Quote:
Originally Posted by wmjinman
But it makes perfect sense to me. It depends on the goal; If the goal is to use the fewest gallons possible, I probably wouldn't even bother with the "A-B-A" tests because the "paybeack time" for all the gas used in them is so long. I mean, half a dozen 10-mile round trips (after going out to my testing spot) to learn that folding my mirrors yields 0.1 mpg? If I fold my mirrors for the rest of my car's life, will it pay off? I suspect maybe not.
BUT - if the goal is to get the best mpg possible in this tank, then my "extra mileage" helps out in the "avoid short trips - do more longer trips" department. After all, it could be worse - I could just go out on a really long, "max mpg speed" trip with no stops ONLY to go as far as possible on that tank. At least I was taking care of a few errands in the process. :-)
(at least, that's what I'm gonna keep telling myself) LOL!!  |
You raise some interesting points, maybe. The "goal" (IMHO) is to reduce the overall gallons used compared to your normal behaviour. If by combining some other "errands" into a longer trip you managed a better overall average MPG then that is better. If you added those "errands" to increase your mileage and therefore gain a better average then it becomes debateable.
Testing mileage is interesting. I wonder if those who do A-B-A testing include that in their tanks and logs. If you do 20-30K miles a year then it doesn't affect your average, for me (at 6-8K a year) it does - maybe quite a bit.