Extreme Hills = Great Mileage! DFCO rocks!

[Miller88]

Yesterday I had to go from Syracuse NY to Albany NY and then to Brattleboro VT, then back to Syracuse NY.

Car is a 2011 5 SP focus.

On the leg from Syracuse NY to Albany NY, I took US 20. A lot of hills. Steep hills. I had two passengers and their luggage for a week's trip. A lot of the hills would require me to drop out of 5th gear and go up in 4th. Very few required 3rd gear.

The 140 mile stretch got me about 40.9 MPG calculated. There was a lot of extra weight - passengers and luggage.

The stretch from Albany NY to VT was even MORE hilly. I also had to drive through the City of Troy both times and Benngton VT. The road is VERY hilly and curvy.

The hills were so steep that I'd have to be in 3rd gear with my foot pretty deep in order to even maintain forward momentum! A few of them just bogged the car completely in 5th and 4th gear. Some of them were so bad that foot to the floor in 4th gear it'd just slow right down and be bogging (at 2000RPM!)

However, with the long downhills I was able to DFCO about half of the trip. I did find myself using cruise control a lot and holding the DECEL button ... as that's the only way my car will hold itself back on hills.

The leg of the trip that I went from Troy to Brattleboro was 44MPG. I have no doubt that if I employed more hypermiling techniquies I would have been able to get 46 or higher. I was in a hurry in both directions.

I did get to see an 18 wheeler blow a turbo!

[euromodder]

Originally Posted by Miller88

However, with the long downhills I was able to DFCO about half of the trip. I did find myself using cruise control a lot and holding the DECEL button ... as that's the only way my car will hold itself back on hills.

Can't you shift it manually, then put it in a lower gear ?

[Miller88]

It's a manual transmission car. But, like most newer vehicles, it won't hold itself back at all. I can be going 65MPH on a highway and shove it into 3rd gear and it will keep going 65MPH.

I would have just let it go as fast as it wanted on the down hills then slowed back down on the up hill, would have been able to save a bit more gas.

[YukonCornelius]

Originally Posted by Miller88

I would have just let it go as fast as it wanted on the down hills then slowed back down on the up hill, would have been able to save a bit more gas.

I do this by myself but it would freak out passengers.

[Miller88]

Originally Posted by Lbar

I do this by myself but it would freak out passengers.

On the way out there, I was stuck between trucks. On the way back an officer was tailgating me the whole way.