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63 comments on Eco-Driving promoted by the European Commission
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All good stuff. Couple of things they don't mention: Coasting up to red lights (saves fuel, and gives the light more time to change as you approach); and lowering your speed on faster routes - I estimate I save about 15% on the motorway by driving at 60-65mph rather than the 70-75mph that most drivers do. Much less stressful too.
35 mph may be the most efficient
http://drive55.org/
35 is considerably less efficient than 43 in my car. At 35, my transmission will only upshift to 4th and the engine is turning about 1700 RPM; at 43, I'm solidly in 5th and the engine turns around 1400 RPM, with far less friction. The difference per the trip computer is about 45 MPG to ~60 MPG.
Transmissions differ, but with automatics, the most efficient speed is the lowest speed at which the torque converter lockup clutch engages in top gear. 45-50 mph sounds about right.
With a manual, I've been short-shifting in city driving and it seems to give about a 5-10% improvement. City traffic is slow enough that the lack of acceleration doesn't matter. There are places where you need more acceleration, like to safely merge onto freeways, so use common sense here.
I think you are right, unfortunatly one of my vehicles is programmed only to "lockup" at 50mph. If I dont get over 50 it will NEVER lockup. Its possible to reprogramm the Transmission to lockup earlier and even short shift. I wish more cars would have transmission modes, like economy and sport. of course manual transmission cars dont have that problem...
That's CORRECT !
I've driven many vehicles, trying eco-driving and the most efficient speeds are 47miles/hour (80km/hour) and ABOVE !
Ford Excort - Manual 5th gear does not work well below 40mi/h .
My Volvo switches to overdrive at 47.5mi/h.
My Chrysler Town&Country switches to overdrive at 46 mi/h. It has fuel calculator, that shows the most efficient speed at 62mi/h.
But if you drive at the limit, automatic thransmissio switches back and forth, using more energy. 50mi/h+ is the answer.
Mmmm...does everyone else live in a place called Happyville? Around here, if you coasted to the light, one or two other drivers would try to pass to get to the light first; if you tried driving 10 mph below the speed limit, you would be either ticketed, receive multiple obscene gestures, or be run over by a Freightliner -- none of these possibilities being less stressful...
Today I got a fill up at Costco, where there are 10 or twelve fueling bays, and each bay had a six to eight car line. Probably half the cars were full size vans, large pickups, or regular size to large size SUVs (and I include my old VW Bus and its 17 mpg in that group).
The local going and coming is terrific, and no mere $5, $6, $7, or $8 gas is going to stop it, and I wonder if it will even slow it down.
Well we have only seen $4 gas and the reaction...
$5 $6 $7 $8 will be different
"if you tried driving 10 mph below the speed limit, you would be either ticketed, receive multiple obscene gestures, or be run over by a Freightliner"
Not sure where your "Around here" is, but we took a road trip around North America last fall, driving 60 mph the entire time. We did get passed by just about everyone, everywhere. However, the only time we felt antagonism was on the autoroute near Montréal - we've never seen such impatient drivers...
Besides the improved fuel mileage, being slightly slower allowed continuous use of the cruise control. It made for a very relaxing journey.
Now we're seeing more and more drivers taking it slow in our area, as low as 50 on the freeway, even some of the big rigs.
Rick in WA, USA
haha, Montreal drivers are a special breed. The Island of Montreal is the only place in Canada that I know of (I don't know much) where drivers aren't trusted to execute a 'right on red' without killing someone. Having said that, Montreal is one of my favourite cities, a truly cosmopolitan city bursting with culture and creativity.
In Ottawa I've noticed that 90-100km/h on the highway is becoming increasingly acceptable, but we are about the politest city around. I've often mused that in a disaster Ottawans are more likely to die of politeness than anything else... we're like a city full of those two excessively polite loony toons squirrels.
"haha, Montreal drivers are a special breed"
That is so true! We were actually LOL at the gestures and antics of the drivers - we honestly thought they were going to blow a gasket... Relax, people!
"Montreal is one of my favourite cities"
We like Montréal as well - I was born there, and still have family in the city.
We visited some cousins in Ottawa, too, and had a beautiful afternoon (28C on 22 Oct) in a park on the river. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.
Rick in WA, USA
Having spent a good part of my life in Montréal I can attest that most pedestrians appreciate the no-right-on-red rule. Drivers here are indeed quite aggressive at times. If you try to stick to the speed limit on an open road to save fuel, someone is bound to tail you closely, or attempt a reckless bypass manoeuvre. This may be accompanied by honking and improper gestures, all in good fun. This is why I always advise visitors to the city to avoid renting a car and stick to the public transit system here, which is truly exceptional (for North America).
In the European Union, LGVs* are limited by law to 56mph (90km/h) and buses are limited to 62mph (100km/h). Newer LGVs are fitted with a governor, a device which physically limits the speed. The upshot of this is that cars can safely drive at 56mph, and if you're feeling brave you can drive in the slipstream of a truck and save even more fuel.
*LGV = Large Goods Vehicle, a truck heavier than 3500 kg (7716 lbs)
I'm in Vancouver, WA, and it really is a madhouse on the roads. My daughters live in Ellensberg, where it is NOT a madhouse, and I love driving there. However, when they come here, they can't stand the traffic (the first comment is always, I can't get used to driving in town at over 25 mph). I wonder if the difference in "attitude" is driving on freeways vs. driving locally, in town...
Gas is now over $4 a gallon just about everywhere but Arco, and diesel is $4.95 is some places. I was out driving this morning, and they're still going hell-bent-for-leather...those Escalades...those F-350s...
I can assure you that what looks like a madhouse to you will look like incredible sanity to me. When I visited Cincinnatti and then Saginaw, MI I was amazed how seriously Americans took the STOP signs.
I lived in Singapore for 6 years and was amused that the Europeans and Australians complained that Singaporean drivers were aggressive. Coming from India, I was amazed that drivers did not honk, stopped for you at pedestrian crossings (even at 12:00 midnight), drove in lanes and were generally courteous.
Back here in India, I cannot believe at what passes off as traffic. People honk all the time, will not stop for a pedestrian (they would run over their grandmothers if it saved them 5 minutes!) and jump lights at will.
Srivathsa
Here in the UK savage fines for speeding mean that you rarely get hassle when you stick to the speed limits, although most usually go a few MPH faster.
Ten years ago that was not the case, and driving at the speed limit would have led to considerable aggression from other drivers.
During the oil problems of the 70's there were numerous articles about driving techniques to save fuel. I routinely coast to red lights and often have conserved some forward momentum when the light changes. This will also save brake linings. It is amusing to watch someone pass me and then throw on the brakes. Also it is not difficult to drive 55 to 65 when there are two or more lanes.
We bought a Prius for my wife, and the monitor on the dash has provided excellent feedback on low-consumption driving that I've applied to my truck (a '94 Toyota 6-cyl). I coast whenever possible, including downhill with the clutch disengaged and engine at idle, use cruise whenever possible, drive no faster than the speed limit, keep the tires at or just slightly above recommended pressure, use the highest gear possible, etc. It is rated for 15 mpg city and 18 hwy, I generally get 20 mpg with mixed driving. I am going to be upgrading to a high-airflow filter and capacitor based sparkplugs next, based on lab data (most of the crap sold to improve gas milage is just that - crap, but some things work).
We recently drove the Prius from Albuquerque to Calgary and back, av 50 mpg, kept the cruise at 5-10 mph below the speed limit on the highway. A few people got excited and seemed to feel more inclined to hurry us along rather than just passing, but no real problems overall. I've just learned to ignore people when coasting to stoplights in the city. It is actually an interesting experience to watch people zip around you to dash that last 40 meters to the stoplight then jam on the brakes.
I would probably make an exception to all this in Montreal....I'm still too young to die!