[brucepick]

I'm with a couple recent posters here, saying that rotten mpg is pretty much par for the course for a short drive in cold weather. I drive about 2-3 mi. to meet my car pool buddy and in cold weather I get about the same for that short segment.

ANYWAY, what really has helped is flat-out use of every trick in my arsenal. I don't always do it, but engine-off coast really helps on a cold engine. I've proven to myself that on uphills, pulse-&-glide with engine in neutral actually can be better than a regular climb. I've only done it with a warm engine but I wouldn't be surprised if it helps on a cold one too. Of course you need a stick shift for either of these.

I'm not sure where you are on a grill block but if you didn't set one up yet, do it. Just make sure you pay attention to it when things warm up again, you probably need to remove it in warmer weather. That constant blast of cold air doesn't help you any. I used foam pipe insulation (dark gray) jammed into the rad grill slots. Some of them needed hot glue to hold in place, some didn't.

And be sure your tires are pumped. I didn't check mine for about a month and when I finally checked them they needed 5-6 lb. That helped.

Oh yeah - as for the grill block when it gets warmer - I plan on running a lead from my electric fan to a small indicator bulb on the dash. That way I'll know when the fan kicks in. That will tell me if i need to remove the grill block. Be sure to watch the engine temp too, just in case the fan electronics don't work as they should (which happened to us once).