I've been looking around for a good driving practice yet saving gas. I knew a few tips, such as WOT saves more gas than high rev, which means driving at higher gear in lowest speed possible will save more gas than driving at lower gear that the same speed.

Lately, I shift around 2krpm, and drive 5th even when I move about 35-40mph. Is it bad for the engine (putting it to work more often)?
I don't have any jerking when accelerate hard at 1500rpm, I guess i have a big engine.

Beside bump start (which I don't really want to try), what other tips can help me save gas? I'd love to know.

Oh, and how about neutral, will neutral save more gas than slightly stepping on 5th to maintain contstant speed on freeway (setting aside the fact that you need acceleration when emergency happens)? I just wonder. Since the engine has to put out some work to overcome the engine breaking, is putting in neutral will infact save more gas than revving at 2500rpm and burning tiny amount of gas?

ps: pardon my questions, I've just filled up my car and got freaked out at the bill.

paging philmcneal.... paging philmcneal... will philmcneal please report to this thread... thank you

LOL jomo

How's this? Copied from a Fit Owners' forum:

1. Keep the car in the highest gear possible, unless you are lugging the engine.
2. Keep an eye on tire pressure. If the tires are a few PSI low this can make a difference on mileage.
3. Most cars get the best gas mileage between about 40-60 mph, so watch your speed.
4. Read traffic to keep your pace smooth and steady; coast to red lights and avoid hard acceleration.
5. Accelerate moderately through the lower gears to get in 5th as quick as possible. On an automatic using a feather touch on the gas will usually get the car in the highest gear quickest.
6. Watch speed. Over 60 mph wind resistance really starts to hurt gas mileage. The faster you go the worse your mileage is going to get past this point.
7. Keep the engine below about 3400 rpm's. That is about the point when the VTEC engine begins to open the engine up for more power. Quess where power comes from - GAS.
8. Some people actually push in the clutch going down hill. This allows the engine to idle taking advantage of gravity. You may want to be careful doing this. In certain situations you may want the engine to keep control of the car.
9. Avoid hard accelerations, particularly uphill.
10. Use the cruise control to maintain a steady speed.
11. Buy gas in the morning and evening. Temperatures are lower, and gas expands with heat. You actually get a little bit more gas when the temperature is lower. While this may not technically help gas mileage, it could save a little bit of money by allowing you to get a little more gas.
12. Do not use your car to store junk. The less weight the better.
13. Roof racks and bike racks add to wind resistancy. Only use them when you need them.
14. Accessories draw power so keep the air and stereo at a comfortable level rather than blasting it.

Hum... does anyone know if bump starting a car with a timing chain will have the same effect/damage as bump starting a car with a timing belt?


hearing someone's blasting music is annoying

Thanks Mikey
About number 8, isn't it the same as putting it in neutral?

I don't know if this has been posted before but Road & Track magazine had a article about how to save gas while driving.

http://www.roadandtrack.com/article.asp?section_id=20&article_id=3424

Saving gas was also one of the benefits I liked about driving a manual compared to an auto.

Thanks for the article...A/C can increase gas consumption by 20% and that includes defrost/defog? 20% is a lot. I did notice the first time I used A/C I have to add a lot more gas than usual or else the car will shudder. A/C is I'm rolling my windows down from now on.

Yes it is, and both are coasting... which should NEVER be done, for safety reasons—especially when going down a steep hill.

Engine braking down a hill or towards a light requires ZERO fuel; and if the car slows down too much for your taste, you can just shift to a higher gear

I agree with Peter, you should never coast. In fact it is actually illegal in the UK. If caught you can be charged with "driving without due care and attention".

Last two posts: agreed 100%

Wish I would have seen this thread earlier!

Alright, popo. I hope you're ready to read. Saving fuel is one of my expertise, if I might say so. I'm getting 33+ MPG in a Ford Taurus, so I'll brag a little. Hell, if I can't race around, I can talk about something! I've taken a lot of information from http://www.cleanmpg.com, so I suggest a visit to get more in-depth on the topic.

First and foremost, slow down your driving. Accelerate slowly, shift around 2000 RPMs, and brake as little as possible. You want to watch the road ahead as much as possible and predict traffic, lights, stops, and turns as much as possible. Anytime you need to accelerate, you are using more fuel than necessary. Do your best to keep rolling, as safely as possible.

Some folks promote WOT short-shifting, which essentially consists of using full throttle and shifting very quickly at low(er) RPMs. In theory, this is a great idea, as it minimizes or negates any pumping losses or inefficiencies that come from accelerating. However, it is absolutely impractical and nearly impossible in everyday driving, and most things don't as work well in reality as they do in theory. Instead, I recommend accelerating slowly and shifting early. Usually between 2000-2500 RPMs will yield good MPG. Quickly, another fuel economy booster includes drafting. Consisting of simply using another, preferrably larger vehicle to break up the air in front of you, just follow them relatively closely (but not dangerously close). I recommend distance drafting, which puts a tractor trailer 30-60 feet in front of you. As he breaks up the solid air in front of you, you can cut through the disturbance without using as much power and fuel as you normally would.

Another excellent technique to employ is the drive-without-brakes, or DWB. Basically, drive as if you have no brakes unless you absolutely have to stop. Don't ride anyone's bumper on the highway, gasing and braking every second. Instead, while on the highway, drive at or under the speed limit. There is severe loss of efficiency due to drag resistance at speeds over 65 MPH. Keeping it to 65 or under is an excellent way to boost your MPG. You'll also notice that it rarely adds time to your trip, because instead of braking and gasing due to a higher speed, you're just cruising at a steady speed. It's also much less stressful. And don't worry about folks passing you. That's what the right-lane is for.

There is also drive-without-load, or DWL. Simply put, don't accelerate as you go up a hill. Instead, lock your foot and let the car slow down. When folks add gas as they go up an incline, much of the fuel being dumped into the engine is wasted, as the vehicle cannot process the excess amount on a hill properly. Remember, the speed you lost on the uphill will be gained on the adjacent downhill. Sometimes, there isn't one - not to fear, once you get back to level ground, the car will pick up to its faster speed, as you have locked your foot at the previous RPM that provided that speed.

Downhills - a serious issue for stickshift drivers. To neutral or not to neutral? That is the question. The answer: never to neutral. The only time you use neutral is when coming to a full stop. Other than that, coasting is something that should be used with the engine off. We'll get to that in a moment. The reasoning for keeping the car in gear is as follows: when a stick is put into neutral, the engine has to pump fuel to keep the engine at idle. However, when the car is rolling in gear above idle speed (~1000 RPMs), modern vehicles (EFI) shut off their injectors and restrict the flow of fuel, due to the fact that the wheels are turning the engine. You know this phenomenon as engine braking. Your best bet (if you want to roll a ways) is to upshift and let the car coast in gear. As long as you are above idle speed, you aren't using any fuel. Once the wheel-speed drags the engine below idle speed, the injectors will attempt to bring the engine speed back to idle, thus using fuel. Long story short: stay in gear until ~1000 RPMs, then either downshift or shift to neutral.

Now we come to some advanced techniques to fuel-economy. The first bends the rule I just set for you up above. It is controversial and could be considered unsafe, yet it provides an excellent boost to your fuel economy. When driving a route that you know well (I don't recommend it yet on an unfamilar route until you've got the technique down), find a section that is relatively flat or slightly downhill and long. At speed, shift to neutral and key off to IGN-II. That is, shut down the engine to the key position that allows your steering wheel to be unlocked, but your engine and electronics to remain off. (Warning: some vehicles do not allow unlocking of the steering wheel. If this is your car, don't do this. Test it out in your driveway first)

Shutting down the engine in neutral allows the car to coast (without power brakes, steering, A/C, etc.) without using any gas whatsoever, as the engine is off. I recommend this technique for when you are coming up to a local light that you know is long (longer than a minute) or a 4-way stop that's very far away on a downhill. This way, you don't have to power into the intersection and waste energy needlessly idling at a light. If you time it right, you can slowly roll up to the stop just as the light turns green or the 4-way stop clears out. And yes, folks don't like if you are rolling at 15 MPH on a 55 MPH road. That is unnecessary and dangerous. Instead, try to plan out the engine shut-off so that there isn't anyone close behind you, or you can keep your speed up (i.e., on a downhill).

Now, there are a couple of disadvantages to keying back to IGN-II. You loose power brakes and steering, primarily. Steering at speed is still possible, while a bit harder. Your brakes are good for a couple of applications, afterwards, stopping becomes quite an effort. However, if you implement DWB as you coast, you'll be alright. Small brake applications are better than large ones, and steady braking is better as well. When you want to restart, simply clutch in and restart.

Pulse & Glide (aka P&G) incorporates keying-off with restarting the car through bump-starting repeatedly to up your MPG. In a stick, you don't have to key-on to start the vehicle. Instead, while moving at a good speed (over 25 MPH or so), shift into your highest gear and with the key in the engine-on position (IGN-III, where all of the electronics come on, but before actually engaging the starter), and let the clutch out slowly. As the clutch engages with the moving wheels, it will spin the engine up to speed. This technique takes some practice and finesse, and is definitely the most advanced out of the methods I've suggested.

Basically, to save on gas, drive smart. Don't hurry up to a red light. Don't brake late and sit at a light that you could have braked early for and then rolled through. Don't speed! Don't gas-and-brake drive. Keep your RPMs low. Don't excessively idle! If you know you're going to be at a light for a while, just turn the car off. It isn't a big deal, and for the life of me, I don't know why more people don't do it.

Good luck, and praise to you for wanting to save some gas and money!

I was JUST going to create a post in my thread about this very issue after I noticed that my BMW was eating up gas (and here I thought manuals were supposed to help SAVE gas ) !!!!!

Guess I wont need to anymore

If you've got a car that seems to be eating gas, you need to check a few things. Make sure your tires are properly inflated to their maximum sidewall pressure (cold). Make sure you don't have a faulty O2 sensor. Take out any excess weight. Check the brakes to make sure the calipers aren't dragging. Make sure your alignment is good to go.

These should be in the above post, so consider them an edit.

Regarding #8. I thought it was best to keep a car in gear because when in idle the engine is using gas to keep running, but when coasting in gear the drivetrain is keeping the engine running. Is that miss information. i think i even read that on this site!

true for most modern fuel injected cars, when rolling in gear, off throttle, above ~1800 rpm, no fuel is used.