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Old 12-21-2009, 01:57 AM   #2 (permalink)
Christ
Moderate your Moderation.
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Troy, Pa.
Posts: 8,919

Pasta - '96 Volkswagen Passat TDi
90 day: 45.22 mpg (US)
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Rear skirts are easily do-able.. front fender skirts will be much more difficult, and you'd probably be better off making clear wheel covers, if possible.

Not to wreck the party, but I don't see 35MPG without lots of practice and some extreme modding. If you want to get results without obviously altering the vehicle, a Q&D belly pan will help you get there. Remove the passenger side mirror, or at least fold it in, if you don't need it.

You probably won't get too much weight out without removing large parts of the interior, frankly. You could replace your spare tire and tools with a small pump, can of fix a flat, and a AAA card, if you have their service.

Cleaning up the seams on the front of the car will also help out in some minute way. Frankly, the only way you're going to increase your mileage by 35-40% is driving technique. Get that SGII, work your ever-lovin' ass off, and make some good numbers.

I have to mention, of course, that some of the mods you've currently done probably aren't doing much, if anything, for you, unless you drive in the "normal" percentile, then I suppose it's possible.

I've mentioned before that the one thing I find difficult about the hypermiler mentality is that maybe, at times, something that doesn't work for us, might actually work for someone else, because the driving styles are completely different, and that could play some small factor in whether or not a mod will work for a given person/vehicle combination.

Of course, that's not saying you're going to get 10% from a turn down. It just don't work that way.

As for why you've got 80+ views with no responses, well, that's the breaks, kid. Roll with the punches, not everyone is ready to jump for a reply all the time. Eventually, someone will chime in.
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