Subaru Outback 32mpg

[bmwboarder]

Two cool things:
My wife and I have gotten our 2001 Subaru Outback to over 30mpg on most of our recent gas tanks, even hitting 32mpg on occasion, and still learning. All I have done some work on the front grill, put on wheel covers, and pumped up the tires. I believe most of it is due to our driving techniques which we have mostly gleaned from this site. Sweet! Thanks to this great community

Second, I got a chance to prove that driving knowledge is a huge part as I flew up to Alaska and drove back with a couple friends. Obviously, we had plenty of chances to change drivers, usually after a full tank of gas. I brought my scangauge to help us out. There were 3 of us, one friend got 21-24mpg, another got 25-27mpg, and I got 28-30mpg. I drove a little slower, but just trying to conserve up and over hills (instead of flooring it...) and general awareness definitely payed off. If only we had to pay for the amount of gas we individually used instead of splitting it three ways!

[AntiochOG]

Hey Brandon what's up? It's Phil. I'm surprised to see a screen name I recognize. I've recently started hypermiling my Miata and am looking forward to possibly doing some mods that will help me save fuel without hurting performance.

[brucey]

*wave*

I always enjoy stories showing that conserving gas isn't just about driving slow. I can usually match times with someone else driving the car, and best their mileage by 25%.

Plus, on long trips, it keeps my mind occupied instead of just wondering when I'll get there.

What sucks is you're probably beating my mpg at this point since I never drive currently :P

[bmwboarder]

Hey Phil!
You should bring your car up sometime so we could tinker together. I have some leftover sheets of plexiglass that we could maybe find a place to use on your car. I haven't tried smoothing out the bottom of the car yet, but I would love to try. Covering the wheels seems to make a big difference if you think you can put up with the look A ton can be learned about driving technique too. And I totally agree with Brucey, half the battle is learning to conserve momentum and energy already put into the car, which doesn't necessarily mean going any slower.

Brandon

[AntiochOG]

I'd love to do some tinkering. I'm hoping to get an MPGuino soon so I can really hone my techniques. I'd also like to to make at least a partial kamm back which I think could possibly look cool on my car. I think if I did a partial grill block with some black abs or cloroplast it might not be too noticeable. I think smooth wheels would actually look really good with the right offset and ride height. I've wanted to do an undertray for a long time, I'm just not sure how to attach it without creating a potential for rust.

Do you have any pictures of your car with the mods you've done?

[bmwboarder]

I'll send you an email Phil. Would be fun to add some new things to both our cars

[brucey]

Hey boarder, how is the removable piece on the wheels working out for you? Mine are still rocking fine, but have that gap in mine for the air valve. So essentially, it's a "1 spoke" wheel.

[bmwboarder]

The valve flaps are working out ok. One of them blew off in a big rain storm, and one other isn't looking too good, but its not too hard to fix them. I don't know if it helps too much but I like the look of the solid wheel since I'm not painting mine like yours.

[Zerfman34]

Boarder is that just velcro that you used to attach the plexiglass?

[mnmarcus]

I like the see through wheel covers! Maybe a silver tint or a silver carbon fiber semi transparent would look cool...