Hypermiling Driving Manual

By using real-time mileage displays, hypermilers are able to pinpoint the driving techniques that deliver the best EPA ratings. Once identified, these techniques can be tweaked and refined.

The trend started out within a competitive atmosphere of drivers who put their Hypermiling talents to the test in hypermileage marathons. But as gas prices in the United States began an unprecedented climb in 2007, Hypermiling began to draw media attention.

Today, the average hypermiler is less likely to be a hybrid-driving competitor and more likely to be a working man or woman trying to squeak some extra miles out of a gas budget that¡¦s begun taking a bigger and bigger bite out of the typical household budget.

Even drivers of luxury SUV¡¦s, the vehicles favored by the more affluent families in America, are showing an increasing interest in Hypermiling, hoping that a few tricks performed behind the wheel will lead to less sticker shock in front of the gas pump.

Avid hypermilers claim they can increase their mileage by better than forty percent. Many say they¡¦ve taken automobiles with an average miles-per-gallon rating of 27mpg and easily gotten to 40 mpg.

How is this accomplished? Hypermilers rely on all the old standbys for saving gas, like driving the speed limit and making sure their tires are inflated to the manufactures recommendation.

But they also rely heavily on a new technique of accelerating their vehicle to the posted legal speed, then coasting as far as they can without further acceleration.

Truly passionate hypermilers, however, go even further, modifying the body of their car to make it more streamlined and thus fuel-efficient.

Some use fiberglass and sheet metal for their modifications and strive to make their vehicles look like custom cars. Others care little for good looks, using parts from abandoned cars, discarded highway signs and other odd assortments of scrap metal to alter the outline of their auto.

Although the term Hypermiling has a distinct American accent, the concept of maximizing fuel efficiency has worldwide appeal. In Europe, where gas prices have long been as much as twice as high as prices in the U.S., the term "eco-driving¨ is used to describe tactics and techniques that can be used by most drivers for more energy-efficient use of their vehicles.

No matter where on the planet they live and what they choose to call themselves, most drivers today will agree that the days of low-cost gas and cars that guzzle it with abandon are over. Dwindling gas supplies, rising prices and the threats of pollution and global warming are all indicators that Hypermiling
and eco-driving will become permanent parts of not just the world vocabulary, but also the world conscience.

With the cost of gas going up, up, up, a lot of drivers are beginning to feel like their gas pedal is connected directly to their wallets. Many auto owners see cutting down on driving as the only way they can save. But look around at the total cost of driving a car vehicle and you'll see there are actually several areas where you can save on expenses. The following 5 tips won't help you find cheaper gas, but they will cut the cost of owning and operating a car. Using any or all of them will go a long way toward keeping your wallet from running on empty.

1. Reduce Fuel Consumption...Begin by making sure your car is well tuned, the air filter is clean and your tires are inflated according to their manufacturer's recommendations. Such simply measures have been shown to reduce fuel consumption by a whopping 20%! When you're on the road, avoid quick starts and stops and drive slower. Your car burns less fuel at slow speed. Lastly, consolidate trips whenever possible. Plan shopping and errands to make the most of trip out of your driveway.

2. Shop Around For Auto Insurance...The internet is making it easier than ever to find the best price for auto insurance. If you've haven't shopped around for insurance in a while, now it's the time to get on the web and start making comparisons. Many sites will show you charts of what they would charge you right along side estimates from their competitors. If you've been with the same agency for a long time, be sure to let your agent know you're price shopping and are open to discounts or other suggestions for ways to lower your auto insurance expenses.

3. Reconsider How You Finance Your Vehicle...Once upon a time, the only way to drive a car was to own it. Today, leasing is a popular option. But whether you lease or own, you're likely tied into monthly payments. Take a good look at what you're paying and how, and consider ways to save, either by refinancing your car loan or restructuring your lease agreement. When you refinance, your old loan is paid off in full and replaced with a new loan. Since your new load will be for a lesser amount and -hopefully-a lower interest rate, you can wind up saving a considerable amount of money on interest.

4. Consider An Extended Warranty...Maintaining your vehicle is one of the biggest expenses of driving, and a well-maintained vehicle is actually cheaper to drive. Having an extended warranty is one way to make sure your vehicle is always in top condition. Consider that one major repair can easily cost more than a year of extended warranty and you begin to see the potential savings. You'll get the best price on an extended warranty if you purchase it before the original manufacturer's warranty expires. The typical manufacturer's warrant last for 3 years or 36,000 miles, so be sure to take action before you approach those limits.

5. Form A Carpool With Friends And Neighbors...it's likely you have family, friends and neighbors who visit many of the same shops you do every week. If two or three of you visit the same pharmacy every week, why not pair up and share the driving chores and expenses? You'll get to spend some extra time with people you like and you'll all save money.

The message screams at us from every sign at every corner gas station-gasoline prices are at an all-time high and there's no indication that relief is anywhere in site. In fact, many experts are saying it could get worse-much worse-and that's sending masses of motorists scrambling for ways to cut down on gas consumption.

But what to do, when old, outdated myths and outright scams are filling the airwaves and internet? Just today we saw a television news station advising drivers to fill up their gas tanks in the morning when gas is cooler and more condensed, as a way of getting more for your money.

This outdated advice may have been true once-we don't know for sure-but we do know that today gas stations store fuel below ground in 30,000-gallon tanks. That means gas stays at relatively the same temperature and does not expand and contract with daily cycles.

We've seen all sorts of other bad advice that's outdated, ill-advised or just outright fraud. Claims that devises which bleed air into the carburetor can dramatically increase gas mileage turn out not to be true when put to the test under closely monitored conditions.

Same for those fuel-line gadgets that supposedly help you save on gas by heating it before it enters the carburetor, or magnets that clamp on to the outside of the fuel line to magically change the molecular structure of gasoline, or metallic additives that claim they ionize gas for great savings. They've all been tested by the EPA, which found the only thing these devises reduced was the amount of cash in motorist's wallets.

Face it-with a long-term gas crises looming ahead, there are plenty of governmental bodies and even private industries that have good reason to want to help you save on gas. Here are ten tips they all agree will really help you do the job:

1. Keep your tires properly inflated according to the manufacturer's recommendations. Under inflated tires make the vehicle run less efficiently and waste gas.

2. Don't be an aggressive driver. Jackrabbit starts, tire screeching stops and speeding can lower your gas mileage by 5% on city streets and as much as 33% on highways.

3. Avoid excessive idling. Idling your engine for 15 minutes wastes one gallon of gas. Whenever possible, time your traveling to avoid lingering at traffic lights and reduce the amount of time you let your car warm up. In warm weather, driving is actually the most efficient way to warm up a combustion engine.

4. Slow down. The faster you go, the less efficiently your vehicle uses gas. 55 is the most efficient mph on highways. Go above 60 and your fuel efficiency decreases rapidly.

5. Remove excess weight. If you're used to driving around with your golf clubs and a chain saw in your trunk, you're paying a heavy price for it. Removing an extra 100 pounds from your car will increase your fuel efficiency by as much as 2%.

6. Don't use premium fuel unless your vehicle manufacturer requires it. And double or triple check your automakers advice by asking true auto experts-not just shade tree mechanics-for their best advice. We're not pointing fingers at anyone, but some automakers with ties to big petroleum producers have been known to recommend premium fuels in cases where regular would do just as well.

7. Have a mechanic check your oxygen sensors. A faulty oxygen sensor will mistakenly send more gas to the engine then is needed. Replacing a faulty oxygen sensor can save you as many as six fill-ups a year.

8. Make sure your air filter is clean. A dirty air filter dramatically reduces fuel efficiency, so don't just blindly follow some predetermined schedule for putting in a new one. Consider your actual driving conditions. Driving on dirt roads-or just plain dirty roads-or in heavily polluted cities will get your air filter filthy a lot faster than you might expect,

9. Check on your "forgotten filters." Most motorists know to check the air filter when they do a tune-up, but not many think to check on the fuel filter, the PCV valve and the breather filter. Replacing these "forgotten" filters once a year or every 12,000 miles can help improve your gas mileage by up to 15 percent.

10. Get a new gas cap-and make it one with a lock. Old gas caps can get out of shape. As gas fumes expand in your tank, they can escape past a faulty seal and waste precious fuel. Some studies suggest you can save as much as 17 gallons of gas a year just by replacing an old gas cap. And consider making that new gas cap a locking model because sadly, as gas prices go up, so do gas thefts.