Me again

I thought I'd give some updated information. First of all the mileage is fantastic! So far I'm doing even better on the second tank. I really like the car overall. I prefer the climate control on the Honda to the Vette's but neither is as good as the ole Starion's was. The Starion was brilliant. Simple easy to use big buttons with a display that always showed the current setting even on automatic mode. Many thing about the Starion have yet to be matched in any later car. I totally miss the stereo controls on the steering wheel. Anyway enough about how spoiled I am by cars long past.

While the Honda's display is very nice and I love the overall look of the dash many features are lacking compared to the Vette. The one that continues to frustrate me the most is the little skinny bar graph with little tiny writing and 4 or 5 mpg steps. The way the car drives compounds the problem with the display. When you push down on the gas sometimes nothing happens for quite a bit of pedel travel and then all of a sudden there is a big jump and a boost of power right over the middle ground you were trying to hit. I have a lot of trouble hitting mpg figures in the from 40 to about 55 mpg. Seems like it wants to jump from 55 to 35. Also if I ever do get the car in the middle it shakes a bit like you are bogging the engine but add some gas and the shaking goes away? None of my little nitpicks are enough to keep me from loving the car. It is a wonderful car overall.

Hi Lakedude:

___Given your HCH is good for 51 on the highway per Honda’s EPA estimate, it has simply got to be capable of 75 + mpg in the best of temperatures. I know our recent temps and those heading our way over the next few months are going to kill both of us but the Ranger has been receiving 30% better then the EPA highway estimates and this is in these lousy 30 - 50 degree F temps. She only had 3,000 miles when I started her drive to hypermiler status just 3 weeks ago. The Insight is good for 50% better then the EPA highway estimates in the summer so your HCH just has to be higher then what has been seen so far. I don’t know what else to add other then once you get a few more miles on her, she is going to open up very well indeed.

___I am off for a week prior to the Thanksgiving holiday and I might consider taking a trip down Bloomington way to meet up with you if you are up for it. I have never driven an HCH and it is abut time you get to drive an Insight To bad for the both of us that is going to be below the freezing mark here in Illinois starting tomorrow night but maybe we can sneak in one day with a high in the low 50’s?

___Good Luck and let me know.

___Wayne R. Gerdes
___Hunt Club Farms Landscaping Ltd.
___Waynegerdes@earthlink.net

Ahh sorry about the misscomunication. I was only in Bloomington a little while and now I'm back home at a location that I don't broadcast on the internet. It is far away from Joliet, which is why I was hoping to run into you while I was up that way. It is soo cool that I spied you on the highway, even if you didn't see me back.

Lakedude,

How can you compare a Honda to a 'Vette? Of course the the big Chevy is better. I've often dreamed of owning one. Someday I will. I have other toys, like a twin-turbo ski boat, but I digress...

Anyway, the HCH is a great econobox, and I am partial to the manual transmission. But comparing this good, economical car to a supercar is very much apples and oranges.

Lifespeed

2003 Civic Hybrid 5 speed

I am new to this board. I traded in my 1998 Infiniti I30 for my new 2005 HCH CVT. On my first tank of gas I only got about 36 mpg. I am currently only getting 38 mpg. I don't know if this is normal or if maybe I just need to learn how to drive all over again. Any advice would be helpful.

See this post for some good tips:

http://greenhybrid.com/discuss/index.php?s...c=1224&hl=coast

Your MPG will get better as you learn the tricks. Hang in there !! Driving for Max MPG *does* require a change from "normal driving" in that you cannot just drive it and forget about it if you want to achieve high numbers. You have to change your ways a little if you drive like most people, zooming from red light to red light. That style will not cut it if you want high MPG numbers.

Here are some things I have learned in my first 100 days that have helped my mileage. I have taken the Trip B lifetime MPG up from 34.4 to 38.2 in about 100 days, from 4823 miles on the car up to 8106 miles. I live in Phoenix and have a short city-based commute of only 10 miles each way, with about 8 stop lights and two stops in the morning and about 10 stop lights in the afternoon.

1. Coast, Coast, Coast. I have a manual tranny, so it is Oh So very easy for me to just pop the tranny into neutral when I have some speed built up and see that I have an open space in front of me an no one behind me to slow down. I usually coast in neutral when I need to keep my speed up because the car rolls much better out of gear. If I need to boost the battery or if I know I am going to be coasting only for a block or so, I leave it in gear to get the charge boost, because the charge increases when you coast in gear. I have even taken to TURNING THE CAR COMPLETELY OFF in rare instances when I know I can coast in a straight line for a longer period of time. Always put the key back in the start position so you can keep control of the steering and brakes !!

2. If you can drive as slow as 30 mph, do so and put on the cruise. In my manual tranny, I put it in fourth gear at 30 mph instead of 5th and it gets better mileage on the real-time meter. If I get up to 36 mph, I put it in 5th gear. Both 30 mph in 4th and 36-42 mph in 5th are the best for high MPG readings on the real-time meter. Yesterday in only a span of less than two miles at 30 mph I saw the real-time meter stay mostly 65-85 mpg on a flat road. I am always careful to avoid slowing anyone down who is zooming up behind me. I usually have three lanes to choose from so thus far I have avoided any Road Rage incidents !!

3. At your first oil change (I would do it around 5000) change to synthetic oil if you can. It allows for less friction in the engine and you can get a 1-3 mpg boost from the added efficiency of the reduced friction. In a 1997 Suburban, I went from 17 mpg to 19 mpg just from the oil change alone.

4. Drive like there is an egg between your foot and the gas pedal and never accellerate harshly unless it is required for safety purposes.

5. Learn how to use Auto-Stop and milk it for every stop it's got !! It's easier in the manual tranny, because I can stop behind someone and take it out of gear and if I have to creep up a car length or so, the Auto Stop will kick in again after I creep up when I put it back in neutral. I don't know how the CVT handles that sort of thing, but other users on this board can tell you how. If all else fails and Auto Stop fails to engage if you have to creep up, TURN OFF THE IGNITION while you wait for the light to finish. These cars do not have starters, they are started by the electric battery system, so it's OK to start it a few extra times a month in the effort to save fuel and reduce idling emissions, right? Right.

6. Avoid A/C usage when you can, as it KILLS the MPG. My latest tank I amd at 650 miles and 55.6 MPG and I have managed to avoid the A/C the whole time on this tank.

7. Keep your windows rolled UP when you can to avoid extra wind drag.

8. Try at all costs to avoid getting into a situation where you must drive faster than 60-65 MPH. These speeds will MURDER your MPG.

9. To improve mileage, you may want to run your tires at 40 PSI or higher when cold. This is a philosophy which is hotly debated around the web, so do your research before this tweak - there are pluses and minuses for this modification.

Hope this might help you. My MPG has gone steadily up, but I think I have just about peaked on my driving techniques. I would be shocked if I can ever get more than about 55 for a tankful with my commute. I'm coming up on 5 months ownership now and my average is almost up to 47 MPG now. Good luck and keep us posted !!

Lars-ss,

It is good to see this list all in one place. I have one question. Everyone says to change to synthetic oil at the first oil change. In my limited experience and discussions with auto parts stores, the only way the the 0W-20 oil for the hybrid comes is in a synthetic. My Honda dealer says that they put in 0W-20, so I assume that they will put in a synthetic. Am I missing something?

Billy

Yes, I think we both may be missing something. :blink:

The 0W-20 the dealer will put into your HCH is "NOT" a full synthetic oil. But I cannot yet find anything that tells me why it is different and expensive.

Still looking....

When I was talking to my dealer about oil I quizzed the parts department. They told me that they put in Honda oil (I guessed that), but I asked them who made it for them. The response was Mobil. I guess I will have to get one of their bottles to read about it. I noticed that the oil at the Honda dealer was $4, while a Pep Boys ad listed a sale price of Mobil 0W-20 for $3.99. I will be real interested when you find out something.

Billy

Found a post on some auto site about the label for the Honda 0W-20 saying on it "formulated for Honda by ExxonMobil" but so far I cannot locate definitive specs for the 0W-20 oil.......

(frustrated)