Fuel Economy

[nsmitchell]

I hate fast food drive thrus. I never use them unless my wife pitches a fit. It's usually faster to go inside.

I also got 39.7MPG on my trip to Durham,NC. I'll be going to Blacksburg Monday. GO VIRGINIA TECH!!!

These highway trips are fun! I'm in no rush (company time) so I do the speed limit to get some awesome mileage, but they pay me $.37/mile. Cha Ching!! This trip I maintained 60-65MPH.

[hystria]

Originally Posted by Racer X-8

The government estimated mileages leave no room at all for any agressive driving at all. None. If you don't drive it very gently, you won't get the 39mpg. 36.6 is above average for any kind of mixed driving. If it was 100% highway, well...

three main things I've noticed will drag the Yaris mpg down :
1) Hotdogging. Enjoy it, but you will pay in reduced mpg. You knew it, come on.
2) Cold temperatures drag the mpg down during the cold engine (rich mix) time, drops mpg 1 to 1.5 less.
3) Using the AC drops mpg 1 to 1.5 less. It really is a little engine...

It is true, what hurts most is the size of the engine. it can be economic only when driven smoothly. For some reason I enjoy smaller engines... There are even something like 1.3 and 1.0 Yaris engines. Those don't have that much power, somewhere about 60-70Hp I guess, but then who really needs 100Hp

90% of the time most people will only use 50% of the available engine power

[Black Yaris]

Do you think 20 inch wheels would effect gass mileage?

[BailOut]

Originally Posted by Black Yaris

Do you think 20 inch wheels would effect gass mileage?

Yes, and in a negative way.

The larger the wheel the more it weighs, and the more energy it takes to make it turn one full revolution.

[eTiMaGo]

Originally Posted by BailOut

Yes, and in a negative way.

The larger the wheel the more it weighs, and the more energy it takes to make it turn one full revolution.

Gonna be a bit of a nitpick, but that's not exactly true, it takes more energy to change the speed of the rotation, basically to overcome inertia. A heavier wheel has more inertia, so more power is needed.

Best way to think of it is a spinning top. When you have a small, light top, it takes very little twist from your fingers to get it spinning. But spin a big heavy top and you really gotta give it some push.

Hope that clears it up!

[Razr]

Just to add to eTiMaGo's post; a heavier wheel will also store more energy, so much of the additional energy it takes to spin it up will be repaid when coasting. The real detriment is in stop/start driving, where you can't capitalize on the intertial payback.

Additionally, a heavier rotating mass will always take more braking force to stop, so that's a constant downside, as in imperical terms, braking is always akin to throwing away energy (well, unless you have a regenerative charging system of course).

[Black Yaris]

just another addition to the whole inertia thing...
http://www.glenbrook.k12.il.us/gbssc...aws/u2l1b.html

[Racer X-8]

My wagon wheels are teh bomb!!1! Their extremely narrow, hard patch minimizes rolling resistance. All drag racers use them for their front wheels. So do those experimental low energy cars, like the ones that are all covered in solar panel arrays. Planes. I don't think they'll fit on a Yaris though... The trade-offs, I'm guessing, might be unreliable traction, very low tread life, and an extremely geeky-looking Yaris. Best kept to wagon racing, eh?

[Black Yaris]

This should do ya for some good MPG, ultra light weight and very nice ride

[Racer X-8]

Originally Posted by hystria

90% of the time most people will only use 50% of the available engine power

Yup, and as for the other 10% of the time, they don't really NEED to. I'm getting a kick out of all types of people (especially soccar moms) out-doing themselves in their strained efforts to get ahead of my anemic arse, just gunning the piss out of their Explorers to get in front of me (me not even trying), exhaust fumes sickly spewing out their tailpipes enough to choke the life out of any small animal nearby, then slowing down, thinking they have won some kind of fight or something, only to watch me coast on by them, later on down the road... Petty, shallow, insignificant fools that they are...

[Black Yaris]

to tell you the truth I don't care.... when I stuff it, and so does the SUV right next to me on the e-way, I just laugh... I keep up with him and I am using 1/2 the gas... that is all that matter to me :)

[Racer X-8]

Quoted from Men In Black: a classic qoute that I for some reason love to quote!

Edgar/Bug: Y'know, I've noticed an infestation here. Everywhere I look, in fact. Nothing but undeveloped, unevolved, barely conscious pond scum, totally convinced of their own superiority as they scurry about their short, pointless lives.
Zap-Em Man: Well, yeah. Uh... don't you want to get rid of 'em?
Edgar/Bug: Ah... in the worst way

Did you know who played the Bug? hehe... my favorite character!

[BailOut]

Originally Posted by eTiMaGo

Gonna be a bit of a nitpick, but that's not exactly true, it takes more energy to change the speed of the rotation, basically to overcome inertia. A heavier wheel has more inertia, so more power is needed.

Right you are. I guess I oversimplified my answer. It's always a balance between educating someone and leaving them rocking in a fetal position. hehe

Originally Posted by Racer X-8

Yup, and as for the other 10% of the time, they don't really NEED to. I'm getting a kick out of all types of people (especially soccar moms) out-doing themselves in their strained efforts to get ahead of my anemic arse, just gunning the piss out of their Explorers to get in front of me (me not even trying), exhaust fumes sickly spewing out their tailpipes enough to choke the life out of any small animal nearby, then slowing down, thinking they have won some kind of fight or something, only to watch me coast on by them, later on down the road... Petty, shallow, insignificant fools that they are...

I know your pain! Almost every single day on the uphill side of my over-the-mountain commute someone strives with all their vehicle's might to pass me, riding my tail and swerving like a mad man. When they finally pass I have to roll up my window to try and keep the noxious fumes out, and it also helps to deaden the noise of their screaming engine.

With few exceptions I catch up to them 5 or 10 minutes later on the downhill side. The funny thing is that I'm doing exactly the speed limit in the highest maintainable gear the whole time.

In other words I get from point A to point B just as fast as they do but I do so with much less energy, waste, stress, and wear and tear.

When I drive in the city I get even more exasperated. You'd think someone started handing out trophies for those that get to the next red light first. I can be approaching a solid red light that's going to be red for at least the next 60 seconds and too many times someone - usually in an SUV or big truck - feels the need to pass me in those last 50m before the line of traffic, as if their very presence and force of will can make the light change faster, or like a puppy somewhere will die if they don't get to the back of that line of traffic in the next 5 seconds.

Then they sit there at the light, idling their over-sized engine for the next 60 seconds, getting 0 MPG for that time. The light turns green, that imaginary lady in the tight shorts waves her handkerchief and they're off on the 1/4 mile hoping for a < 10 second run, pretending that the next light isn't 1/8 mile away and also just turned red.

[Racer X-8]

Yup, you got it. And those are the first to holler about how we have to solve the rising price of gas, and now, global warming... freakin idiots - the general masses are nothing but a bunch of freakin idiots. Just like the Bug said...

54 fifll-ups
19,000 miles
35.7 mpg avg (US)
It's going up again with the warm spring weather. (pre-AC days)

[Lickitung]

I'm on my second tank, but this is the first tank that I've calculated. I got 33 mpg, that was 100% city driving and almost always using the a/c (it's hot here in Arizona). While I hope the mileage gets better, it's still loads better than my old Chevy S10.

[zerofloat]

Originally Posted by BailOut

Great job, zerofloat! That's very close to my second tank (38.96 MPG).

I just fueled up for my 5th time today and got 46.40 MPG.

Come join me at CleanMPG.com and we'll get you up in the mid-40's without breaking a sweat!

Bailout THANKS for the link to CleanMPG.com, picked up some great tips there. Last two fills were 40 and 43 MPG

[flint_mica_manual]

My first gas tank calculation: 7.458 gallons 341.6 miles = 45.8 m/g

I accelerate at my leisure and then lock in the cruise at 55. Cruise with a manual is so much better than automatic -- no kicking down in gear going up hill.

I only have 800 miles on the car. The gas mileage should get better as the car breaks in.

[Racer X-8]

Originally Posted by Racer X-8 from my 1-2-07 post #910

Okay here it is, hehe. A couple things I can point out:

The downward trend in the beginning is mainly I think due to the drop below $1 per gallon just after the 9-11-01 attack. The price of gas dropped un-naturally low for some reason.

The major spike in 2005 was from the shortages due to Katrina.

The last thing I see is - it looks like we're in for a major price hike again... soon...

US $$$ per US gallons. Regular gas - the cheapest I could fairly easily find.

Here we go again. This price gouging is repeating last year's precisely by date and pricing...