Garage/Gas-Log Trend?
 

This isn't terribly significant, just something I found interesting.

Under Top-Ten vehicles the list for highest MPG goes like this:

Honda
Swift-clone
Honda
Honda
Swift-clone
Swift-clone
Honda
Swift-clone
Honda
Honda

For % over EPA average the list is much more diverse:

Honda
VW
Mazda
Honda
Honda
Toyota
Swift-clone
Honda
Saturn
Honda

Something you might also notice is that all the hondas are civics and (lemme check) only one is 96-00 generation or after.

EDIT: W00t for 8th % over EPA, my goal is over 100%, :p And W00t for zpiloto keeping with his steady improvement on casper.

I do think that the % over EPA is a much better indicator of your ability to improve fuel economy.

The other cars just have built-in fuel economy.

Which just proves that the FE average from all manufacturers continues to go down...:mad:

Epa
 

Metros definately have 'Built in Economy'...but no where near the EPA ratings without fighting for it :mad: . Sorry, just venting, hate being in the negative still on the log.

I agree. One is probably more indicative of the best FE vehicle, while the other will generally indicate the best FE driver.

Indeed, but that's why we're here, transforming mediocre cars into amazing ones, :)

I know what you mean, but you've got it even worse with the Metro XFi. Your EPA avg is what, 55 mpg?

You have a lot of tanks over that, but you get 1 or 2 "bad" tanks in there due to weather and you're sunk. :(

All Better...
 

Thanks for the sympathetic shoulder to cry on...OK I'm better now :)

I'm getting a low tank right now - running with acetone 3oz for the 10.9 gallon fillup no Torco or Marvel oil and it is starting to show at the higher speeds dropping down to the mid 30's for mpg last night but managed to pulse glide it back up to 40mpg for the 25 mile trip.

I added the Aerostar to my garage to redeem my negative EPA %. Once I add some numbers from summer driving I should easily be around 22% over the EPA's estimates for The Gas Pig.

Maybe more if I actually do the aero mods.

Hypermile the aerostar!

Or, as my friend's might say: "Ghost-ride the whip!"

I agree with SVOboy that the object is turn the cars in to EPA busting monsters.:D But I think that the over EPA is really a matter of how long the commute is and terrain. I have 50 mile commute 3-4 times a week. This affords a lot better chance at some good numbers than a 10 mile commute. And those that do a lot of highway even better. The ultimate goal is to squeeze every bit of fuel you can out of your ride. Now if i can only get rid of the auto transmission and wear the tires out so I can get LLR tires:p

Something else to note: Small engines, 1.7L or less in the overall MPG.

Actually, all in the top 5 are 1.5 or less, with the larger engines (the sole 1.6 and sole 1.7L) in the bottom half.

Which makes plenty of sense. But it should also be a message to someone wanting great MPG - If you have a large engine, you will have to pay at the pump.

My$.02

After my next coupla tanks fall out of the 90 day average, it'll be:

Honda
Honda
Swift Clone

Well, guess whose "low" tanks just dropped off the 90-day average? Here's the top-ten MPG list:

Swift-Clone (Firefly)
Civic (CX)
Civic (Del-Sol)
Civic (VX)
Civic (CRX)
Swift-Clone (XFi)
Swift-Clone (Metro)
Swift-Clone (Metro)
Civic (VX/Si)
Civic (SE Coupe)

And the % over EPA list:

Civic (Del-Sol)
Mazda 626
VW Passat
Swift-Clone (Firefly)
Civic (VX/Si)
Civic (CX)
Toyota Corolla
Civic (CRX)
Scion xB
Saturn SL

When I look with the intention of figuring out the best car for MPG, I look at the first graph. When I look for the most (as Napolean Dynamite would say) skilled user, I look at the second one.

There is also the fact that most of the users on this site drive Hondas, second are the Metros, and then the rest are rather scarce. It would of course be perfect if we could get more users with different cars. I'm sure the non-stop Honda talk scares some people off.

I think that there are more Honda drivers who tend to be tinkerers as well. We have a lot of tech-talk based around Honda engines/transmissions.

A lot of people are hoping to find the "magic bullet" and when they see we don't particularly condone them they take off. However, I lurked around CleanMPG for a while and I noticed one guy who thought Gassavers was all about additives and "fuel-saving" devices...???

On another note, CleanMPG seems to be primarily hybrid owners and non-tinkerers so I guess every forum has it's crowd.

Going by some of the animosity towards FE driving techniques on other boards, that may scare some user's off as well.

I don't know, I still haven't met anybody in town who is an FE nut like I've become. Maybe we're a rare breed...:confused:

I keep thinking I should put some gassavers flyers up at my local grocery store.

When the price of gas rises to the point where the gas used in around 3 years is equivalent to the price of a car, there will be little alternative to becoming an FE nut. At the moment, someone will spend around $4000 in 3 years on gas. That will buy a secondhand car, easily.

Say that a car loan is 5 years. If gas is $12/gallon, then the gas per year works out to be equivalent to the car payments.

In reality, gas at $12/gallon would bring a global depression. Because oil fuels pretty much everything we do, discretionary income drops very rapidly with rising oil prices because EVERYTHING costs more. Less people spending money means people can afford to hire less people or pay them as much.

The end result is that soon people will care very dearly about FE if fuel prices continue the way they are. Being able to travel is a very important thing. People will travel in anything so long as their choices are limited. We once used horses and model Ts. We are the same humans, just socially engineered differently.

But yeah, it's not something that most people consider. Yet. And people I talk to think driving down a hill in neutral is taking a big risk, let alone EOC.

I can't imagine gas ever hitting $12 a gallon, but I guess anything is possible. The trend I have noticed over the last four years is that gas has basically gone up $0.10/liter/year ($0.38/gal/year). I fluctuates during the year, but I can pretty much guarantee that August will produce prices of $1.15/L in my area. Last August was $1.05 to a $1.08 and the current price is $1.11/L. By the time February or March of the following year rolls around, the previous July/August prices are the norm and people have gotten used to the increase.

But, anyway, I'm getting off topic. What I mostly wanted to say is that fuel economy for us seems to be a hobby for the most part. Kind of the polar-opposite of racing, but in the same vein.

If someone is just trying to save some money because their SUV is a gas-pig they probably aren't going to want to work for it like most of us are willing to. They may lurk for a while, but unless the FE bug grabs them they probably won't get involved in the site very much.

I agree that it's a big part of it, but it doesn't always work out the way you would expect. In warm weather where cold starts aren't as painful, I see EPA-busting as a matter of terrain and skill, not so much distance. For example, I have a 25 mile commute on the highway that gets me in the 41-42mpg range round-trip. But there's a shorter route around town that I use to get between offices, and it blows my long highway commute out of the water. It's six miles and I've seen round trip numbers as high as 46mpg! The difference, I think, is the opportunity to "codfish" for at least 1/4 of the distance if not more. Prior to learning that technique I was stuck in the mid 30s.

I'm talking longterm. Eventually it will get there, it's just a matter of when. With taxes in other countries, it's already at $6/gallon, often more. Whether it's 1 year or 10 years, we will see it. And it's not really just gas prices, it's gas price/disposable income or gas price/discretionary spending.
Yes, that's true. Although these days it's getting more and more popular. The jargon is becoming widely understood. Most auto buffs recognize drag coefficient now, I'd be surprised if that was the case 10 years ago. It's only a matter of time before this stuff is widely accepted. Auto enthusiasts know that to increase peak hp, you will need to add a turbo, increase the boost, add an intercooler(most likely front mount) to increase efficiency/protect the engine, open up the exhaust and intake, and adjust the air/fuel ratio. It's only a matter of time before people will understand LRR tyres, sideskirts, undertrays, custom bodykits, taller gearing and eventually electric propulsion as the necessary components of achieving excellent fuel economy.

Before long there will be magazines devoted to this stuff. In fact, there is probably an excellent business opportunity going unexploited there. Or maybe someone is already exploiting it?

I'm seeing that weird three in a row slope on my MPG per tank again - I wonder if there is some relation to the time of the month that I fill up or the weather . . . humm current tank only hovering around 40mpg average - lots of congestion from the summer tennis crowds blocking traffic when they walk across the streets. Waited for 3 light changes for a left turn with only 6 cars ahead of me today - 3 mile trip took half an hour with the AC running. Need some counrty driving in the woods to get back up into the 50's for a few miles.

LOL, I watched my friend almost "ghost ride" his "whip" into a tree... now if you could get 3 friends and a 4 door... all do it at once... then ya got something. =)

kind of hard to determine Who these top ten drive at. mostly city or highway?

because highway is such a joke compared to city.... stay below 60 mph!

My drives are 75% freeway, normally between 65-80 MPH. I've started just driving the car how I would normally, and the mileage has still been pretty good. I'm sure if I was trying more it would be even better, but driving 45 minutes at a time in traffic where people are blowing past you constantly gets real old real fast.

Take a look at the sample... a lot more Hondas and Swift-clones. It only makes sense that so many are appearing in the top ten.

I am generally 95-100% city driving. Occasionally I take the Metro out for a highway scream to get the engine revving (80 km/h in 3rd gear to get up to the insane highway speed, 4th up to 100, and then cruise in 5th at 110). At the most this is a 10-20 km drive once during a tank. The furthest I've gone in the last number of months was a 40 km leisure drive on a country backroad.