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Tired and cranky from a weekend of moving, I tried an experiment on yesterday's trip: cruise control. One way (90 miles) was with 300# of junk in the car, and the return trip was without. Both ways I set my speed for the limit (usualy 65mph) or slightly under. I also limited A/C use to just a few minutes toward the beginning of each segment to cool things down after being parked in the sun. My expectation was to be disappointed with a 35-36mpg day, but I was mistaken! The trip out netted 39.6mpg on the ScanGauge, and the return trip showed 41.4mpg as I parked. This is roughly on par with what I get when I load drive without FAS or NICE-on, despite the relatively high speed.

This incredibly encouraging to me. What if everyone set the cruise at the legal limit this summer rather than behaving like it's a NASCAR race? It's easy, you don't have to "crawl along" going a "slow" 55mph (don't hit me ;) ) and apparently the results can be pretty darned good. You would think that this would be a good compromise for a lazy but fuel conscious (groggy?) America.

I think cruise controls would help on a national level - agreed that we have drivers with brain activity not exceeding zombies. :(

If cruise control works for you, go for it, but I suspect most of the members here can outperform it in terms of saving fuel.

exactly correlates with my experience. CC gets me within 1/2 mpg of what DWL does almost all the time. In the end, the reduction in concentration and thinking required usually means I just use CC.

Ford more or less says the same thing- other than for very hilly areas where the driver can anticipate, CC almost always equaled their best drivers.

I forgot what Wayne's take on this was- he was at the hybrid expo they did in Dearborn last year where they showed this.

ANd hypermilers notwithstanding, i agree 102%- more CC usage nationally is good for FE overall.

DF- Agreed on your second statement. I am going back to DWL, NICE-on, FAS, etc. now that I have seen what cruise can do. My thinking is that it may have a place in day-to-day FE driving (e.g. controlling speed on long ascents) but I would rather keep up with the technique building until I really max out on my own before throwing it in. Yesterday's drive was an experiment more than anything else.

gonavy- I remember having a conversation with you about CC over at GH a month or so ago. I didn't quite believe it at the time, but now I understand what you were saying. CC vs. DWL alone appears to be a toss-up. It seems that the real gains over that baseline have to come from drafting and engine-off mileage by whatever means are available.

In a 1999 Taurus, I don't have many options on how to increase my FE. However, I've found that cruise control (except for on a hill - use DWL) works very well. Keeping your speed under 65 MPH (I usually cruise at 60 MPH) also does wonders for your MPG. Coupled with the occasional FAS when I know I'll be at a long light or a long downhill is approaching and very light acceleration (always under 2000 RPM) garners very close to maximum MPG that can be reasonably attained from a vehicle.

I'm glad to see that the methods I use are working for others as well. If only I had two less cylinders and a stickshift . . . :p

I could totally get into the 40's MPG!

Cruise control works pretty well on my Land Cruiser too. On a 240 mile highway trip with cruise control set at 60mph except for hills where I let the speed drop to about 55mph, I achieved 120% of highway EPA.

DF- Agreed on your second statement. I am going back to DWL, NICE-on, FAS, etc. now that I have seen what cruise can do. My thinking is that it may have a place in day-to-day FE driving (e.g. controlling speed on long ascents) but I would rather keep up with the technique building until I really max out on my own before throwing it in. Yesterday's drive was an experiment more than anything else.

gonavy- I remember having a conversation with you about CC over at GH a month or so ago. I didn't quite believe it at the time, but now I understand what you were saying. CC vs. DWL alone appears to be a toss-up. It seems that the real gains over that baseline have to come from drafting and engine-off mileage by whatever means are available.

Yes- a gain other than 'bumps in the noise' will normally only be seen if you do as you describe in addition to load-driving. At least in my experience in the HAH. And I do see huge gains above CC-level by drafting and fuel-cut stealth coast (I prefer that to N-ICE coast). I've touched 50mpg on my commute with those, whereas 44.x appears to be my effective ceiling with CC at 55-60mph.

I know Wayne winces when he hears me talk of things like this 'close enough is good enough for me' stuff.