what age were you when YOU decided....

[jamesqf]

I think it's a combination of "always" and "never". I do tend to drive faster than most people, especially on roads that have curves. (Freeways & straights, who cares?) OTOH, I've always driven smoothly & efficiently - braking is waste! - so have always gotten better mpg than most.

[sid]

I've been trying to minimize fuel use since I learned to drive.

[justme1969]

I rented a chevy sprint in HI from Navy base when I got there. Then my Cadillac showed up and I went back to its 17mpg 500 CI engine. Gas was vry High in HI and then CA. I bought 3 eco friendly cars in a row after that, Mazda GLC, tercel, metro XFI, Then found that there can be power and mpg and bought a SVO mustang.

[California98Civic]

My gas guzzling first car taught me back in the late 1980s, when I was a new 17/18 year old driver. It was a 1974 Olds Delta 88 with the 350ci V8 that was common back then in GM cars. I had wanted a smaller fuel efficient car, but this was too good a deal. (low miles, great shape, very cheap price at under $1000). I don't recall how much improvement I made in MPG (it was small), but I also learned the difference in durability of brakes and tires. Probably my MPG would have been better if I had not caved and raced some of the BMWs and Saabs I occasionally encountered (and beat). I became really conscious of fuel economy when I bought this 1998 Civic in 2001. This car has spent a lot of its life under the freeway speeds in the slow lane doing 60mph.

[H-Man]

I'm from a family that doesn't have the money to waste. I started driving in the slow lane and I stay there unless I need to make up time.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

I also came from a middle-to-low income background, surrounded by small cars with a displacement limited to 61cu.in., which might sound good for efficiency but it's not so accurate due to the gearing and excessive weight in many Brazilian cars. But I've been always more focused on weight reduction and mechanical improvements (such as turbocharging, ECM reflashing/carburettor rejetting, among others) instead of hypermiling and aerodynamics.

Well, I'm a gearhead since I was born, started to think about mods for performance and safety when I was about 8 after looking at some WRC cars, and the interest about fuel-saving mods came in 2003 after the Iraq war started, and I was 13 back then.

[user removed]

I wrote a response but it took so long my connection timed out. Started driving in 1966 at 15 and 3 months I think. Pop had a 66 Chrysler Newport with a 383. He bought a 1950 Dodge with 30k miles for $400, which started a trend that continues today. First car was a 59 Austin Healey bug eye sprite. Averaged 32 MPG dodging land yachts. A couple of Valients that we bought cheap with plugged PCV systems, a little gas and a rod through the hose and the oil consumption dropped by 80%. Built my first total in 1973. I drove a few hot cars that got lousy mileage as well as a 65 Lincoln with red leather interior and black paint outside. Traded it for a 58 VW.

My 59 Corvette with a 350, muncie 4 speed and a 3.08 rear end averaged close to 22 MPG when gas was 32 cents a gallon.

The 84 CRX 1.5 averaged 45 MPG, bought it brand new in Houston Texas, without AC.

regards
Mech

[user removed]

The most fun I think I ever had with a car was watching a frame machine pull a crumpled Dodge Aspen rear end out almost to the point where it needed no filler to finish the repairs.

Turned 78 hours labor in a single day on that one, car was traded in and all the parts I saved were turned into labor for me.

That was just over $350 in one day when Social Security maxed out at around 13k a year.

regards
Mech