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Old 06-24-2011, 02:02 PM   #9 (permalink)
roflwaffle
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Camryaro - '92 Toyota Camry LE V6
90 day: 31.12 mpg (US)

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sidakers View Post
So my question is this..

Is it possible that My engine just operates better under a 60% load than a 40% load, or Is it that pulse and glide is just that important to good fuel economy, even in an automatic?

Thanks,
Sidney
Definitely. Depending on the BSFC map 40% versus 60% can be a difference of ~400+g/kWh@40% versus ~250+g/kWh@60%. Drive slowly, accelerate quickly. Depending on the automatic transmission this can be offset somewhat by it staying unlocked and greater losses through the torque converter, but on the other hand some automatics won't lock up unless certain they've reached some higher speed, so on those high load won't hurt much, and since tq converter efficiency tends to increase w/ speed it may help a bit versus slower acceleration.

It all depends on the specifics, so what car/year/trans do you have?
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