always.

If you hear the radiator fan running occasionally then you should be good, running a higher percentage of the time is probably to much block, BUT THE FAN WILL RUN CONSTANTLY IF YOU BLOCK TO MUCH. Remove some of the block if that happens, there is little chance of overheating since the fan will keep running until the temperature comes down, just like it does when you are sitting in traffic in high temperatures with no airflow over the radiator.

Some newer cars (Ford, BMW) and others use automatic grille blocks. This is old school, Packard used to use a grille block that was thermostatically adjusted to control engine temperature 80 years ago. You see it on big rigs, a fabric "blanket" with a zipper so the engine compartment temperatures are much higher without the unrestricted air flow over the radiator. I'll get some pictures up shortly.
 

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#31 · (Edited)
Crafford Road in Yorktown Va. is my dream road for high MPG. I just measured it's length at 3.3 miles and today I did 129 MPG with temps below freezing. This road is about 20 feet downhill to the center then about the same uphill to the end. I can go the 3.3 miles without interference from other drivers, waving others (behind) past me when coasting. I think the engine runs a total of about 30 seconds (5 pulses) in the 6 minutes it takes to go the distance. I noticed today the coolant temperature dropped 20 degrees while I was getting 129 MPG, so that is how fast the engine is cooling off due to drastically lower heat energy losses. 20 degrees below thermostat opening temperature.

https://x-engineer.org/automotive-e...ormance/brake-specific-fuel-consumption-bsfc/

Pay attention to the 2 maps of the same engine at the end of the thread. One shows the fuel consumption in different gears, the other shows the much better average consumption when the vehicle is hybridized.

The bottom line is acceleration at 80% load is most efficient using the gears to maximize the power applied to the wheels. Then once you have your speed at it's peak then coasting is most efficient even though it is not technically that efficient but the fuel consumption is many times lower than it would be just maintaining the highest gear with the engine at lower efficiencies, when it is not operation at higher loads, thus the pulse and coast technique and this is where the manual transmission really shines, coasting in neutral with the engine off.

No manual? Higher speeds? in traffic? I's a balance that can help, and the new 8 speed transmissions shine at higher loads and lower RPMs. The older higher revving autos present a much larger problem, which is low loads and higher RPMs, the formula for poor mileage. You can increase the mileage by using mini pulse and coasts or terrain enhanced pulse and coasts.
 
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