I think a lot of people believe that the mindset of a hypermiler is basically the same as a Sunday driver.

A typical driver usually has their final destination in the forefront of their mind, put on some music or other entertainment. It's a time to let their mind relax and let the miles flow by almost as if on autopilot until the trip is finished.
If they're a bit concerned about economy they'll typically set the cruise control a little slower, accelerate a bit easier etc.

Either that or they're predetermined by the events and goals of their day but similarly letting the miles pass by without much thought about it.

Contrast that to the hypermiler.
He's fully aware of wind direction, the average resistance (or conductance) it has on his motion, other aspects of the weather and how it effects his efficiency. Is it raining? what part of the wet lane will offer the least resistance? Am I getting too hot? Can I go for another segment without the use of AC? How close is the driver ahead? If they slow do I have enough of a distance buffer to remain uneffected? What are the vehicles doing behind? Are there signs of people getting upset? If so then what are my options to satisfy the situation without too much of an economy hit? If something unexpected happens, what are all my escape options? Am I going uphill, downhill or level? If I'm going uphill what do I estimate the most economical way to ascend? What is my timing to the top of the hill? If I am incorrect it will lead to excessive consumption. Can I reduce any load on my way up? Air conditioning compressor perhaps?
If I'm going downhill, where is the next hill, how big and long is it? If I am driving a commonly traveled route, does my current fuel consumption match what I already know to be most efficeint for the segment? Am I drawing from my battery or not? A hypermiler will always know about the environment they are traveling through, where the traffic is and even know what their exact tire pressure is set to, even to the last 1/10th pound.

Those are just a few of the things which are cycling through the mind of a hypermiler every moment of his trip.

I recall a number of years ago when I suggested it was more economic to coast in N than in gear on another forum, stressing judgement in safety.

I'll paraphrase another members comment:

"You can not safely coast in N and I am living proof. I was driving on the highway with my family and I wanted to save a little fuel by rolling down a hill in N. I had to keep my brakes on because the speed limit was 55, and it turned out to be a particularly long hill. As I approached the bottom around the curve was a stop light and it was red. By the time I reached the bottom my brakes were so overheated they were useless. Me and my family went careening through the red light, narrowly missing certain death.
This only proves how dangerous rolling in N can be."

Judgement judgement judgement. Why was this fellow doing stupid things with his family along- and his brakes would have suffered the same fate if he'd kept it in D.

Similarly, hypermiling in general isn't a good idea if you're fiddling with food, drinks, phones, CD's, groggy or family distractions. It takes a keen mind and full alertness to the ever changing conditions to be able to properly adapt to them.

 

Excellent post Steve!

If Bill W. thinks it's dangerous to coast in "N", it's most likely dangerous for him to do it even when sober.

Bill doesn't understand that even Ford Engineers and Carl Edwards learned to coast in "N" from Wayne Gerdes to hit that 1,445 mile tank in the new '10 Ford Fusion Hybrid in DC.

FAS is an advanced technique that I don't recommend myself, but "N" coasting is a part of that technique that is safe in most vehicles and serious drivers. I've never did a FAS in my '09 FEH, and I'm sure Wayne did not FAS the '10 FFH to get that 80mpg tank.

GaryG

 

I forgot, Fox News did a big story on hypermiling about 4 years ago and ask me if they could interview me and film me hypermiling. They found my shifting all around between "L" and "N" very interesting to say the lease. They got footage of this and played that story just about every time gas prices go up. In fact, my SA at my dealer said she saw me on the News again just a short time ago. I told her the media keeps a record of their stories and plays them for years.

Never had any negative feedback from the Police or any Judges for that matter.

Even Wayne Gerdes has been seen on the National News instructing reporters how to FAS which includes "N" coasting.

GaryG

 

Ok, enough on the subject of coasting in neutral. Good, bad, I think we've said it all. Hot Georgia brought up acending a hill in a fuel efficient manner which caught my interest. I have to deal with a big hill right outside my door twice a day. Once on my way to work when the car's cold. I'm going down this huge hill which should give me great MPG, but in my experience it doesn't because my ICE is running to warm up the CAT anyway. Second time is on my way home. The car's warmed up, but there's no way to ascend this hill in EV only. I'm usually chugging up the hill at 3200 rpm going about 30-35 mph. I figured the slower I go, the better FE I get. Can you guys suggest another way (better way) to deal with this hill that could improve my FE?

Thanks,
-mike

 

Mike, I size up a task like this based on what my conditions are. Do you have a SGII with SoC programmed? Assuming you do, you base many of your techniques around that. It's not always cut and dry on what actions you take going down the hill or going up the hill. Traffic is a big concern with either. I try to leave my SoC on the lowest level before parking for the night. The reason is, you always take a hit on MPG in the warm-up in the morning or leaving work with a cold engine running. A quick 3 minute shutdown stop can go EV in 30 seconds after, but longer than that, the CAT has to get to light-off (~500F) before EV again.

Going down the hill with a cold engine choices:

1. First, what is your SoC is at?

A. Low - It depends on your outside temperature how you use "L" or light brake pedal for regen in "D". There is no regen in "N" at all.

B. High - I don't like to recommend FAS, but this might be the best choice in this case. You have an '08 FEH which is the last year to take advantage of FAS. Here is how it's done on a downhill. First, start the engine and get to a speed you can maintain in "N" going down the hill. Shift to "N" and turn the key off to shutdown the engine. Within 3 seconds, turn the key to the run position, but don't start it. This will allow the power steering to continue to work and the power brakes also. Coast down the hill to a point you need engine power again. The engine will start with the key in "N", but your speed must be at or below 40mph to protect the eCVT.

Going up the hill with a warm engine:

1. The faster you go uphill, the more gas you will use. If you must use the engine, keep your speed at the speed limit or a little higher just before climbing. With the engine running, use DWL (driving with load) and proceed up the hill slowly reducing speed and engine load till you get to a speed you want to hold acceptable for traffic. In the '08 and older FEH's, I use EV to climb short hills with no traffic. You need to finish the climb in slow EV to burn down the SoC for the downhill next time.

Any questions?

GaryG

 

because my ICE is running to warm up the CAT anyway.

If you have a scanguage but never checked, one might be shocked at how fast (15 seconds) the CAT reaches normal operating temperature from a cold start in Spring-Summer-Fall. The FEH goes thru a self check for like 30 seconds after a cold start in which EV is not allowed and then the vehicle must meet the CHT and FWT temperature requirements prior to allowing EV. See the sticky thread for these values.

 

I concur that this is an "excellent" post! I think it could also be phrased as Active driving, because it is certainly not passive.


deprotinator, for me DWL was a very difficult technique to learn. It is a delicate balance between keeping the RPMs low without dropping the speed too quickly. So it may require some time and patient to get good at it.

 

These last couple of posts precisely show my point. They are for a person on a good day, with a fresh cup of coffee going, sunny, ready to take on the world, the kids in back are quietly playing with their electronic games, and all is well with the world. OK, I got it.

But I have chosen to call those "Rally Numbers" because they do not represent the real world. They amount to fooling the computer.

They also represent some ways of driving that could be risky, not on your best day but on your worst day. Habits can lead to things that don't go well in the crunch.

I happen to think it's fun to do those things and worth doing to see just what one can do with this car.

But in the end they just are not real world and lead to expectations in some that will surely be deflated.

Got to thinking about running in neutral: just what is taken out of the friction equation when in neutral? Very little. If you look at all of the driveline stuff its all still rolling in neutral. All that happens is electrical excitation is removed from MG1 & 2. All other frictional components remain in the driveline.

 

Rob, I think the term Wayne gave DWL is a little confusing to most people also. If you think about burning less fuel climbing a hill, the technique is all there is except for EV. To me, there is no way to P&G up a hill because the glide is more of a negative MPG factor to any pulse up hill. I forgot to mention that I rarely accelerate my speed while climbing hills, so dropping down to a speed acceptable to traffic is so important to me.

I have concluded that slowly backing off the accelerator, even on flat roads is a way to better MPG at any speed. The key to me, is to constantly monitor Instant MPG on the SGII while trying to maintain as close to a steady state speed as possible while in traffic. The guy driving next to me going the same speed has no idea I'm getting 50% better MPG because of how I'm managing the accelerator pedal. Wait a minute, that must have been Bill Winney driving next to me! Well, the guy had a fresh cup of coffee going.... LOL

GaryG

 

No, you apparently don't have it.

Hypermiling is a learning process which to be successful requires a lot of self training. Years in my case. It requires the knowledge how to handle the full scope of real world scenarios and conditions any other driver faces. Wind and rain storms, uncooperative terrain, other drivers and everything else encountered on any typical drive. There is no prefabricated conditions for anyone. We are not on a flat, enclosed track.

Again, one should not be hypermiling with kids in the back. Conservative driving can be safely done but not hypermiling... at least not the most extreme techniques IMO. Even with conservative driving I often get "Dad it's hot in here" if it's summer and "Dad it's still cold in here" in the winter. I think it's a lot safer solo without the distractions of loved ones.

My personal best record tank in my 2004 HCH was physically traveling 1003 miles under its own power, which consumed 13.2g of regular gasoline. The fuel was filled to the top of the filler neck both before and after the tank, with bubbles shook out. How does this fool the computer?

1003m/13.4g=74.8 MPG

I'd bet the FEH hypermilers also rely on physical calculations of distance/consumption.

We can partially agree here.
I have a 50 mile commute almost exclusively freeway. Some people have very short commutes which is terrible for efficiency because the ICE takes more % of the time warming up per trip.

It would be illogical for a person with short commutes to expect the same efficiency as someone with a long commute. If a person doesn't understand the mechanics and common sense of that statement, I don't think they would do well in hypermiling because there are so many variables which are constantly changing and require understanding. They would do poorly with hypermiling in any type of commute. That certainly isn't a jab at you, it isn't meant to be, and you apparently understand that people will get varying results.

In the end, both the short and long commuters are traveling in "Real world" conditions. It's just that one is more difficult than the other. My hat goes off and I give a respectful bow especially to the people with short commutes who get good numbers. There's no tricks, no gimmicks.

It is well earned.