As many of you know, I drive pretty dang slow to conserve gas. Well, with gas prices going up the way that they have, there’s been a lot more talk on the internet about hypermiling techniques. I added a few of the tricks to my arsenal and am pleased to report that on this week’s trip home I pulled 40.8mpg out of the Nissan Altima.
Rock.
Just imagine the kind of mileage you’d get if you simply ripped out the floor of the Bench Warmer, and converted it to a Flintstone Mobile!
What are some of these tips?
I’m pretty much stuck at 36.1 mpg with my regular weekly commute.
1. empty trunk.
it’s obvious, but I hadn’t done it until just before this trip.
2. fill your tires to their maximum pressure.
not the recommended… the maximum. it’s also on the tire.
3. Keep your RPM’s below 2000
this was the hard one – especially during acceleration
4. Neutral it down long hills.
Mind you… this is illegal. But for 3/4 mile hills it’s totally sweet.
ok, i haven’t amped up the tires. and i have softball/volleyball junk in the car. but I keep RPM’s low and I coast down a lot of hills. I’m pretty sure that I can get over the 40 mpg hump, but a lot of it is due to the traffic I’m dealt.
Thanks for the tips.
You can also turn your engine off (while in neutral) on long hills. You just gotta watch out because you then have to force the power steering fluid through the system.
Also, inflating your tires to the maximum pressure will make them wear unevenly in the center of the tread, as well as reduce your contact patch. This is unsafe, especially if the road is wet. (And yes, I do realize that I just advocated turning your car off while it’s moving)
I don’t like a lot of these tips… Here are my thoughts on two.
When properly inflated, your tires’ contact patch is about the size of a running shoe, so reducing that contact patch reduces your car’s ability to react in a dangerous situation. In my eyes, a small amount of MPG is a worthwhile trade for knowing that my tires will be able to get me out of danger and last for as long as possible.
Second thing, neutral downhill increases fuel usage in modern cars with over-run fuel cutoffs. For those not in the know, which was me a month ago, here’s a reference explanation of how the cutoff works: