confessions from a reformed @$%$# driver

[user removed]

It's not a confession, consider it new frontier to explore and perfect. You will find that every part of your vehicle will last longer and you will save on replacements of parts you used to wear out at an astounding rate. Driving efficiently will make you a much better driver and might even save your life as well as your passengers, or avoid serious injuries.

In my lifetime of almost 62 years something like 2,000,000 people have died on US highways. Many more have suffered a lifetime as the result of serious injuries caused by poor driving habits. While vehicles have become much more safe, drivers have many more distractions that did not exist decades ago.

Welcome to our obsession. In my youth I was a wild man and drove some very powerful cars like a 67 383 Formula S Barracuda that got 10 MPG no matter how you drove it.
When the first energy crunch hit in 1973 I started driving more efficient cars and now people fall asleep riding in my car.

regards
Mech

[JRMichler]

Originally Posted by Old Mechanic

... and now people fall asleep riding in my car.

Ain't that the truth. Any trip longer than an hour and EVERY SINGLE passenger is sound asleep. I've been tempted to do a brake check just to wake them up.

[mmmodem]

The first car I bought for myself without any help from anyone and all on my own was a salvaged 1995 Acura Integra. It was a red sports car with 170 hp. As a 19 year-old, I absolutely loved it and added all kinds of stuff to make it go faster. It would be rare to see me doing anything below 80 in the left lane. I had the sunroof open and all the windows down. It didn't matter if it was hot or cold, I had the AC and heater blasting in my face. I loved the exhilaration of wind in my hair. I weaved around traffic like I just didn't care braking hard often so that I could squeeze myself into the next lane.

As a 21 year-old, I thought the car made an incredible racket even at a sane speed of 60 mph where the engine was screaming at 3000 rpm. My 25 mpg meant I had to fill up once a week and sometimes twice with premium which got annoying fast. My left leg got sore in rush hour traffic because the tightly spaced ratio manual meant a constant 1-2 and 2-1 shift where an economical manual I could leave it in 1st or 2nd and creep along (My friend's Mazda 3 for example, I could just leave in 1.) I secretly made plans to get rid of her when an elderly gentleman did me the favor. He rear-ended me ending the life of the Acura.

I now drive an economical plain jane Honda Civic. I prefer a manual but the automatic had higher highway EPA due to a taller overdrive I believe. My commute is 90% highway so it was the sensible choice. Kudos to you for making the change. I hope you join me in the right lane hypermiling.

[Gealii]

i feel it im selling my intrigue right now with 215hp and now driving a '99 ford zx2 5speed, jumped from 22mpg to 30ish still haven't filled the tank to see what it gets but i know its high from hypermiling