| Fill date |
Distance |
Fill amount |
Price |
MPG |
Details |
| 2009-10-04 |
432.1 mi. |
8.921 US gal |
$2.249 |
48.44 US |
I made it all the way from Eldridge Iowa to Paducah Kentucky on a single tank of gas without stopping once to fill up or get something to eat! LONG leg of the trip, just under 7 hours... meaning I had a leg average of 61.7 mph, which isn't bad considering the 65 mph speed limit and the sections of construction with 55 or 45 mph zones. Illinois is one very long and quite uneventful state when you stick to the interstate, and don't have a passenger, or a radio capable of picking up a station... I was really hoping for over 50 on this tank, and I could have if my MPGuino screen wasn't busted... when I finish working on the house, that is on the top of the list! Google Maps puts this leg of the trip at 431 miles and 6 hr 47 min, so I would say I did quite well considering I account for a 6% mis-reading on my odometer. |
| 2009-10-04 |
407.7 mi. |
8.468 US gal |
$2.199 |
48.15 US |
First leg of the trip back to Alabama. Last fueling station in Iowa before crossing the Illinois border. Good price on gas, about the gas mileage I would expect for the combination of driving. |
| 2009-09-26 |
370.3 mi. |
7.786 US gal |
$2.419 |
47.56 US |
Second leg of the trip to Wisconsin. 65 mph pretty much the whole way, with some construction. More like what I would have expected from a tank... meaning the last one is just poor circumstances. |
| 2009-09-26 |
383.4 mi. |
8.87 US gal |
$2.359 |
43.22 US |
Shorter trips to work during worse traffic (all week conference where I had to be there at a certain time). Top this off with the first leg of my trip back to Wisconsin (70 mph and RAIN), it makes for a pretty bad tank! |
| 2009-09-16 |
495 mi. |
10.13 US gal |
$2.299 |
48.86 US |
Although my tank is 10.6 gallons, that doesn't mean you can use all of them! Suzi was sputtering on acceleration in 1st, 2nd, and even 3rd from the slosh in the tank. I was shooting for 500 miles on a tank, if I could use the full 10.6, it would have been no problem... oh well. |
| 2009-09-01 |
214.3 mi. |
4.508 US gal |
$2.399 |
47.54 US |
Approximately 1/2 tank mark. Handy for figuring out mid-tank MPG.
1/2 = 4.5 gal
Top of red = 8.0 gal
Bottom of red = 9.0 gal
Tank size = 10.6 gal
With this many check points, it should be fairly easy to know about how I am doing. I told my wife I am going to see how close to 10.000 gallons I can get based on knowing 3 data points for FE, and figuring out how many miles 10 gallons would be, and doing my best to hit my mark. She wasn't thrilled with the idea. |
| 2009-08-24 |
469.5 mi. |
9.75 US gal |
$2.389 |
48.15 US |
|
| 2009-08-13 |
397.3 mi. |
7.892 US gal |
$2.459 |
50.34 US |
lots of accident related driving. interstate about 40%. windows down about 90%. filled up at top of red area on fuel gauge, about 8 gallons. bottom of red is about 9 gallons... useful numbers to have. I want to try the halfway mark next, expect somewhere between 4 and 5 gallons. |
| 2009-08-05 |
469.9 mi. |
9.668 US gal |
$2.399 |
48.6 US |
My wife had a terrible accident during this tank. I wound up driving everywhere. Short trips, interstate, parking ramps... not a great time. |
| 2009-07-17 |
483.4 mi. |
9.087 US gal |
$2.199 |
53.2 US |
No highway. Just to work and back. About 6% better than before aeromods. Makes me want more! |
| 2009-06-12 |
490.8 mi. |
9.124 US gal |
$2.459 |
53.79 US |
1/2 tank with all previous mods, 1/2 without windshield wiper block (it was raining and the reconfigured block prevented the wipers from fully actuating). The block prevents lots of air from coming in through the vents! It also prevents lots of unnecessary turbulence on the windshield. I made a couple deflectors that allow me to roll down my front windows about 1.5 inches, but prevents air transfer at the top. The result: great SUCTION right behind the A-pillar! Does it help or hurt FE? I don't know, but I will say it helps beat the heat more than having the window up!
2nd best tank of all time. ~54mpg! |
| 2009-05-18 |
476 mi. |
9.39 US gal |
$2.199 |
50.69 US |
The final leg of our STS 125 trip. Speeds around 55mph and rear window/front window in same configuration as last. I REALLY wanted to push for a 500+ mile tank, but seeing the needle so far below the E without an MPGuino to give me some confidence, I just couldn't risk running out of gas... but at 50+ mpg it could have put me at 530 miles on a tank. |
| 2009-05-15 |
414.5 mi. |
9.137 US gal |
$2.059 |
45.36 US |
I only had to stop for gas once on the return trip. I kept waiting for cheap gas, and actually wound up filling up at the cheapest gas on the entire trip down and back. This leg of the trip was between 58 and 74 mph, but during the day so the blower just didn't cut it. Rear pasengers side window down 3/4 and drivers window down about 1.5 inches. Still got 45 mpg which is more than expected for the conditions.
SIDE NOTE:
The new aero mods make it much quieter in the car (when windows aren't down). My wife and I could talk at 74 mph without yelling and disturbing the baby. The belly pan may be remade in aluminum and be more easily removed since I change my own oil. The wiper deflector may be altered or made out of a new material also. It reduced the noise in the cabin but could be optimized better, maybe a composite over foam. I can't say much about the rear pan, but I think it must have helped. Normally I would want to make changes one at a time and try to quantify their benefits, but in just a half day I made all the changes, which makes me think how hard it is to do all the testing to quantify, when the "just do it" gets things done so quickly, and you know things that you want to change for later all the faster. |
| 2009-05-11 |
386.3 mi. |
8.595 US gal |
$2.299 |
44.94 US |
part 2 of the drive to STS 125.
Part 1 was <55 mph, part 2 was between 68 and 74 mph. 45 mpg at speed is higher than I would have expected. I budgeted for 40 mpg for the trip, so this was great. |
| 2009-05-10 |
381.8 mi. |
6.869 US gal |
$2.159 |
55.58 US |
When I did the math on this, I just figured that the nozzle had cut out early, and that I would wind up averaging two tanks into one... but the next two tanks were very similar conditions and very similar MPG, so I think this tank is good! My best tank yet, and it was completely unexpected!
about 150 miles of regular driving
about 200 miles on the way to Florida for STS 125 launch.
Before leaving for Shuttle launch I installed a half grill block, a smooth front and a smooth rear belly pan, and a windshield deflector. These are in addition to the drivers' side mirror aerospike and the passengers side mirror being folded in that I had for the whole tank. |
| 2009-05-05 |
466.5 mi. |
9.236 US gal |
$1.929 |
50.51 US |
No MPGuino... still out of commission... will be for a while. Nice weather, TONS of rain and strong wind, just usually not during my commute! It took me nearly 500 miles to finally stop looking down for the MPGuino for direction on how I am doing... I guess I will have to cry on the inside, since I still managed over 50mpg. |
| 2009-04-15 |
413.6 mi. |
9.102 US gal |
$1.959 |
45.44 US |
I re-calibrated my odometer with the Garmin over 351 miles (from the grandparents to our house). My speedo is off by 5.6% (not the 5.9% formerly used).
Trip Data:
73.6 mph Max Speed
56.1 mph Moving Average
55.0 mph Overall Average
This is the trip home plus to work and back a couple days... so I am not positive on the "trip MPG", but it should be close to the 45.44 mpg. I was really hoping to do better, but 45+ when my wifes car would have gotten 30-33 makes it worth while. |
| 2009-04-12 |
388.5 mi. |
8.132 US gal |
$1.899 |
47.77 US |
TRIP
To my wife's grandparents house. No MPGuino  but plenty of rain and extreme cross winds, and still netted 47.78 MPG! Weather on the return trip was a bit more cooperative, so we shall see how that turns out. |
| 2009-04-09 |
366.8 mi. |
7.34 US gal |
$1.849 |
49.97 US |
Just typical driving. This is the fill up before heading to my wife's grandparents house. I filled up Suzi's tires and noticed the "mud flaps" were in terrible crumbly condition, so they came off before the trip. Maybe that will help out some. Also, since I figured out the MPGuino problem and got it soldered up, I have had no problems until this tank... it locked up twice on me and the morning we were going to leave on the trip, the screen was dead. Oh well, trip with no instantaneous feedback. |
| 2009-03-26 |
349.2 mi. |
6.97 US gal |
$1.899 |
50.1 US |
warm out again. set some records for individual trips on this tank (according to MPGuino) over 59mpg on one! Several over 58 or 57.
NOTE:
the iDuino based MPGuino was not the way to go. during fillups, I constantly notice a +/- 2.5% on the mpg, and it's obvious when driving that the mph and gph jump around more than they should. Others that have had the iDuino based one noticed a great jump in accuracy when they built one from scratch. Can't comment on the kits from other places, but I would think I would do the from scratch if I was to do another. |
| 2009-03-12 |
450.4 mi. |
9.51 US gal |
$1.799 |
47.36 US |
|
| 2009-02-24 |
415.8 mi. |
9.091 US gal |
$1.719 |
45.74 US |
|
| 2009-02-05 |
433.5 mi. |
9.991 US gal |
$1.859 |
43.39 US |
|
| 2009-01-15 |
417.6 mi. |
9.764 US gal |
$1.699 |
42.77 US |
This is about as cold (overnight low around 3F one night) as it has been so far this year. The tires need some more air, and I need a grill block, but other than that, fairly normal driving. |
| 2008-12-16 |
423.3 mi. |
9.716 US gal |
$1.579 |
43.57 US |
Cold (relative, lots of 20 to 40degF mornings) and rainy (enough to pull us out of a drought for the entire year). Pretty much hating the ~20% drop in MPG. Wanted to verify the MPGuino accuracy, but it locked up at about 300 miles into tank, saying 42+ MPG, and the last 100 miles at around 43+ MPG, actual is around 43.5, so perhaps a little pessimistic. Will verify MPG over the next few tanks. |
| 2008-12-04 |
326.9 mi. |
7.386 US gal |
$1.599 |
44.26 US |
It's been pretty cold out. I haven't had a chance to get my second mirror deflector on, and I need to get a grill block in place... I'm kind of far south, but I sure could use an engine block heater! |
| 2008-11-24 |
424.4 mi. |
8.539 US gal |
$1.799 |
49.7 US |
To and from work. This tank should set me up for a calibration run on the MPGuino... I know I have been saying that forever, but apparently I will have to keep a written log since my last 300+ mile tank was reset about 75 miles before the fill. |
| 2008-11-06 |
295.7 mi. |
5.996 US gal |
$2.299 |
49.32 US |
To and from work. Warmer weather, but nothing special. Used the drivers side mirror "aero spike" for the entire tank. |
| 2008-10-25 |
243.8 mi. |
5.508 US gal |
$2.599 |
44.26 US |
Lots of shorter trips, drive throughs, cooler weather... also, had to replace a "dead half the time" battery (9 years 5 months old)... meaning no engine off at stop lights, and no engine off at drive throughs, and no engine off when dropping off a rental car (took FOREVER) |
| 2008-10-12 |
63.82 mi. |
1.244 US gal |
$2.959 |
51.3 US |
Trying to get the MPGuino dialed in before I get new tires put on... getting closer on VSS, first really good guess on INJ. I am surprised, the INJ numbers have apparently been ~10% low, meaning my 55mpg trips (two on this fillup) may have been more like 60 mpg!
Lots of short trips, to the store, back... drivethrough for pharmacy... it hurts MPG significantly! |
| 2008-10-10 |
191.5 mi. |
3.845 US gal |
$3.299 |
49.8 US |
I finally have the MPGuino working reliably. Apparently I had a lose resonator... I opted to not do the soldering just yet, rather just get some driving in while I am sure it's working. Hopefully I can get the injector numbers calibrated well on this tank. |
| 2008-10-03 |
484.4 mi. |
9.484 US gal |
$3.669 |
51.08 US |
Just to and from work. Lots of EOC. Some engine off stop lighting, but not most of the time.
MPGuino is acting up. Now working about 1/3 of the time or less. I was able to calibrate the VSS, but not the INJ. It does seem to be pretty good though, since the times when it did work for a whole trip it would show on average around 51 MPG. |
| 2008-09-14 |
457.1 mi. |
9.234 US gal |
$3.739 |
49.5 US |
Price abnormally high because of huricane Ike scare, was 3.519, jumped to 4.109, purchased at 3.739 (NEEDED the gas). Just to work and back. Had MPGuino for part of the tank, will try to calibrate that in over the next two or so tanks. |
| 2008-08-26 |
414.5 mi. |
9.013 US gal |
$3.399 |
45.99 US |
1/3
70 mph
head lights
1/3
60 mph
head lights
1/3
to and from work |
| 2008-08-13 |
323.9 mi. |
6.46 US gal |
$3.549 |
50.14 US |
added a bit of EOC in the mix, mostly on two long hills, one as I get to work, and one when I am close to home.
EDIT:
I found that my speedometer and odometer are off, based on 70.0 miles of highway mile signs and an odometer reading of 66.9 miles. All previous numbers are updated to reflect this... I guess it also means the first goal I had of over 50 mpg has been reached for a while... I guess I will get over it!
EQUATION:
Odometer Miles * (70.0 / 66.9) = Distance (miles) |
| 2008-07-30 |
450.8 mi. |
9.018 US gal |
$3.739 |
49.99 US |
First tank after joining EcoModder
CHANGES SINCE LAST TANK:
Driving slower (try to keep it under 50 on major roads and under 40 most everwhere else)
Clutch in Coasting (trying not to use brakes period)
Accelerating on declines, and lightening up on inclines
Coast starting car more often
OBSERVED CHANGE 2.06 MPG (4.51 %) |
| 2008-07-10 |
424.5 mi. |
8.876 US gal |
$3.879 |
47.83 US |
To work and back. Avoiding major traffic. 50/50 City/Highway. |
| 2008-05-07 |
411.2 mi. |
8.897 US gal |
$3.499 |
46.22 US |
old receipt found in car |
| 2008-04-24 |
387 mi. |
8.483 US gal |
$3.499 |
45.62 US |
old receipt I found in the car |
| 2008-04-03 |
391 mi. |
8.905 US gal |
$3.099 |
43.91 US |
old receipt found in car
I would really love to find some of my old fill-ups. I remember driving across northern Wisconsin one time, and I drove at 48 mph and got 49.816 mpg (my personal best to date)[based on road miles vs. odometer readings, it should be over 52 mpg]. I actually got several in that range (48 +). I am hoping with some mods to Suzi, we can get my mpg over 50 (actually, after seeing some of the posts on here, I think I may be able to get her over 60!). Something worth while to work towards. |
| 0000-00-00 |
469.1 mi. |
9 US gal |
|
52.12 US |
This is my record best to date. I think it was in the summer of 2004 or 2005. I know it was on over 9 gallons of gas (I was WAY below the E!). I was taking all kinds of precautions, no radio, lights, windows up, no blower, less than 48 mph (it's amazing what you can hear your car do without all the other noises, with my car, 48 mph is smooth, 49 mph I hear the engine start to work a lot harder, I suspect there is a boundary layer tripped somewhere at about 49 mph)... but I made it to the cheap gas! (it would be great to know what it cost back then, I know under $2.00, probably much less). |
