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If I drive a little car like my sub 1400lb Citroen AX10re 950cc, slowly, FAS, @50plus psi, and get 5l/100km or 50mpgUS, in city driving or better (4l/100km)on a trip, I'm a freak amongst some 'friends', and possibly a source of derision at parties....

If I drive a normal 1900lb compact, even a GT model, quickly, @30psi, I will get 6.5-7 l/100km, and be cool, and get the girl.... So even the simplest financial rewards of being a hypermiler are relatively minor...not to mention the girl....

In most 20mile a day cases, saving barely a $1 a day, the price of a large cookie

However, I'm a conservative conservationalist so even if gas were quarter of the price I'd still be doing it.

Hypermiling has been no obstacle for me to get girls :)

It's twice as cool when you convince your buddies to slow down and press up their tires though.

Yes well nothing could slow me down in the girl department either 'cough', but the reality is more to the point of why.

I think it might be that cutting down on something or slowing down etc. makes them look like wimps and have to save somewhere because they are broke. It's an ego thing. They need to calm their inner selves! Ommmmm.......Ommmmmm!!

ollie

A $35 dollar per month cell phone bill is about $450 dollars per year after tax and charges. If you saved about $1.24 in gas per day by hypermiling your cell phone would be free...

Slightly better than a large cookie.

As far as the girls go, you can spend all your minutes on the cell phone with them and you're golden! (just don't tell them you can only afford it because you hypermilie)

I'm 70 and already got the girl - beautiful 70 year old wife :-) So, maybe I have a more mature view.

Attitudes change slowly, but with natural pressures, they do change SOME. Folks who don't really understand finance will begin to recognize that fuel costs compete with college educations, homes, and food on the table. But it takes a while. Folks will begin to question the value of commuting in a FSP at 15 MPG, when they could buy a Fit, Yaris, or Prius and triple their FE.

In the end, not everyone will be converted. There will always be a few who insist on wasteful consumption. Somewhat fewer will be able to afford the waste.

There is another factor that has begun to bother me a bit since I've been a CleanMPG member. It is the emphasis on our site on getting the ultimate and all the seemingly kooky techniques required. This alone puts us out of the mainstream. I think that we perhaps should think some about how to sell mainstream conservation ideas to the general public. That would result in considerably more fuel savings to the nation. I do note that Waynes hypermiling guide is broken up into sections and that section II is a more conventional approach and perhaps more constructive for the general population. (Section II needs a paragraph on tire pressure and a paragraph on car selection.)

I see this as a bit of a dilemma if it is our objective to broaden fuel conservation. Certainly we want, need and enjoy CleanMPG as "our" site - devoted to extreme hypermiling. Perhaps someone with computer/internet skill might want to start another site of a more "mainstream" nature - a site which would be devoted to the section II techniques and discussion. But, I do take note that most of the interviews have "largely" enphasized Section II methods for the general public. I also note that it is the large FE numbers which has attracted the press, so there is a counterargument.

I noted with my wife some of the difficulties with the non addictive, non technical general public. I cannot get her to NICE-on coast, shut down at lights, or live without a/c, but I have gotten her to slow down, pulse the a/c, accelerate slowly, accept higher tire pressures, and minimize the number of cold starts. She also now pays attention to the trip FE on the SGII. It seems pretty clear to me that this is THE level of acceptance for the general public.

We'll make a few converts, but the general public will not adapt extreme hypermiling. One of our goals should be to help the general public adapt basic (section II) techniques.

Just thinking out loud. Not meant to be critical of the wonderful progress that Wayne and the other pioneers have driven.

I think it might be that cutting down on something or slowing down etc. makes them look like wimps and have to save somewhere because they are broke. It's an ego thing. They need to calm their inner selves! Ommmmm.......Ommmmmm!!

ollie

Actually for me it doesn't bother my ego at all. I feel even in more control than before.
All the people I let by me by an act of my will, with RP, RR, flashers ect. I know I could keep them all behind me if I wanted to. getting all the faster traffic by you is a skill that requires practice and is actually quite fun and satisfying, almost like anti-NASCAR :D

MT

Jim, I think this site does a good job of telling the difference in the basic and advanced techniques, and that doing the basics are most important, but also showing that the rewards are there for people who want to expand their horizons and step out of their comfort zone :)
When I first came to this site 2 months ago, I thought they were extreme too, but now I am doing all of them except the hybrid specific ones.
I gave two people a ride home from church last weekend and must have done at least 20 fas and glides with clutch restarts no one ever even noticed...

Hey, where do you find 1900 lb compacts? I vaguely remember that our 1969 Corolla stationwagon(1100 cc I think) weighed 1800 lbs, but I don't think we-USA- have had a car under 2300 lbs in 18-20 years. You are in Europe/Asia?

In the girl dept- you might have noticed that the average forum member is well past the "looking for a partner" age group! Now my son is young -22 yo- I think the Prius I rarely get to drive is a "draw" more or less for college age kids. A 15 yo Corolla or Civic probably wouldn't be much of a draw.

Charlie

I see what you're saying Jim and agree that we need to continue emphasizing that just beating the EPA is hypermiling. Doing all the methods is not necessary or even recommended at first.

Unfortunately human nature means that, no matter what we say, people WILL assume that they are expected to use ALL the methods. And it also means that anything new will seem "kooky".

As mtbucket says, it's a moving target. Different people will use different methods, and even for the same person the methods they use will change over time. Things that seemed kooky at first may seem less so later on. All of this driven by gas prices which will continue to rise.

Hypermiling does take effort and you have to learn how to hypermile.
And they are all ways in a hurry and we can't be late for this or that.
I used to feel the need for speed ALL the time but now i am angry with big oil and why pollute so much anyway.

We could cross the "kooky" line by adding the NYCTDT ? technique to the list!;):rolleyes:

http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=15254

Charlie, the MT w/ AC Insight is 1880lbs.

Honestly, I think the biggest obstacles in our society to hypermiling are the notions of instant gratification and throw away nature of products.

I find that a lot of people will balk at inflating tires up to the sidewall pressure. They are so used to following the car manufacturers specifications. Even when I tell them that it is the highest pressure recommended by the tire manufacturer they act like they have been instructed to commit a crime. Their second complaint is that hypermilers are always holding other drivers back by driving so slow. I secretly think that some of them are intimidated by trying something new and so they put hypermiling down as an excuse not to try it.

Hypermiling does take effort and you have to learn how to hypermile.

BINGO! In a lot of cases I don't think its an ego thing at all; I think it's just too much trouble for a lot of people. Personally, I like the way HMing keeps me busy -- it makes my hour each way commutes seem shorter. Maybe others have found ways to cope with long drives that they are comfortable with -- listening to music, talking on the phone, etc., so why add going to a lot of extra work to their journeys?

In most 20mile a day cases, saving barely a $1 a day, the price of a large cookie



If you were disciplined and squirreled that way, adding $365 a year to that account, over 30 years, with compound interest at 10% you would have $72,400 dollars.

Or, don't by that cookie. And if you squirrel away that Latte money, say $3 bucks a day, invest it at 10% > $198,000 after 30 years! (5% $74,000).

Regarding the girls, I think if you lighten up on the hypermiling a tad (don't be a freak in the right lane at 20mph), but use some of its key components (super awareness of road conditions, don't speed to red light), you will come across as a very 'smooth' driver (are you this relaxed in...). And if they are ready to settle down, also a safe driver....

Anyone can trivialize anything.

As many members have said - a penny saved is a penny earned, but it goes beyond that. The savings extent to less repairs, less tickets, less accidents, less stress (it has for me). This is on the individual level.

Corparately, it would reduce ozone action days in our big US cities and reduce the money we send overseas mostly to unfriendly nations.

The hardest part, for me, was getting used to what I perceived to be people flying up on my 6. However, I've come to the conclusion that I just don't care anymore. My short 2 lane trip in the morning has enough passing zones for anyone, excepting perhaps a 50cc scooter, the room to get by. However, even if they couldn't, it's under 6 miles. The yest of my trip to work is spent on 70/65 PSL limit interstates. There's at least 2 lanes one way, and sometimes 5. I have yet to have any issues with traffic going around. But it took months to build up that particular traffic nerve ;).

Hi All:

___Argument at the "Party." The Accord's FE has saved me over $10,000 from the std. non-hypermiling Accord driver over the three + years of ownership. Darn near paid a year of mortgage payments :rolleyes: :)

___In the bigger scheme, oil is not becoming any more plentiful, we have only seen the beginning of the "Peak Oil Pain" pain and we are going to rely on our enemies even more to keep us hooked up as a junkie is to his dealer. When it becomes painfully obvious , fuel becomes unavailable at the stations in a few years or at least at prices so high even the most brain dim FSP owner has to sit up and take notice, this will all come around again.

___About the girl's... I already have that situation covered although I have met some of the most spectacular female hypermilers in the country and am very fortunate to have done so. Rani, Debbie, Laurie, Neicy and Jennie are only a few that come to mind.

___Good Luck

___Wayne

Their second complaint is that hypermilers are always holding other drivers back by driving so slow. I secretly think that some of them are intimidated by trying something new and so they put hypermiling down as an excuse not to try it.

I would love to have a dollar for every car that passed me and everyone else because their time is money only to come up to a red light several miles up the road and there is that driver, only a couple of cars ahead of me.

Or if I had a buck for every car that passed me, and then passed me again, and later on again.

If you take the literal meaning of miles per hour, that is, how far I have managed to go in one hour's time, I don't really go that much slower than the traffic, I just spent less of that time waiting for red lights to turn green.

___In the bigger scheme, oil is not becoming any more plentiful, we have only seen the beginning of the "Peak Oil Pain" pain and we are going to rely on our enemies even more to keep us hooked up as a junkie is to his dealer.

10-4 -- I am all over that! I said how much I like how HMing keeps me busy, i.e. not bored on my commutes, but I LOVE how much money it saves me. That's money not ending up in the enemy's pocket. :D :flag:

I would love to have a dollar for every car that passed me and...
You kinda do. ;) Ain't it great? :D

Ha Ha I knew this one would get a reaction. Playing devils advocate...

Getting the girl I ment in a mytho poetic sort of way, and in no way was referrring to personal experience or preferred self image. However, at a party recently I became the butt of a joke re hypermiling...

It was that party that inspired this thread.

The fact is, that plastic bimbo's who want jocks driving fast/large/sports cars, are not my type. But this is how they think....I usually hang out with musicians and artists.

I was not trying to convince hypermilers to change but offer what I summised as the bottom line view held by many of my bright successful friends.....and possibly the greater majority

I have achieved 40-60mpg for the last 10 years in my lightweight french cars, cng(compressed natural gas) cars, and 140mpg most times because I ride a scooter.

I dont eat cookies, my dad is dutch and mum's church were scots so I know all about saving money.

My will states I want to be buried next to hypermilers

I drive a 89 Toyota Camry, which was made in 88, so my car is literally 20 years old! The way I drive my car is the least of my worries when it comes to getting girls. However if I hypermile than I can say that I'm really doing everything that I can for the environment. If they talk about how old my car is I start talking about the energy costs involved in the production of a new car. I like to think I'm a noble in driving such an old car driver when the truth is I just don't really have the money for a new car (or well I spend it on more important things - like summer trips to Russia!).

My car 123,115 miles on the odo, made in 1998 as a 1999 to support california emissions and it is in pristine condition. I've had it for the last 20000 miles and it's been gr8.

It would be a bit different for a girl that might like you to see you drive as an extreme hypermiler. If I were in that case I would be more of a mild hypermiler as the shock would be too great on my part.

I'm sure that at least one in every ten people would hypermile at least to the 25% over epa rating. And half if not more of those would probably be able to do 40%+ over epa.
Hypermiling is a lot of work which some people would rather not do and just drive "unconsciously." That's why they don't see a situation unless it's in their face and only think 100 feet in front of their car/truck/suv.

That's why I need an electrical engineer and MAYBE a programmer, as I have some really good plans to develop a hypermiling system for current non hybrids where the driver does not have to be any more active than they are during regular driving....I just need some funds to get this into action. I'll probably make it my weekend project, however I need something beat-up to do the prot0type system on...hmm...

Well, I have the girl and I have to admit that I slowed down because of a speeding ticket. So, I was the guy weaving in and out of traffic always in a hurry. Why? I can think of a few reasons, running late, didn't want to waste time driving and it was sort of a challenge of how quick you could get somewhere. Speeding is being rebellious and I kind of like it:p

Now, I have completely changed my out look. Once I realized how good of a mpg I could obtain with the FIT by just going the speed limit I became curious. So, I started checking out the ECO forum on fitfreak.net. Let me tell you, it was pitiful. Then one night I saw an article with Wayne in it and was like wow! I thought about better mpg and checked out the sight and became hooked.

Though for most people like my wife they think it is stupid to take it to the extreme(don't let that fool you, because I have convinced her to coast in neutral in her AT CRV and increase her mpg by 3-5 along with her mother and father ;) ). My wife seems to be in a hurry and impatient due to the old bad habits that she was taught along with the idea of convenience and wasting time is not worth the money saved(instant gratification). She hates when I drive my car, it drives her crazy(for real, she gets mad!)

Shawn

I didn't read all the posts, so sorry if this echoes anything previous.

I remember hearing a while back that a typical person's day included ~6-10 decisions. Doesn't seem like much if you consider how busy people are. It's just that so much of what people choose and do is just reaction, not decision. Additionally, I think driving is one of the most reactionary tasks for the typical person. It's just barely beyond the capacity of the zombie class - staring ahead, pushing buttons, pulling levers, chasing the taillights that sit in front. The folks here have made at least one active decision that sets them apart from the zombies.

Hi Scandinavian Gigolo:
Additionally, I think driving is one of the most reactionary tasks for the typical person. It's just barely beyond the capacity of the zombie class - staring ahead, pushing buttons, pulling levers, chasing the taillights that sit in front. The folks here have made at least one active decision that sets them apart from the zombies.
___That was a very interesting and excellent analogy! CleanMPG members refuse to become “Driving Zombies” or something to that effect :)

___Good Luck

___Wayne

I was describing my cross-country haul to someone at a gathering
last night, and she said "so what do you do to while away the
time, play the radio or something?" ... and my answer was "what,
are you kidding?? I'm 100% focused on the task at hand, i.e.
DRIVING, keeping track of everything in front of me, in back of
me, relative rates of everybody and what lane they're in and
where they're going to be in the next ten seconds, who's heading
on from an on-ramp and how fast and close they are, what the
terrain ahead is doing past the merge point, my RPM and load, and
even how impatient I might be able to determine how any particular
nearby driver is based on actions, facial expressions, or whatever.
That is my ONLY job when I'm on the road, and anything else
detracts for that." She was sort of amazed, especially when
learning that I did almost the entire trip without cruise control
but preferred to lock my foot within the known sweet-spots.
.
That's the basis of hypermiling. That and a huge space cushion
all around the vehicle, albeit often hard to maintain to the
rear, but we evolve techniques both active and passive to deal
with that too. That precludes the whole drafting nonsense
accusation by definition, and hopefully anyone who's on the
fence about that partiular issue will read this and understand.
.
_H*

Hi Al:

___There are certain things you just don’t want to describe to your GF as she simply will never understand ;)

___Good Luck

___Wayne

I think many people don't do it because they're too busy or in too much of a hurry.
If your driving with a cell phone stuck to your ear and your always running behind Hypermiling isn't in your vocabulary. Plus I have found I takes a few months of consciously thinking about and implementing the skills before it becomes routine in everyday driving. Most try it for a few days then go back to their old ways. I have gotten to the bottom of a hill and forgot if I put the clutch in to coast all the way. I did, I just didn't consciously realize that I did it. It's been, I'd say three months and I'm just starting to notice that the techniques are becoming second nature. Yesterday I hit the interstate and automatically set the CC to 55 mph and settled in for the ride.
BTW I was the slowest vehicle on the road in a 55 mph zone. :D

It may also be that many people have not heard of it, or know very little about it.
I never heard of the concept til about three months ago!

MT

It may also be that many people have not heard of it, or know very little about it.
I never heard of the concept til about three months ago!

MT
Yes, and it certainly is not helping that most of the publicity it gets is bad.

ollie

I wouldn't worry about the girls too much. If your current one doesn't get what you are doing then she may not be that complex. You shouldn't be a phoney just to meet the ladys. Eventually you will be found out if you are not yourself.
If you are being judged by your driving habits (Hypermiling), the high maintenance ladys are thinking: This Guy Can't Afford Me. No Loss, move on!

I too am a conservative political hypermiler, I like to think of myself as a maverick.

I jetisoned the AMC and NPR when they played to their constits and tried to portray me in a bad light. I am more environmental than a majority of their faithful. I have witnessed this firsthand, I don't buy the talk but the action.

I am also very thrifty with my money (CHEAP). That skill proved to my future wife that I was able to provide.....my$$$ and credit score got me into a house that is not a McMansion. I will be able to weather the upcomming economic downturn.

Even though I don't have a depreciating FSP and the payments that go with it.

Hey MT I'm comming for you(MPG), I just have to keep the kids and spouse from driving my wheels!

Yes, and it certainly is not helping that most of the publicity it gets is bad.

ollie



Yeah, I am glad I found out about it from the good guys first! :)

Hey MT I'm comming for you(MPG), I just have to keep the kids and spouse from driving my wheels!


Uh oh! :p Well, I am not that hard to catch :D

Are you moderating? That was a pretty fast come back.

I'm hoping my '97 is going to last longer than your '91.
But all my wheels are out of the stable right now, AKA I'm not driving.

Another thing to note to the members, I found myself blowing some perfect FAS situations this week with the radio OFF. I think HM is a skill that you must be fully involved in to acheive the max MPG. My mind was wandering and I came to: in mid glide situations, TOO LATE! ARGHH!

Another note: I like to think of HM as a jigsaw puzzle, you don't need to use all of the pieces to get to the big picture!

Are you moderating? That was a pretty fast come back.


Nope just hangin' out at my favorite forum :)

I'm hoping my '97 is going to last longer than your '91.
But all my wheels are out of the stable right now, AKA I'm not driving.


Well, then yours should last a lot longer! :) You might have a non driving long wait, my cars seem to keep on going, my delivery van has almost 300,000, and the Mitsu only has 60,000, though since I only paid 900 clams for it, Any major repair that comes up may send it to the scrap yard :D

Another thing to note to the members, I found myself blowing some perfect Fas situations this week with the radio OFF. I think HM is a skill that you must be fully involved in to acheive the max MPG . My mind was wandering and I came to: in mid glide situations, TOO LATE! ARGHH!



Interesting, how does the radio off effect your concentration?

Another note: I like to think of HM as a jigsaw puzzle, you don't need to use all of the pieces to get to the big picture!


Yeah, and the more pieces you get together the more complete the big picture will be.
Sometimes that involves stepping out of our comfort zone. ;)

http://www.modelinggod.com/thewall.html

MT

quote:
Yes, and it certainly is not helping that most of the publicity it gets is bad.
ollie

Yeah, I am glad I found out about it from the good guys first! :)

I heard about it from the bad quys, and joined anyway.

--Dean

I have just begun this journey to hypermile and the reactions from family and friends are interesting.

My dad thinks it is dangerous. Mom thinks it is too difficult, sister is ambivalent and brother thinks it is annoying.

My friends think it is just another goofy thing I do.

The biggest thing is that everyone thinks they are too busy to do it, they drive fast because the kids held them up in the morning, they are running late for a meeting etc. The reality is that changing the way I drive has added only 5-10 minutes to my 35-40 minute commute. That means I leave ten minutes earlier in the morning. In city driving it is more obvious to point out that even though they made it to the light first, the grandma next to them got there while it was red too and didn't use $1 worth of gas to get there.

I am 2 weeks into driving my "new to me" Camry vs. my old F-150 and can show them that I have saved a minimum of $120 in two weeks. That's $3000+/year. I will spend an additional 50-75 mins/week on my commute, that's an hourly rate of between $48 and $72 per hour (tax free!). I can do that.

In a little more than a year I will have paid off the purchase price of the Camry + additional insurance costs (~$20 a month). In addition to the gas savings I am also saving the money required for maintaining the truck which has more expensive tires (by a factor of 5), uses more oil at each oil change, needs bigger and more expensive brake pads and rotors, needs to have the 4x4 serviced every 30000 miles etc. I anticipate I will put less than 5000 miles on the truck each year from now on as it will be used for very bad weather conditions, hunting trips and pulling trailers only.

The last reason I ever give anyone for hypermiling is that it helps keep pollution down. My experience is that many people only want to help doing the right thing by Mother Earth if it directly helps them first. Well, I challenge anyone to find anything easier with more immediate direct effects than hypermiling.

My dad thinks it is dangerous. Mom thinks it is too difficult, sister is ambivalent and brother thinks it is annoying. :) That about covers it! My wife is like your brother (and I'm like your mother).
In a little more than a year I will have paid off the purchase price of the Camry + additional insurance costs (~$20 a month). Same here (different vehicles). My Fit is paying for itself in fuel cost savings, and allowing me to keep my STi for 'fun stuff'.
The last reason I ever give anyone for hypermiling is that it helps keep pollution down. My experience is that many people only want to help doing the right thing by Mother Earth if it directly helps them first. Well, I challenge anyone to find anything easier with more immediate direct effects than hypermiling.It looks to me as though the really big difference for you is not from hypermiling, it's from changing vehicles. That's certainly true in my case, and it's a concept that is whole lot easier for other folks to grasp. So if they downsize their vehicle after hearing your success story, and oh-by-the-way do a little to protect the environment and reduce the amount of US dollars flowing to the middle east, well, more's the better. ;)

I have just begun this journey to hypermile and the reactions from family and friends are interesting.

My dad thinks it is dangerous. Mom thinks it is too difficult, sister is ambivalent and brother thinks it is annoying.

My friends think it is just another goofy thing I do.

.......

I've heard my son's friends kid him about driving slow and I know they think the way I drive is a little nuts, but he says when he tells them I get 40 mpg out of a pickup they quiet down pretty well;). If asked, I mostly just tell people that I inflate my tires and I don't drive like a knuckle head--that is I drive the speed limit and try to time the lights. If they really act interested I refer them here. Results seem to convince people better than anything else.

And don't worry, different girls are attracted to different things--if you want a Barbie Girl, you probably should drive a Barbie car-- other girls are usually less shallow :).

The obvious reasons most people don't hypermile is because it takes practice and patience. Judgeing from the driving behavior of most individuals, I am inclined to think that most people lack both. :( It is not only responsible practice but also helps to reduce wallet blow and I like to think that given these tough economic time, people would change.

As for not getting a girl because you like to hypermile and act responsibly, then those are not the girls worth going for. :cool: I am single and 23 yrs old. Hypermiling is becoming my hobby and I am not worried about not having GF because it might be a turn off for some. :rolleyes: Most girls I talk to and I always try to bring them to this side of the pond, respond positively.;)

ps: Girls like guys that are not sheeps and do something out of ordinary...I like to think that Hypermiling squarly fits this criteria. :Banane06:

I am on my 4th week with a 2008 Yaris hatchback 5-speed. A month ago I never even heard of hypermiling... or the Yaris for that matter! It took making a financial decision like buying the Yaris to discover it. I have saved over $158.00 in gas this month compared to the old vehicle. Point being that I recycle, buy responsibly, organic vegetable garden and try to do my part being green but it did take the financial reward aspect for me to purchase the Yaris. Prius did not fit into the budget and the ROI was much longer due to the initial cost, even with better mileage. Actually running the old vehicle was the best financial decision (on paper anyway) but with 259,000 on its clock it is only a matter of time before it needs some wrench time and blows that.

Driving the Yaris like I drove the old bomb (which got 18mpg) 9+ mph over the speed limit netted me 38mpg, slowing down to 5 over the speed limit got me 41mpg, slowing down to the speed limit was 42+mpg… shooting for 45mpg this tank but think I’ll be a bit short. This is just driving, no hypermiling yet, only DFCO. I wanted to burn a few tanks with regular driving so I would have something to compare to.

I have already identified lots of places I can use hypermiling techniques and can’t wait until next week to try them. No, don’t plan of turning anything off, coasting and P&G might be as far as I go… we’ll see how addicting it is. Actually just the planning of what to do with each flat stretch or hill is fun in itself.

Bottom line? Basic technique of slowing down already shows savings of more than I planned for. I used the EPA rating of 36mpg for my calculations of being able to afford the payments. Some coasting and P&G should save me more and make a new car an even better financial decision. I went from a left lane’r to a right lane’r, from watching the bumper in front of me to looking all around me and planning ahead. From just get there ASAP to actually driving again. Let me tell you, the stress level of city beltline traffic driving has dropped to almost enjoyable. Yeah it takes me 5 minutes longer each way so I leave a little earlier. Driving the Yaris, every MPG I gain saves me around $1.00 a week @ $4.00/gallon. At $3.75/gallon it is around $0.85. Huge savings? Maybe not but all those pennies add up and with the more enjoyable drive, priceless.

As far as being the dork going slow in the right lane? I have found there are others doing the same thing. Just as we had ‘packs’ to travel with in the left lane, they do exist in the right lane also! Speed adjustments there also, get in a pack going 80 and you go 80, get in a pack going 55 and you go 55 with them. It’s those damn pulse and glide ba$tards that screw the system up! :p That is until I can get in the groove with them! Oh, and the girls? I have a little black gal that will go with me regardless of how slow or fast I drive. As long as she gets to go swimming in a muddy pond at the end, she’s one happy retriever.

I actually enjoy the beltline. It's posted at 60 MPH vs the 65 on I40. The only real pain is the amount of lanes that appear and disappear for exits as you move along. People perceive that your then driving "slow" in anything but the right most lane. I hardly ever have cause to drive 440 over 40 though. I did take 440 last thursday to get around an accident at Wade Ave, and it was pretty smooth going.

Posted at 60 but traffic flows at 70 or better. I used to drive 440 every day, Cary to Crapital Blvd then up to Wake Forest. It was fun if you were in the left lane cruising with the flow. Go the speed limit and you were the backup with folks flying around ya. I take 40 to 540 now and the 540 (posted at 65MPH) traffic really flies, 75 to 80+MPH, for the 6:30 AM commute. I now find my little groups of right laner’s and we amble happily along out of their way. Safer in the right lane? Only when you are not going by an exit where folks fly around you to take the exit at the last possible second! :eek:

I hear so many of you say that hypermiling is relaxing. For me it pretty much is if I'm on the freeway but, I have to tell you, in town with all of those traffic signals it just gets my temper going because of the idiotic timing of the lights. It seems like no two days are the same for the lights. I started turning my engine off if I had to stop at a light. That has worked out real well but then I have to re-adjust the volume on my radio each time and that was taking my attention off my driving so now I drive with the radio off in town. I also never talk on my cell when I drive. I'm hoping that when I fill up on Labor Day this will prove to be my first 50 MPG tank.

See you all in the Fall Economy Run!

Meh, I40, 95, 440, I still run at or below the limit. On 440 I just run at the limit and have yet to run into any issues. On I40, I run at 55 in both the PSL of 65 and 70. Still no issues. I used to take issue with people flying up my rear, but I've not even been honked at in months. I've had people cut in front of me to take an exit, but I'm usually going slow enough that I don't usually even need to slow down or avoid them. My only problem the last few days is having someone follow me, when they could clearly pass, but decide to glue themselves to my butt instead. And then swing around to pass within a quarter mile of their exit. That move just boggles the mind.

I have only been doing this for a few weeks, and my current mpg is saving me $202.00 per month over my old mpg. That's a little more than a cookie a day, although I understand that it may not be as lucrative for someone who doesn't drive 30,000 miles per year.

I have been hypermiling for a few months now, and as far as being seen as "geeky" or "nerdy" for driving slow and hypermiling, I would much rather be the nerd than the wannabe macho who wants to be all "gangsta" and drives around in his raised F-150 with the "cool" factor that is actually non-existent.

When I ever speak to acquaintances about hypermiling, they can say what they like about it, and after I correct their misconceptions, I always tell them just what numbers I am pulling out of using these techniques and they usually can't argue with that.

As for the girls, I met my girlfriend before I was seriously into hypermiling, and now that I am, she has truly gotten used to it. She considers me to be the safest driver she knows. She even commented on my driving last week, where I was accelerating harder than usual, saying "wow, you're driving faster than usual" :p She also finds this pragmatic, conservative attitude of mine more attractive than if I was a a wasteful poseur.