Weird MPG issue.
 

So since I got my 1998 Metro, the fuel economy has been a major issue. I save more money driving this car and it has already paid for itself over and over again with MPG saved :thumbup:

I started using a lot of the tips on here for fuel savings, but not some of the extreme stuff posted here. I have noticed gradual increases in my MPG for the good since then. I am sure I will get much better numbers when I do some more stuff. I cannot complain getting well over 50 MPG now!

Here is the weird part. I had to make an emergency trip to my parents house about 190 miles away. I topped off the tank and drove my little Metro like never before and maintained about 70 MPH on the Interstate and put all my fuel saving tricks learned here on hold. I actually "beat" the little car and drove it hard all the way there and back and my MPG increased :eek:

Is this just the nature of this car or did it really need to get whooped on since I been driving like an old lady since I rebuilt the head? It just does not make any sense to me right now. I am getting ready to re-fuel and will log the next tank of gas to see if the numbers go back down.

Any ideas on this? This was actually the very first time I ever driven this car over 60 MPH since I got it.

I would say you need more data to substantiate your results. Maybe you had a good tailwind the entire trip?

Drafting? Tailwind?

Just out of curiosity, what's the rpm in a Metro @ 70 mph?

I don't want to burst your bubble, but I don't think the car will do better @ 70. Have you actually refueled yet, or is this a gas gauge estimate?

You've seen this, right?

http://www.metrompg.com/posts/speed-vs-mpg.htm

http://www.metrompg.com/posts/photos...ed-chart-z.gif

There was really no wind on the way there, but it was on the way back west there actually was a good tailwind. I know that this can affect MPG for the better, but I was thinking the speed on the way there would balance out with the tailwind on the way back.

The only thing done to my car before the trip was an alignment I performed myself (at work) since I was getting some feather wear on the front tires and I replaced the air filter with a good Baldwin filter.

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A long time ago I got a great tank driving my supra 90+, who knows,, fill errors? Something loosened up? Cleaned something out? Maybe the alignment was very bad? Alien death rays?