|
Another way to look at it is the difference between efficiently generating energy, and efficiently covering distance.
At low vacuum readings (close to WOT) the pumping losses are low, and you're generating a whole lot of energy--you're either going up a steep hill, or you're accelerating the car to a higher speed. You're burning a bunch of fuel to do it, but you're producing more power for each bit of fuel you burn.
At high vacuum readings (close to idle) the pumping losses are high, but you're not generating much energy--you're either decelerating or idling. You're not producing much power, so you're not burning much fuel, but on a per-power basis you're burning more than in the low-vacuum case.
As has been mentioned, pulse and glide lets you mix and match these so you can take advantage of both.
-soD
|