Howdy - I have a 2008 Scion xD named Bob.

[Atheria]

Darrell,

You are getting over 46 mpg with an xB? What do you do to accomplish that? I'm assuming you haven't punched a hole in the engine like the guy I met did. ;-)

I am an ex Californian and aggressive/fast driver. So, this torque thing sucks. LOL - When I stomp on the gas to pass someone on the freeway, I do feel/hear a major shift at some point, but it's at a higher speed than 35-40.

I try to keep my 44 psi rated tires filled to almost 44 as I have always been afraid over inflating would make them explode. How high can you go without explosion or tire wear issues? I'm going to need a new set of tires pretty soon anyway.

Thanks everyone,
Atheria

Originally Posted by SentraSE-R

Hey Jan,

Look at this. Playing around in the local industrial park this morning.

[FrugalFloyd]

Atheria,

I used to be a type A driver myself. The main thing I've done is slow down. I used to get 26-28 mpg on 800 mile round-trips to SoCal in all 3 of our family's compact cars. One day, I decided to set the cruise control to 62 mph instead of 72 mph, and my mpg went way up to 33-34 mpg. The next trip, I set cruise control to 55 mph, and my fuel economy rose to 38-42 mpg. Now I just allow an extra hour and a half for the 400 mile one-way drive, and take the 50% better fuel economy. I used to have to tank up mid-way. Now I count on 400 miles of range with lots to spare.

I inflate my tires to the maximum sidewall pressure (like yours, 44 psi). There's little benefit from inflating them any higher. All my mpg improvements come from driving slower and conserving momentum. Any time I have to use the brakes, I'm throwing away energy.

The 91.5 mpg drive is a carnival sideshow, as I can't drive that slow (10-20 mph) in normal traffic.

[Atheria]

Darrell,

Man, you're killing me! Although I have driven 55 mph I only did so under duress. LOL - I was up to 80 this a.m. But yes, I know I shouldn't drive that fast for numerous reasons. The surprising thing is that I am actually a very cautious driver and always look far down the road and leave good stopping distance.

I still want to know about making a hole in your engine to drasticall increase fuel economy. I'm really curious.

Oh, and my once fast paced Boston friend who has lived here in New Mexico for quite a few years now keeps telling me that someday, the New Mexican "I'm in no hurry to get anywhere" thing will hit me. I'm not sure she's right, but she said you can't avoid it once you've lived here for awhile.

:-)
Atheria

[FrugalFloyd]

Atheria, food for thought:

''There is, of course, an obvious drawback to driving slower: it takes more time to get somewhere. If you do the math, you discover that slowing down from 75mph to 65mph means it will take you an additional 7 seconds to go a mile. (Slowing down to 55 will cost another 10 seconds)

What all this means is, over a 10 mile commute, you will waste 25% more gas (which also means you spend 25% more money), and increase your risk of death by 160%, all to save 2 minutes."

If you want better mpg, buy a $60 Ultra-gauge and monitor your driving. Leave for work 5 minutes earlier, slow down 10-15 mph, and increase your mpg 25-30%. You'll pay for the UG with the savings from your next 2 tanks of gas - well, it might take you a bit longer, since you're already doing pretty well.

My daughter's family lives in ABQ. I may be there in early June for a visit.

[Atheria]

Darrell,

But I'm a type A personality! I was cursing at a FedEx driver with double trailers who stayed in the left hand passing lane going slow this a.m. He literally messed up all the traffic. I need a megaphone to tell people how to drive. LOL

If you liked doing 75 mph (many of NM's highways have this speed limit) you'd looooove it here. LOL - Seriously, though, don't even try do do 55 on the 40 or 25 around here or you will get plowed under. In fact, isn't it against the law to go too slow? I think it is because you actually do become a hazzard.

I already have to leave for work by 6:45 a.m. Ack!

I may try it and see if there is a much of a difference though, just out of curiousity. I just wish we'd hurry up and switch over to the summer gas. I get noticeably better mileage in summer....37 city/hwy mixed.

:-)
Atheria

[FrugalFloyd]

Atheria,

But I'm a type A personality, too. I used to set my cruise control to 7 mph above the PSL, and found myself topping 90 mph on every long drive, because my natural instinct was to speed up, rather than slow down, in traffic.

I focused my efforts on getting better mileage, instead of getting to Point A sooner. Now, when I see slower traffic ahead, I welcome it as an excuse to slow down, instead of cursing it as an impediment.

I've driven to ABQ several times in the past year, on both I-25 and I-40, going my usual 55 mph. The PSL is a maximum speed, not a minimum speed. As long as I go a steady speed in the slow lane, everyone else gets around me just fine.

There's no magic trick to gain better mpg. The answer's right there in your right foot. I'm unaware of any holes you can cut into your car anywhere to improve mpg.

To answer another question of yours, some people inflate their tires well above (10 - 20 psi higher) the maximum listed on the sidewall. However, I've seen rolling distance ABA testing where the benefits end at 5 mph over maximum sidewall, and there's barely an improvement beyond maximum sidewall, so I just inflate mine to maximum sidewall.

TC lockup can occur in top gear >~35 mph, but it's also load dependent. It's easy to kick the TC out of lockup at any speed by stomping on the gas pedal. Watch your tachometer. It normally moves proportionally to your speedometer. At 60 mph, your tachometer may read about 2300 rpm. When your TC slips, your engine rpms kick up into the 3000 rpm range at the same 60 mph, clobbering your fuel economy. That wasteful engine ramp-up is what you want to avoid.

[FrugalFloyd]

Moderate aero mods can help you tweak 5-10% FE improvement. Driver behavioral changes can make 30-40% improvement with an AT, 50-70% with a MT. So pick the low-hanging fruit first, by slowing down. You'll get mid 20 mpg at 80 mph, high 20s mpg at 70 mph, mid-high 30s mpg at 60 mph, and ~40 mpg at 55 mph. If you have cruise control, set it to the PSL, stay in the right lane, and watch everyone get around you. Once you build up your confidence that, indeed, you won't die by driving the legal speed limit, drop to 5 or 10 mph below the PSL. The most dangerous place to be is in the high speed conga line of tailgaters going 75 mph with <1 second between cars.

Instead of keeping your foot on the gas until you're half a block from red lights and stop signs, start coasting to them (in neutral, when you're confident of your skills) 2-3 blocks ahead. Every time you slow to a stop from 35 mph, you're throwing away the same amount of energy they crash test cars with - in other words, you're throwing away enough energy to kill a person.

[Atheria]

When I had a stick shift 2004 Scion xA, I tried a trick I'd heard about where you shift up to a higher gear in order to keep your RPMs as low as possible. Although my poor car struggled and definitely didn't perform optimally, I maybe got 1 more mile per gallon...so it wasn't worth it.

The guy I met who had punched a hole in his Toyota Yaris engine really wasn't lying. And he swore his mpg was in the low 50s. I wish I'd gotten more details. I talked to him at Sony Pictures 3-4 years ago in L.A.

Talking about not leaving enough stopping distance, there is a "joke" here about how there are never 1-2 car accidents. Usually our freeway accidents are 4-6 cars....usually rear-ending started.

I do try to coast to red lights as often as I can.

Thanks all,
Atheria

[VX_Arky]

This is good stuff. You can learn a lot listening to other people's conversations, or this instance, reading them.

[Atheria]

What?! Darrell and I are not alone here? I feel so spied upon!

I switched my odometer to the setting which shows current mpg and have to admit it's addicting....almost obsession causing. LOL - Even not driving 55, I was getting 35.4 yesterday. I'd probably get 60 mpg if I slowed down more. I was driving 60-65 mph.

The only good news about the current gas prices is that according to our local news, people are looking at Smart Cars again, scooters are selling out, bus and train ridership is up, etc. I'm so sick and tired of huge SUVs that people don't need. I am upset, though, that the USA Smart Cars were altered to get way less gas mileage than the European versions. For the size of them, they should get much better mpg than they get. They are so cute though. I would consider getting a scooter like I used to have for short trips, but my damaged neck can't take it. There is a cool one though that is 3 wheeled and has a roof that looks more comfortable.

Peace,
Atheria in ABQ, NM