how to drive for best fuel mileage

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frank723
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how to drive for best fuel mileage

Post by frank723 »

so its 8 gallons of gas until the light starts blinking at me again, so i'm going to see how many miles i can get with my corolla until then

what are some ways to get the most miles per gallon? i read on wikipedia that keeping rpm's low is good, and they recommended shifting really early and then flooring the throttle

however my engine has torque all the way down to about 1000 rpm's and below that it starts lugging, and above that when i floor it it really goes

so i'm trying to upshift at 2k rpm's, downshift at 1.2k, and generally feather the gas. are there any other tips and tricks like skipping gears when upshifting or something? also, is engine braking bad for gas mileage (should i just get out of gear downhill and coast)?

thanks!
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Post by JRicoCTG »

save gas...ride a bike.

when it comes down to it. all that driving slow and watching your RPM's doesnt matter much. if you add it all up yes...but in the end you will save like...5 bucks. i tried that for awhile.

but yes....keeping rpms low is a big one.
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Nervous
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Post by Nervous »

Ok, flooring the gas at ANY time is going to waste gas. Think of it like this: The more your foot goes down, the more your gas goes down.

Shifting early though is a very good way to save gas.

As for going down hills..always leave it in gear. Most likely your car has fuel cut off to shut off the gas when the engine braking is 2k or higher or something along those lines.


Now for saving gas...Inflate your tires, make sure your sparks and running clean, and put in some premium once in a while.
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Post by Mike_AR »

As mentioned just go easy on the gas pedal. No quick stabs on the gas but rather a smooth and gradual increase in speed. Try to shift as early as possible without lugging the engine and work your way up the your highest gear. If you have it then use cruise control. Also try to avoid driving up hills because your engine has to work harder which just waste more fuel.
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Nervous
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Post by Nervous »

Mike_AR wrote:As mentioned just go easy on the gas pedal. No quick stabs on the gas but rather a smooth and gradual increase in speed. Try to shift as early as possible without lugging the engine and work your way up the your highest gear. If you have it then use cruise control. Also try to avoid driving up hills because your engine has to work harder which just waste more fuel.
Sorry to go Off topic, but how does cruise control work in your cars?
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jory543
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Post by jory543 »

shifting early is a big one, but dont bog the engine. keep the throttle light and gradually apply it. on my car i have to be very very gentle on the throttle if i dont want to take off fast. like less that 1/10 throttle is what i use for gentle "economic" driving and i get good acceleration. very touchy throttle body :D
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Post by eaglecatcher »

wait, so how can I find the fuel cutoff rpm? I usually just put it in 4th gear and coast down slopes and stuff, but its usually at like 1300rpm, so if thats not saving me any fuel, i'd rather downshift, and save gas. Where can I find the fuel cutoff rpm?
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Post by Nervous »

eaglecatcher wrote:wait, so how can I find the fuel cutoff rpm? I usually just put it in 4th gear and coast down slopes and stuff, but its usually at like 1300rpm, so if thats not saving me any fuel, i'd rather downshift, and save gas. Where can I find the fuel cutoff rpm?
I'm not really sure where or how it works exactly, but I know a feature like that is definitely there in some cars. I'm not sure if it's only new cars or if our "older" cars have this feature. Don't quote me on this though.

Just a thought: Wow I just read ur future garage, 1990 irocz camaro? This kid drives one at our school, it's loud and annoying. I think the engines bad or something..not even appealing. I bet it's powerful though.
Last edited by Nervous on Sun Jan 21, 2007 3:08 am, edited 1 time in total.
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eaglecatcher
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Post by eaglecatcher »

I'd like to know if my car has it. That would probably help me save more gas.
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Post by jory543 »

I know for a fact that mine doesn't. 1. I still have the automatic computer, and 2. my car pops through the exhaust on decel from the computer still feeding fuel to the injectors and it gets burned in the exhaust. So if you have a free flowing exhaust and you can hear popping or backfiring when you downshift your car probably doesnt have this feature.
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eaglecatcher
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Re: how to drive for best fuel mileage

Post by eaglecatcher »

frank723 wrote: and they recommended shifting really early and then flooring the throttle
I've heard that too, but never figured out exactly why. i would think light throttle application would be better, because it doesn't dump fuel into the cylinders like WOT, but then again, if you can get up to speed quicker using less fuel, and then shifting early, I could see how that would wor.
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Post by screenname »

Because of the way modern cars are set up, there will be the least amount of pumping loss when you open the throttle all the way at low RPMs (2500 RPM and below, anything above and your fuel will visibly drain). I've heard that you should start off easy in first, and then go WOT after you shift to second. Shift at about 2300-2500 RPM, and when you reach the speed you want to cruise at, keep the RPMs above 1500 and stay off the gas as much as possible.

I normally get around 35 MPG with my car (2005 Civic Hybrid 5-speed) with 100% stop-and-go traffic, but I averaged about 37 MPG by driving like that with this tank. If you don't do it correctly, though, you'll decrease your fuel economy instead. Try it out, and experiment with different techniques.
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Post by La Porta »

I get pretty good mileage with my car (for a GT, that is) if I keep the RPMs low and do shift early. Fast shifting has also helped me too, because the more time that it takes you to shift, the more the RPMs will drop off, and the more you have to use your gas to get them up again. One thing is that with my engine being the way it is, I can work relatively low RPMs (1700-2000) and shift and still be accelerating. On the downside, it is a V8 and will still suck up more than the 4cyl Civics and such at higher RPM.

Oh and Eaglecatcher, I don't know about your car, but i'm pretty sure mine is still burning when going downhill in a lower gear. I get the "pops" mentioned out of the tailpipe, and I can hear the engine actually "going" when I am heading downhill and the engine is running 2k or so holding me back.
Before you get any ideas, i'm from NY...I don't have a southern accent.
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Post by eaglecatcher »

screenname wrote:Because of the way modern cars are set up, there will be the least amount of pumping loss when you open the throttle all the way at low RPMs (2500 RPM and below, anything above and your fuel will visibly drain). I've heard that you should start off easy in first, and then go WOT after you shift to second. Shift at about 2300-2500 RPM, and when you reach the speed you want to cruise at, keep the RPMs above 1500 and stay off the gas as much as possible.

I normally get around 35 MPG with my car (2005 Civic Hybrid 5-speed) with 100% stop-and-go traffic, but I averaged about 37 MPG by driving like that with this tank. If you don't do it correctly, though, you'll decrease your fuel economy instead. Try it out, and experiment with different techniques.
Keep it above 1500 rpm? oops. I usually drove with mine in 4th gear at like 1300, because I have enough torque to gradually accelerate slowly, or I can coast with no engine braking. I'm only getting like 16mpg, so that could have something to do with it, I'm gonna try the WOT method and see what I get next time I fill up.
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Post by Sypher »

eaglecatcher wrote:
screenname wrote:Because of the way modern cars are set up, there will be the least amount of pumping loss when you open the throttle all the way at low RPMs (2500 RPM and below, anything above and your fuel will visibly drain). I've heard that you should start off easy in first, and then go WOT after you shift to second. Shift at about 2300-2500 RPM, and when you reach the speed you want to cruise at, keep the RPMs above 1500 and stay off the gas as much as possible.

I normally get around 35 MPG with my car (2005 Civic Hybrid 5-speed) with 100% stop-and-go traffic, but I averaged about 37 MPG by driving like that with this tank. If you don't do it correctly, though, you'll decrease your fuel economy instead. Try it out, and experiment with different techniques.
Keep it above 1500 rpm? oops. I usually drove with mine in 4th gear at like 1300, because I have enough torque to gradually accelerate slowly, or I can coast with no engine braking. I'm only getting like 16mpg, so that could have something to do with it, I'm gonna try the WOT method and see what I get next time I fill up.
well your car has a low redline, so i dont think keeping it above 1500 applies to you.
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