Economical driving
Discussion
Before I start I should say I enjoy driving fast and don't worry about fuel economy when I am in the mood. However, I realised I arrive at work much more relaxed and save a lot of fuel by mincing along at sensible speeds in the rush hour traffic. My commute is 20 mins of stop-start hilly town driving on a cold engine, then 10 minutes of dual with big queues at roundabouts, then 20 minutes of M4 with an easy cruise - no jams. The car is a 2006 Golf GTi manual.
I get 32-34mpg driving 'normally', using a bit of turbo now and then and cruising in the outside lane. I have found that I can get 8-10mpg more by driving carefully and not exceeding 65mph. My best was 45mpg, but I have not managed that since. For what it's worth, I have found no difference when slipstreaming trucks, maybe I'm not doing it for long enough. I have a 60 mile daily commute = 300 miles a week.
PH moment: By driving like this I generate a 'free' 2 gallons or so for a hoon at weekends
Some will say these figures are BS. Pics below taken after my AM and PM commutes:
I get 32-34mpg driving 'normally', using a bit of turbo now and then and cruising in the outside lane. I have found that I can get 8-10mpg more by driving carefully and not exceeding 65mph. My best was 45mpg, but I have not managed that since. For what it's worth, I have found no difference when slipstreaming trucks, maybe I'm not doing it for long enough. I have a 60 mile daily commute = 300 miles a week.
PH moment: By driving like this I generate a 'free' 2 gallons or so for a hoon at weekends
Some will say these figures are BS. Pics below taken after my AM and PM commutes:
My commute sees around 22 mpg maybe 24 if I'm careful in my 3 series. TBF it is mostly stop start and a lot of queueing.
I went out for a fairly lengthy drive yesterday and did take it steady, I got around 32 mpg. Not bad for a 6 cylinder but nowhere near the claims from the manufacturer. I have never seen more than 37 mpg and that's cruising on the motorway at 65.
I went out for a fairly lengthy drive yesterday and did take it steady, I got around 32 mpg. Not bad for a 6 cylinder but nowhere near the claims from the manufacturer. I have never seen more than 37 mpg and that's cruising on the motorway at 65.
A couple of basic tips that help when it comes to eco driving
In order of importance
Avoid accelerating up hills this kills average MPG
Use dowhills to gain speed & momentum - makes best use of average MPG
If needing to decelarate use the gears to make use of fuel shut off on overun
Personally I'm happy to coast where leaving it in gear slows you down - huge gains in average MPG's can be found.
My 1.9 Tdi went from an average of 54mpg to 71mpg just using the above techniques with no difference in journey time pretty much.
I often work for manufacturers demonstrating their new cars & eco driving is often part of it, a lot of modern hybrid stuff coasts these days with engine off.
Then go spunk the saved fuel on the weekend on track
In order of importance
Avoid accelerating up hills this kills average MPG
Use dowhills to gain speed & momentum - makes best use of average MPG
If needing to decelarate use the gears to make use of fuel shut off on overun
Personally I'm happy to coast where leaving it in gear slows you down - huge gains in average MPG's can be found.
My 1.9 Tdi went from an average of 54mpg to 71mpg just using the above techniques with no difference in journey time pretty much.
I often work for manufacturers demonstrating their new cars & eco driving is often part of it, a lot of modern hybrid stuff coasts these days with engine off.
Then go spunk the saved fuel on the weekend on track
Edited by cptsideways on Sunday 20th March 19:28
cptsideways said:
A couple of basic tips that help when it comes to eco driving
In order of importance
Avoid accelerating up hills this kills average MPG
Use dowhills to gain speed & momentum - makes best use of average MPG
If needing to decelarate use the gears to make use of fuel shut off on overun
Personally I'm happy to coast where leaving it in gear slows you down - huge gains in average MPG's can be found.
My 1.9 Tdi went from an average of 54mpg to 71mpg just using the above techniques with no difference in journey time pretty much.
Then go spunk the saved fuel on the weekend on track
In addition, when slowing come off the gas asap, reducing the need to brakeIn order of importance
Avoid accelerating up hills this kills average MPG
Use dowhills to gain speed & momentum - makes best use of average MPG
If needing to decelarate use the gears to make use of fuel shut off on overun
Personally I'm happy to coast where leaving it in gear slows you down - huge gains in average MPG's can be found.
My 1.9 Tdi went from an average of 54mpg to 71mpg just using the above techniques with no difference in journey time pretty much.
Then go spunk the saved fuel on the weekend on track
My commute (onto dual carriageway on a cold engine within 3 minutes for 7 miles, some bottle necks with lower speed limits, then mostly uphill NSL roads for the next 7 miles) has never seen better than 32.8mpg. Seat don't claim any better than 32mpg for mixed driving, which is my commute pretty much, so I'm happy with that.
If I give it a few big whooshes on the turbo and accelerate harder across the route it will happily drop to between 26-28mpg depending on how much traffic there is and how much I have to slow down. I quickly gave up trying to drive it fast on a commute, you just end up stuck up a lorries arse as it fumbles down the road and there is no room to overtake. By accelerating slowly, keeping to the nearside lane and keeping the revs down I save about 20% petrol over driving fast and because of the bottle necks, my journey is not significantly longer. All the more petrol saved for those quick late night runs!
If I give it a few big whooshes on the turbo and accelerate harder across the route it will happily drop to between 26-28mpg depending on how much traffic there is and how much I have to slow down. I quickly gave up trying to drive it fast on a commute, you just end up stuck up a lorries arse as it fumbles down the road and there is no room to overtake. By accelerating slowly, keeping to the nearside lane and keeping the revs down I save about 20% petrol over driving fast and because of the bottle necks, my journey is not significantly longer. All the more petrol saved for those quick late night runs!
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