[slideways]

I just got to tell somebody 'cause all my friends are sick of hearing about my gas mileage. I think it's getting to the piont now that they see me coming and one of them will turn to the rest and tell them not to mention anything about cars. There must be a twelve step program for this somewhere......

Anyway I drove from Oxnard CA to Santa Cruz. Drove around Santa Cruz a little then up and over the mountain pass into San Jose. Drove around San Jose a little the next day and then back to Oxnard the day after that. Total mileage was just over 720mi and I used less then 10 gallons on gas. Average was 74mpg. The car still amazes me, I'm cruising home and some motorcycles passed me and I realized I was likely getting better mileage then they were!!

The new Wayland sound system and Sirius radio were excellent for keeping me entertained.

 

[ericbecky]

Congrats on the excellent mileage! There must have been great anticipation as you neared the 700 mile mark, and then a rush of exhileration when you knew you were over it!

I know what you mean about friends being sick of hearing about your mileage. But also, like you, whenever I get a trip with great mileage I feel like I've gotta tell someone!

It's comforting to know that InsightCentral is always here to support our excitement.

 

[Guest]

Hi Slideways:

___Let me congratulate you on your first long trip range and mileage as well! Pretty amazing what our little beauties can do … Can you imagine any other automobile forum where someone is congratulated for receiving a number like you did

___How many miles on her now and what kind of tricks/tips did you use to achieve your own first 700 mile + tank?

___Good Luck

___Wayne R. Gerdes
___Hunt Club Farms Landscaping Ltd.
___[email:25ai4d4o][email protected][/email:25ai4d4o]

 

[Tim Maddux]

That's an impressive trip mpg since you included the grade (Highway 17?) between San Jose and Santa Cruz which I would guess punished your mpg a bit. I think it's even worse than the Conejo grade.

The Oxnard plain was one of my favorite places to do mileage tests on relatively flat roads (it is very hard to find a truly flat road with no slight increases/decreases in elevation). The short stretch of level highway right along the Pacific between Carpinteria and La Conchita is totally flat.

 

[Holicow]

That's an impressive trip mpg since you included the grade (Highway 17?) between San Jose and Santa Cruz which I would guess punished your mpg a bit. I think it's even worse than the Conejo grade.
...

As a former Camarillo resident, I lived at the foot of the Conejo grade..I wonder what it would be like in my Insight. I would imagine 2nd gear most of the way up, eh?

Man, I miss Camarillo, esp this time of year. NO SNOW, no sleet, no hail, no bugs in the summer.....

 

[Tim Maddux]

2nd gear most of the way up, eh?

3rd gear, foot down to the floor, will get you over the top at 55+ mph, depending on whether or not you get your foot down soon enough and whether your IMA is fully charged. If conditions are suboptimal (such as having to brake because someone is slowing down in front of you) you are looking at 2nd gear.

Going down the other way I would always leave it in-gear and in fuel-cut mode, but average MPG both ways was rarely better than 60 (30 up at most, infinite down).

 

[Guest]

Hi All:

___That Mountain climb sounds like a nice place to destroy a 5-speed’s pack after a few years of that kind of abuse …

___Good Luck

___Wayne R. Gerdes
___Hunt Club Farms Landscaping Ltd.
___[email:gdhq5fle][email protected][/email:gdhq5fle]

 

[Holicow]

They don't have the option in this spot of going 'round the mountain to lessen the grade, so it is almost straight up (and down...that's the scary part). It will freak you out the first time, and most of the rest of the times too. It has a couple of S-curves thrown in to make it more fun...

It is neat to look at from a distance at night: one line of red lights snaking up to the sky, white ones coming down....

Man, is this off-topic or what?

I should take a road trip back out there. Now we're back on track...

 

[Tim Maddux]

It's not really what I would call a mountain. 1000' of elevation gain over 1 mile of horizontal travel (eyeballed on MapQuest). It's, well, a grade and there are tougher ones north of San Luis Obispo (also on US 101), west of Phoenix (on I-10), or north of LA (I-5, the infamous Grapevine), or way north (I-5 again, going over Siskiyou Summit.

But it is almost a straight shot down like Holicow says. The runout beyond it is also quite flat, so it's fun for testing out fuel-cutoff mode on the way down. Reset a trip at the top. Once you hit bottom, put the foot back on the accelerator and hold at 75mpg, keep toggling the FCD button and see how far you go before your trip mileage drops below 150.

 

[slideways]

This is by no means my first 700mi plus tank but it was my first long trip.

The Conejo Grade is approx. 2mi and a gain of 700 vertical. After much experimentation based on reseting one of the mileage meters at the bottom and checking my mileage at the top the best approach for me has been to roll into the hill at normal hiway speed and maintain throttle position until the engine starts to lug, then down shift. This continues until I'm in third then I keep the rpms at 3000ish and maintain a speed of about 35 to 40. On a good day I'll get just over 40mpg just for the climb!! Amazing.

 

[Resist]

I took my CVT on a cross country from California to Chicago and back. I averaged 60mpg there and 50mpg coming back. Not bad for a CVT and doing around 75 mph most of the trip.