Tom- Keep in mind I intentionally tried to optimize every condition I could. This was basically an "experiment" and not your typical commute.
However, in ANY condtion ( except -15'F, I finally met my match then.... ) I always beat the EPA numbers. ( but then again, the EPA does not test at -15'F, so who knows what their numbers would be then!!! Ha! )
Denver's elevation helps, but I do WAY better than the 31 MPG Highway.
Going fast ( 70-75 ) I can squeeze out about 33 MPG.
Going moderate ( 65 ) I can do 36 MPG. The "city" rating.
Going slower ( 55 ) I can get 42 MPG, consistently... which is the speed the EPA uses to get the "highway" rating, by the way...
In city stop and go, 25-42
MPH, I can make 54 MPG under most traffic conditions and when weather is above freezing.
I've come to expect 54 MPG on a daily basis now, but 75? It will be difficult for me to hit that. To be fair, round trip ( only round trips count, so there are no gains from elevation changes... I could report 250 MPG if I only went downhill ) was 68.3 MPG. The segment that yielded 75.5 MPG was mostly flat, but could have been 50 feet lower than where I started, if you know what I mean... no easy way to tell, so EVERYONE should only report complete round-trips. ( which also balance out headwind / tailwind conditions if the RT is completed within a few hours... )
BTW... at the Ford "open house" in Dearborn last October for FEH owners, a Ford employee stated:
"On our city route that closely mimics the EPA test, our best engineer could get 50.3 MPG after about a year of practice. We don't expect our customers to be able to do that, but we hope all our customers will meet or beat the EPA published 36 MPG."
With 1000 pounds of cargo ( counting the 5 passengers, incl 2 Ford employee's and a newspaper reporter ) I got 54 MPG on my first try.
The rules were simple: You could drive as slow as you wanted, but you were dis-qualified if you were honked at or saw anyone waving fingers. No honks during my trip!
Take Care, and with a little effort, anyone can save a little gas.
With a lot of effort, one can save a lot of gas.
-John