I have seen posts noting that MPG falls off over 60 MPH, but does anyone have any data to support an ideal speed- 50-55 or 60?

Thanks.

 

No empirical data here on my end, but twenty thousand miles of commuting with some highway driving has taught me that the slower the better. 55 is better than 60, 50 is better than 55, etc. I've seen some Prius and Civic Hybrid owners that have done some really awesome charts and graphs illustrating basically the same effect. Although the vehicles are different the linear effect of rolling resistance and the exponential effect of wind resistance play the same role in fuel economy.

If you look at my chart in the mileage database here on GH, you can pretty much see where every one of my road trips was (big dips in FE). My in-laws live six hours away through a 70mph zone.

 

Take a look at the steady state speeds I recorded at 30, 40, 50, and 60mpg a while back. I did 3 test with cruise control and 3 without for each of the speeds above. The test are part of my article at CleanMPG.com.
http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/artic...brid--350.html

For those interested, we are in the process of adding my MPG Challenge video from Hybridfest last weekend to that article. A blu-ray HD camera was mounted on a tripod behind and between the two front seats. You can see the SG and energy screen as well as the 27 mile course as I did during the challenge. In addition, you will see a stock '05 FEH get over 60mpg during my 27 mile challenge.

GaryG

 

When will that be posted Gary??

~John

 

This is going to be interesting (over 60mpg!) for the rest of us who do not have the hybrid/navigational system in our vehicle. I look forward to this video and to see which hybrid driving techniques are utilized and when. Thanks for sharing some of your experiences.

 

Hi Billy and John

It will take about a week depending how much time Wayne takes once he gets the Discs. Got to pick up bubble wrap envelopes and mail the discs tomorrow to him. Not sure if he can link an hour of video, but I'm sending him both blu-ray HD and standard discs. My guess is HD will not be able to be linked because I think that took up about 6 gigs of space on a blu-ray disc.

For those that have the 7 speaker Nav Sys, it's not a bad sound system with a good CD. I took advantage of that and at one point in the video, I put on the Eagles CD "Take It Easy". I cranked it up a bit, and the 5.1 surround sound makes this video rock in blu-ray HD. The camera I have is a Sony HDR-SR1, and the Sony laptop is a FZ180E/B VAIO which records and plays blu-ray discs. Debbie Katz had the 110V converter, so filming both our challenges completely on the camera's 30 gig hard drive was perfect. Debbie hit 48.5mpg on her challenge and Pravas Prime brought his AWD in at ~46.?mpg.

One thing the video lacks is seeing how much shifting is being done. You can hear it, but the camera had to be fixed in only one position. The fake shifts to build battery SoC for EV can be seen on the energy screen when there was no glare.

This was my first time on all these roads and the rolling hills were new to me also. I used a few key-off FAS, a lot of "N" coasting, about a hundred fake shifts in "L" and made Debbie get out and push me up only a few long hills. Just kidding of course about Debbie! Debbie did get a little upset while I was up close drafting, so I just gave it up and passed Billy's Honda Insight. It's all in the video! We all had a lot of fun and many thanks to Debbie Katz for letting me drive her FWD FEH in the MPG Challenge.

GaryG

 

Thanks for the update. I believe there is a way to "show" the amount of shifting being done. Some one just needs to pop the video into video editing software and the "editor" can input text onto the video to help "educate" the rest of us. As for video editing software, there is free stuff out there via Microsoft offerings.

 

And if you hold down the fast forward button it looks like normal driving!

Just kidding with you Gary.

Congrats on the win. I hope I can make it next year, even though I would be a bit crippled with the AWD it would be fun to try.

 

Actually, it's kind of a wash, as it's by % over EPA, so that sort of compensates for things.

I finished second in our division, with 173% of EPA at 46.8 MPG. I made a few mistakes that cost me a bit, including being worried about time. (Yes, there is a maximum time limit) I was also screwed by having to stop for several minutes and wait for a stupid train to go by.

However, win or lose, it was fun to compete, and at least see what you can do. Plus, I got a neat window decoration. However, best of all, I got to spend time with other FEH enthusiasts, which is exceedingly rare for me, and was incredibly refreshing to do so.

 

Ahhh... rolling hills... the creme' de la creme' of great MPG. I'm salivating right now.... gentle rolling hills.... can't get enough.... wish I were there!
-John Oh.... to answer the question, I routinely, and without much effort get 48 MPG at 48 MPH without any gimmicks.