Hello all! I just bought a new Honda Civic Hybrid this weekend, said goodbye to my dying Subaru legacy...

The display says that the car is averaging 40.7 mpg. I have heard that one can change their driving methods in order to increase fuel efficiency. Any suggestions?

Patrick

inflate the tires to 35 or 40lbs. Accelerate slowly. look for upcoming lights and coast when you won't make the light. Drive 55 or so on the highway.

Theres a bunch more stuff. One tutorial in the Learn section of the site is a pretty good read. There are lots of threads on improving your mileage to read.

My hydroponics experiment

You ever notice how hard it is to lip read cartoon characters?
"Crazy is what the sane call Delta Flyer"

Hi! and Welcome to GreenHybrid.

First, make use of the Web and read all the info about driving techniques here at GreenHybrid. There are quite a few Civic hypermilers here that are always willing to help.

Next, get used to your new car and the instrumentation. The instantaneous mpg readout will become very important to improving your mpg's. As the car breaks in and you are more familiar with it, your fuel economy will pick up.

Pump up the pressure in your tires as high as you feel OK about (ride comfort & safety).

Slow down your pace a little. Allow a little extra time to get to your destination.

These are just the first basic steps, as you read more, there are many more tips and advanced driving techniques to use.

And post your MPG in the database, it's a good progress indicator.

regards,

Congrats on the new car! Study a few of the MPG threads (they're easy to find) here and get a feel for your car. Try different methods of driving to see what works, but at the end of the day you can always see what is or what isn't by the instantaneous FE bar. Keep it high and have fun!

Also, try and drive w/o the AC when possible except on the highway. If I don't need any cooling (without the wife), I'll open all the windows about 5-6" for good cross venting on hywy and open all the way on secondary roads. I drive between 60-70 but if possible, I always take the secondary roads and drive around 40 even when posted speed is 30-35. Never had a problem here in MA. Find routes with less lights, even if it's a bit longer. Stop and go at lights is a MPG killer especially with hills to climb. I also watch the instant MPG bar and keep it between 40-06+ when cruising. Once you train yourself, you don't have to look often, you will develop a "feel". Haven't used reboot but I'll shut the key off if I get tricked into a false start by the person in front of me at a long light. This takes a while to master after driving my Nissan maxima for a few years. As all good hypermilers do, drive like you have no brakes. HCH with 40-45 psi in the tires will roll a long way up to a red light. I've been getting at least 50+ mpg per tank now with my CVT CA model all because of this website.

Thanks for the replies. I look forward to learning more about my new car. Negotiating the lights around here (Gainesville, FL) is hard on the instantaneous MPG meter, but I will try and employ some of the suggestions you guys have offered when I get out of the city. Ralph-dog: I used to drive a manual Honda Civic hatchback like it had no brakes, but that was easier with a stick to downshift. I'll have to play around since my new hybrid is an automatic.


Thanks again! I'll keep everyone posted on my progress. This morning the instantaneous mpg meter read 38.5.

you can still drive like you have no brakes with a cvt- you use the regenerative braking (foot off accelerator coasting) to slow you down. I get so that when I'm fully charged and have to use 'real' brakes- I'm in shock.
you can coast with no regen if you keep your foot really llight on the gas, while keeping the FCG (fuel consumption guage) at 120.
when I first started ( and still) I used tank B for tank mileage, and tank A for individual trips. if you're using tank A for short trips you get really quick feedback on what works good -mileage wise. I keep lifetime in my gas notebook (and here)
my first tank was 40, and my last few tanks have been low 50's.
good luck, and try to avoid AC!

KLC
2005 HCH CVT 'Verdigeek'

I am seriously looking at HCH.... I try & use the driving habits you all talk about with my current & past cars.... I used to get 40 mpg with my 94 Saturn Wagon! Even my 98 Chev Lumina, I get 28-30 during non-winter months.

I have crunched the numbers over & over... The purchase will work over a regular Civic only if I get at or over the EPA.... I drive 35-38K miles a year.

My other concern is longevity, esp the batteries. Doing the math, I hit near 200k miles in a little over 4 years..

I would appreciate any thoughts on a decision my wife said I spent my whole vacation researching!!! Thanks & I have enjoyed reading all of your posts.

200K may be pushing it on the batteries. But it will probably depend on how much you use them. Driving that much in a year means you probable spend a lot of time on the highway. If thats the case and you can drive 55 to 60 or so you should be able to exceede EPA.

If you have to pay $2K at 200K miles wouldn't that be worth it to keep the car running at peak? Not saying that you will have to I'm just giving a worst case. BTW, the civic will still run with a bad battery as far as I know. It will just lose a bit of horsepower and not be as responsive.

My hydroponics experiment

You ever notice how hard it is to lip read cartoon characters?
"Crazy is what the sane call Delta Flyer"

Hey Patrick!
We're practically neighbors.

Did you know that Stevo also lives there in Gainsville?

I'm over here near Braselton.
That's what? 1/2 hour away?
We'll have to get together sometime and compare notes

Efficient drivers do it better.
1003 miles a tank personal record. 74MPG calculated. HCH1 CVT