Every now and then we are told of various ways to improve fuel economy, from proper tire inflation, tune ups, limiting airconditioning or keeping windows rolled, regular tuneups and optimum gear shifting for a standard etc.
The problem as I see it is that though we are aware, the exact benefit of paying attention to fuel saving measures are vague and often overcome by other demands on our attention with more tanglible results.
The last few days, I’ve been thinking obout how nice it would be to have a digital fuel economy gauge on my dashboard.
As I drive my brand new car away from the lot, I’m getting an instantaneous read out responding directly to my foot on the accelerator. Quickly I learn to pay attention to my bad habits such as needless hard acceleration and staying in the wrong gear to long.
This is neat! I’m trying to fiddle around and keep the readouts as high as possible.
Lets add 5 psi to the tires.
Gee, I’m getting an extra 2 mpg at 50mph. I’ll have to keep tire pressure in mind when I can’t get back up there in the future. Or, what if I add another 5 psi?
Damn, I’m not getting anywhere near the mpg I used to. Better take it to the shop.
I can’t see in this day and age of electronics that merging a fuel flow monitor with the standard odometer can’t be accomplished cheaply.
What I’d like to know is if this idea excites you as much as it does me.
It probably wasn’t as accurate as what your describing, but my very first car had one of those.
It was a 1984 Towncar. I don’t know why it had one, though, they could’ve given me the same amount of information with a little sticker that said, “Sucktastic.”
My grandfather’s mid-90s (?) Riviera has one, too.
My car has a digital read out of fuel consumption. It shows it in MPG. I think a lot of newer, or mid-high end cars have these. To be honest, it doesn’t change much with they way I drive. You ALWAYS get horrible readings when you start from a standing stop. Maybe it keeps me from going too fast on the high end, but even that, at least in my car, is not a huge difference.
Maybe if it took into account cost of gas and showed money spent, but even that seems small on a per moment basis.
My car (Hyundai elantra, 2005) has one, but it appears to be cumulative over my entire driving history. When I reset it while on the highway, it was telling me I was getting about 35mpg. It has since dropped down to 27mpg and stays there, unchanging. I don’t feel like resetting it constantly to see my current mpg, especially since I seem to have to drive several miles before it shows a reading anyway.
My car has the instantaneous read out and an “over time” read out that can be reset. Car is a 2005 Mini Cooper S, for what it’s worth. I find the best way to conserve gasoline is just not to drive too much.
My 1996 Chrysler LHS had an instantaneous readout, as does my friend’s 1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee. That feature was part of the optional EVIC on most Dodges, Chryslers and Jeeps since the late 80’s
In 2002, I think they deleted the instantaneous readout, and it just gives an average fuel economy. If you go on the average economy setting and hit reset while driving, it’s almost as good as an instantaneous reading. At least thats what I do on my 2004 Grand Cherokee.
ETA:
It was deleted in 2003, at least on the Grand Cherokees
My Camry Hybrid has an analog gauge in place of the tach that shows my instantaneous milage, plus a digital readout of my mpg since my last fillup. It’s pretty cool and it does help maximize the efficiency and let you see how your driving habits affect your milage.
My second car had a digital instantaneous readout and it had a standard transmission. I remember getting off the highway once doing 70 mph and pushing in the clutch. Let’s see… 70 mph and the engine at idle? I think I was getting like 80000 mpg for a couple of seconds.
In addition to both instantaneous and trip mpg, I have TPMS which constantly monitors the pressure of each tire and lets me know if one’s below spec. While I don’t pay as much attention to the efficiency indicator during city driving (too many distractions) I do often keep a closer eye on it on longer trips and try and max my economy. Plus, it can be a pretty good indicator of the general health of your car.
My 2000 Town & Country minivan has both average MPG and instantaneous MPG indicators. I quickly learned to pay no attention to the latter. Going downhill with the cruise on = 92 MPG? I don’t think so. (I’m sure it’s accurate, but in practical terms it’s meaningless.)
The average MPG gauge seems pretty accurate against my manual calculations.
My Chevy Impala has this (instantaneous and average). It also can tell you things like how many gallons of gas you’ve used over the lifetime of the car and how many miles left before you run out of gas. I usually leave it on the compass and temperature setting. I haven’t found that the instantaneous MPG does much for me, either. Yes, highway driving is better than city driving.
It’s also got the low tire pressure indicator, an indicator when you need an oil change (not just the red idiot light we’re all familiar with) and it makes a binging noise if you accidentally leave your turn signal on too long! Amazing vehicle.
My sister’s Prius has an instantaneous mileage readout, and it it is pretty much useless because it moves around too much. It’s just impossible to remain under exactly the same driving conditions long enough to learn anything meaningful. Even a very minor change up or downhill makes a pretty large change.
