So it seems Xcel agrees with me. It is the driver, not the break in, correct?

After over a month in storage on a lift, Knight Rider came down out from the top of the garage today. It was 29 degrees and I was in a hurry coming to work cause I had to make an extra stop to pick up a perscription. The display showed 30.something and work is up hill and into the prevaling wind. The display is something like 5% off so the actual mileage would be something like 28.5 mpg. I did use hypermile tricks once the car was up to speed but put the hammer down doing second to sixth shifts on takeoffs. Driving this way is fun! You get to feel that cool push in the back from massive acceleration but you also get good mileage and no tickets from speeding.

Note: for max hypermile I try to drive around 40, when I'm not trying I go the limit or on some downhills 10 over. There was a day when I was younger that 10 over would have been my minimum.

Hi Lakedude:

___Although a bit OT and a lousy pic (my 12 year old snapped it from the back seat), I had a nice 31.2 mpg run in 21 degree temps tonight w/ an ~ 15 - 20 miles per hour tail wind in the Acura MDX tonight. We were on our way to the United Center in Chicago to see the Harlem Globetrotters and yes, I was a little late

___When the pic was taken; we were ~ 41 miles out just and about to drop off of I94. I still had to run through ~ 5 miles of west Chicago’s finest in our wonderful lake effect snow we have enjoyed over the last 24 hours. I arrived at the United Center with 29.8 mpg displayed on the FCD. On the way back, I reset the FCD and only hit 23.8 mpg in 16 - 18 degree F temps with the same 15 - 20 miles per hour winds but they were now head winds. I took route 41 North instead of the tollway (I94) and it was snow covered for much of the segment which hurt quite a bit for the return trip as well :-(

___A personal best for these temps and conditions in that monster …

___Good Luck

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

Attached Images

01-22-05_31.2_mpg_Acura_MDX.jpg (17.2 KB, 61 views)

As an AH owner I find looking at the MPG database and comparing the Escape numbers to the AH numbers quite depressing. However in looking a bit closer it isn't really a fair comparison with the current distribution of drivers.

The average time/ride for the Escape drivers overall is quite a bit longer - if you ranked the whole pool together in terms of time/ride the entire AH group except for one driver would be at the bottom in average time and all below 20 minutes. The one driver that has an average time more comparable to the Escape owners has a mpg that is more competitive as well (of course I also think that he has more hybrid experience which helps also). In the cold weather I find that my car doesn't start activating hybrid features until 7-10 minutes into a ride if it was not previously warmed up.

It will be interesting to see how the numbers work themselves out once we have a more comparable distribution of drivers between the 2 vehicles.

On another note, I am pleasantly surprised with how my AH handles snowy and icy roads. I wasn't expecting much since I previously had an AWD SUV but it really does a pretty good job. I can't dash through snowbanks but I haven't gotten stuck in the more typical partially cleared/packed/icy streets typical around here and I have seen a number of theoretically more capable vehicles trapped (likely due to driver overconfidence). We have had a pretty good run of snow this year in Ohio and I haven't had any problems - even on my street which doesn't ever get plowed by the city.

A reasonable explanation. Sorry I was so hard on you all, been in a mood of late.

I almost hate to mention it but the gap has widened with the AH showing 24 mpg average and the Escape showing 30. I guess there is really nothing you can do if your trips are short. Summer temps will help a lot, warming the car up much quicker.

I am going to have to disagree with the general concensus so far and say that it is the 'break-in' that is robbing these guys of a lot of gas milage. If you have your own personal stories of feat, thats great, but you are the exception to the rule. For instance, the first 4000 miles I had my Honda Insight, I was only averaging around 35 LMPG, which is about 60% of what the EPA rates it at. After that it shot right up there and surpassed EPA #'s. I saw this with other Insight owners as well, and I will only expect it from current and future hybrid owners. Also, as you said it is winter and thats detrimental to fuel milage results as well.

1999 Camaro Z28 6-Speed
2002 Honda Insight CVT Sold
AIM - PHeNoM Z28

That is fair. I only have my own case and Xcel's which is admitedly a very small sample size.

I've been lucky over the years and purchased many new cars. One burned oil like crazy the first couple tanks but it was fine after a break in so I do understand that some cars need a few miles on em before they start to perform.
Maybe, but are you sure that your own personal story is not the exception? Also are you sure it is the car or is it perhaps the driver that needs the break in? All of us are learning to drive our cars better with time.

I'm not at all sure that my personal situation is at all normal and admit that it my be a rare exception.

I believe both the driver and the car need a proper break in. It is well known that hybrids fall short of their EPA gas milage estimates and I believe that is both because hybrids are new cars and are still breaking in and the general public still doesn't know how to drive a hybrid the way it should be. Taking advantage of momentum and using the car with the gas engine turned off are both major parts of acheiving fuel economy with a hybrid and people aren't used to that yet. At the same time, it is also well known that cars don't perform the way they should during their break in periods. Gas milage is one of those area's, hybrid or ICE alone.

I can't wait for hybrids to saturate the market and drivers start acheiving and surpassing their EPA estimates and magazines will start sayings "Its about time the EPA revised its testing methods!" when in reality it will simply be because the market adapted to the hybrids.

1999 Camaro Z28 6-Speed
2002 Honda Insight CVT Sold
AIM - PHeNoM Z28

Update

Good job Acord owners. The database now shows you at 30 mpg and the Escape at 27. That is more like it!

Interesting thread. I'm comming up on 34mpg average over 6200 miles so far... Lowest is 31mpg (1 tank), Highest almost 37mpg. I guess I'll have to start submitting my mpg data

By all means Rob, PLEASE insert your mileage data ! The more miles the more credibility GH.COM has as a source !!