Here on EcoModder we have talked about the EcoDrivingUSA program and some of Pro Formance’s results with Ford before, but I finally got a chance to go through Pro Formance’s ecodriving program. There was a lot of preaching to the choir, but I was interested to see how they approached teaching ecodriving to the average person, and not just the average person who is already interested in improving fuel economy.

The Car

Because I was second in line for the round of test drives I was in, I had to settle for the Audi A3 TDI station wagon. I don’t want to sound like I’m down on the car, since it was a very nice ride, but for several reasons I really wanted to drive the Mini Cooper (I’d never driven one, it had a stick shift, etc). Because of my disappointment I made it my goal to surpass the Mini Cooper in fuel economy in the test.

The A3 TDI is a very luxurious car, but it’s definitely not the biggest fuel sipper around. The diesel engine helps a lot, but the automatic transmission and general size of the car makes it a difficult choice for high mileage (though that doesn’t mean you can improve it).

The Drive

We went out for a drive through some very congested LA streets, which were not good at all for fuel economy. Though the test drive was only a couple of miles in each direction, my instructor had time to go through many of the standard techniques like smooth acceleration, the importance of anticipating future events, and also the importance of keeping your car well maintained.

In keeping with these tips, and not wanting to annoy my instructor, I toned down my own ecodriving and tried to do my best simply by anticipating stops and avoiding mashing the gas pedal at any cost. Doing this I managed to eke out 39 mpg from the station wagon, slightly edging out the Mini Cooper, which only pulled in 38.4 mpg.

Surely, I could have done better using neutral and having a fuel economy gauge, but I wanted to see what mileage would be like for a more typical driver in a car like the A3 TDI just using the Pro Formance tips, and I was very happy to see that near 40 mpg numbers could be returned, even in heavy traffic.

Post-Ride

After the ride I got a chance to talk shop with some of the Pro Formance guys and learned that many of them practice more involved ecodriving techniques and are interesting in some of the ecomods that are fairly common. I was really impressed with their work and their mission, and hope that they can expand their operation to get in touch with more drivers.

Also, I learned that from their study on ecodriving with Ford, they realized a few things about the way different groups of people drive. For example, men and younger people tended to show a greater improvement with ecodriving, primarily because they were more aggressive in their driving techniques before taking the Pro Formance class. At the same time, everyone in the study still managed to improve their mileage, even the old ladies!

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Anyone who’s every done a little ecodriving will know that the worst thing in the world is a stop light. Unlike a stop sign, they’re not predictable, and sometimes leaving you waiting indefinitely or slamming on the brakes to avoid running through. That’s why a lot of ecodrivers will invest a lot of energy into knowing their routes and trying to anticipate lights. However, Audi would like to change this with their new HUD.

How is this possible? Well, Audi has ingeniously developed an in car system that communicates with upcoming red lights to see how long it will be until the light turns green and what speed you need to drive at to make sure you don’t get there beforehand. This will prevent you from wasting gas and hopefully from getting annoyed with the tireless stop and go. Check out these images for a pictorial description:

Of course, you’ll have to realize that some drivers may not know what the hell is going on and get pissed off, but I’m hoping that most people are a little more patient than that and will be happy to see that they aren’t stopping for the light either. On that point, the Dailymail article makes an interesting point:

Kate Dixon of Audi UK said that if a minimum of ten per cent of cars in any given town were fitted with the technology, all road users would notice an improvement in traffic levels.

This is definitely an interesting point. While I wonder how many traffic lights are equipped with the necessarily technology across world markets, this is definitely an interesting technology that could do a lot to smooth out traffic and reduce fuel consumption.

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Image: ucouldguess

Fuel-conscious drivers started to see their beloved Diesel passenger vehicles disappear from new car lots from about 2004 to 2007. This wasn’t because of rapid sales due to rising fuel prices, but instead “Tier II” emission regulations were being phased in quicker than car makers could engineer them. Since then, auto manufacturers have been scrambling to meet these new regs and design the engines to operate in our varied climates and conditions.

To mount a strong comeback to the market, Audi tested their latest Diesel drivetrains by setting off on a journey to from New York to LA with their newly tuned, “Clean Diesel” TDI turbodiesel engines, using Ultra-Low Sulfur Diesel fuel. Twenty-three vehicles were driven in various driving conditions across the United States. The course ranged from the busy streets of Chicago, to the open highway and 11,000-foot mountain passes — this was to ensure variability in driving conditions for accuracy. To go one step further, the International Motorsport Association, or IMSA, sanctioned and provided oversight for the test (the group is most notably known for governing the American Le Mans racing series). 184 drivers from around the world motored their way across the Country and converged on Los Angeles this past Sunday. The fuel economy results were then revealed.

Four different models were tested: the Q7 Luxury SUV 3.0L, Q5 “Performance” Luxury SUV 3.0L, A4 3.0L Luxury Sport Sedan, and the A3 Sportback 5-door with the 2.0L TDI engine and “S-Tronic” automatic gearbox.

The Results:

• Q7: 30 MPG combined over 954 miles at an average speed of 50 MPH
• Q5: 33 MPG / 946 miles / 47 MPH
• A4: 38 MPG / 980 miles / 47 MPH
• A3: 40 MPG / 954 miles / 47 MPH

The full story can be found at audimileagemarathon.com.