how to save gas

[siph]

yo i just mah license
sweet i know
but now i am paying like crazy for gas money
i have heard that if you leave your automatic car in neutral while waiting at stop lights, you save gas.
is this true
and what are some other little tricks that could save me some bling bling cause god knows i could use it
oh yeah and why are manual cars more efficent and burn less gas
i figured you guys would know the most about this type of stuff
aight
later

[pennypinch]

Stop huffing it and learn how to use punctuation.

[OC]

No, putting an automatic tranny in neutral will not save gas.

Very basically - an automatic transmission has a fluid pump inside that takes a lot of ebgine power to turn. Manual trannies don't have internal pumps, so they make the engine work less. This is why manual transmission will give you mileage.

Also, the method of taking a lot of time to get up to speed to save gas DOES NOT WORK. Romp on the gas pedal, get up to speed quickly, then stay there. This uses less gas than gradual acceleration.

Oh, and yes - please learn to use punctuation and proper grammar. Just because it's the internet does not mean that regular writing rules don't apply. Thanks and good luck on saving gas.

-OC

ps - Really want to save on gas money? Don't drive a gas guzzler. This means SUVs, trucks, and V8 pony cars. If you drive one of these be prepared for high gasoline expenses.

[LPMiller]

geez make the guy write it out as an essay too while we are at it.

[hapoo]

so which one of the IcyHot Stunaz are you???

[pennypinch]

Originally posted by hapoo
so which one of the IcyHot Stunaz are you??? :heh:

[Loki]

Want to save gas? Follow these steps precisely. First find a monkey. Have him fling melons at the gas attendant. Beware, he might start chucking strawberry slushees at you in retaliation. But be persistent until he gives up and give you free gas.

See simple. :D

[Y2J]

Originally posted by Loki
Want to save gas? Follow these steps precisely. First find a monkey. Have him fling melons at the gas attendant. Beware, he might start chucking strawberry slushees at you in retaliation. But be persistent until he gives up and give you free gas.

See simple. :D

Oh man, why didnt I think of that, I've always "Use monkey on bolt" and it becomes a monkey wrench (from Monkey Island 2 to those unenlightened ones)

[INeedAVacation]

how to save money on gas?- one word, "siphen".

or you could just drive less

or you could link your trips together

or you could car pool

or get a hybrid (or similiar gas saver car)


p.s. are you guys sure that the best way to increase your mpg is to "romp" on the gas instead of gradually increasing your speed?- That just doesn't sound right.

[hoey222]

How to save gas...


fart in a jar :P

[CluelessSi]

hmmm the romping on gas just does not sound right...
I doubt it will save gas in City traffic (stop and go)

[Speedfreak]

Originally posted by siph
what are some other little tricks that could save me some bling bling cause god knows i could use it


Today's hip-hop word:

bling bling

How the hell did this originate? People heard it in a song.


It is just funny how peole use words from music, but once a new song comes out with a new word that someone made up, peole start using that. :)

[Blu]

Originally posted by hoey222
How to save gas...


fart in a jar :P


Beat me to it...

As far as putting it in neutral, it shouldn't save enough gas to make a difference. And it's making your tranny work more, which, in the long run, increases wear. As for why the manual is better on milage, the tranny pump thing is right, also, there is less weight, and the driver has more control over what gear the car is in, which contributes. I like run on sentences.

Blu

[Blu]

Oh, and about romping on the gas. I don't think that's right. Maybe the end result is the same as far as avg mpg, but I still think that gradual acceleration is better.

bling-bling

Blu

[Ice-9]

Originally posted by CluelessSi
hmmm the romping on gas just does not sound right...
I doubt it will save gas in City traffic (stop and go)

overclocked is right, a bunch of tests have been done that show that accelerating hard is actually more efficient. The shorter amount of time taken to get up to speed offsets the higher combustion rate, so as long as you stay at that speed for a while, you save gas.

In city traffic, this doesn't work, because you're constantly speeding up and braking, but if you're merging onto the highway or starting from a red light where you have a couple blocks ahead of you before stopping again, it actually does work. I have a gas-mileage gauge on my Porsche, and I've checked this method out (non-scientifically, though). Turns out, the best mileage is achieved by stomping on the gas and short-shifting (think 2000-2250 rpms). But that's no fun, so I tend to just stomp on it. :D Good luck, siph.

[zenbooty]

A good way to drive more efficiently is to give yourself more space between yourself and the guy ahead of you. You'll find yourself braking less. Inertia is your friend. When you slow down, it takes more juice to get yourself back up to speed then it would to just maintain the speed you were at originally. So brake lightly well in advance when the guy ahead of you brakes, and you won't have to slow down as much.

An old trucker's trick is when driving through hilly regions, accelerate more on the way down, and use the momentum to help you avoid hitting the gas hard coming back up.

[pennypinch]

Originally posted by zenbooty
An old trucker's trick is when driving through hilly regions, accelerate more on the way down, and use the momentum to help you avoid hitting the gas hard coming back up. An old trucker's trick? Now, what in god's name would a good hippie like you know about trucking?!?!?!

:D

[zenbooty]

Originally posted by pennypinch
An old trucker's trick? Now, what in god's name would a good hippie like you know about trucking?!?!?!

Where'd you hear I was a Goddamn hippie? I've never been so insulted! Actually, I've been insulted plenty worse before. But I still ain't no stinkin hippie (even if I do enjoy the occasional altered state).

[zenbooty]

The backbone of this nation is the independent trucker...

[froggystyle]

the big problem with busting into neutral is that many people have had the tendency to overbust into reverse and thats just bad news. My friend was trying to get to a gas station on an empty tank in his dads jag. He went to pop it into neutral heading down a hill but overshot and landed on reverse. The car spun 180 and flipped into a ditch. Nobody was hurt cept the jag.Neutral ainbt worth it but I hear keeping your windows up cuts resistance hence raising efficiency. Just a thought

[Fish]

tune ups, oil changes, air filters, etc. I have 107k on my car now and I get the same mileage I got when it was brand new.

Another reason manuals get a little better gas mileage then autos is a lower final gear ratio. Less RPM = less gas (in general).

[INeedAVacation]

ahhh yesss...I forgot to mention earlier....

like others already said, actually leaving a "cushion" of space in front of you so you don't have to slam on the brakes everytime traffic in front of you slows down saves gas (and makes the ride a lot more enjoyable for you and your passengers).

also, it is actually more effitient to have your windows up and the a/c on then the other way around.

and, keep the airpressure in your head,....err...I mean 'tires', near their maximum allowable. This will result in less friction between the tires and the road. -Just be carefull not to go over the max pressure 'cause then you will wear out your tires faster.

oh, and "drafting" saves gas but I don't suggest it because its pretty dangerous, better to use a bit more gas then to be that unsafe.

[Edited by INeedAVacation on 06-01-2001 at 05:44 PM]

[m0j0]

take the bus. it will run whether or not you are on it anyways.

[rum]

You should try different brands of gas and different octane levels. I've noticed that I get a better mpg with Mobil than with 76. Most cars would get better mileage with premium than regular gas, but the price difference makes it worth about the same.

[rum]

Oh and you should warm up your car on cold mornings. It uses more gas to run on a cold engine. This should save gas, unless u going for a really short drive. But its better for the car too.

[ArkiStan]

Originally posted by INeedAVacation
also, it is actually more effitient to have your windows up and the a/c on then the other way around.


WOW...that's really interesting!!



Originally posted by rum
Most cars would get better mileage with premium than regular gas, but the price difference makes it worth about the same.

But then if they're costing the same, wouldn't you want to use premium? Isn't better gas better for your car?

[Ice-9]

Premium isn't necessarily better for your car. Cars are set up to use a certain ignition timing, which is often optimized for a certain octane of gas. My car, for example, was made in 1985 to use 87-88 octane. If I put higher octane in it, it would actually make it run rich (i.e. put in too much fuel to the oxygen-fuel mixture) and get worse mileage. This is often not as big a deal on newer cars, and any chipped or high-end car will usually need high-octane gas. Basically, put in whatever your manual says.

[OC]

Originally posted by rum
Oh and you should warm up your car on cold mornings. It uses more gas to run on a cold engine.

This is partially wrong. Fuel-injected engines run in "open loop" mode until they are fully warmed up. Until that happens, the computer is putting more fuel into the engine than it needs when it is warm. Putting the engine under a load (as in driving) will make the engine warm up faster and go into closed-loop mode for better fuel efficiency.

On another note - most engines today will last a good long time due to the use of EFI. On a carbureted engine, the engine will run best if the carb is tuned to run slightly rich at all times. This makes for nice throttle response and power and such. However, this extra fuel going into the cylinders also washes away the thin film of oil on the cylinder walls, causing metal-to-metal contact between the cylinder wall and the piston (and rings). Metal to metal contact is what wears an engine out. The oil control ring on the piston is supposed to keep a very thin film of oil on the cylinder wall to prevent metal to metal contact.

The use of EFI means that there is less fuel going into the cylinder under most conditions, avoiding the washing of the cylinder walls, thus leaving a very thin film of oil on the cylinder wall and preventing metal to metal contact. This is the basic reason why most engines in the last ten years last a lot longer than engines of twenty years ago.

So, to tie this all together, letting a cold engine just idle away while you wait for it to warm up will cause more wear than driving and getting the engine up to operating temps faster. See?

-OC

[CluelessSi]

Originally posted by INeedAVacation


oh, and "drafting" saves gas but I don't suggest it because its pretty dangerous, better to use a bit more gas then to be that unsafe.

[Edited by INeedAVacation on 06-01-2001 at 05:44 PM]

Save gas, lose everything else ... =P