Please summarize and review driving with load
 

All,

I've had my HAH for one year and my avg. mileage is around 30 mph. Early on when I was a little more active in the list, I saw several people discuss driving with load (DWL). My understanding of it was that you would give a little more gas going uphill in order to keep the ECO light on.

However, I never really mastered it and have simply een using cruise control when it's safe. This works fine except of course when going uphill - but I feel like I "get the extra work back" on the downhills.

Tonight I was driving home and I was crusing and then I _let up_ on the gas a bit going uphill and the ECO light stayed on the whole time going up, cresting, and going down the hill.

So I'd like to re-verify my understanding of DWL. Was my original understanding incorrect? Can one of the gurus out there re-explain DWL for me? I'd really like to see how much better mileage I can get than 30.3 :).

Thanks,
Wes

Re: Please summarize and review driving with load
 

I'm totally embarrassed - I re-read gonavy's reply post to mine _a year_ ago and it makes perfect sense.

Sigh - better late than never - I guess.

48 mph and DWL - I'll be 40mph by next year, hopefully :).

Just in time for the recent reduction in gas prices.

Wes

Re: Please summarize and review driving with load
 

This here is the idea of DWL, keeping the engine running at more or less a constant power output, as engines operate most efficiently in a narrow powerband. This should be especially true in the case on an engine with a discrete "threshold" to stay in a limited-cylinder mode.

What I'm guessing you misunderstood before is that you thought DWL meant accelerating more on the incline while the suggestion was most likely to accelerate before the incline to build up momentum, and use that, rather than extra engine power to get up the hill.