40 mpg!!! (Metro 4-cyl 5-spd sedan)

[sarguy01]

Tonight I filled up the Metro's tank and was really excited to see 40 mpg!! This is the second tank that was over 40 and hopefully it will stay that way. To note, my Ecomodder sticker arrived today and I know it is going to add several mpg to the next tank!



To date, there actually aren't any ecomods done to the car. I am calling buying the car an ecomod (and great financial decision!). I was used to 1-2 year old vehicles, with loans of course, and switching them out every 1-2 years. It was a huge waste of money. My ecomod was getting a car that got great gas mileage, that I didn't need a loan to buy.

I'd like to thank my wife and kids, for allowing me to buy a $1,000, purple (faded blue to be technical...) Geo Metro with 200,000 miles. I have spent a lot of time in the garage on the weekends getting it to run correctly and that means time away from them. I'd also like to thank her for finally agreeing to ride around in it, without hiding! To note, my three year old loves it!

I'd also like to thank everyone on this forum. Even though I didn't do anything drastic in the eyes of some of the members on here, for me, it was pretty drastic getting the car. I still catch hell at work for driving it, parking next to a Land Rover, Toyota Camry, Suburban, BMW's, etc. It is really inspiring to see people driving around with pie pans, boat tails, air dams, grill blocks, etc on their cars and not caring what others think. The things people are doing on here are really motivating and is what made me go against the norm to buy an aging car that wasn't that cool new. But, to me, this car is probably the coolest one I have ever owned.

While 40 mpg isn't a big deal on this forum, it is a big deal amongst my peers at work and friends at home. To me, 40 mpg was a number that I never thought I'd see, driving around in one of my three Hemi Dodge Ram 4x4's, my Hemi Durango 4x4, my Mini Cooper, my SRT-4, my Versa (which got close), my Dodge Dakota 4x4, or my Nissan Sentra. In case you were wondering, those were my vehicles that I kept trading in on each other since 1999. The closest I ever got to paying one off was owing a little more than $10,000. So, it really was s big deal for me to get a very, very used Geo Metro. But, the reward now is a car, that I OWN, that will last a while longer without much work (if I don't rebuild it for fun), that gets awesome gas mileage.

So, in short, thanks again Ecomodder forum members, for showing me the light!!

[Miller88]

Think of the money you'll be saving on payments, gas and insurance!

[mcrews]

man.....can we have a group hug!!!!

[sarguy01]

Originally Posted by mcrews

man.....can we have a group hug!!!!

Haha! Bring it in, everyone!!

I am just excited that I got this car running correctly and it is yielding 40 mpg. Maybe now I can start adjusting the nut behind the wheel and go for more.

[Mira]

Congrats!! 40 mpg with no mods is a very solid foundation even by ecomodding standards!

Do you have any plans for the Metro mod-wise?

Cheers

[sarguy01]

Originally Posted by connorkeyser

Congrats!! 40 mpg with no mods is a very solid foundation even by ecomodding standards!

Do you have any plans for the Metro mod-wise?

Cheers

As of right now, I am only going to mod my driving style. I am waiting on word if I am moving in six months, so putting any more money into a car I might not keep isn't happening. Oh, but I am fixing the AC...I know, it will kill MPG's, but it will be needed with the wife and kids in the car and ultimately means miles saved on our other car.

If I were to do anything soon, it would be an MPGuino.

[Mira]

Go for the guino! As many have said, mpg gauges really do transform driving and how we think about it. Having real-time results and learning to work with them accounted for much more FE improvement than I previously would've thought.

[mcrews]

Originally Posted by sarguy01

Oh, but I am fixing the AC...I know, it will kill MPG's, but it will be needed with the wife and kids in the car and ultimately means miles saved on our other car.

If I were to do anything soon, it would be an MPGuino.

maybe it's just me.....but I have NEVER turned off the a/c. If I'm gonna drive slow, I'm not going to suffer.

I did install window visors so on cool morning or evening I would crack the window

granted....w/ 340hp, the a/c doesnt drag it down!

[Mira]

Originally Posted by mcrews

maybe it's just me.....but I have NEVER turned off the a/c. If I'm gonna drive slow, I'm not going to suffer.

I did install window visors so on cool morning or evening I would crack the window

granted....w/ 340hp, the a/c doesnt drag it down!

If you're driving in slow areas, the windows may do you better all around. The heat won't usually bother me, but the open feeling is well worth it, given I'm keeping it at 40 or below. But I see your point there, I'd imagine your engine would be a bunch less dragged down compared to mine.

I had been thinking of buying some of those visors to keep cooler on highway drives, but I decided cracking the driver's side windows only a fraction of the time would be better than slightly more drag all the time. If anything, I might improvise something that is flush (or sticks out minimally and smoothly) with the edge of the roof of the car, since the windows are indented slightly. Bonus points to make it easily removable.

The only reason I have against removing my A/C is those classic New Orleans pop-out-of nowhere rainstorms, especially now in the spring. We call them lil' hurricanes. At times the dashboard vents on defrost mode alone can't keep up with the windshield fog and the A/C is a lifesaver. Otherwise, I haven't used it since I've driven the car... I like the heat

If I could find another way to counter that fog, that A/C is as good as gone.

[sarguy01]

The AC is going to be used when I have the wife and kids in the car or if it is blistering hot while driving alone on the highway. When sitting in stop and go traffic, its windows all the way.

I drove on the interstate today. I was doing between 55-65, keeping up with traffic. I did about 40 highway miles out of the 97 miles on the tank. I know shorter distances are not as accurate, but I wanted to fill it and check the mileage. Today's tank was just over 47 MPG!!! Again, this is regular old driving with zero mods. I love this Metro!