Back in May, I saw this article about a new world record being set for the farthest distance ever driven on one stock-sized tank of fuel. John and Helen Taylor drove their 2012 Volkswagen Passat 1,626.1 miles on one tank of fuel. See thread here:
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...ank-21822.html
At the time, the best I’d ever done was 1,243.3 miles on one tank. I thought that maybe one day I’d be able to break the 1,626.1 mile mark. Yesterday was that day! Last night on the way home I broke the record and this morning I filled up with 1,645.2 miles on one tank. Here are the details:
Start date: July 9, 2012
End date: August 15, 2012
Distance: 1,645.2 miles
Fuel used: 35.000 gallons
Total time (key-on): 63 hours, 5 minutes
Average ambient temperature: 78.3 deg F
Average in-cab mileage display: 49.27 mpg
Actual measured mileage: 47.01 mpg
Calculated average speed (from key on time): 26.1 mph
Note the fuel used was exactly 35 gallons. My fuel tank is nominally 34 gallons, but I always put in 35 gallons. This is because I fill up at Kroger, which gives me a discount on one fill up per month of up to 35 gallons. Usually this requires quite a bit of topping off and puts the fuel all the way up until it’s visible in the filler neck. During the July 9 fill up, I didn’t actually fill it up all the way—it clicked off just once but I hit 35 gallons before it was all the way up in the filler neck, so I stopped. The fill up on August 15 was pretty much the same, so the 35 gallons consumed should be accurate, meaning I achieved 47.01 mpg.
For those who are interested, I’ve posted a copy of my daily log for this sheet. Here’s the main sheet with the numbers:
And here’s the comments for the same entries:
Not that it proves anything, but here’s a picture of the trip meter:
Sorry it’s a little fuzzy, my preview screen is busted on my camera.
Many of you are already familiar with the modifications that I’ve done, but here’s a full list:
Vehicle mods:
Removed diesel particulate filter (DPF)
Removed diesel oxidation catalyst (DOC)
Removed NOx adsorber
Removed EGR system
Removed intake throttle plate
Re-routed CCV vent to atmosphere
Smarty Jr tuner: fuel economy tune, most advanced timing
Upper grille block
Lower grille block
Tires at 75 psi (max sidewall is 80 psi)
Using block heater to pre-warm
Dual 150W oil pan heaters
Tonneau cover
Engine oil: Amsoil Series 3000 Synthetic 5W-30 HDD
Differential oil: Amsoil Severe Gear Synthetic Extreme Pressure Gear Lube 75W-90
Engine blanket
Homemade ram cold air intake
Driving mods:
Pulse & glide
Engine off coasting
Generally keeping it under 55mph (1,670 rpm)
Timing lights
Shifting as low as possible
Route planning
Extreme focus
Negligible A/C use
I guess I should also include “weight reduction”. In the last year I’ve personally lost about 65 lbs—that has to have helped at least a little.
This entire trip was real-world driving—mostly back and forth to work, plus a few trips to the gym, the doctor’s office, and the in-laws. This is the only vehicle I drive, so it’s not like I was just driving it when conditions were good. This tank includes days when it was raining, windy etc. (see the log for details). My speed was quite slow, however, so is my commute. If I use Google maps, it says a “normal” person would average just under 40 mph. There are 19 red lights and 7 stop signs on my way to work and 18 red lights and 8 stop signs on the way home. That’s part of the reason for the slow speed. Here’s the topography of my route as well—fairly flat:
Total distance is around 23.8 miles. Since I don’t have my kill switch installed yet, I usually “lose” some miles on the odometer/trip meter during my EOC between when I key off and wait for the engine to stop before keying back on. My odometer usually averages about 22.8 miles, so my actual miles are probably about 5% higher than what I recorded.
I should also note that, while the official record is 1,626.1 miles, back in 2006 6 guys took a Honda Insight hybrid out on a rural loop of highway on Oklahoma over 9 days and ran 2,254.4 miles on one fill-up. If you want to get technical, I suppose what they did was on one tank and one battery charge (not just one tank of fuel). See details here:
The Insight Marathon 2006 -- World Record 2,254.4 miles on one tank of fuel - CleanMPG Forums
I’ll also add that I also achieved another one of my goals—I beat the official combined EPA rating of a 2007 Toyota Prius (46 mpg), with a vehicle that has pretty much the same weight and aero characteristics as a Hummer.
Lastly, here’s a picture of me at the pump, savoring the moment!
Thanks to all my fellow Ecomodders for all the tips and inspiration!