Perhaps this quote is better in the "mods" section, but is it possbile to hook up an indication light for lean burn? I've been reading about many of the car to laptop links like Turbo-Link. It seems like something the HCH car-computer must have readings on, and therefore something that an external hookup could produce readings on.

( Actually, TurboLink does not support Hondas, but there are comparable producs that do, I believe. Some people worked on a cool project with a Honda Civic EG. )

 

Thanks, Steve--

Oh, yes, "some driving modifications" are definitely in order!

On my trip to OH, I learned Speed Kills! the MPG. Going up, I stayed off the turnpikes and cruised at the prevailing traffic speed of @80. That route, I68/I79 is somewhat mountainous, so the combination of uphills and speed got me worse mpg than my usual 37 or so. Coming back, I did the turnpike through PA and stuck to the speed limit; that got 44, on cruise control. An improvement, but clearly, I need to learn how to drive again. Maybe I should go out to the mega-mall parking lot at midnight and practice!

I boosted the tire pressure to 40 psi before I left. Hard to tell what effect that's having on daily mpg, since I'm running the a/c occasionally, but I can feel the road better. I'll have the front-end checked when I get the oil changed. In the meantime, I'll keep checking out the tips here.

Hank

 

New member as of 6/15/04. I took deliver of Mellyn on 13 May after a wait of exactly 3 months. So far averaging 51 mpg. Do not have my file with me so canot post exact numbers yet. Looking to take on the challenge to maximize mpg. I find my driving style has changed significantly in my attempts to maximize. I find my best mileage comes when using cruise control. Read a little today about air pressure. My tires are at 34/32 what I took delivery from the dealer. Plan on uping to 42/40 after all I've read today. I read a little in the posts about "drive with load". I need to figure that out.

 

Welcome, frenchova! Why don't you head on over to the Introductions forum? In the Anything Goes area.

 

Welcome to the group frenchofva!
Simply put, driving with load is basically holding the gas pedal at a fixed point that will allow the vehicle to slow down going up hill, and increase speed agian when going back downhill.

 

If I drive my HCH at 65 with the cruse on I get around 46 MPG. I once drove it 58 miles to work for max mpg and got over 61 MPG.

Mike G.

 

Wait... so does cruise control actually help fuel economy or not?

 

Does cruise help economy? Not really. My point is with cruise set on 65 MPH my HCH gets 46 MPG. That speed setting is moving along pretty good going up and down hills etc. So I think the HCH will give good fuel economy without me really trying. When I turn the cruise off and use the same techniques I learned on my Honda Insight, I got over 61 MPG on my 58 mile trip to work one morning.

Mike G.

 

Hi Mike_G.:

___I am glad to see a fellow Insighter finally making it over. Congrats on the HCH’s fuel economy and don’t forget to add your tank over tank data to the “Real Hybrid Mileage Database …

___Good Luck

___Wayne R. Gerdes
___Hunt Club Farms Landscaping Ltd.
___Waynegerdes@earthlink.net

 

I love this thread, but I wish there were more HCH tips. I read the article about HCH dirivng tips, but I haven't done a lot of highway driving just yet. My car has about 200 miles on it, and a lmpg of only above 34. Most of my driving, except for weekend roadtrips, is city driving in LA where traffic is terrible and it's stop and go ALL the time. I can hardly even keep the charge on the electric motor up for very long because I'm constantly having to accelerate from stops.

My first step is going to make sure to inflate my tires a bit more. After that, I'm not sure what to do...driving for MPG in the city doesn't seem to be a possibility.