How about a Fuel Economy Thread???

[XZeroII]

How about this...Don't stomp on the accelerator when you start going. And let off the accelerator a bit earlier before a stopsign or red light. I don't know how many people just seem to gun it and then slam on their brakes at the last second for a stop sign. They are wasting so much gas. Or flooring it on the freeway to pass someone and then get off about 100 ft later on the next off ramp

 

[Howard]

Toluene > most everything for cleaning tar/carbon deposits. Just dump some into your gas tank.

 

[adlep]

I have a 96 Honda Civic Hatchback...
It gets me about 40 mpg on a highway (gotta love that)
I am spending seriouls $15.00 a week for the gas.....
lol

 

[CraigRT]

Originally posted by: MogulMonster

Originally posted by: Yield

the obvious ones such as idling should be pretty easy to correct. 😛

You tell my wife that idling for the half hour she waits for me to get out of work in unecessary. It hasn't been about 10' f for a couple weeks, either. Sucks for the gas, but keeps the wife happy.

yeah, I idle alot too to get the car warmed up in the morning.. I guess what i meant to say was, if you really want to save gas, this is an obvious way of doing so. (stop idling so much) i don't care. i like to be warm... my car idles ALOT.
oh well.

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: cipher00
In my old Tercel I started using Slick-50® and noticed a 3 mpg improvement. Any good pfte additive would help, unless you're using synthetic (which I do now).

NO! NO! NO! NEVER PUT PTFE IN AN ENGINE! NEVER!

PTFE is a SOLID. PTFE also expands greatly with heat. PTFE has been proven to clog small oil passages. Any PTFE that does not contribute to clogging, will immediately be filtered out by your oil filter. PTFE also does NOT bond to any of the metals in your engine. If you are looking for a legitimate additive, get something like Mr. Moly that uses Molybdenum Disulfide.

ZV

 

[KennyH]

biggest waste of gas I know of:

If you see a stop light ahead of you and you know you will have to stop, just take your foot off the gas. There is no reason to use all that gas, speed to the stop light, then sit there for 1 mintue. I bet at least 50% of drivers do that and I can never understand why. When you know you will have to stop, just take your foot off the gas and coast to the stoplight, then stop when you reach it.

I am with you on this one, I see this everyday, some people I just can't understand.....


EDIT: Not sure on your car as it may differ but usually tire pressures will go up 3-5psi on a passenger car, at least it does on my '92 Sentra. So if the max is say 40 psi, I would start off at 34-35 psi and re-check it after a driving. 🙂

 

[PCMarine]

Thanks for the suggestions.

As I am a 16 year old purchasing a 2000 Ford Taurus I will try to take some of your advice instead of following my male ego to gun the accelerator 😀

 

[JACKHAMMER]

It's your fault for driving a small car that you can't see around me and would die if I hit you!

I usually try not to comment on garbage like this, but you are an A$$.

 

[Bluefront]

Look...if you over-do the fuel injector cleaner stuff, you stand a good chance of eating away the rubber parts of your fuel system.....such as rubber fuel lines. This stuff then clogs the filter, and some of the rubber may pass through the filter, making your partially clogged injector problem even worse.

Take everything you read in this thread with a grain of salt. Keeping your tire pressures higher will help fuel milage.

 

[0roo0roo]

Originally posted by: JACKHAMMER

It's your fault for driving a small car that you can't see around me and would die if I hit you!

I usually try not to comment on garbage like this, but you are an A$$.

from car companies own marketing research, suv owners are indeed Asses that care little about other people.

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: 0roo0roo

Originally posted by: JACKHAMMER

It's your fault for driving a small car that you can't see around me and would die if I hit you!

I usually try not to comment on garbage like this, but you are an A$$.

from car companies own marketing research, suv owners are indeed Asses that care little about other people.

Close, but oh-so-wrong. The auto companies' research suggests that persons who care little about others tend to buy SUV's, NOT that people who buy SUV's care little about others.

Most people who care little about others buy SUV's, but most SUV buyers do care about others a lot.

Your logic: People who don't care about others buy SUV's. This person owns an SUV. Ergo this person cares little about others.
Perfectly analogous logic: All chickens have feathers. This thing has feathers. Ergo it is a chicken.

Both use the same logical formulation. The second, however, clearly illustrates how the formulation is flawed.

ZV

 

[Bullhonkie]

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: dullard
The biggest waste of gas I know of:

If you see a stop light ahead of you and you know you will have to stop, just take your foot off the gas. There is no reason to use all that gas, speed to the stop light, then sit there for 1 mintue. I bet at least 50% of drivers do that and I can never understand why. When you know you will have to stop, just take your foot off the gas and coast to the stoplight, then stop when you reach it.

There are tons of 4 lane roads in my hometown (2 in each direction). All of these have lots of stop lights. The speed limit is 35 mph on most. Quite often I'll be driving in one lane (at about 35 mph 😉) when I see the light turn red ahead of me. I'll immediately take my foot off the gas and start to cruise. Then a speed demon next to me hits the gas hard, rushes by me at 45 mph, then slams on the brake at the light. By the time I reach the light I'm still going 20 mph and the light turns green. The speed demon is at a complete stop and I just pass right by in the next lane. So by following this simple gas saving rule, I use tons less gas AND I get where I'm going faster than those of you who don't follow it.

Edit: Note that hybrid owners actually recover their used fuel when braking, so this doesn't apply to them. But it does for the rest of the 99.99% of us.

Yes! I am glad someone pointed this out. I see people doing that all the time, and all I can think about is how much gas they're wasting. Everytime you step on your brakes, you are wasting energy(fuel).

Yeah that's one of my biggest pet peeves when I'm riding with someone else driving. I've never understood the need the stay on the gas pedal all the way and then brake just before a stop. You end up using unnecessary fuel and in the cases where coasting to a light will result in the light changing green before you're forced to brake - you'll have saved yourself the fuel from having to accelerate from a dead stop again.

 

[WinkOsmosis]

Originally posted by: Zenmervolt

Originally posted by: 0roo0roo

Originally posted by: JACKHAMMER

It's your fault for driving a small car that you can't see around me and would die if I hit you!

I usually try not to comment on garbage like this, but you are an A$$.

from car companies own marketing research, suv owners are indeed Asses that care little about other people.

Close, but oh-so-wrong. The auto companies' research suggests that persons who care little about others tend to buy SUV's, NOT that people who buy SUV's care little about others.

Most people who care little about others buy SUV's, but most SUV buyers do care about others a lot.

Your logic: People who don't care about others buy SUV's. This person owns an SUV. Ergo this person cares little about others.
Perfectly analogous logic: All chickens have feathers. This thing has feathers. Ergo it is a chicken.

Both use the same logical formulation. The second, however, clearly illustrates how the formulation is flawed.

ZV

That post I made was sarcasm 🙂. I drive a 240sx that is low enough that I can't see through most big sedans, much less SUvs, and I coast for several hundred feet to lights.

 

[0roo0roo]

Originally posted by: Jellomancer

Originally posted by: Zenmervolt

Originally posted by: 0roo0roo

Originally posted by: JACKHAMMER

It's your fault for driving a small car that you can't see around me and would die if I hit you!

I usually try not to comment on garbage like this, but you are an A$$.

from car companies own marketing research, suv owners are indeed Asses that care little about other people.

Close, but oh-so-wrong. The auto companies' research suggests that persons who care little about others tend to buy SUV's, NOT that people who buy SUV's care little about others.

Most people who care little about others buy SUV's, but most SUV buyers do care about others a lot.

Your logic: People who don't care about others buy SUV's. This person owns an SUV. Ergo this person cares little about others.
Perfectly analogous logic: All chickens have feathers. This thing has feathers. Ergo it is a chicken.

Both use the same logical formulation. The second, however, clearly illustrates how the formulation is flawed.

ZV

That post I made was sarcasm 🙂. I drive a 240sx that is low enough that I can't see through most big sedans, much less SUvs, and I coast for several hundred feet to lights.

yea, i kinda felt it, which is why i didn't reply at first. i jumped in when someone else did hehe, oh well😛

as for ZV, yes, i left out the word "tend", but thats assumed in marketing research😛

 

[Mavrick]

Originally posted by: Jellomancer

Originally posted by: 0roo0roo
more mpg, less cr@p spewed into the air🙂 somewthing lost on suv drivers😛

Look here you dirty liberal. I drive what I want, and I want to drive myself to work in a 9mpg Excursion. Safety? It's your fault for driving a small car that you can't see around me and would die if I hit you!

Geez, I hope you're just joking!!

 

[Mavrick]

Originally posted by: dullard
The biggest waste of gas I know of:

If you see a stop light ahead of you and you know you will have to stop, just take your foot off the gas. There is no reason to use all that gas, speed to the stop light, then sit there for 1 mintue. I bet at least 50% of drivers do that and I can never understand why. When you know you will have to stop, just take your foot off the gas and coast to the stoplight, then stop when you reach it.

There are tons of 4 lane roads in my hometown (2 in each direction). All of these have lots of stop lights. The speed limit is 35 mph on most. Quite often I'll be driving in one lane (at about 35 mph 😉) when I see the light turn red ahead of me. I'll immediately take my foot off the gas and start to cruise. Then a speed demon next to me hits the gas hard, rushes by me at 45 mph, then slams on the brake at the light. By the time I reach the light I'm still going 20 mph and the light turns green. The speed demon is at a complete stop and I just pass right by in the next lane. So by following this simple gas saving rule, I use tons less gas AND I get where I'm going faster than those of you who don't follow it.

Edit: Note that hybrid owners actually recover their used fuel when braking, so this doesn't apply to them. But it does for the rest of the 99.99% of us.

Very true!! I do that too and it really helps 🙂 Plus, you also keep your brakes for a longer period, resulting in lower maintenance 🙂

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: Zenmervolt

Originally posted by: cipher00
In my old Tercel I started using Slick-50® and noticed a 3 mpg improvement. Any good pfte additive would help, unless you're using synthetic (which I do now).

NO! NO! NO! NEVER PUT PTFE IN AN ENGINE! NEVER!

PTFE is a SOLID. PTFE also expands greatly with heat. PTFE has been proven to clog small oil passages. Any PTFE that does not contribute to clogging, will immediately be filtered out by your oil filter. PTFE also does NOT bond to any of the metals in your engine. If you are looking for a legitimate additive, get something like Mr. Moly that uses Molybdenum Disulfide.

ZV

I was waiting for another one of you engine enthusiasts to chime in. 😉 My post didn't explain much, other than the fact that you shouldn't put it in your engine.

 

[thomsbrain]

Originally posted by: KennyH

biggest waste of gas I know of:

If you see a stop light ahead of you and you know you will have to stop, just take your foot off the gas. There is no reason to use all that gas, speed to the stop light, then sit there for 1 mintue. I bet at least 50% of drivers do that and I can never understand why. When you know you will have to stop, just take your foot off the gas and coast to the stoplight, then stop when you reach it.

I am with you on this one, I see this everyday, some people I just can't understand.....


EDIT: Not sure on your car as it may differ but usually tire pressures will go up 3-5psi on a passenger car, at least it does on my '92 Sentra. So if the max is say 40 psi, I would start off at 34-35 psi and re-check it after a driving. 🙂

tire pressure ratings assume a cold tire. fill it to 40 before you drive (a few miles, like to the gas station, probably won't make much difference, so don't worry about having it dead cold).

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: thomsbrain

Originally posted by: KennyH

biggest waste of gas I know of:

If you see a stop light ahead of you and you know you will have to stop, just take your foot off the gas. There is no reason to use all that gas, speed to the stop light, then sit there for 1 mintue. I bet at least 50% of drivers do that and I can never understand why. When you know you will have to stop, just take your foot off the gas and coast to the stoplight, then stop when you reach it.

I am with you on this one, I see this everyday, some people I just can't understand.....


EDIT: Not sure on your car as it may differ but usually tire pressures will go up 3-5psi on a passenger car, at least it does on my '92 Sentra. So if the max is say 40 psi, I would start off at 34-35 psi and re-check it after a driving. 🙂

tire pressure ratings assume a cold tire. fill it to 40 before you drive (a few miles, like to the gas station, probably won't make much difference, so don't worry about having it dead cold).

WRONG! The pressure on the CAR is a cold rating, the pressure on the TIRE is an ABSOLUTE MAXIMUM. The pressure listed on the tire's sidewall should NEVER be exceded under ANY circumstances. (i.e. if the tire's sidewall says 44 PSI, then the tire should NEVER reach pressure beyond 44 PSI, not even after being driven at 75 mph in 110 degree heat.)

ZV

 

[JACKHAMMER]

That post I made was sarcasm . I drive a 240sx that is low enough that I can't see through most big sedans, much less SUvs, and I coast for several hundred feet to lights.

Sorry, don't I feel like a jerk!😱