Tips to increase milage!

[Flyboybob]

Here are some of my tips to get better milage in this era of $4.00 a gallon gasoline here in the States. Does anyone have other tips to share?
1. Accelerate gently, don't exceed 3,000 RPM.
2. Imagine you have a raw egg between your foot and the accelerator pedal.
3. Take your foot off the accelerator when the traffic light ahead turns red to allow the car to slowly decelerate. You might not have to make a full stop.
4. Drive in the highest gear while cruising to maintain the lowest RPM.
5. Leave the windows up and run the AC.

[FITrunner]

Don't forget the simplest, yet easiest to forget. Slow down!

Dropping your avg speed from 75-80 on the fwy to 65-70 will net a couple miles per gallon easy. So unless your wife is in labor or there is a fire you have to get to. Seriously people aren't going to care if you are a few minutes late. And if they are, they are probably your employer or have had too much coffee, then you just need to schedule your day better (or buy a louder alarm clock) so you leave earlier.

[gofastredfit]

yep, self control makes most of the diff. on gas mileage in our cars... it's so easy to rev up to go...that I have to remind myself sometimes!

[drzenitram]

Also, the other best-way-ever to save money on gas is to... not.. drive!

A walk or bike ride to those close-by locations can do just as much for your health as it can for your wallet!

[mahout]

Add increase your tire pressure to maximum pressure on tire sidewall. yes you will corner more gently but your mpg's will improve.
Add dropping into neutral or clutch in on down hill runs.
Add taping the seams smooth. And wax with aero wax
Add oh never mind.... this can get out of control.

[Flyboybob]

Hi mahout,
I have always heard that driving the car in neutral is dangerous because you are 'freewheeling' and don't have as much control. Taking your foot off the accelerator and allowing the engine to be driven by the wheels as the car decelerates uses very little fuel but retains control.

[DVFlyer]

This is the first I've heard to run the AC in order to save mileage.

[Chawee]

I heard that below 50 mph it is more efficient to lower the windows down and have the air conditioning off. Above 50, however, there is too much wind resistance and it is more efficient to have the air on.

[Flyboybob]

According to 'Consumer Reports' on NPR, driving the car with the windows open causes excess drag. The small amount of energy lost by running the AC is a wash when compared to the small amount of excess energy required to overcome the drag.

They also mentioned that there was no difference in the milage between a car run with a clean air filter and the same one run with a dirty air filter.

[hondaf1racing]

If you run the vent without A/C you will get better gas mileage

Originally Posted by mahout

Add increase your tire pressure to maximum pressure on tire sidewall. yes you will corner more gently but your mpg's will improve.
Add dropping into neutral or clutch in on down hill runs.
Add taping the seams smooth. And wax with aero wax
Add oh never mind.... this can get out of control.

Are you trying to kill people on fit freak or something?
If you increase tire pressure to max sidewall pressure you reduce traction/grip which can cause longer stopping distances and loss of control. You also wear out ur tires faster which are more expensive than the gas you save.
Always stay in gear, if some emergency arises, you can avoid an accident quickly

[zRollerskate]

ok. ive been dying to ask. cruise control... i heard that uses more gas in general then just keeping your foot steady. True or false?

[FITrunner]

Originally Posted by zRollerskate

ok. ive been dying to ask. cruise control... i heard that uses more gas in general then just keeping your foot steady. True or false?

Cruise control works if the travel is on a relatively flat route. When theres a lot of hills the crusie control fights to maintain the speed set, which makes you burn more gas. In those instances better to turn of the CC and just slow down to where your engine doesnt have to work as hard. I learned this from driving to and from Colorado a couple times a year. (damn rocky mountains )

[FITrunner]

Originally Posted by hondaf1racing

Are you trying to kill people on fit freak or something?

He probably works for the insurance industry. More accidents = more claims.

[zRollerskate]

yea but my thing is that whether the cruise control is on or not your gonna have to push the gas down harder to maintain speed lol

[FITrunner]

Originally Posted by zRollerskate

yea but my thing is that whether the cruise control is on or not your gonna have to push the gas down harder to maintain speed lol

It shouldn't if your CC is on and you get to an uphill, once your car slows down it should accelerate on its own. It just takes a little to kick in. At least thats what mine does, if yours isn't compensating or trying to get back up to speed, I'd get it checked.

But yeah you are right you are going to have to hit the gas either way. But if you leave it to the CC it will try to maintain the speed you set it at, even if it means running at 5K+ rpm. If you just gas it normal you will go slower but burn less because you can run at about 3K or so rpm. Stoopid gravity!

[morganplus4]

I have found that the smoother I drive, normally the better the gas mileage. This does not mean being slow - I drive normally at or + the speed limit but smoothly. Some world champ car drivers are so smooth, they not only win ( and finish) but the cars are not worn out at the end of the race.

I also noticed that I cannot play the CD's that make me tap my feet - easy to get lost in the music.

The higher the gear ratio the better as long as the engine is in the sweet spot. Too high and you begin lugging which lowers the mileage.

The thinking about using the AC or rolling windows down may be part myth - I suspect it is better to keep the windows down at certain speeds and AC off (under 55 or so) but somewhere above that windows up, AC on. The air resistance is a square factor so double the speed = 4 times the air resistance. I do not know what happens to the tire rolling resistance.

So far I have been averaging over 40 mpg in a manual base here in Colorado in the hills .

[y2ks2k]

Get new tires. The Fit Sport tires help make it a handling dynamo but probably kill mpg.

[p nut]

^^ Yes, get smaller, lighter rims, skinnier all-season tires (less rotating mass). Other than that, the biggest factor will be the driver. Take care of maintenance items and drive conservative.

[CorrodesTheFilm]

Don't put the car in neutral or clutch in when going down hills. If you take your foot off the gas the ECU cuts fuel to the engine completely. If you clutch in or put it in neutral the engine has to use fuel to idle.

This is true for pretty much any modern manual transmission car.

Also never taking your engine over 3000 rpm is a good way to gunk it up with all kinds of carbon deposits.

[solbrothers]

1. get a scangauge
2. pay attention to scangauge
3. ?????
4. PROFIT!!!!!!