Please Big Tuna...we're all responsible drivers, here. " A little slower " is referring to " if the opportunity presents itself "... and we're talking at most, 5 miles per hour under the limit.

I'm just offering suggestions that have worked for me. People are questioning our claims to high mpg's and I'm trying to explain that it can be done and here's how I do it. Take it or leave it.

We're all adults here, if you don't agree with my advice, fine.

 

Jess is quite right. We have done this before.

Everytime there's a discussion about hypermiling, the detractors always try to paint hypermilers as inherently unsafe... most of the time because they choose to follow the speed limit and even a little (still legally) below it.

Now, there's responsible hypermiling and there's reckless hypermiling, but a hypermiler that complies and adheres to the law as it was written is inherently the safest driver on the road.

Besides, in light of the statistics that directly infer on accidents caused by hypermilers I am always left with no choice but to defer the blame back to those who choose to blatantly and unashamedly break the law by speeding. That "normal and reasonable movement of traffic" surely did not include breaking the law on a daily basis by speeding and driving aggressively. At least I hope not.

Cheers;

MSantos

 

I always drive 55 mph on any interstate in the right hand lane of course. It is perfectly legal as I have never seen a minimum limit that was above 50. I have never been pulled over for impeding traffic and the troopers that I see are going after the ones going over the speed limit far more than the ones driving between the minimum & maximum. The reason he said here we go again is because we have seen this reaction many times from people that seem to think that driving within the limits is somehow impeding traffic.

 

I have to agree with BigTuna on the reaction to this one. The above quote is asserting something absolute. If you are doing something wrong, or something is broken on your vehicle, then the above dedication means you will be ignorant to the feedback from other drivers.

Maybe Jess doesn't mean it as strongly as it was worded. But these points are worth bringing up over and over again, because some people are going to be stupid on purpose. See, Something GREAT happened today...

 

...Or driving around aimlessly to either get a round number on your trip meter or to empty the tank before refill. Or implicitly speeding in the valleys between consecutive hills. Or unsafely shutting down the engine while in motion.

"Hypermiling" has always meant an eccentricity to achieving high mileage at all costs. Simply driving conservatively to do the same doesn't earn the title of "Hypermiler", because that word has crazy written all over it. I think the word has been popularized because of the pride and vanity of its proponents, not because it has anything new to teach anyone (which it doesn't).

 

Blaming the speeders is logically and legally correct but not necessarily the safest option. Have you ever heard the story of Jonathan Day? It goes something like this:

Here lies the body of Jonathan Day,
who died yielding the right of way.
He was right, alright as he drove along,
but he is just as dead as if he was wrong....

Staying out of an accident is preferable to blaming someone else after being in an accident. Hypermileing in traffic is obviously not as safe as driving with the flow of traffic.

 

Had you stated this additional information in your OP, there would not be an issue that needed to be clarified.

 

My apologies for not clarifying, Big Tuna. I'm glad we're clear now.

Happy Driving...

 

Wow. Since I first posed the question about mileage claims, there sure has been a lot of discussion, and, I must say I have learned a lot about hypermiling. Originally, when I first looked at the mileage data base and saw all those vehicles with 60 mpg plus, I couldn't understand how it was possible. Now I see that there are definite steps one can take to vastly improve mileage over the EPA ratings. It gets me thinking of the perfect world where nobody speeds or tailgates and everyone takes their time. Imagine all the high MPG's everyone (not just hybrid owners) would be getting. Obviously there are locations where traffic is light and one would have an easier time becoming an expert hypermiler, but here in the Bay Area, everyone seems to be in a hurry, and road rage is always a potential issue. Maybe we need $10 a gallon or $20 a gallon gas to get people to slow down.

 

I've found that by adopting some basic techniques such as keeping the car at 55-57 MPH on the freeway and the RPMs at or below 2000, I've increased my mileage to a new high of 55.3 MPG on the last fillup. So far on the present tank, with a bit over 120 miles, I am at 57.2 MPG on the readout, which on my car at least indicates a real MPG of 58-59. Speed and caution when accelerating and decelerating seem to make quite a difference, and warm weather helps. I was in the mid to upper 40s during the Colorado winter.