My Hyper-Mile Experiment

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sattie

Washing Up
Joined
Jan 16, 2006
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In the interest of being more efficient, being green, saving $$$, getting a better bang for my buck... I decided to give hyper-mileage a try.

I am what I like to call myself a progressive driver. Not really aggressive, but I like to get where I need to go. Not the most efficient way of getting to my destinations, but I got there!

Anyhow, I heard about the hyper mile method of driving and thought I would give it a try. I drive a Honda Accord LXE that averages about 240 to 280 miles on a tank full. 280 is the best I have been able to do and that is with my old driving habits.

I had to do a 180 with my new driving habits. (Note... I do not do the extreme hyper miles where you turn your car off at stop lights or while coasting... and there are some other things mentioned that seems a bit dangerous to me.) So here is what I did and the results:

Drive at or below the speed limit.

Let off gas approaching stop signs and red lights sooner and coasting up to them.

Cruise control on highways at the posted speed limit.

Let off gas while going down hill.

No jack rabbit starts

No fast stops... I tried to time my coasting/breaking when approaching lights so as to not have to come to a complete stop. The idea is to catch the light just right so you can coast and not have to use so much gas to get back to speed. Obviously this will not always work.

This is a big change for me... one that is hard to do at times. But WOW, I was impressed!!!! When I got to work, I was more calm and peaceful. I was not as stressed as I usually would be. I also found that I make it to work (and other destinations) in the same amount of time as when I am racing around.

The best part is that since I usually average between 240 and 280 miles per tank full... this last tank got me 375 miles using the steps above. I am trying it again with this tank to see if I can get 400 out of it.

I know this is not for everyone... but I just wanted to share it with others that may be doing it or thinking about it. And if anyone else has tried it, what results have you gotten?
 
I heard about this on NPR> Some guy was obsessed with it. So obsessed that his wife and kids wouldn't get in the car with him! So they took separate cars and that totally defeated the purpose. But the Dad didn't care because it was more about the challenge, it seemed, than the environmental benefits for him.

All I can say is, I hope I'm not stuck behind you in traffic!! :) :)
 
I do try to put it in neutral and coast down hills, take slower stops, etc. I wouldn't go to the extreme of coasting slowly to a light waiting for it to change. Most of my driving is highway anyway, and I don't have cruise.
 
sattie said:
In the interest of being more efficient, being green, saving $$$, getting a better bang for my buck... I decided to give hyper-mileage a try.

I am what I like to call myself a progressive driver. Not really aggressive, but I like to get where I need to go. Not the most efficient way of getting to my destinations, but I got there!

Anyhow, I heard about the hyper mile method of driving and thought I would give it a try. I drive a Honda Accord LXE that averages about 240 to 280 miles on a tank full. 280 is the best I have been able to do and that is with my old driving habits.

I had to do a 180 with my new driving habits. (Note... I do not do the extreme hyper miles where you turn your car off at stop lights or while coasting... and there are some other things mentioned that seems a bit dangerous to me.) So here is what I did and the results:

Drive at or below the speed limit.

Let off gas approaching stop signs and red lights sooner and coasting up to them.

Cruise control on highways at the posted speed limit.

Let off gas while going down hill.

No jack rabbit starts

No fast stops... I tried to time my coasting/breaking when approaching lights so as to not have to come to a complete stop. The idea is to catch the light just right so you can coast and not have to use so much gas to get back to speed. Obviously this will not always work.

This is a big change for me... one that is hard to do at times. But WOW, I was impressed!!!! When I got to work, I was more calm and peaceful. I was not as stressed as I usually would be. I also found that I make it to work (and other destinations) in the same amount of time as when I am racing around.

The best part is that since I usually average between 240 and 280 miles per tank full... this last tank got me 375 miles using the steps above. I am trying it again with this tank to see if I can get 400 out of it.

I know this is not for everyone... but I just wanted to share it with others that may be doing it or thinking about it. And if anyone else has tried it, what results have you gotten?
Click to expand...

i do close to the same thing but a lil differnet, here is how:

I go about 80 MPH on my freeway BUT i dont go above 2.5k RPM's. I only have a 4 speed tranny so watching my TAC is important. i slow down sooner than later and i gradually build up speed. I do not turn my car off at lights because that wastes more fuel if less than two minutes per light. It takes more fuel to start a car then to leave it idle for 30-40 seconds.

i drove 867 miles on 27 gallons of fuel. thats a tank and a half for me. 32.1MPG
 
Do the math on highway driving. Unless you are traveling more than 1000 miles,
speeding is just a waste of gas. You save NO time.
Keeping up with traffic is an excuse. I drive from NC to NJ regularly, both on I-95 and via I-81. On both interstates, the slow lane tends to trundle along at or near the posted speed limit.... even through the DC- NYC corridor. (Rush hour may be different, I avoid city rush hours like a plate of plain lima beans!)
Lately, I just set my cruise control for the prevailing right lane speed, fit into the line, sit back and relax.. and laugh at the high stress speeders rushing by! ark ark ark

In town, I have always played "Coast"... how long can I coast before needing to apply gas? It is amazing how long one can go sometimes, depending on the road and slope!
I do, however, adjust my driving so that I am not causing strokes and road rage. If I have to pick up the pace, I do.

And keep those tires properly inflated!
 
GrillingFool said:
I do, however, adjust my driving so that I am not causing strokes and road rage. If I have to pick up the pace, I do.

And keep those tires properly inflated!
Click to expand...

I do try to get out of the way of folks that want to go faster than me... I too do not want to infuriate those in a hurry. Most of my commute is back roads (about 60%), other 40% is highway. I travle to/from work during off peak traffic times. But when I am in the back roads, there is not much I can do if people are behind me, I just wave em around. I mean the speed limit is 30, so why do I want to go 40 and get a ticket for the impatient person behind me?

Jill... if we were in traffic, you would not notice. ;) Usually in traffic I try to maintain space enoug that I can keep rolling without the hit the gas to move a yard then stop. I would rather keep moving then the stop and go.

Plus I have read about the obsession with it and I don't want to do that either. I think I have found a balance that works for me and is not to much of a PITA for others. But ya never know... no matter what you do these days... you're gettin on someone's nerves!
 
I drive a standard (6 speed) and one thing I started to do which has helped is I have been shifting into the next highest gear as soon as my engine will let me. This means I do not have the same pep right off the line, but I have gone from getting about 30mpg to 35mpg.

I have also been trying to go easier on the gas pedal and coast when it is safe and I can do it comfortably.

I was driving the speed limit for a while, but lately I find myself going faster again. I am trying to break that habit, but it is not an easy one to break. I do not drive fast because I am trying to get to my destination quicker. I just find that higher speeds are more comfortable to drive at.
 
Anyone else sweat instead of using Air Conditioning?
If the car is moving, I turn it off, and wait until I can't stand it at
stop lights.
Here in NC during the summer, that isn't very long, LOLOL!
 
GB said:
I was driving the speed limit for a while, but lately I find myself going faster again. I am trying to break that habit, but it is not an easy one to break. I do not drive fast because I am trying to get to my destination quicker. I just find that higher speeds are more comfortable to drive at.
Click to expand...

Yea, I catch myself doing the same thing. And you are right, it is a very hard habit to break. I find it even harder to go the speed limit when you got someone right on your tail pressuring you to go faster!
 
GrillingFool said:
Anyone else sweat instead of using Air Conditioning?
If the car is moving, I turn it off, and wait until I can't stand it at
stop lights.
Here in NC during the summer, that isn't very long, LOLOL!
Click to expand...
Nope not worth it to me. I have heard from the experts that using the air only decreases your milage by about 1 mpg. My comfort and dry shirts are worth that much to me :LOL:
 
GrillingFool said:
Anyone else sweat instead of using Air Conditioning?
If the car is moving, I turn it off, and wait until I can't stand it at
stop lights.
Here in NC during the summer, that isn't very long, LOLOL!
Click to expand...

Yea, I do some of that. The Texas heat is a big butt whoopin at the moment. I let it get really cold then turn it off, then turn it back on to cool it down again. About 5 years ago, I could drive anywhere without ever using the AC... not sure what happened, guess age is setting in cuz I can't even imagine that I use to do that.
 
I agree with grilling fool - speeding is inneffective... but... I remember the days when I had my '67 Olds Cutlass that I dropped a 403 in... MAN that car was FUN to drive....

I have definitely altered my driving habits (I'm 40 now - time to act mature!) and have my dogs in the car with me a lot - one of my Girls sometimes gets carsick (poor thing!) so that heightened my awareness... precious cargo always makes you think twice!
 
A/C can be a life-saver... thankfully, I only have to use it a few times a year here (Central Cali). I have also heard that turning it off doesn't really make a difference - same with turning your car off to wait out a light, etc.

One thing that made me change my driving habits (or be more aware of my driving) is learning to drive a rig... I drove a 38 foot Class A diesel pusher motorhome (with a 15 foot trailer = 50 ft altogether) to New Mexico last Spring, and boy, did that teach me a thing or two about planning ahead and being mellow... merging rules, fast lane/slow lane rules, etc. Driving a car seemed so easy-peesy after driving that boat!
 
sattie said:
Drive at or below the speed limit.

Let off gas approaching stop signs and red lights sooner and coasting up to them.

Cruise control on highways at the posted speed limit.

Let off gas while going down hill.

No jack rabbit starts

No fast stops...
Click to expand...

I would be laying on my horn if you were in front of me. :ROFLMAO:
 
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