[AeroModder]

When a section of pipe came off my exhaust, I had to drive a lot softer to avoid being obnoxiously loud. I noticed that if I get up to speed relatively quick, then just barely add enough gas to go, the exhaust stayed pretty quiet. The trouble was, I was very gradually slowing down. Any more gas and it was a bit loud.

I ended up driving half the tank with the exhaust open, then went on the freeway up to the local drag strip. I drove faster than usual on the freeway and made a couple passes at the strip. I was going to test some intake setups and have quantified results, but something didn't sound right after the second run, so I called it a day. Haven't heard that sound since, but I didn't want to risk breaking something.

Even after all that, I got 26.4 MPG, matching my last best tank. When I got the pipe back on, I didn't concern myself with working the throttle that carefully, but the other day, I decided to try it again, bringing it up to a little above 55, then letting off te gas enough so it's decelerating at a very slow rate. I noticed the needle on the gas gauge didn't move much at all after the usual 20-mile commute to the nearby city.

I'm thinking of this as a modified "pulse and glide," since I'm using very little power to keep the car going on the "glides."

It's been a little over 200 miles this tank, and I still have just under 1/3 of my fuel left. I'm wondering if this is going to be a record tank!

So, am I on to something here, or just discovering on my own what everyone else already knew?