39.9 MPG
So close. Actually, I hit 40.0 MPG on the road there, but it went down .1 after I shut the car off.
How did I do it? I follow the basic principles of hypermilling, a practice that you’ve probably heard about lately with gas prices being where they are.
- My tires are at 44 PSI. This decreases rolling resistance.
- When I’m going up hill, I try and maintain speed but resist the urge to accelerate.
- Once I crest a hill, I shift into neutral and let gravity do its thing.
- I do something called “Pulse and Glide”, where I accelerate 10 MPH over a target on a flat or downhill area, and coast until I’m 10 MPH under that target.
- I can monitor my car’s essential performance functions, and it teaches me to keep my throttle lighter than I normally notice myself pushing it.
- Red light ahead? coast in neutral.
- Pulling out is not a drag race.
- The speed limit is something I now take seriously.
Route planning helps. My destination was on an average -0.4% grade. My daily commute is +0.2% in the morning and -0.2% in the afternoon, both directions ~11.5 miles.
By the way, my car’s EPA combined rating is 21 MPG. Today I beat that by 100%. I’m proud.
katie 13:11 on 2008/05/09 Permalink
I’ve got one of those ScanGauges in my car too (a ’97 Neon), but I’ve neglected to read up on how the trip computer works. I’ll have to do that and see how high I can get my MPG. Out of curiosity, do you drive a manual or an automatic?
lowmagnet 13:26 on 2008/05/09 Permalink
The 99 v6 coupe was unfortunately only available as an auto.
If you recently bought the SG and it’s the SGII with Xgauge you can do the mileage/trip. the code is 00 in the xgauge menu