Coasting Accord - GreenHybrid

psyshack · #1 (**permalink**) 08-29-2005, 06:10 PM

05 Accord Sedan, I4, 5AT

I coasted the car today about 5 miles or so in the 1st day of the wifes and mine car share, car pool go to Tulsa together vinture. It coasted real good compared to the Ranger. Was a pleasure to coast. Our days worth of driving was about 115 miles. 90 miles hwy, 25 city streets. No A/C am, A/C used pm. Tuesday and Wensday drive will be about 20 miles longer. And fridays will be about 80 miles. Wife gets friday and monday off.

We are shooting to shatter epa. Its hard!!! The Accord loves 80 miles per hour plus speeds and is at home between 90 and 100 miles per hour. But $2.75 a gal gas ends the speed days.

Anyway coasting is going to be a major tool used in the epa assult. I wont draft the car. I dont want it rock beat to death. And speed limits will be observed

. Along with load driving.

My concern is coasting a automatic. Any problems with long term coasting on this automatic.

Thanks psy

PS ,, I hear Honda has droped the HX from its line. And with hybrid only being CVT and no HX there not wanting my money very bad. If we do good in the Accord auto than that just leaves EX civic and Accord sedan lx-se for us to look at. Have 426 hemi crank I wish to use on some of hondas collage grads that think this up. Drop the HX and only CVT. Will now go look at Honda logo and cuss

AZCivic · #2 (**permalink**) 08-29-2005, 06:20 PM

Well we found out today from leaked information that they have solidified the sedan lineup with only a single engine choice for all trim levels except the hybrid and natural gas version. The VP (formerly DX), LX, and EX have the same engine. Although it would sadden me, it would not surprise me at all to hear that the coupe sees the same VP, LX, EX lineup with of course the Si at the top. That way both the sedan and coupe have 3 trim levels with the same engine and one halo model (sporty for the coupe, techie/economical for the sedan).

What better time this would have been to bring out a new HX however. Sure, no one has a crystal ball to know what fuel prices will be years ahead of time, but I think they could have scored a home run with an HX trim, especially if it were available in both the coupe and sedan.

xcel · #3 (**permalink**) 08-29-2005, 07:38 PM

Hi Psyshack:

___A friend of mine sent in his AH’s tranny oil to be sampled after 15K miles and should have the results in a week or three. I will let you know when those sample results have arrived as it has been FAS’ed more then once

___21K miles and counting … The non-hybrid Accord’s AT rev matches in some respects automatically. Watch the tach and you will see her hanging in the 1,250 - 1,300 RPM range while in a Neutral - ICE on coast until 10 miles per hour or less. She will back off automatically afterwards. She is also equipped with an Electronic shift transmission and you can see the tranny’s computer working its magic through the tach. You do not really control the shift as the computer takes your recommendation as gospel and gets you there in the shortest period possible. If you take her all the way to a stop while in an ICE run state - neutral coast, you haven’t any issues at all given that is the way you engage all Auto’s during a start up. Her tranny also has a built in neutral even while in gear and I see this about 50% of the time after re-engagement below 30 - 35 miles per hour with the electronics not allowing a full re-engagement until you apply accelerator after a smooth Neutral to Drive (not D3) transition. Smooth re-engagement afterwards as well … Remember, always, always, always let her idle settle before bringing the tranny back online. All in all, the Honda/Acura AT transmissions are about the best setup AT’s for smooth and bumpless shifts while manually shifting that I have driven. The MDX’s is even smoother then the Accord’s! Ford’s Auto’s are about the worst. Reliability wise in regards to those second and third gears, the later Accord MY’s and latest generation is a bit better then the previous MY’s and generation but they are still not as bullet proof as the Accord’s available to us 10 + years ago. If I were driving the J30 (V6), I would have to alter my own technique(s)/habits extensively given all those second and third gear issues with the larger motor and our tranny’s of recent notoriety

___Another item I just thought of … You can tell your shift points and use them where needed. OD/5th comes in at around 42 miles per hour after dropping back on the Go pedal a tad. You want to get to that OD gear relatively quickly. Not WOT mind you but maybe a 20 to 25 second acceleration period would be as far as I would wait to get her up to that speed. Since you do not have the NAVI’s TC, you cannot really tell where the 20 - 25 mpg acceleration rate per the instantaneous is and my 20 to 25 second number is a guesstimate at best. When there is no traffic behind, I like to bring her up even slower (in the 30 mpg range) per the instantaneous. I will count out the seconds as I see them tomorrow which might help you as well?

___As for the 80 and 90 + miles per hour stuff, I think that might be a touch over the maximum limits anywhere on the continent

___All in all, I hope the above helped?

___Good Luck

___Wayne R. Gerdes
___Waynegerdes@earthlink.net

psyshack · #4 (**permalink**) 08-29-2005, 09:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xcel

Hi Psyshack:

___A friend of mine sent in his AH’s tranny oil to be sampled after 15K miles and should have the results in a week or three. I will let you know when those sample results have arrived as it has been FAS’ed more then once

I did a 3qt. dump and fill when I did the 1st oil change. Will do one every other oil change from here on out. Not going to be any of this 30k or 60k tranny service. To easy to be proactive on this.

___21K miles and counting … The non-hybrid Accord’s AT rev matches in some respects automatically. Watch the tach and you will see her hanging in the 1,250 - 1,300 RPM range while in a Neutral - ICE on coast until 10 miles per hour or less.

Ours coasts like the wind. Say I crest a hill at 65mph. tachs at 2100 or so and I have a good .50 to .75 mile coast and will only loose 7 to 10 miles per hour,, if that. I let up ever so slightly and pop it into N. Tach drops right down to idle of 750. Coast is done and I slip it back into drive, smooth as silk, Tach and engine meet and its like you where never coasting.

She will back off automatically afterwards. She is also equipped with an Electronic shift transmission and you can see the tranny’s computer working its magic through the tach. You do not really control the shift as the computer takes your recommendation as gospel and gets you there in the shortest period possible. If you take her all the way to a stop while in an ICE run state - neutral coast, you haven’t any issues at all given that is the way you engage all Auto’s during a start up. Her tranny also has a built in neutral even while in gear and I see this about 50% of the time after re-engagement below 30 - 35 miles per hour with the electronics not allowing a full re-engagement until you apply accelerator after a smooth Neutral to Drive (not D3) transition. Smooth re-engagement afterwards as well … Remember, always, always, always let her idle settle before bringing the tranny back online. All in all, the Honda/Acura AT transmissions are about the best setup AT’s for smooth and bumpless shifts while manually shifting that I have driven.

Being gental on the car with normal starts and letting find its way through the gears has been pleasant if not to smooth. I hate how it slurps into gears like a mushy GM tranny. Americans want smooth as opposed to a automatic manual,,, which is really what hondamatics are. Wonder trannys. But away to americanized. And its a shame. As far as taking command and running the gears ones self that has been a hoot. It seems to get abit firmer and will let one run it right up to rev. limiter. playing with the tranny right at 6k rpm to 6.4k rpm yeilds a sprited drive and FE that isnt the best. lmao. Down shifts are intresting also. Ive found I can blip the throttle and get it do down shift when it would rather not be doing so. Down shift point may not be right where I want it in a given curve. but Ive learned to use what it will give me and what I can force as setup,, so to speak. I will have to play with it in hypermiling to see if I can really do much if any better than the computer in drive off up shifts.

The MDX’s is even smoother then the Accord’s! Ford’s Auto’s are about the worst. Reliability wise in regards to those second and third gears, the later Accord MY’s and latest generation is a bit better then the previous MY’s and generation but they are still not as bullet proof as the Accord’s available to us 10 + years ago. If I were driving the J30 (V6), I would have to alter my own technique(s)/habits extensively given all those second and third gear issues with the larger motor and our tranny’s of recent notoriety

Thank God the tranny in this car was built in Japan. theres hope for it yet

___Another item I just thought of … You can tell your shift points and use them where needed. OD/5th comes in at around 42 miles per hour after dropping back on the Go pedal a tad. You want to get to that OD gear relatively quickly. Not WOT mind you but maybe a 20 to 25 second acceleration period would be as far as I would wait to get her up to that speed. Since you do not have the NAVI’s TC, you cannot really tell where the 20 - 25 mpg acceleration rate per the instantaneous is and my 20 to 25 second number is a guesstimate at best. When there is no traffic behind, I like to bring her up even slower (in the 30 mpg range) per the instantaneous. I will count out the seconds as I see them tomorrow which might help you as well?

Ive noticed the OD easing in somewhere in the low 40's and it does take a slight lift to get it at the right moment.

___As for the 80 and 90 + miles per hour stuff, I think that might be a touch over the maximum limits anywhere on the continent

It is,, this is eastern Oklahoma and western Arkansas. God made two lanes and roads to carv and I will get after them. The Accord lends itself to abuse so well its hard to not let it breath and blur landscape. But als its not going to happen much for awhile now. It has to do boaring comuting duty untill we buy a new daily Tulsa drive car. And Hondas not wanting my money to bad by droping the HX and not doing a 5mt in the hybrid as me quite _issed off. So if they want to sell me a CVT hybrid or a EX 5mt. Im not going to be a easy sell. I will be a down right hard and snoty one. I wouldnt buy a Toyota around here if it was 50% off. The dealers suck and there way over priced to start with. So its get the most from the Accord and not fall asleep doing it. Or get a 06 Accord sedan LX-se and work it on the landscape bluring and hyper the auto.

___All in all, I hope the above helped?

You Have!

___Good Luck

___Wayne R. Gerdes
___Waynegerdes@earthlink.net

Thanks, psy