Simple fuel consumption estimates from Garmin GPS

[MetroMPG]

Friend of mine sent me these pics & comment about his Garmin Nuvi GPS.

... uses your EPA highway and city fuel consumption figures and gives a running estimate of your trip fuel use. It also uses the current gas price that you give it to calculate approximate fuel cost as you drive along. If behavior is to change, I think instant feedback is a good way. I like your comment that minimizing fuel consumption as you drive can be as much fun as playing a video game.

I believe he's installed the feature called "ecoRoute": Garmin | ecoRoute™

Sounds to me like it uses either an accelerometer or calculates rate of acceleration to provide instant feedback for the driving challenge.

Fuel consumption is probably calculated based on vehicle speed and the most appropriate EPA estimate is applied.

[Piwoslaw]

Crossposting:
Garmin Nuvi 2X5 and 7X5 GPS ± calculates efficiency.

It's too bad that my Nuvi 250W doesn't offer EcoRoute (only for Nuvi 2x5 series).

[euromodder]

Originally Posted by MetroMPG

Friend of mine sent me these pics & comment about his Garmin Nuvi GPS.
I believe he's installed the feature called "ecoRoute":

Sounds to me like it uses either an accelerometer or calculates rate of acceleration to provide instant feedback for the driving challenge.

It is.
Being a GPS it most likely calculates acceleration - it wouldn't need an acceleration sensor for that.

It's use as an eco-tool is dubious.
You get bad points for driving slower than the limit.
That's right, BAD points for driving slower.

Fuel consumption is probably calculated based on vehicle speed and the most appropriate EPA estimate is applied.

You have to enter your average fuel use (city and motorway) and it calculates based on these values.


I have EcoRoute in my 765, tried it a while, but it's rather pointless.

[MetroMPG]

Whoops, thanks piwoslaw. I knew I should have checked before I posted.

Euromodder: I'd say it's better than nothing. Of course, can't beat proper instrumentation. For some users, it might be a "gateway drug" to a ScanGauge or equivalent.

Actually, I see Garmin does sell an OBD-2 compatible device as well.

[rmay635703]

I would use it as an Odometer if it doesn't drain the battery too bad.

[eco_generator]

Yep, its not the best... but will help someone if they have a problem with accelerating too much.

Today, my eco numbers kept going up as I buried the throttle up a steep hill. I was using way more gas, but all it saw was that the car was accelerating gently (because of gravity working against the engine's power, lol). It gives points for braking gently also, and gives you a list of eco-driving tips that you can read.

[Cd]

How accurate is it ?
I wonder if something similar is out there for my cell phone ( HTC Evo )

[euromodder]

Originally Posted by Cd

How accurate is it ?

As accurate as the method by which you calculate the city/motorway averages.

It's only really useful if you use these figures to have it calculate the most (fuel) economical route.
Though you are highly likely to see some unusual routes, and spend a lot of time doing so.

[Bearleener]

The EcoRoute HD comes with an OBD2 dongle that sends the car's engine data via BlueTooth to the compatible Nüvi navigator device, so in theory the data should be just as accurate as with the ScanGauge.
It can also show and reset engine error codes.
Description: Garmin ecoRoute? HD : Be your own mechanic - monitor your engine and save fuel
Here's a review: Garmin ecoRoute HD Review & Rating | PCMag.com

Looks tempting.