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Well lets play with the numbers. Car 1 gets 4 mpg going up the 1/8 mile ramp (pedal to the metal) and uses 4.33 oz of fuel getting up to the 65 MPH speed limit. Once at 65 car 1 continues for another 1/8 getting 30 MPG and would use 0.533 oz for a total used in the 1/2 mile of 4.86 oz.
Car 2 uses a lighter throttle and gets 12 MPG going up the 1/8 mile ramp and uses 1.33 oz. Car 2 continues at this pace for another 1/8 until getting up to the 65 MPH speed limit. In the 1/2 mile car 2 has now used a total of 2.66 oz. Even if car 2 took 3/4 mile it would use 3.99 oz while car 1 would have used 5.39 oz for the same 3/4 mile.
I have tested this out in my own car. I have found its is real easy to get 4 mpg going up the ramp so you don't get run over when merging into traffic moving at 65 mph. The 12 is harder to do and I typically only do it when traffic is light because by the top the ramp my speed is too low.
I will check out the suggested thread. I have noticed that certain speeds seem to give better mpg even though the speed is higher but I have not had much chance to run tests with all the variables the same. It seems, at least at this time of the year, I am either fighting wind, or gaining from a tailwind, fighting snow or rain or 20 degree temperature changes from early morning to my drive home at night.
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