Pulling 47.5mpg combined doing 53mph...

[ChewChewTrain]

...freeway speeds in a 26 year old, Honda Civic.

Was shot at only 23 times, so I think people are beginning to get use to my driving style.

Doug
Oakland, California USA

[Frank Lee]

I've routinely cruised <50mph for years and haven't even gotten the bird (that I know of).

[ChewChewTrain]

Originally Posted by Frank Lee

I've routinely cruised <50mph for years and haven't even gotten the bird (that I know of).

So, Frank, what's your MPG penalty for faster speeds?

[Frank Lee]

I don't know!

[MeteorGray]

Good Job with that Honda, ChewChew!

My strategy for the 210-mile one-way-trips I routinely take on highways with speed limits ranging from 55mph to 75mph is as follows:

On 55mph sections, I usually travel at 55 as it's the least I'm willing to go when I've got 210 miles ahead of me.

On 65mph sections, I can sometimes find trucks going about 60, and I'll hang out with them as long as feasible. Otherwise, I'm at around 60 on my own.

On 70-75mph sections, I look for 65mph trucks and hang with them. Otherwise, it's about 65 on my own. I sometimes am found at 70 due to inattention or local conditions, but try to keep it below that.

I look for trucks to travel at slower speeds with as it tends to keep the road-rage factor down for other drivers and seems safer when other drivers are talking, texting, reading and otherwise not paying attention to varying highway speeds.

My 210-mile trips usually take me 3.5 hours, equating to an average speed of 60mph.

My lifetime Fuelly Average with my 2015 Mazda3 with a 2.0L engine and auto tranny is 42.4mpg. This is with the A/C typically running and includes about 10% city traffic mixed in. I don't "hypermile" except for easy starts/stops/coasting-to-lights when possible. I'm beating EPA highway estimates by 1 mpg, which is good enough for me.

[ChewChewTrain]

Originally Posted by MeteorGray

Good Job with that Honda, ChewChew!

My lifetime Fuelly Average with my 2015 Mazda3 with a 2.0L engine and auto tranny is 42.4mpg. This is with the A/C typically running and includes about 10% city traffic mixed in. I don't "hypermile" except for easy starts/stops/coasting-to-lights when possible. I'm beating EPA highway estimates by 1 mpg, which is good enough for me.

42.4mpg with the A/C running? DANG!

My other car is a Miata. Mazda is kinda like this sleeper car company that produces some exceptional engineering. In my book, a company that goes out on a limb and commercially produces the Wankel car engine earns some respect.