Well, it's finally cooling off here in the desert so I am not sure how much this aided the past two mornings. Wed I left a bit early for work so I stayed in the far right lane and went 55mph instead of the 65mph that I normally do. The avg mpg went from it's typical 44-46 to 55mpgs. I am going to try and duplicate this on my next tank of gas since I have only a half tank now. I was amazed at how much the mpgs went up with only a difference of 400 rpms.

 

It IS a huge difference going 10mph slower. You'll notice even a bigger swing (the other way) going 10mph faster at 75mph. It's really a shame that traffic conditions and real world factors don't allow us to always slow down and smell the higher mpg .

 

It is almost impossible to find a freeway here in the Bay area to drive at 55 mph, even in the far right lane. But you are right, I can pick up a 20% improvement in fuel economy by slowing to 55. But in the long run, the economics vs time vs road rage quotient precludes me from driving slower than 60 - 65 on the freeways.

 

I definitely saw this as this past summer I was usually going between 75 and 80 with the ac blasting. I plan on topping off (always do) the tank Sunday and will see how many gallons I use for the week. I will see what the true mpg is at the end of the week.

I don't know how people can do this on a daily basis. It's defintely hard.

 

I've had similar experience in short suburban trips. If I'm going a block at the most, say to some corner, from a standing start, instead of running up to the 50km/hr posted limit, as long as nobody's on my butt I'll just get up to around 40, and then coast to the corner. You get there all of 10 seconds later, and get your fuel economy back in the good zone much sooner.

 

Hey guys, I cannot drive this slow in Toronto. The speed limit here is 100km/hr and I drive at that or more like 110-120km/hr. Mileage is 36MPG. Not great but driving to get 45-50MPG is too stressful for me. Also slow acceleration is not desireable. I just drive the car normally according to road conditions and traffic flow. Please note I am not a speeder and do not drive aggressively but mileage still sucks.

 

The speed limit is 100 km/hr, you're going 110-120, but you're not speeding?

And if someone in front of you is going 100 km/hr, how do you react?

 

If driving to get better mileage is too stressfull for you, then accept the mileage you get. Imagine what you'd get in a non-hybrid.

 

There is a minimum speed you can travel on most freeways so if your at that or slightly above why worry what everyone else is doing? Here in my area the minimum is 45 mph or about 70 KPH on freeways. So slow down and enjoy yourself and stop bing a follower! Run with your flashers on if your worried about someone running into your tail. Cheers, Hal

 

Agreed...It is still more FE than my previous ride. Merry Xmas