First step...drive smarter.
 

woohoo!
31.39 mpg driving only in the city!

This tank was the begining of my learning to hypermile. Lighter foot, EOC, over inflated tires...etc...

Good job. Keep at it and I bet you will see even higher numbers.

:thumbup: Keep up the guten worken.

Hey cool! I'm in a similar place...I just filled up on my first post-ecomodder tank and got about 29.5mpg for 100% city driving...no EOC but lots of neutral coasting, paying more attention to how stale lights are, and less braking/harder turns. While at the gas station I inflated my tires up to about 36psi (recommended 32, max sidewall 40--I decided to start halfway), so hopefully that will help some. I'll keep working on the "nut behind the wheel." Still pondering the SGII or MPGuino. So even though 29.5 is only about 1% better than EPA's combined rating, it is about 17% better than the EPA city rating (which was what I got before in city driving)...improvement!

Got up to 33.94 MPG this tank. Thats still with the A/C on a couple days a week.
(I have to run it I'm a courier and I can't be sweaty when I go into make a delivery)
Goal is 40mpg once my commute changes to mostly highway.

Congratz to all of you that are making progress on better mileage. Now the title of this threads makes me ask the following question.

Why do so many people refuse to drive smarter? I talk to several people every day who ask me about my vehcile and are astonished at the mileage I am getting, but when I tell them that 90 percent of the gains came from slowing down they look at me like I'm holding their newborn hostage.

I also see alot of that here with new members. I see many posting from day one on how they can modify their cars via dams, wheel skirts, mirror deletes, etc, but fail to give slowing down the best chance before modding their cars.

I mean if we are so tight on cash, then why not slow down, it is the easiest mod that delivers the most gains. Sorry to blast out on this topic like this, but nothing burns me more than the apethetic magic pill solution to everything.

Otherwise, for those of you that are truly changing the way you drive to gain the benefits of better FE, kudos to you. It will make you a safer and better driver in the long run.

The reason is sacrifice. You have to sacrificie speed and that makes you late (cause you can't leave 1-2 minutes earlier). For some reason they think they need to go that fast and that it gets them there lightyears ahead of you.

My 37ish ile commute takes 15 minutes longer driving sensible.

Speed drop on the highway on accounts for 7 of the 15 minutes,,,, Slow accelaration is a BIG part of taking longer.

Wow, thats seems really high for a 37 mile commute. I also have a 37 mile commute, and driving sensible only adds about 5 or so minutes to the trip.

BTW, you don't have to accelerate slowly to get good mileage. In fact, you get better mileage if you accelerate as you would if you were using pulse and glide. Just be careful not to over-accelerate to the point where you need to brake.

The comments you guys made seem to prove my point. It's mainly a perception thing. My commute is 55 miles each way and I have added 20 minutes to my commute my commute now takes an exact hour from the time I turn my car on. My inner city driving becomes faster because I can better time the lights and get more greens than reds. And if I feel like I have to speed up my commute, I have found that P&G between 55 and 65 gets me home faster without sacrificing MPG's.

We have been conditioned to speed and agressive driving since day one. Bad habits die hard I guess.

Once I got used to getting out of the left lane (usually into the rightmost or next-to-rightmost lane), it isn't so bad. It isn't as if people are pointing and laughing--any more than I was when I was in the left lane.

What I've seen lately is that EVERYBODY has slowed down significantly. The 91 freeway, where traffic normally moved 75+ in all three lanes, has slowed to 65 in the right 1-2 lanes, and 70 tops in the left lane. There are still a few crazies that have to wind back and forth to keep going 90 (in trucks typically--what's with that?), but for the most part, when I'm going 62-65, I'm going about the same speed as everyone else, whereas a year ago I'd be lapped by everyone else.

I think its funny when some one starts at the top of a hill next to me at a light.
the light turns green and they floor it...
I start my car...put it in drive...give it enough gas to crest the hill...put in neutral...and shut the car off.
I see them catch and wait for a red part way down the hill, then at the bottom of the hill...way ahead of me.
then I pull up next to them at the last light with my engine still off, as the light turns green.

It may take longer but i seems like a more relaxed way to drive because your in motion longer.

It can be argued that you are actually wasting time if you are sitting still at a light even if your car is off ... otherwise that time spent EOCing is still building MPG's instead of doing absolutely nothing.

this tank was about 30mpg...because I had a couple days were I had to move quickly and used up a bit more fuel than I would of liked to.

My sentiments from Day 1. This nut behind the wheel was turned 180 degrees to the tune of almost 50% improvement - I've done nothing to the car. And to those out there who think the world is slowing down, I believe the word is Scotoma. You never knew there were people going this slow before because you were blasting by at 80 mph (like me). Now you see that not everyone out there is blazing the trail. :turtle:

still shy on psi (oh! A poet!)LOL
 

Your tires will take higher...will your seat ( harsher ride)? ScanGauge is great...I'm not too happy with the maze of button "pages"...one tends to get lost in the confusion ( if one could only "back up"!). Pricey, but lots of info, here.
While at the gas station (unless you live close by) your tires were warmer than "cold". You didn't put as much air in as you think....The whole tire will cool down overnight. Check 'em again in the cool AM, and see what's really in there.

34mpg again...seems to be my plateau average.
This last tank I did no EOC and ran with the a/c on almost all the time...and still averaged 34mpg.
hmmm....

Starting some aero mods soon.