[VegasDude]

With a 5 spd manual you can do some really fun gliding. For me, using P+G around town must be done with timing the lights in mind. On the way home there are a series of lights that I essentially time in accordance with my P+G routine. This means I keep up with traffic, each time the light turns green I am gliding past them. My glides are engine off, which boosts FE, but means A/C is useless. Power steering is immediately lost, although not necessary. Full braking power is retained for 3 full stops.

You can experiment with engine off glides, when you need to restart the engine while moving, you can partially and momentarily pop the clutch (with the key in the on position) which starts the engine, then choose the appropriate gear. I will use 5th to restart the engine down to about 20 mph. Using a higher gear to restart the engine means a more gentle bump. You can always use the starter too.

Engine off glides are particularly useful when you know from experience you will be stopping and waiting awhile at a red light, or going down hill.

My approach for small hills is to accelerate up to 5-10 MPH above my target speed and hold my foot on the accelerator at that point. Then allow the car to decelerate on the way up (keeping my speed above a reasonable minimum), reduce the throttle as I approach the top, and allow gravity to take me down, usually with an engine off glide.

As for very long hills, I simply take them at a slow and steady speed on the way up. On the way down there are three approaches: With a shallow grade, I use P+G. The grade will both make pulses easier and extend glides. With a medium grade, I glide with the engine off, allowing the car to accelerate up to the max speed allowed by wind resistance. If the grade is steep enough and the car is accelerating past a safe speed, I restart the engine and allow engine-braking to slow the car. Most cars with fuel injection use DFCO (Deceleration Fuel Cut-Off) which means when you take your foot off the gas, the car uses only its own momentum to keep the engine moving. The minimum RPM for this varies but is usually around 1500.

In a nutshell: Waste as little gas on the way up, take full advantage of gravity on the way down. Most non-ecodrivers take the opposite approach: speed up the grade and ride the brakes on the way down.