I dont drive enough!

[98civicDX]

I have my ultra gauge now and am all excited to start seeing my real time gauges, but I really dont drive much. I am a student at a community college 5 minutes away and work from home so I really dont go anywhere. If im only filling up once a month then fall and winter are around the corner and there goes my MPG's

[Daox]

Sounds pretty ideal to me. I only fill up once a month or so too. I love it.

[euromodder]

That's good.
The aim is to get better mpg in order to burn less fuel, not just for boasting rights.

[Kodak]

That's common - you want to know your score. You want to see results.

If it helps, think of it more in terms of gallons consumed - a flat figure rather than a ratio of miles per gallon.

[busypaws]

I too am in the fillup every 6-8weeks. I can do 2-3 mods per fillup so I don't know which is improving the most. I've researched (from the racing community) fuel tank spacers. They are made to fit in the fuel tank to lower it's overall capacity. They are expensive and the 1/2 gallon size would not fit into my tank. So I'm trying to find common material that I could put in the tank that would lower the capacity of the tank. Tried (white plastic) pint milk cartons. They work in the gas/ethenol blend but the little wax seal on the lid dissolves and the cap comes off and they are not effective anymore.

I'm experimenting with 3 inch plastic balls now (the kind you would see in the play area of the pizza parlor). They are in a glass container filled with gas on my back poarch. I want to make sure they don't dissolve before I put them in the tank.

I dislike carring around 36lbs of fuel for a month while I'm using the first 36lbs of fuel in the tank.

[Fat Charlie]

Originally Posted by 98civicDX

If im only filling up once a month then fall and winter are around the corner and there goes my MPG's

So you've got me on miles per gallon and gallons per month. I applaud your driving that involves minimal fuel and your lifestyle that involves minimal driving. You're already doing better work than any silly online graph or chart can tell. You've already got the biggest improvements down, so enjoy them. Now you have to accept that mpg improvements will take time because you simply don't drive that many miles. It's not a bad thing.

Good work! You have my admiration and envy, sir.

[low&slow]

^ agree with posters above: its all about using less fuel not generating high mpg numbers.

I find myself in similar situation of driving much less since I retired from my previous job. I fill up my car about once a month and my motorcycle about every 2 weeks. I also try to ride my bicycle on shorter trips when I don't have a large load to carry. I still get very good mpg depite limited miles for my car and my mc.
98Civicdx, I hope you are riding a bike a lot if all you have is a 5 minute drive.
all the best L&S

[Sven7]

Honestly, it sounds boring to me. I love driving, especially in a good handling car. The Civic will be a lot more fun to drive if it's lowered, and being an EK (6th generation '96-'00), the parts will be very cheap.

You can get lowering springs for $50. Your car will handle tons better, and look the part, too! Not to mention the 1.75" lower ground clearance will improve mileage.

Ebay link

[cfg83]

98civicDX -

Trust me, it's a good cross to bear.

CarloSW2

[ConnClark]

I work only 5 minutes away from home as well. There is only one downside to 98civicDX's situation. These repetitive really short trips are hard on an engine for a number of reasons. The engine never gets hot enough for long enough to boil the condensation/moisture out of the oil. If the catalytic converter doesn't get hot enough it will foul over time. Most of all the engine is operating a lot more outside of the temperature it was designed to run at so engine wear is increased.

so.... warm up time is recommended as well as a good 15 minute or longer drive.


I have to give my car an Italian tune up from time to time to burn the crud out my (trap ox/ Diesel Particulate Filter).