Got the chance to take my 08 civic hybrid on a tour of the Blue Ridge Parkway this past week. I drove the entire length, all 469 miles. The first 100 and last 200 were filled with very mountainous conditions. The car climbed these grades with ease and regained alot of fuel economy on the downhill coasting. I filled up just before entering the parkway and stopped half way for the night. Filling up that night i calculated 51.3 MPG for the first day of driving. The second day was more hilly than the first day and ended near the eastern entrance to the Great Smokey Mountain national park. This leg was an even better 52.9 MPG. The speed limit on the parkway is 45 miles per hour, so taking the climbs slow and gentle wasnt a problem. Total drive time was about 15 hours, including stops for pictures and lunch on the side of the road a couple times. I had about 6500 miles on my car when i started my trip and getting better FE with each tank. The civic hybrid was built for a trip just like this, moderate to comfortably slow pace with lots of coasting areas to recharge the battery for the next climb. With a little more experience in driving techniques, i have no doubt that 55 MPG would be easily reached. Has anyone else drove the whole parkway in their hybrid? Would love to hear your story.

 

Not done much driving on the parkway, but I go through the Wilkesboro to Boone area every weekend and the parkway on 421. My mileage through there is about the same as yours.

 

Nice job! I have gotten my best mileage in the mountains--both of my 62mpg tanks involved lots of elevation change ranging from hills to full on 11,000+ foot mountains. The trick is to recoup more on the way down than you spent on the way up, and with a little more practice you will easily be hitting the high 50s.

I've never been to that part of the country, but I would really like to head down there. We're National Park junkies and GSM is high on the list!

 

Try it by bike.

Uses less gas, too.

 

My family has a farm on the Parkway near Mabry's Mill so I travel sections of it quite frequently. It's great to travel in any mode, but motorcycle travel is awesome.

 

You did mean "bicycle" (not "motorcycle"), didn't you?

 

Not to quibble, but the Blue Ridge Parkway has been closed since May between mile markers 355 and 368 due to a landslide and may be closed the rest of the year, so I assume you hit the bypass highways between Marion and Asheville... http://www.romanticasheville.com/Blu...arkwayNews.htm

 

Yep, although I guess most motorcycles would use less, too.

 

yes, that section of the parkway is closed near Mt. Mitchel. There is also a 2 mile section closed somewhere around milepost 225 if I remember correctly. You have to exit the parkway and follow detour about 4 or 5 miles and rejoin the parkway. I guess i should have said i drove the parkway from end to end on all parts of the road that were open to automobile traffic, if I were to quibble.

 

My wife and I drove to Asheville and then went west on Blue Ridge Parkway till hwy 19 and returned to Columbia thru Maggie Valley. A week earlier we drove to Asheville and went east on Blue Ridge Parkway till turning around where the road is blocked. Nice drives - thoroughly enjoyable. Some day I would like to drive the entire route!