DTMAce's Forum Comments
Showing comments 1-30 of 180 by DTMAce.
Car was with mechanic - let idle for a while - how to handle?
Dude, no reason to leave out a bad tank MPG due to maintenance.
I have had a couple of sessions such as these, I just made a note about it, and left it as is. Tracking your fuel mileage isn't like sorting good from bad fill ups.
Just because someone gets a bad mpg one tank (in my case, the van) does that mean I should not report it, so it doesn't throw my numbers? No. All those are considered part of your real life usage. So don't throw it out, just add it in, it will be fine. The average will swallow the difference and months, years from now, the impact of that will be nothing on your average.
My van has over 160 fill ups. Nearly 45 thousand miles. The fiance is driving it for in-town use right now. The MPG has gone from an average of over 21 to 11 with her driving. I still count them, even though they are actually dragging my average down. You only have one that will affect it only slightly. Don't worry about it! Winter for me also brings my averages down, but I still count them.
posted by DTMAce February 12 at 5:55 PM
Can we have a 'top cars by mpg' section?
Here, this is why:
http://www.fuelly.com/faq/13/order-of-best-fuel-economy
posted by DTMAce February 3 at 7:11 AM
Best tank yet!
Matrix, depends on what gallon measurement you used I think. I believe Canada uses a UK gallon vs the US gallon doesn't it? US gallon is 3.785 L vs UK gallon of 4.546 L. So... 11.9x 4.546 = about 54L divide that by the US 3.785 and you get 14.2 Gallons.
Does that help?
posted by DTMAce January 24 at 8:12 AM
Confusing engine selection choices
It doesn't. Here in the U.S., most states only have you pay tax once, when you first buy the car/plates. Then all you have is a plate renewal cost each year after that. Some states go by the type of vehicle when calculating the plate fees, other states go by the value of the vehicle when it was new.
None of them really care about what size the engine is, or its displacement. And I would about bet that most of the erroneous entries are from U.S. vehicle owners here.
posted by DTMAce January 16 at 7:39 AM
Can't Retire
Hmmmm
Fuelly Pro. Interesting idea. Also could have many of the customized features lots of people ask for too. LOL
posted by DTMAce January 10 at 8:30 AM
My only problem with that is, having them retired, still allows the site to benefit from their statistics. By removing them, you remove that statistic from the site right?
I can understand the active vehicles being limited, but not the retired ones. Once they are retired, they just become a statistic.
On an alternative point, you could have an option to demote them to just the car info, deleting any reference to the original member, pics or details maybe. Like letting us have up to 6 retired vehicles, and if removed from that, we would have the choice to make them a site statistic when removing it. (in case of problems with deleting things like mistakes such as test entries, or retiring by mistake, etc)
Since this site is geared toward helping others with mileage, why would we want to lose vehicles that were contributing? You could have this same feature also take into account actual number of fill ups,as I know many vehicles often don't make it past a fill up or 2.
Just a thought.
posted by DTMAce January 10 at 7:24 AM
Problems with site layout.
Figured it was something like that. Just happened while I was using the site, so wasn't sure what was up. Working now at least. LOL
Thanks for the update.
posted by DTMAce January 7 at 10:50 PM
Fleet card for personal use?
My response would have been. Take a picture of the pump when you are done filling up with your phone and then one of your odometer. That way you will have it. Providing of course you have a picture taking capable phone. lol
I do this, when either the pump fails to print me a receipt or I forget to get one from the cashier. But I'm pretty anal about getting all my purchases entered, so I guess I don't have as much issue with it as you may have.
As to an actual card, I doubt you will find one that is setup for personal use in that fashion, however you can always quiz MasterCard, Visa or Discover to see if they offer cards with the feature, and what bank(s) may support this.
Good luck.
posted by DTMAce January 7 at 5:50 PM
poor mpg
I like the fact that my nearly 18 year old beretta can get over 30 on trips. And that's with a 6 cylinder on gas. I have seen more modern cars get well less than that, kinda scary.
But its all about how you drive it, and I have learned how to make the most of the tank. When I want to....
posted by DTMAce January 3 at 3:33 PM
Not buying that really either. I bought a new car once. I still get about the same mileage I got when it was new off the lot. So I doubt it has that much impact, maybe a few MPG, but not as much as shown here.
posted by DTMAce January 2 at 7:27 AM
Might be issues with how they are driving. Could be more City than Highway. Maybe they have a lead foot. lol
posted by DTMAce December 31, 2011 at 6:56 PM
Still don't understand "partial fuel-ups"
The only way you could use a partial tank theory to accurately calculate mileage, is if you started with a bone dry tank, put in 4 gallons, drove it till it was bone dry again, then you could calculate mileage for those 4 gallons, using odometer readings from the empty to empty cycle. Problem with that is, you have to run out of gas all the time to be accurate.
So the best way is to use full to full tanks. For those with hard money issues, don't let the tank get less than say half full. Keep it full, rather than run around on empty. Its easier to put 2-3 gallons in it to keep it full and easier on your pocket book, plus that way in the case of an emergency, you HAVE plenty of gas when you need it. :D
Plus you can accurately track your Mileage that way.
posted by DTMAce December 31, 2011 at 9:15 AM
Winter Blend
Although, some of you in warmer states with only a 1-2 mpg drop can probably attribute that to the fuel blend, if the temp stays the same. Those of us in the north however, see anywhere from a 3-8 mpg drop, depending on how we drive our cars in the winter (excessive idling, warming up, etc). So from my perspective, a 2mpg change is nothing. My van changes vary from 2-5mpg depending on driving style (city vs highway) even in summer. So honestly that isn't that bad.
posted by DTMAce December 31, 2011 at 9:08 AM
Yep. All my vehicles drop MPG in winter, and even with blends, I would put most of the blame on the cold, not the fuel. Just typical.
posted by DTMAce December 31, 2011 at 9:05 AM
New feature - total cost of ownership?
Fuelly should look into doing an overall statistic page for the entire garage, as a sum. With totals for all miles, fuel, costs, etc. Nothing fancy. Also have the option of including retired vehicles too.
posted by DTMAce December 5, 2011 at 10:03 AM
Problems with fill ups per month
In some cases, I wouldn't object to seeing a one decimal place with regards to the number of fill ups per month, such as a 1.7 vs the full 2. Just an idea. lol
posted by DTMAce November 21, 2011 at 3:17 PM
And just because I'm annoying like that: lol
My 2003 Caravan:
From first fill up date to last fill up date: 721.5 days.
Divide that by 30.4375 gives you:
23.7 months.
Now, divide that into the total number of fill ups:
142 / 23.7 = 5.992 or 6 fill ups a month. Which is what is being listed now.
As for the other vehicle, 1994:
First to last fill up - 705.5 days.
23.18 months.
40 / 23.18 = 1.73 or about 2 fill ups a month.
Yes, both of these would match the current averages listed already. But you see that this math does work. Just trying to present a different way of calculating the data for a more accurate representation.
posted by DTMAce November 21, 2011 at 3:15 PM
Well, I had more or less figured that already. I was trying to see how you were getting a month out of 42 day
It sounds like to me, you are going by 30 (or 30. whatever) increments, ignoring a decimal equivalent equation completely. For example:
If I divide 365.25 by 12, I get 30.4375 for a monthly average. Yes, I used the .25 to cover the leap year for simplicity of the math.
Anyway, using that math may not be AS accurate as going by actual calendar month days, but its more accurate than your current 30 day rounding and still is simple. Take the next step:
42 days divided by 30.4375 = approx 1.38 months.
Take your 6 fill ups, divide by 1.38 months, you get just over 4 fill ups a month as it is now. This may still not present correctly to some users with low number of fill ups, but it is more accurate and at least mathematically it makes more sense.
To me its a more realistic value than doing a monthly round off every 30 days. Just cause you have in many cases years of data is immaterial. This would still be more accurate than the way it is now.
Thanks for fixing the graph issues, again! lol Not sure why I keep running into discrepancies. As for being a running vs overall, the graph should still be reflecting the same information. Simple as that.
Let me know if I made any sense with the rest of it.
posted by DTMAce November 21, 2011 at 3:01 PM
And I'm still seeing issues with graphs, between the one on the home page and the one on the vehicle stat page. The 95 is way off on that, no matter what computer I look at it with.
posted by DTMAce November 21, 2011 at 1:20 PM
Viewing in km/L
Canada uses it heavily, along with many others. lol Not going anywhere soon.
posted by DTMAce November 19, 2011 at 12:20 PM
Outback Calulates MPG Higher than Feully
That assumes that all cars have configurable computers, and that he actually has smaller or larger tires mounted on the car.
There are many cars out there (mostly older years) that cannot be adjusted for tire sizes, or that don't even have a computer in them don't forget.
posted by DTMAce November 9, 2011 at 8:55 AM
Not with an Outback, but with my old caravan it had a MPG calculator. It also didn't match, and even if I simply did the math myself it didn't match. The one on the vehicle is usually an approximation.
The true MPG is revealed over time as you use the vehicle. Plus with the vehicle one, often I would reset it when I did an oil change, to see if it would affect it more during each oil change, and it would. Winter would show lower MPG and Summer higher, but neither would exactly match Fuelly or my own calculations.
Hope it helps.
posted by DTMAce November 7, 2011 at 6:16 AM
94 MPG!
Yeah, so about 75-80 MPG in the US. Still, that's pretty good!
posted by DTMAce October 26, 2011 at 7:50 PM
Just a question, unless I missed it in the reading...
Are we comparing the MPG based on UK gallons instead of US gallons? Just thought I would ask. I know that makes a difference too.
I do agree that US needs to be offering vehicles to the US market with this type of mileage ability however.
posted by DTMAce October 25, 2011 at 8:02 PM
Graph problems again!
Yeah, I was looking at that earlier, duh me. LOL
Thanks for the fix though. At least its a way to prevent issues. Though, it might be simpler to just stamp it with the time its entered for both fuelup_date and date_added. At least that will prevent issues with the less understanding members?
In other words, the time you enter the fill up would be used for both, regardless if the dates were the same day or if you actually had to go pick the day the fill up was done, it would be stamped that time. Cause there would really be no way to enter two entries AT the same time, and this would prevent the issue. And those that are more fussy can go edit the actual entry and still adjust the time if they feel its necessary.
What do you think?
posted by DTMAce October 24, 2011 at 9:33 PM
Will this add more fields to the export data file? Or will that remain unchanged? This will work though, at least I have a way to fix it. ;)
Thanks PB.
posted by DTMAce October 24, 2011 at 2:52 PM
Graph is not matching
And now its doing it again, only in reverse. This time the profile one looks fine, but the graph in the vehicle's page is wrong Arg. LOL
I did try a hard refresh, 3 computers all the same.
posted by DTMAce October 20, 2011 at 5:56 AM
How many clicks to fill up?
Well, I won't doubt the wasting gas part, as it would run out on the ground if you fill it too far, but then again, its hard to say. Never have been to a ... Sheetz? So maybe its just some stations that do that. None of the ones around here have anything even close to that, even with a label. Though many tell you not to top off. This was to prevent spills, not so it gets siphoned back into their tank though. As I said, each car and each pump is different. You may have to experiment a few times to learn how your car takes gas and gets full. Otherwise you will get inconsistencies, especially if you drive the exact same way each day and fill up, and you MPG goes up and down every fill up like a yo-yo. This is due to the inconsistencies. Get less than a full tank one time, the a full tank the next time, etc. It throws off the numbers. This is why I learned a long time ago to simply fill it as full as I safely can.
My beretta's, can hold a GALLON past the pop off in most cases. Funny but true.
The 03 Caravan however, is usually pretty darn near full when it pops, but I can usually round it up the nearest half dollar mark.
I will even give the vehicle a nudge sometimes, to shake any air bubbles out of the tank, just to get a bit more in it.
That of course is overkill. LOL
posted by DTMAce October 18, 2011 at 5:13 PM
Ciderbarrel, that is ridiculous.
Where did you hear that? Have you ever looked at the end of a fill nozzle? There is only one tube.
And I have filled them too full. Guess what happens? The gas runs out onto the ground. Your car may have an overflow/vent tube as well, but when both it and the main tube is full, it will just run out on the ground if you keep trying to fill it, not go back into the station tank!
Each car and each station pump is going to be different. Which is why no one can rely on the same method every time. If I did that, there are at least 2 stations that I would never get any gas into the tank of the van as it pops off WAY early (like before I even get a gallon of gas in it) and I know its going to take more than 14 to fill it.
Best solution is trial and error, and simply try to fill it as full as you can without running it onto the ground. (it will NOT go into the station tank, at least at any station I have ever been to. Maybe its a California thing, they seem to have the weird gas out that way)
posted by DTMAce October 17, 2011 at 2:33 PM
I generally fill till its near the top. The nozzle clicks quicker and easier when its near the top. Either way, as long as you fill it the same way each time, you should maintain consistent filling. Keep in mind some pumps may click off early or later than others. Just takes practice, you can get it going good.
posted by DTMAce October 16, 2011 at 12:46 PM