My Commute MPGs

[Need4Speed]

If it is wet roads that impact the MPG and not the humidity, I have seen the MPG go down on roads that were wet, but not enough to even throw up any water mist. I actually would have thought that a damp road might be better than a dry surface since the tire can slip a little more.

My MPG this morning was lower than normal, temps around where they have been for the last week or so. The humidity was very high, about 78%. It was very foggy, only about 100 yard visibility. Kept getting condensation on the outside of the windshield and had to use the wiper every few minutes. No water on the pavement, other than condensation, do it was damp.

[jeff652]

EDIT: I should clarify that I am pushing my driving habits to extremes to get these results. I am driving in the far right lane at approx 45 mph on flats, less on hills. I am constantly watching the MPG meter and slowing as needed in order to stay in lean burn and not use assist. I am not giving much consideration to the (idiots) who (think they) own the freeway rushing around me indignantly. I would not think these results are possible while driving with the flow of traffic. Also, there is no way this would be possible on my route with the A01 BCM. I saw an easy 10+ MPG improvement switching from the A01 to 030 BCM and using regen as little as possible.

******

Great morning on the way to work today. I tool the 'flat' route. Weather was clear, traffic was light, and I was easily on pace for a new record:


Unfortunately, I had to stop and get gas (S*%&!!) because I was finally at the end of this tank. This is my best tank to date, coming in at almost 920 miles!!


By the time I got to work, I 'only' got this many MPGs:


This concluded my testing of the 030 BCM. The 010 will be going in this weekend.

[diamondlarry]

Originally Posted by jeff652

EDIT: I should clarify that I am pushing my driving habits to extremes to get these results. I am driving in the far right lane at approx 45 mph on flats, less on hills. I am constantly watching the MPG meter and slowing as needed in order to stay in lean burn and not use assist. I am not giving much consideration to the (idiots) who (think they) own the freeway rushing around me indignantly. I would not think these results are possible while driving with the flow of traffic. Also, there is now way this would be possible on my route with the A01 BCM. I saw an easy 10+ MPG improvement switching from the A01 to 030 BCM and using regen as little as possible.

******

Great morning on the way to work today. I tool the 'flat' route. Weather was clear, traffic was light, and I was easily on pace for a new record:


Unfortunately, I had to stop and get gas (S*%&!!) because I was finally at the end of this tank. This is my best tank to date, coming in at almost 920 miles!!


By the time I got to work, I 'only' got this many MPGs:


This concluded my testing of the 030 BCM. The 010 will be going in this weekend.

Very nice! We may need to meet up sometime and compare techniques. By next Thursday or Friday I hope to have similar or (possibly better?) capabilities.

[jeff652]

Originally Posted by diamondlarry

. . . I hope to have similar or (possibly better?) capabilities.

It better be better lol. One or two more tanks and the MIMA goes in!

[jeff652]

A forum member asked me some questions about my driving style and I thought my response would be relevant to others who are reading about how I am obtaining my MPG #'s:

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My route is really almost the perfect route for maximizing MPGs. I have about one very flat mile to the freeway in the morning and only three lights, only one do I normally stop at. Once on the freeway, I usually encounter almost no stop and go traffic. I can keep my MPGs up in the 75+ range as long as traffic doesn't come to a dead stop. I don't leave home until 9AM (or later) in the morning and so only encounter light to moderate traffic the first 10 miles of my route and often I hit non at all. I come home later at night and so hit no traffic at all.

The biggest thing I have done is slowed down. I drive on wide freeways with four wide lanes so I can really slow down without too much pressure from behind. I regularly drive in the 45-50 MPG range, I rarely go over 55 MPGs (almost never). When I am climbing hills I go even slower, 38-40 is not uncommon for me when climbing. This allows me to climb hills at 70-75 MPG in lean burn and coast down the other side at 150+ (great for the overall average #'s!!).

If I notice I am over 45MPH, I lift my foot to increase MPGs. On the flat terrain, If my MPG meter drops below 100, I will slow until either 45 mph or until the meter goes above 100. So on mild declines I am often still slowing in order to push the meter up.

I make no stops between home and work. I don't drive the car on the weekends and avoid driving it around town, so each time the engine starts, the car is driven 55+ miles of almost 100% freeway terrain.

I accelerate slowly. I try to shift from first to third to avoid the almost mandatory assist in second gear. I'll push through first with moderate throttle (avoiding assist), then immediately drop back on the throttle as I go into 3rd to get into lean burn. Then I take my time getting up to ~50MPH ensuring that I am in lean burn the whole time and not using assist.

While driving, my focus is on:
1) MPG meter. It should be >100 (on flat terrain) at all times. If I am going over 45MPH, I slow down to push the meter higher
2) Lean Burn indicator (ultra gauge). I am in lean burn pretty much 100% of the time on the freeway. I have learned my car enough that I can lift immediately when the purge cycle kicks in and keep my MPGs >80-90 throughout the purge cycle
3) Assist meter. I avoid assist as much as possible. Any assist used must be recharged. I don't want to lose MPGs to forced regen. I try to regen only when rolling down hills, if I'm going too fast, or exiting the freeway. I am able to do this well and my BetterBattery rarely drops below 19 bars, and has *never* been below 17 bars.
4) Lastly, MPH. I spend more time watching my rear view mirror then the lane in front of me. Other people dont' like me much, and are more aggressive at night (i've noticed). That's fine with me, I am supporting America by buying less gas and helping the environment to boot. They can race off into the distance if they want . . .

[jeff652]

Oh and I'm on pace to get >1,000 miles from this tank (at 96MPG average so far). It's going to be close, but I think I can do it

[Rainsux]

Thanks for the information!

One comment: I've found that when I see somebody coming up fast behind me if I hit my flashers for a few flashes they often back off and aren't so aggressive in passing me.

Sam

[Cobb]

What about setting your speed with cruse control so the test is repeatable by you and everyone?

Thats one reason I run with cruse control as it gives an easy way to do repeatable runs. If you hypermile different each time its not going to give identical results, plug it can be prone to errors if each and every time you try to out do your self and are testing mods or equipment.

Just an FYI, I am an internal auditor for a bank, so we got a crash course in subjective vs objective metrics for measuring stuff.

Just for the point, I attempted to ride in lean burn, I managed half a mile before it dropped out of that mode.

You Tube

You Tube

Originally Posted by Rainsux

I hit my flashers for a few flashes
Sam

Sent from my Autoguide iPod touch app

[diamondlarry]

The problem I've seen with cruise control in the past is that it is usually way too aggressive at throttle application, especially on uphill sections but less noticeable on the flats, if the speed drops below the set speed. I only used the cruise control on my Prius a couple of times and didn't like it at all because of the mpg penalty. On a trip from home to Hybrid Fest in Madison, WI a few years back, I averaged just over 72 mpg. About a year after that, I hit 76.6 from Milwaukee, WI to Wadsworth, IL. Both trips were sans cruise control.

[jeff652]

Originally Posted by Rainsux

Thanks for the information!

One comment: I've found that when I see somebody coming up fast behind me if I hit my flashers for a few flashes they often back off and aren't so aggressive in passing me.

Sam

Yes, this is a good defensive tactic, and I use it frequently (when needed). It seems to confuse them enough as they back off and carefully go around me while trying to figure out if I am having a mechanical problem or not.