New Guy (23.9% above EPA, Saab 900S)

[Hoon]

At the moment i'm driving a 1995 Saab 900S auto convertible. It's bone stock, non-turbo 2.3L.

My car is under the wrench and my truck decided it didn't like a wheel bearing, so i had to resort to an extra car we've had in the family forever. I hate the Saab, i think the chassis is terrible, brakes suck and it's underpowered, but it was a last resort.

I decided to challenge myself to see what i could do for MPG, because that's about the only thing i can do for amusement in this car. First i verified that the odometer was accurate by comparing it to GPS, then filed the tank, reset the on-board MPG computer and the odometer, and gave it a shot. I do not use any techniques like pulse and glide, shutting the engine off at traffic lights, or drafting. All i did was keep the highway speeds lower (average 55ish) accelerate gently, avoid braking where i could, coax the auto trans to shift a bit sooner, etc.

My daily commute has lots of elevation changes, some stoplights etc. The car is rated at 20/28 under the old rating system, 18/26 under the current EPA rating.

Because of the conditions i drive in, the goal i set for myself was 26mpg. After 383.6 miles, the computer was reading 27.3MPG, but i assumed it was a bit optimistic.

I filled up, did the math, and realized the car was actually getting 28.4mpg

I'm thrilled with that result. That's a 49% savings compared to my daily driven pickup. It's time for the pickup to go (for other reasons) and i no longer need the truck bed, so my next grocery getter is probably going to be a Fiesta. I'm a racer, and i find this addicting to do with the grocery getter

I have a fuel log on this site but can't link it because this is my first post.

[Kodak]

Hey nice job. I'm sure if you had time or necessity to learn the Saab better you'd make even greater gains.

It just goes to show how far the most basic hypermiling tips can go [mild pun included].

Welcome to the board.

[Hoon]

Originally Posted by Kodak

Hey nice job. I'm sure if you had time or necessity to learn the Saab better you'd make even greater gains.

It just goes to show how far the most basic hypermiling tips can go [mild pun included].

Welcome to the board.

Thanks, and it really does show how much you can do with just the basics.

I might keep driving this thing for awhile. Going 450miles with $60 is a lot better than going 300.

[Hoon]

Just an update. Reset the MPG computer while getting on the highway and drove 23 miles on cruise control at 63mph. It was a one way trip but the start and finish have the same elevation.

To my dismay the car got 34.7MPG according to the on board computer. It seems to be more efficient near 60mph than in the mid 50s, but i haven't done enough testing to figure out the ideal cruising speed yet.

This is 24% above the EPA rated highway number if the computer is right. In my experience, the computer reads about 1 MPG lower than actual.