Okay, I'm a newbie here with an 04 HCH with CVT. So far I’ve improved from around 48 mpg local driving to current tank of 51 by using tips from the various treads. I would appreciate some advice here.

Is FAS advisable for cars with CVT? With cold engine? I can roll out from my driveway for about 1/2 mile before hitting uphill grade. I have heard a squeal once and a slight clunk once upon restarting which suggests this is not a good practice?

Assuming FAS is not harming my drive train, should I be in gear or neutral during FAS? Maybe it’s just me, but coasting in gear seems to give better control.


Is turning to key position III required to restart? With regular cars, I’ve always been able to restart while coasting in gear by just turning the key to position II but that has only worked once in my HCH. Otherwise I’ve had to shift to neutral and switch to position III to restart.

Thanks, -V

 

Yes you can FAS in a CVT and I FAS on a cold engine sometimes. I do a short FAS up to the light to get out of my neighborhood, I'd say it's less than a 1/8th of a mile from my house. Because my car isn't warmed up yet, it won't shut off when I get to the light, so I FAS it before I get to the light so don't use anymore gas than I have to.

Besides that I only FAS on a certian 1/4 stretch of road when I'm coming home late from my boyfriend's house, and there is no traffic. This one also ends with a light, so I always come to a stop before restarting.

My process is:
Shift to neutral
Wait a few seconds (so the car doesn't restart when you turn it to II)
Turn the key to II so your mileage is recorded
Apply brakes and use steering wheel sparingly
Upon full stop at stop light watch for yellow on cross road
When yellow appears restart car by turning key to III
Don't forget to shift back into drive
Take your foot off the brake
Step on the gas and go.

 

I'd suggest you leave your engine running and shift in N while you're rolling out of your subdivision. Engine load is zero while it is stone cold, just about perfect conditions for warm-up. I wouldn't wait for warmup until you are forced to place a heavy load on it such as your uphill grade. That's the time of worst fuel consumption!

When I park at work I take the 2nd to the top floor of the big parking deck and face-out.
When I restart I only nudge it in D long enough to get the car rolling then switch to N. It needs to roll in N across two blocks of parking deck, down 3 levels to an access gate where I shut off. When the gate rises I restart just enough to nudge again then switch back to N and roll down a gentle downhill to a stop sign.

By the time I reach the stop sign My engine is much further warmed up and ready for the load.

When I FAS the first thing I do is to get my foot off the gas and switch to N and let it idle. It drops to about 800RPM, then switch off.
If I switch off with higher RPM the exhaust fills with unburnt fumes which "Ping" upon restart. This is a potentially damaging backfire.

Sometimes I get a tug or slight jerk when I restart. It happens when I restart while rolling faster than about 40MPH so I restart below that.
Also when I restart I keep my foot off of the gas pedal for a few moments to let the CVT adjust itself then rev-match, which helps eliminate jerking.
-Steve

 

THANK YOU, IMAhybrid and Hot_Georgia_2004 for the tips and info. I've had this car over 2 years but until I found this site I had no idea that better gas mileage was possible. I was happy getting mid to high 40's mpg, but now I'm hoping to break 50. -V

 

Oops, I forgot that part, I too take my foot off the gas first.