Fuelly Forums - MPG rally in Washington is a conditional 'go'

2009 Lacey MPG Rally results!
We had just 5 participants this year, all but one are returning drivers from last year. The weather was about 55-60* and rain showers all day. We briefly could see the sun through the clouds for about 20 minutes after all the cars came in. Not the best conditions for great mileage, but in Washington State this is what we deal with about 9 months of the year.

Truly outstanding driving by all the drivers produced some very impressive numbers. Hey if they can do it in these poor conditions we all have something to learn.

The rally was run on the honor system, so fill-ups are done at a gas station of the drivers choosing within a mile or so of the start/finish, there are 5 stations. The course was 93 miles long consisting of mostly rural roads, about 10% freeway, and about 10% downtown city. There is a time limit, so drivers can't go too slow. Considering this, and the speeds are pretty optimal for good mileage figures the achieved mpg is compared to the '08 combined mileage figure for the vehicle to try to keep the field level. I should also mention that there is no prize for getting the best numbers. This is a "non-competitive event" to try to give everyone incentive to be honest, but we all know better. They all however, did a good job of keeping everything honest.

So, this is how it stacked up:
Mileage EPA %of EPA
Kim Yee 02 Saturn SL1 66.14 33.00 200.42%
Ty Karney 94 Integra GSR 50.69 27.00 187.74%
Roland Kouhsen 07 Civic EX 53.77 33.00 162.94%
Ed Miller 93 Metro 65.53 47.00 139.42%
Dan Wright 00 Golf TDI 60.45 45.00 134.33%

Kim smoked everyone last year as well, he has some mods but he is REALLY tuned into his car. He must have a port in the back of his head for the OBD-II to plug into, I just coudn't find it. He has adjustabel AF ratio, 11:1 compression, somender grooved head, gear mounted engine shut-off switch and a couple other minor mods, no aero mods though.

Ty did this on a lark. He works for the city of Lacey and thought it would be fun to give it a try. Boy did he ever! Very impressive. He has moved to the dark side now, and is officially addicted. His GSR is bone stock, and in mint condition.

Roland drove with his also hypermiling but this time navigating wife again this year. Big increase from last year I think he did 137% or so. Mods are cool removable foam grill blocks wrapped in paint color matching duct tape.

Ed drove his '93 stealth Metro. Ed is a car guy and a total Metro nut. His car looks deceptively stock and in unusually excellent condition. Then you notice the 14" wheels, lowering springs, anti-sway bars, better seats, Canadian turbo hood with scoop and Jacobs ignition. He also has an XFi cam, ecu and other hidden stuff. He routinely gets 55 mpg while commuting at 65 mph.

Dan Wright knows the TDI well. Last year he had the full complement of family and camping gear all wedged into the Golf, and did quite well despite it all. This year he arranged to have them stay at a relatives house in town. He was happy with the 60 mpg but more impressive is that he does almost as good in the real world daily drives. Easy 700 mile tanks are common for him.

THANK YOU to all who participated. Sorry no pix, I forgot the camera in my bleary-eyed dash out the door that morning. Next year I hope to see more even more drivers show the public that you don't just "get what you get" as far as MPG is concerned. Also we need SUV's and Pick-ups to drive!