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Old 03-06-2013, 03:19 AM   #3 (permalink)
SpeedyCorky
also races Sportbikes!!!
 
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Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: Bay Area, California
Posts: 88

Mo' Mon-nay! - '00 Honda Civic HX
90 day: 52.26 mpg (US)

Carbon Silver - '06 Honda Insight
90 day: 82.2 mpg (US)
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^^ yup, keep her in gear and decelerate w/ engine braking, that shuts off the fuel injectors so you get MAX mpg. but really, assuming you got your driving right, you want to avoid the situation all together. what i mean is that you SHOULD try to coast in neutral as much as humanly possible - the car rolls A LOT farther in neutral. but if you have to ever use the brakes (ie, you have too much momentum and not enough road), then as soon as you realize that situation - its better to use the engine braking *in gear* to decelerate the car, rather than be in neutral and apply the brakes. by keeping it in gear, you essentially use little to no fuel. so think neutral is good, but if you MUST force the car to lose speed, better to do so w/ the engine in gear than with the brakes. ideally, you NEVER want to use the brakes.

as far as general city driving, aside from the usual look way ahead and time the lights correctly kinda stuff, and try not to use the brakes - you want to be in the lowest gear possible. you want to accelerate at about 80% to 85% of the engine's ability whenEVER you need to gain speed. otherwise you should be cruising, trying to be SLIGHTLY decelerating as you do so; and you sure dont want to EVER be slightly accelerating, thats burns MPG badly. if you want to go faster - hit that gas to 85% load and go faster - once you are there, maintain and/or preferably extremely slowly bleed off speed.
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2000 Honda Civic HX with mild aero mods


2006 Honda Insight
MIMA, FAS, no passenger sideview mirror, race style drivers mirror, front and rear underbody aero, temporary front air dam
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