From "The Daily Telegraph":
www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml?xml=/earth/20...l
> 1. Drive smoothly. Don't accelerate hard and brake hard while starting and
> stopping. By building up your speed gradually and coasting towards a red light,
> rather than slamming on the brakes at the last minute, you could cut fuel
> consumption by up to 20 per cent.
Well. "Up to" clearly indicates the number "0". This must be for town drivers, and, to boot, those bereft of common sense.
> Slow down. The most fuel-efficient speed is 56mph, and by driving at 56mph instead
> of 70mph you increase fuel efficiency by another 20 per cent.
Shorely some mishtake (Ed.). Where do they find this stuff??
3. Get rid of dead weight. Clearing your boot of toolboxes and other heavy objects can increase fuel efficiency by two per cent. Taking off unused roof racks will save another two per cent.
"Can", "Up to". Well, yes. Roof racks, 2%? Up to a point, perhaps....
4. Check your tyres are properly inflated. Under-inflated tyres can increase fuel consumption by three per cent.
Again....
5. Don't use air conditioning, which increases fuel consumption by an average of eight per cent.
But at what speed, under which conditions, in what car?
The above indicates to me that someone's been paid to mouth fairly meaningless words. Why?? Is this sort of thing helpful, "dumbing down" (sic), rather than catering for Mr. Average?
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Best way to make my fuel go further is to always use my girlfriends company car at weekends. My name has been added to her company insurance and this system seems to work exceedingly well........her 07 Passat 2.0Tdi seems a rough noisy thing compared to my '98 Mazda 626 2.0 petrol. I know which I prefer, and it isn't the Passat.
Edited by legacylad on 08/07/2008 at 23:49
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always use my girlfriends company car {passat} at weekends.
>>I know which I prefer and it isn't the Passat.
Huh??! So why use it then?
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Huh. Because her company pays for the fuel. I pay for mine out of taxed income.
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I'm getting tired of hearing the same old advice about conserving fuel over and over again. I've been practicing fuel efficient "eco driving" for a long time now. It doesn't change the fact that fuel's still too expensive. It's still bleeding me dry!
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I can't see much to disagree with in the Telegraph article. Sure, removing a bit of weight, turning off the a/c or checking tyre pressures might yield small to smaller benfits depending on a whole host of other factors. You couldn't expect them to detail effects on particular models or makes - but - as an overall guide it's pretty accurate & helpful.
Why is it 'dumbing down' - if that's dumb, what 'clever' solutions have we not been made aware of? What else (other than nuances of the main points or having your car properly 'serviced') would you suggest?
Do tell!
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Shoving the thing up and down the drive, to the `washing position` without starting it.
;)
Edited by oilrag on 09/07/2008 at 07:25
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The best ways to save fuel are to give serious thought to:
Is my journey really necessary?
Can I, for example, plan my shopping trips better?
Can I conspire with others to lift-share?
and to walk/use your bike for short journeys
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The tyre pressure thing is worth it to remind the large number of motorists that NEVER check their pressures.
My in-laws visit about once every 3 months, in their 04 reg Focus. When they arrive I can usually see at least one of the tyres is part-deflated -- so I pump them up to spec all round, check the valve core is tight etc.
Last time they came 3 of the tyres were about 22psi and one was at 17psi ... goodness knows what impact that has on consumption, and safety.
Every time they come I tell them to check pressures at least once a month, or when they fill up, but evidently they never do.
Edited by Webmaster on 10/07/2008 at 00:48
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I suspect one full blast motorway slip road acceleration would wipe out a weeks pussy footing around.
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Craig is dead right, with bigger tyres, pressure seems to make big differences to mpg.
If your ride doesn't suffer too much, over inflation by a small amount (0.5 - 1 psi) doesn't make much difference to handling (on my car) but gives me an extra 1 mpg.
Only thing I notice is the braking is slightly worse when hit hard, but as this rarely happens, not a problem and certainly far from unsafe.
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6. Tuck up behind big trucks on the motorway and sit in their slipstream.
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Another would be an engine remap and have a bit of self control. Just got mine done on Monday (i'll update the technical thread next week when I've spent more time with the remapped car).
Instantly getting at least 2.5mpg better in a constant cruise on the same route, and the instant fuel computer is quite pessamistic too.
I'll see how it shows up in my brim to brim on the weekend, got a 425 mile roundtrip to do.
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Don't forget to tell us whether you are cruising at your usual rate smokescreen.
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On my regular paths, with relatively same conditions and maintaining the same speed, there clearly was an improvement of a few mpg on the instant computer. Being the xsara it goes up in odd steps mind.
Also noticed as soon as you come off the throttle a little, the instant computer rises far quicker to the cruising MPG than the original map did, and isnt nearly as jittery.
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My in-laws visit about once every 3 months >>
How do you do it Craig?
Come on, puhleese - what is the secret?
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If you really want to save fuel, then the guys on the Ecomodder forum have it sussed.
Check it out:
tinyurl.com/657hgt
A whole 105 fuel saving tips! I'm pretty good at driving efficiently myself (I can usually beat manufacturers figures with a bit of care), but there was stuff there that made me think. They really have it covered, everything I've ever done and more was covered there. Some were very sensible, some less than useful, but most of us could learn something from these hypermiling guys.
One tip very relevant to a recent thread here (and probably contentious!):
"43) The most efficient way to slow down
When you *have* to slow down, here's an approximate hierarchy of methods, from best to worst.
1) coasting in neutral, engine off (ie. roll to a stop);
2) coasting in neutral, engine idling;
3) regenerative coasting (hybrid vehicles)
4) regenerative braking (hybrid vehicles)
5) coasting in "deceleration fuel cut-off" mode (in gear, above a certain engine RPM)
6) conventional friction braking (non-hybrid or hybrid)"
Have at it!
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Noticed on the Ecomodder forum they rave on about the Scanguage was thinking of purchasing one for the wifes car when fund allow.
Has anyone of this forum used a Scanguage and what did you think of it
Thanks
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Observe the taboo word "coasting" tucked away in the article.
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>>When you *have* to slow down, here's an approximate hierarchy of methods, from best to worst.
1) coasting in neutral, engine off (ie. roll to a stop);
So with no power steering or brake servo? How sensible!
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Another money saving tip that comes to mind is NEVER buy your fuel from Mway service stations where the price is oftern several pence per litre higher than elsewhere.
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driving with the engine switched off is suicidle , as soon as you steer in to your first bend the steering lock will hamper progress in a big way
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Not on my car - you have to remove the key before it activiates - maybe its a secret fuel saving feature :-)
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On mine it locks in position I (ie everything off) but still works in position II (radio, etc).
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Another way to save fuel, park near the works carpark entrance. Assuming you work 5 days a week, for every 100 yds away from the entrance you park, you will be driving approximately 29 miles extra per year (less a few for holidays).
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Or park half a mile away from work (and home) and walk that bit.
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Or park half a mile away from work (and home) and walk that bit.
Or park a mile away from work and home and walk both those bits.
[It's Friday, I can see where this one might go...]
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I am self-employed and travel to customers sites all over the UK.
Over the last 20 odd years I would say that my average motorway cruising speed is the same as most of the regular "Lane 3" drivers.
As I am usually able to charge my customers for both the mileage and the time taken to make my return journey, there is not much point in driving very fast. So over the course of the last couple of months I have deliberately started driving at no more that 65 on the motorway, (with cruise).
Result is average MPG up from 33 MPG to 39 MPG (18% increase) and not that much extra time taken on any given journey, but the customer pays me a bit more for my trouble, so win-win! One really noticeable difference to my journeys, is the lack of braking required.
On one journey earlier this week (a round-trip of 360 miles), my total journey time was about 30 minutes longer than my "best" to the same destination.
There must be a catch somewhere?
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I find that the most efficient way to save fuel is to use my bus pass...:-)
What's more, in my area, it can also be used on the trains and the ferries across the Mersey...:-))
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What's more in my area it can also be used on the trains and the ferries across the Mersey...:-))
Quite agree Stuartli. I use the Northern Line to get into Liverpool and my local station is less than 100 yards from my front door. I can't even get my car out of the driveway for less than the £2.10 return fare to the city centre and a train every 15 minutes from 6 a.m. to midnight means its a great service. Plus no car parking and I can have a glass of wine with my lunch if I'm lucky.
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So over the course of the last couple of months I have deliberately started driving at no more that 65 on the motorway (with cruise).
I have just started doing the same thing over the last tankful (although I'm allowing myself to cruise at 70, and edge up to 75 if necessary to facilitiate an overtake). Although I haven't refilled yet, and have no computer to work out the consumption so far, I can say that my fuel light normally comes on around the 430 mile mark. My trip currently shows 432 miles and I have a quarter of a tank left, according to the gauge.
It's remarkable, and adds maybe 5 minutes to my commute. Will probably fill up on the way home as I'm itching to see what the end figure is. Last tank, driving "normally" was 32.7 mpg. I'm quietly confident of 36 mpg.
Cheers
DP
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I, like everyone (who doesn't have the benefit of an expense account, or who's boss pays for the company car use at w/ends) complains at the spiraling cost of fuel. But to put it in perspective, SWMBO & yours truly decided to have a run to Blackpool using our bus passes, a journey of some 30mls. taking app 35 or so mins. in the car. 2hrs & 15mins later we got to Blackpool on the bus (inc. one change) BUT, we took note of how much other passengers were having to pay, sometimes for only a mile or so. We reckoned the cost to us would have been around £17.50 EACH. A tram journey from the Pleasure Beach to North Shore cost a passenger over £10 for two. Makes you think dunnit? (It's great to be Grey) ;-)
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>>So over the course of the last couple of months I have deliberately started
>>driving at no more than 65 on the motorway (with cruise).
I drove from home(Chelmsford) to Ullapool, Scotland a few years ago and deliberately drove at 65 most of the way. Up to N.Yorkshire I got an average of 43mpg. Not bad for a 170 bhp BMW 323 estate. After that the average went down because the journey becomes quite hilly to say the least but it shows what you can do. It keeps stress levels down too, important when you're doing long distance. The thing that stops me trying to save fuel is the useless drivers in front of me stopping at roundabouts when there's nothing coming, then flooring it. Mainly townies, I have to say...
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I don't get to drive as much as I'd like anymore, but this week I had a 220 mile round trip down the motorways. Using some of the Ecomodder techniques I managed to get the average on my current tankful to 47.8 mpg (Volvo S80 D5 auto). Normally it's around 35-40mpg with mixed driving.
Not bad when you consider that also included 200 odd miles of normal town and back road driving first (I didn't reset the computer for the longer journey). If I'd reset the computer first I might have seen around 50mpg for that one journey!!
My journey time took about 15mins more than normal on each direction. Considering I was early on the way out and had to wait around anyway, no big deal at all.
For the record, the computer has proved to be about 98% accurate compared to brim-to-brim testing...
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Filled up last night.
442.2 miles on the trip meter
Second click on the pump at 51.41 litres
I make that 39 mpg! Especially impressive, as I got stuck in 3 miles of stop start traffic twice during this fill, and the car was used 4 up by SWMBO for some local / town driving too. The rest is the standard commute (motorway and A/B roads)
Aiming for 40 on the next one!! :-)
Cheers
DP
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DP, with gas guzzling like that, it's no wonder the government wants to tax you off the road!! ;)
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That's why the government like VED so much! A tax regardless of how careful you are to reduce yuor CO2 emissions.
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Buy a cow.
tinyurl.com/6pzntt
I wonder how many you would need to run a family car for a year.
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I do stick to the speed limit, having got points, and I tend to know the roads I drive along regularly. I have started driving 60 in a 70, 50 in a 60 and engine braking and anticipating all stopping or slowing down manoeuvres, insofar as I can. This has resulted in a computer indicated fuel consumption, over 250 miles, of 65 mpg as as opposed to my former 58 to 60. This is a 307 1580cc turbo 110 bhp. I am not claiming a specific improvement, just a suggestion that I am getting more mpg than I did last month!
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I have absolutely the best way to make fuel go further.
You do not need any strange additives, nor should you alter your driving style in any way.
Know how?
A: Place fuel in suitable container.
Place container on back of any passing european HGV.
Your fuel will go a looooong way.
hth
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On the Ecomodder site, I note with interest point 21.
Choose smooth road surfaces - Choose a route with a smooth, paved/concrete surface over gravel or rough, broken roads, all else being equal. Smoother surfaces offer reduced rolling resistance.
SO,does this mean that a government that wishes to be 'green' and to encourage economical motoring will institute a program of 'road smoothing'?
If they have to spend our money on something, that would seem like a reasonable thing to spend it on.
Edited by tyro on 23/07/2008 at 23:32
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On the Ecomodder site Choose smooth road surfaces - Choose a route with a smooth paved/concrete surface over gravel or rough broken roads all else being equal.
Yank innit.
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From one of those interminable round robin e-mails.
I don't know what you guys are paying for petrol....
But here in Durban we are also paying higher, up to R7.35 per litre. But my line of work is in petroleum for about 31 years now, so here are some tricks to get more of your money's worth for every litre.
Here at the Marian Hill Pipeline where I work in Durban, we deliver about 4 million litres in a 24-hour period thru the pipeline. One day is diesel the next day is jet fuel, and petrol, LRP and Unleaded. We have 34-storage tanks here with a total capacity of 16,800,000 litres.
Only buy or fill up your car or bike in the early morning when the ground temperature is still cold. Remember that all service stations have their storage tanks buried below ground. The colder the ground the more dense the fuel, when it gets warmer petrol expands, so buying in the afternoon or in the evening....your litre is not exactly a litre. In the petroleum business, the specific gravity and the temperature of the petrol, diesel and jet fuel, ethanol and other petroleum products plays an important role. A 1-degree rise in temperature is a big deal for this business. But the service stations do not have temperature compensation at the pumps.
When you're filling up do not squeeze the trigger of the nozzle to a fast mode.
If you look you will see that the trigger has three (3) stages: low, middle, and high.
In slow mode you should be pumping on low speed, thereby minimizing the vapours that are created while you are pumping. All hoses at the pump have a vapour return.
If you are pumping on the fast rate, some of the liquid that goes to your tank becomes vapour. Those vapours are being sucked up and back into the underground storage tank so you're getting less worth for your money.
One of the most important tips is to fill up when your tank is HALF FULL.
The reason for this is, the more fuel you have in your tank the less air occupying its empty space. Petrol evaporates faster than you can imagine. Petroleum storage tanks have an internal floating roof. This roof serves as zero clearance between the petrol and the atmosphere, so it minimizes the evaporation. Unlike service stations, here where I work, every truck that we load is temperature compensated so that every litre is actually the exact amount.
Another reminder, if there is a fuel truck pumping into the storage tanks when you stop to buy, DO NOT fill up--most likely the petrol/diesel is being stirred up as the fuel is being delivered, and you might pick up some of the dirt that normally settles on the bottom.
Hope this will help you get the most value for your money.
DO SHARE THESE TIPS WITH OTHERS!
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If you think too much about it your fuel consumption is also affected. Brain uses more glucose, extra food has to be eaten and carried in the car from the supermarket, which increases fuel consumption.
That`s why I can`t quite get 80 mpg on a round trip. Thinking too much about it- that and engine oil.
;)
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