Well, that's sort of the point, I think. If *every* vehicle had the instant MPG readings, I think we'd see safer, less aggressive, and therefore, more efficient for FE driving.

I have to wonder how people drive who keep saying they can't drive "normally"...my driving habits haven't changed a whole lot since I got my hybrid.

My worst tank, when we had lows in the teens and highs in the 40s, was 43.5 mpg. My commute is about 7 miles each way, and while I can get on a 4 lane road with a 45 mph limit, there are several stop lights, and some hills. Even going 70-72 on the interstate (the speed limit is 70 here and one will be in danger if going less than 65), I have been over 50 mpg. I love this car!

ShellyD
Auburn, Alabama, USA

Vehicles:
2007 HCHII, Alabaster Silver Metallic w/ Navi
2006 HCH, Alabaster Silver Metallic w/ Nav (RIP: 3/15/07)
2003 Jetta TDI 5-speed; lifetime avg MPG ~48

hi there, im happy i found a website where somone can just help me out. i recently got my civic hybrid (last week) and its only been drivin about 130 miles in total, and im gettin 30 MPG which i would get with my old 94 civic, and my worry is that if i get the same amount of milege for the 2nd time i fill up my tank than im not gettin the best use of my hybrid.
i want to know that is this because i had too many short trips, if so it should be good either way because its is said its also good in the city driving. the weather i cruntly driving now is between 39 - 33 F.

You could not possibly have gotten 30 MPG on your 94 Civic if you did the same short trips in it too.

Short trips will bring any car's mileage down. What sets your new car apart from your older one is the extra gauges (the old did not have) and the fact that it still consumes less than the old did.

The best way to assess your final mileage is to do the calculations at the time you re-fill the tank. The instrumentation on our HCH-2's is notoriously conservative and as such it underestimates the actuall mileage by a couple of MPG's.

Nevertheless, It is possible to do better. For that, you've come to a good place. My temperatures are lower than yours and I still get better mileage thus indicating that there's room for much improvement. Stick around this forum and your mileage will go up noticeably. In the meantime you may want to read and learn about your car's true potential:

http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1306

Cheers and welcome !

MSantos

Hi,
I have read that article on how to imporvoe ur driving and few techniques. But since its my first tank, i cant judge it that much, so i would have to see it by re fueling my tank and reseting my meter cuz so far its showing 30 MPG so its pretty shocking, but otherwise i love my car.

As you probably noticed from the article, there are many things we can do to improve our mileage with little or no change in driving regime: Tire Pressure.

As Tarabell indicated, you should focus on your vehicle setup first before beginning to apply some of the techniques she describes.

For now, I would personally suggest you inflate/set your tires to 42 psi in the front and 40 psi in the rear. Some folks prefer higher or lower values but in the end they tend to be MUCH better than what the dealerships like to set the tires at. This is the single most important thing you can do. It will not only lower the resistance to motion but it will also enhance the life of your tires. Of course, you may adjust the pressure down a little if you find the ride a little too harsh.


Cheers;

MSantos

I completely agree, although I was just saying I'm interested in determining how much of the FE is due to the hybrid functions vs. modification in driving habits.


Well, not all people drive the same. Your "normal" driving habits may coincidentally be more similar to hybrid driving habits. I drive very modest, but noticed that I still had to make some changes to accomodate the hybrid if I wanted the most FE out of the car.

Wow! I never got close to those figures. My first real tank was 36mpg. I just can't figure if the varying FE reports are due to driving habits, gas mixtures in different states, climates or what!?
All in all, I'm really happy with the car.

Thanks for the warm welcome. Actually I've never gotten as low as 28mpg. I average around 40mpg, but like I mentioned, having the impg meter makes me really aware when I'm excessively accelerating, so I have changed my driving habits to obtain more FE. I guess I'd just like to see how a regular civic sedan stacks up to a hybrid to see how much the hybrid functions are really doing without any other factors.

Not to say that features like the impg aren't great. It's kinda fun being able to have more control over your mpg and having something to do/acheive on every drive, namely getting the most FE out of the car.

Well, not all people drive the same. Your "normal" driving habits may coincidentally be more similar to hybrid driving habits. I drive very modest, but noticed that I still had to make some changes to accomodate the hybrid if I wanted the most FE out of the car.


Yes, I think my "normal" driving did already coincide to some degree with those that give the best FE in these cars. However, the car will help you refine that because it gives you feedback.

I guess that depends upon one's typical driving habits. Not trying to be obvious or obnoxious here, but "normal" varies greatly from driver to driver If you accelerate heavily, have to speed past everyone and then arrive at the light just in time to either accelerate even more or slam on brake so that I can arrive a car or two behind you at the same light, then your driving habits probably need a lot of modification to get best FE.


Wow! I never got close to those figures. My first real tank was 36mpg. I just can't figure if the varying FE reports are due to driving habits, gas mixtures in different states, climates or what!?
All in all, I'm really happy with the car.[/quote]


Climate **definitely** has a lot to do with FE. Colder weather causes a big, big drain on FE, as does rain. On a recent weekend I drove 38 miles to a destination. 9 hours later, I came home via the same route, but it was raining. I had gotten 52.7 MPG on the trip to work, but when I arrived back home my Trip B meter was down to 46.something, meaning I got about 10 mpg worse on the way home.

I understand that there is a definite break-in period as well. People report seeing a jump in MPG somewhere between 3500 - 5000 miles on the without doing anything different regarding driving.

cheers

ShellyD
Auburn, Alabama, USA

Vehicles:
2007 HCHII, Alabaster Silver Metallic w/ Navi
2006 HCH, Alabaster Silver Metallic w/ Nav (RIP: 3/15/07)
2003 Jetta TDI 5-speed; lifetime avg MPG ~48

I also live in So Cal and my first tank was 32 mpg my second was only 38 mpg (and that was very conservative driving) my third was 43 mpg. then I gave up and forgot about it. Now that Im at around 3500 miles im getting about 51 mpg. When I first bought my HCH2 it only had like 2 bars of juice in the battery so it had to charge and with a 2 mile uphill drive to the house (really suxs) from the dealership it then had one bar. I was horrified. just give it a couple tanks and see what happens. Also the A/C lowers my mpg pretty bad but I like it cold in the heat, then throw in any city driving or drives less the 10 minutes and your EV never gets enough time to adjust (personal feeling). Also I never adjusted tire pressure or anything. I think that if honda wanted it to be that way it would be.... their techs think about FE and safety as well. (personal belief again)
Also the comment on going downhill watching for the regeneration green bars and giving it slight gas to "deplete" them you can also go up about 3-4 white bars before the valves open and you start combustion again. Therefore getting more speed for an uphill ascent.

just some pointers that I found to help me out.

I just averaged 49.0 on my fifth tank now, miles 2,000-2,500. Definitely part break-in, part laying off the pedal more frequently to make the bars move ...

- J. Ron

Modifications:
- Added two-tone leather seats and moonroof.
- Added Calif. HOV stickers!
- Added Civic door sill plates (non-electrical - purchased from eBay - recommended).
- Added rear door beverage holders (genuine Honda part - recommended).
- Added Hella super horns (recommended).