Got a record breaking tank in the works and I thought I'd confess just how far off the norm I've gone to get there. First of all the results so far:



Of couse I do all the "normal" hypermile trick that you can find anywhere but I also "cheat" beyond what is normal for a hypermiler.

The one that got me the crazy label is that I do not restart my car after stopping for the security gate at work. I get out and push for a few feet and coast into a pull through spot to park. The gate was not working during the first half the tank so I could do the same thing with no need to push but someone decided to fix the gate (which had been broken for months) right in the middle of my record tank (can't have that!) so now I push.

The other thing I'm doing to cheat (this tank only) is to park the car for the weekend. The official excuse (which also happens to be true) is that my other car has not been driven for over 2 weeks and it needs the cobwebs blown out. The secondary (primary?) reason is that rain is in the forcast and rain will completely ruin the record tank.

I tried X's backing into the garage trick but it is too dangerous with my garage setup.

 

Congradulations on your record tank (so far). Many times a tank will start out great, then reallity will set in, like your gate. Keep up the good work and don't ever give up. I'm also on a personal best tank of 101.9 in my Insight. I have never had a 100+ tank before. I have 2 or 3 days left. I'm tempted to cut it off short, because I'm afraid some reallity will set in and knock me down, but havn't come up with an excuse yet. I'm at 1170 miles now on the over full tank, which is also a personal best, and it looks like I might make 1300.
On your back in trick, have you put the car in neutral and just let it roll out on it's own? My garage has a very slight slope to keep the rain out but it is enough to get the car rolling. Good luck....Louis

 

Ooooh I want a 100 mpg tank!

 

12.2 and you got it....Louis

 

Lakedude when gas hits $10.00/g you'll be fully trained.

 

'.......The one that got me the crazy label is that I do not restart my car after stopping for the security gate at work. I get out and push for a few feet and coast into a pull through spot to park. The gate was not working during the first half the tank so I could do the same thing with no need to push but someone decided to fix the gate (which had been broken for months) right in the middle of my record tank (can't have that!) so now I push..........'


Hi:

You actually get out and 'push ' your car manually. Like 'push' it when you are out of gas or it needs repair right? Am i reading this right?

Let me get this straight:

Even though your car is in perfect working condition, you get out of the car and physically 'push' the car , rather than just drive the thing into your parking spot. All so you can 'claim' some kind of record tank of gas.

You are going to need an 'asterisk' beside the record as a new category will need to be made for people who push to the store, or push anywhere to avoid a start up -and another category for people who just drive their vehicle without pushing.

 

Yes I get out of the car and push like it was out of gas. In a way it is cheating and in a way I should put an asterisk by the database entry. OTOH the stinking gate is normally open and it was open during the first part of the tank so I didn't need to push. I don't push any real distance. I'm only pushing far enough to roll into a parking space like I can without pushing when the gate is open. We are taking about perhaps 6 to 10 feet of pushing before a downhill section takes over and the car rolls on its own.

 

Ok I'll admit ignorance here but why does rain hurt mpg? The lights/wipers using electricity would be my guess if I had to make one.

 

Hi,

I don't have quantitative numbers but will offer these points:

• loss of momentum - rain is 600 times denser than air and it doesn't 'flow around' the vehicle. Put your hand out in the rain while driving (use slower speeds, not highway) and you can feel the effect.
• tire loss of momentum - the splash is a loss of energy. Just drive into a standing puddle of water and the car will all but come to a halt. A water tray is used to stop rocket sleds, FAST.
• cooling - water evaporative cooling takes a lot of heat out of every warm, exposed surface including radiators, engine blocks and transmissions. These parts see an effective, lower temperature. Our hybrids seem especially sensitive to cooler temperatures.
• humidity - the water vapor does not burn so engine power is somewhat reduced and the throttle has to open wider. In mitigation, H(2)O vapor weights less than O(2) and N(2) but not enough to make up for the power loss at a given throttle setting.

In aviation, we have forumulas for calculating the air density which includes humidity. Temperature is the greater componet but humidity is there:

http://wahiduddin.net/calc/calc_da_rh.htm

Bob Wilson

 

Hey, I don't see anything wrong with pushing the car a few feet to save a ml or two of gas.All the really outstanding "tanks" probably required some fairly extreme tricks-we just weren't told about them. If your fit enough to push, have at it.
A question-does the odometer record "pushed miles"? I'm assuming it does, but I wouldn't be surprised to find out that some cars don't record miles with the motor off.
Luck,Charlie