Gary.... no offense, but by now we all know you can get much better mileage by doing things the way you do. (and frankly if we all lived in Florida it would help) Not everyone really feels the need to be the top of the heap in their mileage. Its not a priority for me. I just don't care because its not a contest to me. I picked the FEH for my reasons and you chose it for yours. I'm happy with what I get and how I drive.

This person has only had the vehicle for what 1,500 miles..... harping about how 33MPG is not acceptable is just going to convince them that the vehicle has a definite mechanical problem. I'm merely trying to let this person know what they can expect driving pretty much like its a normal vehicle (like most users probably do--at least at the start) so they can evaluate if they have a mechanical/electrical problem with their vehicle. Not everyone is, nor wants to be a "hypermiler." Its just not what I'm interested in.

Frankly the tone of this particular post (and some others) seems less "informative" and more "boastful". If thats not what you wanted, its certainly how it came off to me. Sorry....

The average public doesn't get the mileage you do (check out the stats in the database, they back that up). I'm happy you get better mileage than us... but why attack us because we aren't interested in that particular competition?

 

Tim, sorry I come accross that way and I know that driving the FEH like a regular vehicle in poor weather on short trips can put you in those kinds of mileage. I guess what I have is a hard time acccepting it's ok for people to tell others it's normal to get 24-26mpg. In the case with the AWD vehicles, I really don't know how hard it is to get 33mpg, because I don't drive one.

It's true, I've loss track of the real world thinking on this subject because I'm caught up in a habit of constantly looking for ways to improve my mileage. Not to brag, but every damm vehicle I drive now, I'm looking for ways to improve mileage. Is this a bad habit or a sickness? For instance, I found that my V8 explorer can get an instant 30mpg in overdrive at 42mph. Now I look for routes with 40mph speed limits so I can hold an average of ~22mpg. Of course, I wouldn't drive out of my way and waste gas just to get a better mileage reading, but I take every advantage I can.

You can get carried away with hypermiling and look foolish. This is why I get offended when people think and say I drive slow or dangerous. Some hypermilers do not care that their blocking traffic or riding dangerously close during a draft, I do though.

Sharing the things I've learn has also became a habit. For instance, I was driving my son to school on half days he gets every so often and found I was getting much better mileage on that short round trip from a cold start. It turned out, the reason was these speed bumps that I have to slow down for and was slowly getting regen into the battery. Choosing that route was no further than my normal route, and now I can get to a higher mileage average during warm-up. This all sounds stupid to the general public, but this type of change gets me from ~30mpg to ~34mpg in three miles during warm-up with a low battery SoC.

I'll try to tone thing down Tim, I can see I'm not normal anymore. Maybe I should drive with a rag over my SG for a while and see a shrink. Thanks!

GaryG

 

Its okay.... Glad you didn't take offense at that, none was intended. I AM glad to have you here and I have learned alot from your posts. I do use some of the techniques you describe. If I didn't I'd probably be doing even worse on my drives which aren't suited well to high MPG (9 mile commute in 20-40F).

 

Well, folks, I am a shrink (really--licensed and everything) and I think I understood each of your comments in the way you intended them.

BTW, I had my husband watch the guages carefully when we took a long drive to a large city about 50 miles from here. Seems that the battery charge indicator (the battery icon on the NAV display) does move a little. So I'm thinking it's part of it's being new that the battery doesn't get all the way full or all the way empty. Also, the mileage improved remarkably during that trip. Clearly my 10 mile commute isn't the best for optimizing mpg.

We'll see what it's like in a couple of months, after I'm past the 3000 mile mark.

Oh, and I'm in the part of the midwest that has been enjoying temperatures 20 degrees above normal for the past 2 months. That's changing now, though, and I know my mileage will decrease while we experience real winter. But that's OK--I got the AWD for a reason!

Thanks again,
Kay

 

Hey.... I'm getting 33 MPG in a FWD right now... and that's pretty awesome!

( Considering I've had a week of -5'F to +5'F with too many inches of snow to count to plow through.... ( worst winter I've seen... ))

-John

 

I've been watching this thread for a bit. While I do agree that the temp affects performance, and therefore MPG, the biggest factor (my observations) is driving habits.

I pose the following as why:

I drive my (well technically it's mine but my wife takes it at every opportunity!) FEH and with very little effort obtain 31-36 MPG combined. The temp for the past two weeks, on average, has been 50 deg. My wife drives and gets 28 (or less!). Why? I drive the vehicle. My wife drives to get where she wants. BIG difference! I coast to stops, she maintains speed and then brakes. It bugs the heck out of me but that's another thread. While we both are different the constant is the vehicle.

Now to satisfy the very technical the temp has and affect on MPG. When the temp is lower it takes a longer time to warm up to operating temps. I noticed that if I was to reset the "computer" (no nav as I do feel as most do, it's a waste of $) when cold the MPG is BAD (worst than the Durango if you think that's at all possible). Once up to operating temps this vehicle gets very good performance. What am I getting at? I like to get the most out of everything I have, no matter what it is. My wife is a "user" of technology. We just drive differently.

So, my conclusion is drive this as you want. If you don't get the performance (Power or MPG) then change as the vehicle can't. If you compare the FEH to any other vehicle with the same output/displacement and consider your driving habits, you will be satisfied.

-R

Oh yeas, please tell me the GND wire that increased MPG?!?! I've already increased my MPG from 31 to 36 on a stretch of road but am always looking for more ways.

 

Hi Richard

You know, I've talked to others, be it man or woman, that their spouse does the same thing. Debbie Katz who drives a FWD has one of the best averages in the data base for the FEH, and will most likely agree about that regarding her spouse.

It kills me also that my wife is either accelerating hard or braking hard, with no time for coasting. It's like an acoholic, drug addict or smoker, you can't make them stop, till they imagine their ready.

One other problem I've notice since I try to save the high cost of energy now, no matter what steps I take to lower the energy use, my wife thinks she can just waste more. After going out and buying the highest effiency A/C possible for my home, she thinks she can leave the doors to outside and the garage open longer. So I installed selfclosing hinges, but she gets things to block the doors open. But, I've learn not to say anything, because you know what doesn't happen if their mad at you.

We did reach a little ground regarding my FEH, she ask (if I'm home) if I mind if she can drive it. The SG can store info of her trip that lets me know her Max speed, RPM, Time traveled etc, and she still hasn't figured out how I know all these things when she returns. Anyway, she takes it a lot easier in it now and there hasn't been a 60mph trips to the Blockbuster two miles away lately.

GaryG

 

Richard,
I think we would all agree that driving methods/habits have the greatest impact on performance.....however, in the case of this thread and many others, the discussion centers around a change (decrease) in fuel economy for a particular vehicle. While driver input certainly can explain poor fuel economy from the start, a drop in FE is the reason I see temperature offered so readily as an explanation (along with ethanol blends in the fuel).

 

Tim, thank you for reminding (edited after reading a second time) me what this tread is about. While my post did veer from the topic a bit, in the end, it did have some relevance.

My point is that ambient temperature has less effect on MPG than driving habits and trip distance.

-R

 

The fact that Kay first stated her mileage drop was not related to the temperature or driving habits, we have gotten off topic.

Kay, I would have to say that you could be having a problem with regenerative braking energy and engine/sm generator charging the battery. From what you still discribe with the charge/assist needle and the battery level, there may or maynot be a problem.

Also, you stated that "L" slowed you down too much, and thought it would waste gas. First of all, slowing you down is what it's suppose to do, but you should have seen a much bigger swing on the Charge side of the needle. Applying the brakes in "L" will give you the Max swing in the needle. In addition, you should see the arrow to the battery on the energy screen get much thicker.

However, outside temperature regulates the amount of regenerative braking you get, and the small generator/motor does not fill the battery to the top. See patent: http://www.freepatentsonline.com/658...hlight=5343970 The computers reserve the full area of the battery for regenerative braking only. There is no heater for a cold battery, but there is an A/C for a hot battery. If your outside temperature is below 60 degrees F, you will start to see a reduction in the charge needle and sometimes no charging during a cold start for the first mile or so. The ideal battery temperature is 82 degrees F. A cold battery will reduce your mileage very much on short commutes less than 6 or 7 miles.

If you floor the gas pedal in drive or Low, the charge/assist needle should swing far into the assist area no matter how many miles you have on your FEH. If this is not happenning, you have a problem. In EV, the assist needle does not move much during break-in because the ICE will come on for additional torque. You should see the assist needle swing heavy during a restart of the ICE from EV also.

You said you like a long coast to a stop for better mileage, do not use "L" for that. If you want the longest coast with the best MPG, change the shifter to neutral and lightly press the brake pedal till you go EV at speeds below 40mph. My testing has showed a 38% increase in coasting distance in neutral over "D" coasting from 40mph to 0mph. Neutral coasting with the ICE off (EV) is the best way I know to save gas. Letting off the gas pedal in "L" will recharge the battery the quickest, but you have to stop ("L" fake shifting) when you notice you don't go EV under 40mph, or the ICE rpm starts to increase. The battery may be full or too cold or too warm if this happens, but there is no harm to the vehicle.

GaryG