Learn to Hypermile When You Drive
Save money on gas and help the environment with a few automobile strategies
When Sam Harrington, 22, drove from middletown, Conn., to Troy, N.Y., his two-door 2003 Acura RSX got 50.2 miles per gallon. The secret? "Hypermiling."
Hypermiling means driving for maximum gas mileage. Chicagoan Wayne Gerdes, a former nuclear power plant operator, coined the word in 2004, hoping to wean America off foreign oil. In 2008, during the summer of $4-a-gallon gas, hypermiling became hyperpopular. That's why the New Oxford American dictionary named it the word of the year.
But how far do you go in the name of fuel economy—and is safety sacrificed? The basic principles are familiar:
- Keep tires properly inflated. Go for the number recommended on the tire's sidewall, urges Gerdes, not the more conservative number in the car's manual.
- A 55-mph driver uses about 30 percent less gas than the car in the fast lane hitting 70.
- Slowing down midblock when a light turns red is better than zooming to the intersection.
- Shut down the engine if idling more than 30 sec-onds. Jake Fisher of Consumers Union found a 10-minute idle for a Buick Lucerne's V8 engine ate up an eighth of a gallon.
- Cruise control can eliminate countless little accelerations that eat fuel. "I drive with my thumb on cruise control," says Steve Chafe, who runs the website hypermiling.com.
Following these tips could cut gas use by 5 to 10 percent, estimates John Nielsen of AAA. Some hypermilers turn off the engine altogether for downhill stretches, on the way to a red light, or on a highway exit ramp. "That's an advanced technique," cautions Gerdes; an engineless car has no power brakes or steering. Tailgating trucks to take advantage of their draft is another risky hypermiling tactic.
Reader Comments
Drafting???
I really don't know of any serious hypermilers who draft behind big trucks. First of all, a Pulse and Glide would make drafting impossible; and secondly I, along with most hypermilers, drive at an "unpopular" 55 miles per hour and I can think of only two times in the past year that I have gone as fast as, or passed a truck.
MPG Geeks
Changing driving habits to increase fuel economy is great, but there is a lot of 'hyper' in hypermiling.
To do it 'right', you need to coast with the engine off, draft trucks closely, push your car out of the parking spots (no kidding),'pulse and glide' (accel to 50 then coast, engine off to 40, repeat), and drive at speeds very 'unpopular' with other drivers. It takes an awful lot of effort and ticks people off.
So, it's interesting that you can beat EPA mileage, but it fails in the real world. In practice, it's pretty radical and was a fringe, knee-jerk reaction to high priced fuel and too-big cars.
You'll do a lot more to reduce your consumption by getting a more efficient car, using public transport and moving closer to work.
MPG geeks
Changing driving habits to increase fuel economy is great, but there is a lot of 'hyper' in hypermiling.
Hypermiling is pretty extreme; you need to coast with the engine off, draft trucks closely, push your car out of the parking spots (not kidding),'pulse and glide' (accel to 50 then coast, engine off to 40, repeat), and drive at speeds very 'unpopular' with other drivers. It takes an awful lot of effort and ticks people off.
So, it's a great science experiment to beat EPA mileage, but it fails in the real world.
Our transportaion issues are a lot bigger than saving a few pennies per gallon with radical driving habits.
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