I have heard rumours about how to drive my car so I get best mileage. What is the scoop?

 

While I'm sure that some of our resident super hypermilers have their own answers, and can give them in much greater detail, here's some tips that I've found to get good milage.

Plan your trip and your route. It sounds simple, almost remedial, but as I've been driving, I've learned that the slope of the road, the traffic flow, and other elements can play a big part in your milage. Chose routes where you won't have to vary your speed much, and you're going downhill or over level roads as much as possible.

Don't dilly dally. When you start your car, put it into motion. Don't start the engine, then load her up, go back into the house, etc. Start up the engine and get driving.

Don't be a leadfoot. Rabbit starting from a stop, and going much above 65 tend to eat away at those MPGs.

Don't try to be an electric vehicle. EV mode is great, and it'll give you great MPGs, but that's then. That energy needs to be replenished, and it's most likely going to use the ICE to do it, causing you to get some terrible MPGs later. Use it wisely, and not excessively. It's a hybrid, and that's what makes it effective, when it's in hybrid mode. Now, that's not to say don't use EV mode, quite the contrary, you want to use it, in stop and go traffic, in parking lots, coming home, but don't try to do everything in EV mode all the time.

Follow the two C's: Coasting and Cruising. Try to coast as much as possible. When you see a red light ahead, let off the pedal and coast all the way in, things like that. (Don't worry about the battery, it charges when you're really driving about, so lay off the brakes unless you need them, allow yourself to coast.) When you start off from a dead stop, use the EV to get you rolling (I generally get to 15-20 mph before the ICE comes on), and then use the hybrid drive to get you up to crusing speed; don't floor it and don't mosey, then do what you can to stay at that speed for as long as possible.

Don't be afraid to be passed by traffic. When you're coasting up to a red light, you'll probably be passed. When you're letting EV mode to get you started, you'll probably be passed. If you're on an expressway, you'll probably want to use a right lane. You'll still get there, and you'll be a lot more fuel efficient getting there.

If you have the A/N system, use it. Watch your MPGs when you're driving about, and the Energy diagram when you're in stop and go traffic to monitor your battery.

I find that if I'm in heavy, prolonged stop and go traffic, I switch gears to L (A braking mode where the electric motor recharges the battery by slowing you down; essentially EV mode in reverse) and then use EV mode as much as possible and let the slow down for the stop part of traffic to recharge the battery.

Get your oil changed. A bit of humor, but I got mine changed at 1000+ miles, and right after that, had a 2 MPG boost in my fuel economy. Before I was getting 30ish, and now I'm getting 33!

Also, if it's new, give it and yourself time to adjust. Find out for yourself what works and what doesn't. Most people report that at around 3000 miles there's an improvement, and another at around 8000 miles.


EDIT: Oh yes, and don't rush to a red light. If you know the traffic pattern, and you know that you can't hit the next light red, why bother wasting all the fuel and energy rushing up to that stop? Take your time, and save your fuel.

 

You got your oil changed at 1000+ miles? I thought I didn't have to service for 10,000 miles. Did I misunderstand? Was this oil change just because it was new? My mileage runs around 27-28, but I drive mostly in rural areas. Very little stop and go. Lucky me.

aloha,
mehitibel

 

What is an A/N system and what is ICE?

 

I think A/N is the navigation system (screen) and the ICE is the Internal Combustion Engine

 

Sorry, sometimes I forget and use the shorthand when I'm explaining.

FEH: Ford Escape Hybrid
EV: Electric Vehicle
ICE: Internal Combustion Engine
A/N: Audionavphile system; the navigation, fuel economy, energy flowchart, and 6 CD system. This is an option.

I, and several others here intend to keep our vehicles for a decade or so, and to make sure that the vehicle is in good shape, have gotten our oil changed early, to get the metal scraplets and other things from the break in out of the engine ASAP. It isn't necessary to get it changed that soon, in fact when I got mine done, the mechanic told me that I didn't have to have it done.

It's probably best if you purchased yours to get it changed every 3000.

 

You are correct. The recommended service interval is 10K miles, 12 months or 200 hours of engine on time. I believe in the 06 you have the oil life indicator in the info center, it's calibrated to a 10K service interval.

Others have chosen to shorten the interval, but absent severe driving conditions there isn't any proof that changing the oil more frequently does anything other than consume more oil and more of the contents of your wallet :-).

 

One question. Why?

Modern oil and modern engines are a lot cleaner and tighter than they were when the 3K interval was first foisted on the motoring public.

If you really want to change oil at the optimal times, get a Hobbs meter hooked up to the engine and change the oil out every 100 hours of operation or so. That's double the factory advice, and still likely much longer than 3K miles.

 

Uhh, because it was a typo. I had meant to say every 10 K, 3 K was just on my mind at the time.

 

Using some of the tips found here (without obsessing TOO much over it ), you should be able to get 30+ in mostly rural-type driving, at least during warm weather (and depending on terrain). I was getting about 28, then started trying to increase my FE (Fuel Economy) by coasting more, keeping my speed down (and using downhills to build speed for the subsequent uphills) when possible, using the A/C as little as bearable, etc. Mainly, I try to keep the engine RPM at or below 2-2.5K whenever possible (I don't have the A/N system), and that seems to help. Now I am on my third consecutive tank over 32 mpg! I have VERY little true "city" (stop and go) driving, a bit of highway (65 mph, limited access - maybe 25%), and the rest is rural roads, where if traffic allows, I can keep my speed to about 40-50 and use the above techniques.

Good luck!