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1300 miles at 55 mph is about a 24 hour drive...is this the plan? If so, that's quite a haul bro...stay safe.
If you can choose the time of day you are driving I always try to leave after 9pm so the roads are relatively empty. Maybe you don't have flexibility in your leave time though since it's such a long trip and you may be driving during all 24 hours of the day anyway.
The obvious mods would be:
*Heavy, heavy pulse and glide (don't be afraid on the highway to pulse it up to 5-10 mph past speed limit (watch out for the fuzz) and coast it down to 5-10mph below speed limit...I saw a nice 5 mpg gain doing this in September...especially on long downhills in neutral for me...EOC might produce even better results). On the long coasts the mpg loss you see on the guino getting it up to speed will be made up with benefits on the longer coasts.
*Tuck the Metro "safely" behind a big rig and ride his tailwind.
*If possible limit the weight you are hauling in the car (if you're going by yourself and don't have to lug the kids or wife with you...delete the seats you don't need).
* I didn't delete my passenger mirror on my long trip but I did fold it in to reduce drag (I have big 4runner block mirrors...at the least I would fold it in if you can't remove it).
* Pre-plan your route to avoid cities or areas where highways might enter cities rather than circumvent them. Some smaller highways take you a few miles out of the way but in terms of FE are better because you can continue going "sweet spot" speed with no traffic vs. touching the breaks on highways that are busier.
* Can you make some wheel discs or wheel skirts before your trip? How about a grill block (guessing the weather will be colder and engine temp will not be a major factor...you know your car and trip better than me).
Good luck!
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