I have been reading through the different threads and I have noticed that many people are getting 40-60 mpg. I am only getting 31 mpg. I have a heavy foot, this might be my problem, and I also like to run the air conditioning on high and around 70. I did not think that doing these things would have a large effect on the mpg, but I guess I am wrong. Does anyone have any questions on what I can do to increase mpg. Driving techniques? Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Welcome, and your thinking out aloud has revealed a lot of things that can improve fuel economy.

• limit the A/C, rolling the windows a crack having the Civic parked under a tree.
• Consider keeping a constant speed and go around 60mph. This will probably help more than anything else.
• Coast more, brake less
• Search for Hot Georgia's hypermiling threads - very good reading about his Civic.
• Even if you don't want to drop your speed that much, consider all the other stuff.

61.5mpg lifetime - 82mpg in recent months

Best Run >
www.cleanmpg.com

"fanatic" is what the lazy call the dedicated

Delta's hit the nail on the head. Slowing down to 65 and under on the highway will be your best friend.

Can you compare the EPA estimate vs. your real MPG on your previous automobile?
I suspect if you are getting only 31 MPG on the HCH2, that you were getting significantly less than EPA on your previous auto.
The hybrids (I think) ARE a little more sensitive than "regular" cars.
But driving fast, cranking the AC, jack-rabbit starts, zooming to pass everyone around you, and wanting to be first to get to that red-light ahead (just to stop) take their toll on any car's potential for good MPG.

I suggest for starters to put the AC on AUTO. Set a temp of 74 and see if you can stand it. I now keep mine on 76 or 77 and AUTO and am just fine. I think this alone makes a 2-3 MPG difference.
And try to slow down some. At first it will feel awkward (ask me how I know ), but over time you will come to appreciate the zen-like feeling of not being in such a (self-imposed) rush to get everywhere.

Steve

STOP terrorism - Drive a HYBRID

Vehicles:
350 miles a week ------------ 2006 HCH II, Magnetic Pearl, w/NAVI (born on May 25, 2006)
350 miles a month ---------- 2003 Mazda Tribute ES-V6
350 miles a year (for now) - 1986 Mercedes 560SL

Also, you may think you are saving time by driving the way you do, but I challenge you to time 5 trips going your regular speed and 5 going slower and see if you don't come out about even, or even getting their sooner going slower since you have more time to adjust to traffic and won't be using your brakes as much.

My hydroponics experiment

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

you cannot drive this car like you would a regular car and expect high mpg. the thread that helped me the most was this one:
http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1306

Note to Self: Stay out of assist!

I think it's good for Prius drivers to read this thread once in a while; makes us feel better. The HCH gets such great mileage in general that it's the strong #3 next to the #2 Prius (we both, of course, trail the Insight). But the simple truth is that I drive 70+ all the time with the AC on and never get below 43mpg.

Listen to these people; they're right. Change your driving habits and the stats will follow. I used to drive 80+...

Change what & how I drive, not who I am. Rack 'em up.

I don't think there's a need to drive 60, but I drive between 67-70 on the highway, and usually get about 52mpg or so on the highway. The big thing is on shorter roads, not flooring it, and just cruising with a good following distance. The increased following distance (even at the same speed) will mean you brake much less when cars in front of you do the speed up slow down jockeying, and often you can time your approach to traffic lights, so instead of going fast and then slamming the brakes on a red, requiring a full acceleration, you slow down slowly, hit the green going about 30, and then zoom past all the people who floored it to get ahead of you.

That said, I was getting about 44 mpg without changing my habits...about 49 now.

Its fairly subjective. From the GH database, lowest recorded MPG for the two vehicles is:

HCH II = ~31 mpg
Prius II =~29 mpg (the next up is 33mpg)

... hummm ...


Cheers;

MSantos

Hmm.. even with a heavy foot I would think 31mpg would be difficult. I find airconditioning has about a 5 - 10 mpg effect when comparing my ratings to the hypermilers and those acheiving better mileage.

The heavy foot is the biggest culprit of fuel economy. You can have the heavy foot at the start but as you approach the next set of lights if you choose to coast to the light rather than "race" to the light you will see dramatic improvements.

Cheers!

A driver averaging 29 or 31MPGR in a Prius or HCH likely does not correlate (or care to pay attention to) the relationship between driving attitudes and behaviours and fuel consumption...

My trips in the 30's for MPG, were times when a/c was needed, I was driving into a headwind, traveling uphill and was in a time crunch...

No need to worry, if improved fuel effiecieny is what you desire, this is the right place to find the info!

Also, was the 31MPG the first tank? Often the first tank includes VERY LARGE amounts of idle time from the dealer and/or the port, and/or transportation company.