ECO-Fit DiscussionThreads discussing the pursuit of ultimate economy, hypermiling techniques & maximizing your MPG
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This is my question about the voltage stabilizer. People are quite enthusiastic about them after they've got them installed but if a few bucks worth of capacitors really helped that much, wouldn't Honda just put them in at the factory?
Alright, I got a new set of wheels at 10 lbs each plus 17 lbs tires making it 27 lbs and I gained another 1-2mpg and that's also includes an inrease in my tire diameter. I'll be doing the voltage stablizer and grounding cables later on and see if that helps or not. I'd guess it will give like 1-2 mpg more. I've hit 45 mpg going 60-65 mpg on the highway.
Alright, I got a new set of wheels at 10 lbs each plus 17 lbs tires making it 27 lbs and I gained another 1-2mpg and that's also includes an inrease in my tire diameter. I'll be doing the voltage stablizer and grounding cables later on and see if that helps or not. I'd guess it will give like 1-2 mpg more. I've hit 45 mpg going 60-65 mpg on the highway.
im just going to call bullshit here and now.
epa is about 10-15% higher then real, where most fits are getting gas mileage somewhere in the low 30s on the freeway, and mid/high 20s in the city, and you are getting 45??
do you know how they test epa?? they test by measuring exhaust, which neglects real life situation such as the soccer mom getting in front of you and you have to brake.
them, driving on a road with zero traffic, zero hills, zero stops, gets 37/38.
you, by gutting roughly 20 lbs of unsprung weight, rolling on a higher diameter tire (which would mean even higher real life gas mileage then you are reporting), and add k&n filter, is now getting 45 mpg.
honda needs to hire you to do all of their epa test from now on.
epa is about 10-15% higher then real, where most fits are getting gas mileage somewhere in the low 30s on the freeway, and mid/high 20s in the city, and you are getting 45??
do you know how they test epa?? they test by measuring exhaust, which neglects real life situation such as the soccer mom getting in front of you and you have to brake.
them, driving on a road with zero traffic, zero hills, zero stops, gets 37/38.
you, by gutting roughly 20 lbs of unsprung weight, rolling on a higher diameter tire (which would mean even higher real life gas mileage then you are reporting), and add k&n filter, is now getting 45 mpg.
honda needs to hire you to do all of their epa test from now on.
I've only gotten 45 mpg once and that was driving 60-65 mph all the way from miami to orlando (about 4 hour trip) because I had a spare on. This was with my steelies.
BTW, I get 39-40 mpg consistently driving with 185/65-14 tires to work and back with about 90% highway going 65-80 mph on the highway. I know I am not the only one.
if i cruise control 55-60, i'm pretty sure that it must be ~45mpg, because i averaged 42 and 43 a couple of tanks doing that, but not all freeway. (us gallons, 195/X-15 tires)
in all reality, no one is getting the mpg they think they are. if honda is involved in a class action suit over the odometer going too fast, no one really knows.....now do they? http://www.fitfreak.net/forums/fit-t...a+class+action
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I agree as well, I have 10.5 pound rims and 19 pound tires, and drive about 80% freeway at a "very leisurely" 60-65, and have averaged 40mpg in the last 5 tanks. I'm sure my gas mileage average would go up if I didn't have to drive in traffic. I did notice that my gas mileage went up since I have switched to Chevron, as I was only averaging about 38mpg before that using Unocal or Shell.
I will do more testing as I have just upgraded my intake to an Injen CAI.
Nothing other than very careful driving is going to significantly increase MPG. Aftermarket air filters don't really meet their hp claims, much less mpg gains. Lightweight wheels will *only* matter during acceleration, for the purposes of fuel economy.
We all want to save gas, but if improving the Fit was as simple as a a few bolt-on mods, Honda would have already done it.
in all reality, no one is getting the mpg they think they are. if honda is involved in a class action suit over the odometer going too fast, no one really knows.....now do they?
Mine seems to match distances given by google maps... I don't think everyone got the shaft strangely. But I haven't tried to measure really accurately either...
Nothing other than very careful driving is going to significantly increase MPG. Aftermarket air filters don't really meet their hp claims, much less mpg gains. Lightweight wheels will *only* matter during acceleration, for the purposes of fuel economy.
We all want to save gas, but if improving the Fit was as simple as a a few bolt-on mods, Honda would have already done it.
I totally agree with the careful driving part.
As for lightweight wheels, I agree with you as well. I think they do help with making acceleration easier, which means less gas to get up to speed, which in turn means higher gas mileage.
As for Honda putting an less restricting air intake, I'm not so sure about that because of noise comfort levels- so I don't think they would sacrifice too much for more horsepower and fuel economy. That goes the same for for header or exhaust. While these mild mods will free up some horsepower, it also leads to better gas mileage, in my opinion, with "careful driving".
Case in point- my 99 Civic Si gets an average of 35mpg per tank, and I have an intake an exhaust. Another point- my CRX Si with well over 350,000 miles still gets very close to 40mpg average. These also have mild bolt ons and are "driven carefully" (while not at the track of course!)
I am very happy with my Fit's gas mileage, as it averages also close to 40mpg, even with more weight (400 more pounds) and less aerodynamics (0.30 Cd for the CRX). It also can squeeze 5 passengers (really tight fit, forgive the pun)!
Mine seems to match distances given by google maps... I don't think everyone got the shaft strangely. But I haven't tried to measure really accurately either...
Mine seems to be accurate compared with mile markers--I never got a letter from Honda either. I don't know what the deal is with this.
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Light wheels/tires (reducing unsprung weight) (might) increase fuel economy for city driving, but it would definately have no impact on highway mileage.
LRR tires (or higher PSI) will definately improve highway mileage. I've been running 40+ PSI for 10 years (300,000+ miles). It has yet to cause bad tire wear or a blow out... just excercise some common sense. It also improves handling, if you are smart about it. For daily use, I have 40/44 F/R. For autocross, 36/44. The higher rear tire pressure helps to minimise the understeer.
Larger diameter tires would help highway mileage. It will make your speedo inacurate and your car look funny.
Any engine mod (filter, intake, Voltage stabilizer, etc) will mostly be smoke and mirrors. It may increase engine efficiency by some small % (<<< than 1 MPG), but it also makes you much more likely to romp on the throttle... and that's the worst thing you can do for mileage.
Also: All I have done to the fit is replace the wheels/tires (Helium 15's) and running higher PSI. I get substantially better than the reported average of "low 30's". With the cruise set at 72MPH, 37 MPG. With the cruise set at 82MPH, 33 MPG. With the cruise set at 57MPH, 42 MPG. City mileage varies wildly with driving style. I've managed 34MPG, but average somewhere around 30-31.
Last edited by sortanewinatl; 06-20-2007 at 09:30 AM.
...Also: All I have done to the fit is replace the wheels/tires (Helium 15's) and running higher PSI. I get substantially better than the reported average of "low 30's". With the cruise set at 72MPH, 37 MPG. With the cruise set at 82MPH, 33 MPG. With the cruise set at 57MPH, 42 MPG. City mileage varies wildly with driving style. I've managed 34MPG, but average somewhere around 30-31.
So is your Fit MT or AT?
Eric
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They're vortex generators. Testing still in progress... so I don't know yet exactly how much difference they make on the Fit. But I am guessing maybe 5%, and it's more than zero for sure. I'll have some data next week to back that up, but in general it's a fairly well-proven method of reducing drag. If you're going for maximum fuel economy (or maximum top speed, I guess), they're definitely worth a try.
They're vortex generators. Testing still in progress... so I don't know yet exactly how much difference they make on the Fit. But I am guessing maybe 5%, and it's more than zero for sure. I'll have some data next week to back that up, but in general it's a fairly well-proven method of reducing drag. If you're going for maximum fuel economy (or maximum top speed, I guess), they're definitely worth a try.
Keep us posted! I may by interested in doing this. Please take some pics and how you installed them on your Fit. Thanks.
"Drivers report dramatic handling improvements, better visibility behind in rain, fewer gear changes and less driver fatigue." lol, I am not a rocket scientist... but please explain how using these so called air-tabs results in "Less Driver Fatigue"
Do they make such a noisy racket that you could not in any way fall asleep while you drive
By the way, this thing looks HOT! lol, sorry I saw the pic and I had to ref it into my post!
Even if these do work as claimed would you stick them all over your car?
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Last edited by Sugarphreak; 06-21-2007 at 01:54 AM.
but please explain how using these so called air-tabs results in "Less Driver Fatigue"
They're talking about drivers of the big trucks having less fatigue, as they have to do less work steering to counter the crosswinds. Not such a big problem for small cars. Lots of RV drivers say they help with that though. Have to wait for some really strong winds to see what it does for the Fit.
I did notice that my gas mileage went up since I have switched to Chevron, as I was only averaging about 38mpg before that using Unocal or Shell.
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