Well, your doing something right!!!, John. I guess I'm going to have to pump them up. I have 38 f. and 32 r. I just find the road noise to high with added pressure. H

 

John,

Hey there, I gave-it the limited whrill ....

Ok to start out with, in a nut-shell things are like this for my daily commute to the Twin Cities for the 8 hr. on my knees stint of "Bustin' Up" for the man:

Because I am a "Tile setter by trade the legs are Had", so using "Criuse Control" has become the way of habit 80% of the time both goingto/coming back.
The "Auto Cimate", is generaly on when temps are above 75 drgrees, but usually set a degree or two below the outside temp.
Generally speaking there is a "Mild to strong wind Blowing" one way, going to/coming back.
Speeds are between 62-67 mph. & I rarely draft the 18 wheelers unless winds are above 25 mph, and/or rain.
Pretty much "Flat & rolling freeway Hills", except when I hit the MN. River Valley ( a blast of a 75+ mph. heading in story by itself, lol ).

Considering all lately, surprizing it is somewhat the normal seeing 54-60 mile trip avgs. & tank avgs. as my mileage data base show 51 mpg. & then some.

.... as best I could with limited success ....

So here I was heading home & stuck once more in the "4 mile Stop-n-Go" of the I-494 E loop thinking to myself, "Here's another 1.5 mpg.to garnish back". Then the second thought comes about, "Well the dude says slow speeds". That's right, put myself in the daring mode of the "N shift to Coast", and hey "No Lurch" to be had, lol . As it was when I hit the I-35 exit to head south I had gained 6/10ths instead of the usual loss. And here's a tad more growth, even scared myself ( but only once ) into shifting out of drive @ 55 mph. as I picking up speed with the traffic heading back down into the Mn. River Valley ( way fun again untill crossing over to the as I termed it, "the dark side", lol ).

.... but continued interest considering the application.

John

p.s. Any hope for this guy in the "Grasslands of Southern Mn"???? How's about a few pointers as to the where's & possibile when's ???? Any pozies to this technquie to be use for the around-town stop sign commuting ???? I read your numbers before I headed out this morning & "I was Impressed". Seems I seek a new challange worth the dare to try.

p.s.s."Thankx bro"

 

John,
First, I should point you to a few articles.

This is Wayne Gerdes' article about hypermiling.
http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/artic...mile-1510.html

This is tarabell's article article about the basics of the HCHII:
http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/showp...29&postcount=1

Although I made the point that I don't trust the "professionals", I'm sure there are some "wear and tear" issues with doing FASs. The question is how bad are they and how do they compare with the fuel savings. In general, I think if the shifting is smooth, the wear and tear would be minimal. I would certainly welcome other's comments on this. It's probably also worth mentioning that I have an extended warranty. I had no intentions of ever FASing when I bought the warranty.

Here are a few easy things to do if you already haven't. Pump up the tires. Since I have had my vehicle, I've gradually bumped up the pressure to the max sidewall (44 psi). This seems to help my coasts a lot. Do whatever you are comfortable with. Also, I had an engine block heater installed just before last winter. Unfortunately, I backed out without unplugging it shortly after getting it installed and didn't get around to getting it fixed until this spring. Anyway, it can make a huge difference for my short morning commute.

 

I do have a few pointers. If you really want to try FASing, you should test it out in areas that you are very familiar with and very comfortable with. This should be a low to no traffic area. The most important things to note are that you will temporarily lose your power steering (for a few seconds) and you will not have infinite use of your power brakes. For the power steering, this might be an issue if you were trying to turn shortly after starting an FAS. The steering wheel would seem pretty tight until the power steering kicks back in. Then the steering would suddenly "loosen up". I could see this really being an issue at high speeds around corners (I would not do or recommend this). The brakes issue has never been a concern to me. You would have to use them multiple times before you would lose them. If this is the case, you would have been better leaving the car running so that you could at least benefit from regenerative braking.

Anyway, I'll try to describe some of my commute and how I implement FASing. On my way home, I exit my parking lot and turn left. I pulse up to 15-20 miles and FAS. I then coast to a stop sign. Once I get a good view of the traffic, I decide whether to stop or continue. My turn is left. I restart and pulse up to about 25 (the speed limit). I then shut off and coast to a stoplight up a short but steep hill. I restart when it is time to cross the intersection. I then have two more lights with little spacing. I will FAS if the lights are red. Also, after passing the 2nd light, I'll FAS because there is a downhill afterwards that allows me to reach and exceed the 25mph speed limit.

Assuming I don't hit this light, I'll restart after slowing to the 25 mph speed limit. I then have to go up a hill. After peaking the hill, I FAS and coast to a stoplight. Depending on the light, I may restart to get some regenerative braking before passing through the light. Immediately after this light, there is a hill. I will accelerate to get up to 30 mph and FAS. This is where a gradual downhill begins. I start to slow a bit, but the speed limit drops to 25 mph anyway. Just as the 25 mph starts, there is a bit of a drop. I continue with the FAS and am able to maintain speed until I am quite close to the next stoplight. At this point, I can either restart or come to a stop depending on the status of the light. (The distance between these two lights is about 1 mile).

Immediately after the next light, I have to go up another hill. This is followed by a relatively level area (30 mph). Depending on traffic, I can FAS at some point. About 1/3 of a mile before a light, there is a relatively steep drop ahead. (Also, the speed limit increases to 35 mph at this decline) Depending on the state of the light ahead, I'll either restart to get some regenerative braking, or I'll coast through the light.

Regardless of how I make it through this light, I'll FAS after getting up to speed after it. I do have one more light to deal with, but it is a bit random (triggered by the cars on the side street). If I'm lucky, I coast right through it. There are 2 lanes at this point, so I can travel below the speed limit and still accommodate the rest of traffic. I'll coast as far as I can before reaching the next stoplight where I have to turn left.

I then have to travel about 1/2 mile before turning right into my neighborhood. Traffic permitting, I will pulse up to the speed limit (35 mph) and FAS to the turn into my neighborhood. I'll then start up one more time in my neighborhood. In an ideal situation, I'll get up to speed one more time and will not have to restart. If things go well, I'll end up in my garage.

This is my commute home that I am describing. The total distance is 5.4 miles. The overall change in elevation here is a 220 feet drop. I can easily surpass 100 mpg for this segment. Also, the details will change if I have to pick up my kids from school/daycare (usually).

 

I was thinking this too, Kristian -- I tend to say "EV-mode" when I mean EV-Assist, and in Tarabell's article, for instance, "Glide" definitely seems to me w/o assist, w/o regen, and ICE off (or, at least, 100 mpg showing on the instant FE meter).

--doug

 

I would think glide would be, mpg @ 100 and no assist bars. EV mode would be, mpg @ 100 and 1 to 4 bars of assist? H

 

Wow, what a busy commute.

Can you describe the FAS technique?

When do you shift into 'N' v. 'D'?

Thanks for the writeup.

 

No problem.

I get up to my desired speed, then shift from D to N. After the tach stabilizes, I key back from IG-II to IG-I. You have to hold it at IG-I for about 2 seconds (??) before keying back to IG-II. If you do this too fast, the ICE will restart. Going back to IG-II reboots your electronics so that your mileage is being recorded. Also, you regain your power steering after a few seconds. At this point, you are coasting in Neutral without consuming any gas.

When the time comes to restart, you just key forward from IG-II to IG-III just as you normally do when starting. Wait a second or so for the tach to stabilize, then shift back to drive. I would not recommend doing this at high speeds because it seems a bit rough on the transmission.

I gave a link a few posts ago that also gives details on FASing. (It is Wayne Gerdes' hypermiling article.)

 

Thanks!

 

John,

Just maybe ....

.... you think.
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"Just a tadds of the ribbin's @ ya Bro".
"Thankx as well for a most enjoyable criuse & Thread".
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As I said previously, your numbers my friend were impressive to say the least, but it was your strong conviction to the above statement that made me play the dare. Had you seen my apprehension, you would have had a smirk going the first few times I played the disendage-it-jazz. Leary to say the least, lol .

Safe to say, although somewhat limited due to terrain as to the when's & where's of my chances to use this technique it is a true "Mileage Builder". Sorry I am not the tech-sort for filling-out details ( your words of your commute had me riding shot-gun. one of the best reads to date for myself on these pgs. ), here's few things I hope will help others:
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A) the "Lurch Factor". Acutally this what I wanted to test-out more than anything using "FAS". At lower speeds 10-40 mph., I found it most of the time to be a non-issue. If anything could be used as a comparison to quell someone's curiousity, I would have to say that I found the normall @ times shifting down of the "CVT" to be more pronounced to the system. With higher speeds up to 40-60 mph., although I didn't chance-it many times, there was once when shifting into "D" that the normal shifting down seems mild in comparison. No sonic-booms or nothing, lol , but it was the last.

B) the "Country Roads". The too easy to undertand why, but how shall we say, stay off the gravel. lol. Seriously though, this where I did my open road tests. And where some nutz-up numbers where showing up in the 8 mile segment of road with 300'-400' steep grades @ both ends & several rolling hills in between leading out of town. In a nut shell, "FAS" was "Punching Holes" through mileage numbers that I have always considered good to excellent when I have traveled the back way to the next nearest town north. Fornuatelly I had good reason to venture out to find the nearest back road that wasn't blacktop. Ma & Pa, & 2 of the youngin's captured over the past weekend "Pesky red Squirills", lol .

C) the "Around Town". A 100% "Yeah Buddy" !!!! Can't even begin to say the best thing it offers-up, as there is plenty to what will be another "Learning Curve" in the making. Like yourself, we all know our routes. For myself as fate would have it, on the main roads I use lights & slight grades are such that is just uncanny to think of another way to handle the trip coming off the freeway to head home. "As an Example", when I head out to work in the morning I have a 4 block down slope to a mandatory must stop that "FAS" just crushed what I have always seen on the odometer since day one. Better than any "Folger's in my Cup", lol .

D) the "Interstate Cruise". This were I will have no luck to a fleeting hope to manage squat over the length of a trip, and/or tank full. Having seen what the local drive through the stop lights/signs can muster-up, I am to say the least, going to be dissappointed. I do have the Minn. River Valley ( as I mentioned eariler ) to toy with, but even that I don't think can bring along anything too strong. As it is heading in to work with very light traffic, the 2-3 mile stretch gains me 4-7 mpg. with the "CC & Tunes" agoing, lol. Going home would be for the best, as anything I gain before I cross over would make up for when I take on the uphill of the"Dark Side". Heavy & merging traffic make any attempt nil-n-void.
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To anyone considering this trick I would have to say go for it cautious care untill you get the knacks down ( it is not really that hard ). The biggest thing to remember is to be patient/steady with the flow of traffic. Keep your eyes open ahead & your cruise will show you if there is a need to hold a steady speed, and/or possibile sudden braking with the traffic.

Honestly, I was dead-straight-up ever against doing as such, and part of me is still somewhat hesitant to the point I won't allow myself to become over confidant, and/or reliant on "FAS" to make, or break my mileage. Although, it is worth its-just-deserts. Over the past 4 days I took what was turning out to be a 51.5-53.0 mpg. tank, and turned it into a 56.0 mpg. tank ( my best to date ), and am now back @ my bench mark before ol' "Man Winter" reared his ugly head last yr.. Gaining 1.7 mpg. on the lifetime avg is nothing but a "Sweet Bonus" !!!!

I didn't do much-of-nothing different with my driving habits. The one thing that I wanted to be sure was, keeping my freeway speeds constant @ 64 mph. with "CC" when making the haul to work, as this how I started cruising the tank out. What made ol' "Pinball" work his magic in the mileage incease was the use of "FAS" as I did nothing out of the ordinary other than the in-n-out & around town testing. "Way Cool" is knowing that if I am having a bad commute to & from work due wind/weather there is thee 8 mile "Test Strip" to take the exit ramp early to at least hold my numbers until the next fun filled "Battle petro Royale".

Noflash- "Enjoy the Dare" bro.

John

p.s. Big game hunter, that's me. lol !!!!