Official Thread for posting daily FE updates

[MetroMPG]

I hear you about the EBH, z. I didn't use it to day, and oh man.

I just turned in the worst sub/urban round trip FE I've seen in ages - more than 6 months anyway. Couldn't crack 60 mpg, where normally 80 isn't difficult. Had everything stacked against it though:

- short distance (6 mi r.t.)
- no EBH, cold start on both legs
- alternator connected
- more accessories on, because...
- cold, dark, windy, rainy

59.8. Ouch.

[zpiloto]

Originally Posted by MetroMPG

I hear you about the EBH, z. I didn't use it to day, and oh man.

I just turned in the worst sub/urban round trip FE I've seen in ages - more than 6 months anyway. Couldn't crack 60 mpg, where normally 80 isn't difficult. Had everything stacked against it though:

- short distance (6 mi r.t.)
- no EBH, cold start on both legs
- alternator connected
- more accessories on, because...
- cold, dark, windy, rainy

59.8. Ouch.

That's funny, "59.8 ouch", 6 months ago you were trying to break 60 for a tank and now that winters here you're still turning in 70+ tanks. I can't wait till summer. Once you finish the areo mods, so that the highway driving doesn't drag you down, you might hit the 90 mpg tank.

Metro what do you think the limit is on the Fireflea? Do you think you can squeeze another 10% out of your best tank with belly pan and boat tail?

[MetroMPG]

Do you have a sense of where you can get the Maxima?

The Flea's limit is: how low am I'm willing to go with my average speed for a given tank.

RT-wise, I'd like to better my 133 mpg effort, and aim for 150+ mpg next summer. It won't be TOO hard, but it will be slow - probably 18-20 mph avg. Just for kicks. Not very practical.

Tank averages are a different story. If I go totally basjoos on the car, I may gain an additional 5-10% @ 50-55 mph. That's still not VX or basjoos territory. (I console myself by saying: I doubt there are any VX's around with 11,000 km on the odometer. But if i still had Firefly #1 - a little rusty & high mileage - I'd definitely be shopping for a VX now.)

70 mpg tanks are history now, I fear. The last one was mostly (unusually) mild November weather.

And here's another thing: like the bicycle cargo trailer, the ForkenSwift is going to be a problem next year: it's going to drag my Flea tank averages down when it goes on the road, because it'll displace even more local (high mpg) driving.

Your question reminded me to bump this thread though: what are your 2006 fuel economy goals?

[landspeed]

Will you add Forkenswift to your Garage, and turn the energy you use into MPG by using energy calculations? Would be interesting to see the equivalent economy!

[MetroMPG]

Yep, I was planning to.

I believe there's a reference on the Tesla Motors site to an EPA formula for calculating equivalent MPG for an electric car - which they use to claim 135 mpg equivalent for the roadster.

[DRW]

I had another 500+ miles per tank this time. 506.4 miles and 13.058 gallons.

I added another aero mod this week. I modded the popup headlight switch so it only goes up and down when I hit the switch, instead of automatically going up whenever the headlights are on. This way I can cruise the freeways with the headlights on and down. There's a clear fascia in front of the light so it still shines forward. I got the idea from a link posted somewhere on this site about a guy who tested FE with his corvette when his lights were up and down. Plus it looks cool

[krousdb]

Well the suspense was killing me. Over the last 24 hours I ran several errands with the RAV 4 where I drove 100%. My wife wanted to drive so I stopped at the same gas station, same pump and set it to the low setting. 79.7 Miles, 2.387 gallons, 33.39 MPG. I am hoping for a few more MPG's when the tires and mechanicals break in.

[Silveredwings]

krousdb, I think your EPA numbers are off. I think it should be 30 highway and 27 combined not the reverse. Your 33.38 mpg short tank is more like 23.6% above the combined, no? Nice ride anyway.

[krousdb]

DOH! You are right! I fixed it.

[Silveredwings]

So is the combined just the midpoint between the two? I noticed mine was rounded down to the next integer (I just corrected that as well).