Zoho Sheet - Secrets to Better Gas Mileage

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Secrets to Better Gas Mileage = Return on Investment Program
Considering a new car to save money on gas? Do your homework first!
Want to see how much money you can save by increasing your MPG in your current car?
Want to know how much money could you save if you bought a hybrid or a smaller car?
Do you know which car has the best fuel economy for the price?
You can find out below in 4 easy steps (To make changes ... click the link above if you are on the printable version).

STEP 1 - ENTER YOUR DAILY MILES DRIVEN
Input the number of miles you drive per day in the red box.
Adjust if you think your yearly average is higher (the average is about 15,000 per year for most people.
Miles per day	40	miles per day
Average	1,187	miles per month
Yearly Average	14,240	miles

STEP 2 - ENTER CURRENT FUEL PRICE
Enter the price you pay for fuel (gas or diesel) in the green box.
$4.00	per gallon of fuel

STEP 3 - COMPARE MILEAGE COSTS
Find your current vehicle MPG in the chart below. Use your city/highway combined averages.
If you are not sure … you can look up the EPA values at the www.fueleconomy.gov website.
You can use this chart to compare your monthly savings if you drove a more fuel efficient vehicle
or to change your driving habits to save more money by increasing your MPG (a 30%+ improvement is easily possible).

Combined MPG	15	20	25	30	35	40	45
Gas used (gal)	79	59	47	40	34	30	26
Gas price ($)	$4.00	$4.00	$4.00	$4.00	$4.00	$4.00	$4.00
Cost per month	$316.44	$237.33	$189.87	$158.22	$135.62	$118.67	$105.48

Combined MPG	50	55	60	70	80	90	100
Gas used (gal)	24	22	20	17	15	13	12
Gas price ($)	$4.00	$4.00	$4.00	$4.00	$4.00	$4.00	$4.00
Cost per month	$94.93	$86.30	$79.11	$67.81	$59.33	$52.74	$47.47

STEP 4 - COMPARE VEHICLES BELOW
Yes hybrids are showing excellent gas mileage numbers; but is their cost premium worth it?
Enter the vehicle name, price and the average combined MPG below.
Does not include misc. costs: insurance, taxes, or maintenance (hybrid battery packs are about $3-$4K by the way)
			Monthly	Your Total	5 Year Cost	Loan Calculator
Vehicle #1	Honda Fit (base)		Gas Cost	Monthly Cost	Premium	# Years	5
Vehicle #1 Cost	$13,950.00					# Payments	60
Monthly Payment	$276.23		153.12	$429.35	baseline	Loan Amount	$13,950.00
Vehicle #1 MPG	31					Interest Rate	7.00%

						Monthly Pymt	($276.23)
Vehicle #3	Pontiac Vibe (base)
Vehicle #3 Cost	$15,310.00					Enter your loan information
Monthly Payment	$303.16		163.68	$466.84	$2,249.39	into the calculator to figure
Vehicle #3 MPG	29					your monthly payment
						and transfer to the left
						in the blue boxes.
Vehicle #2	Toyota Prius (base)
Vehicle #2 Cost	$23,375.00					Interest rate national average
Monthly Payment	$462.85		103.19	$566.04	$8,201.41	is just under 7% currently, but
Vehicle #2 MPG	46					depends on your credit of course.


In short, buying that new Hybrid is not the best bang for your buck. It is over $8,000 more than the Fit over the loan period.
You can put any 3 cars into this sheet and compare (put the lowest cost as Vehicle #1 and so on).
I'll bet the car dealer didn't tell you that when you went to look at that Hybrid … did they? :)


Saving Money on Gas = Helping to Save the Environment

This program started when I was researching a Toyota Prius. I wanted to do the math to see if it was worth the cost.
I decided that other people might benefit from this as well; while raising awareness for better fuel economy.
I have since learned how to drive even more efficiently and I am averaging almost 38 MPG (30% above EPA #'s for my car).

How was I able to do that? I read up on the Internet about using driving techniques (called "Hypermiling")
Many "hypermiler experts" can achieve 50%-90% increases in MPG!!!

What is "Hypermiling"
It is a phrase that describe a driver who strives to obtain the best possible fuel economy in their vehicle. Most hypermilers
use specific driving techniques to beat the EPA mileage estimates for their vehicles. It is possible to beat the mileage
of the best hybrids with a normal gas powered economy car. Some hypermilers achieve over 100mpg with a hybrid.
Anyone can learn how to hypermile. Although the media has talked about it a lot lately, they often get the facts wrong.
A true hypermiler tries to drive safely and is much more alert and aware than the average driver. There are a number of
free sources on the Internet that describe the driving techniques that you can use to start increasing your fuel economy.


Common Hypermiling (Gas Saving) Techniques
Start keeping a gas mileage log
Use a trip computer to try to better your fuel economy (ScanGauge II)
Join an Internet forum to learn from others (www.ecomodders.com., www.gassavers.org, www.cleanmpg.com, etc.)
Always accelerate slowly from a stop (shift at 2000 RPM if manual transmission)
Always stay at or under the speed limit (55-65 on highway)
Use Pulse and Glide Technique in city and rural roads (gas on to speed limit, then coast down 10mph or so, repeat)
Coast in Neutral as much as possible (time stop lights, etc.)
Speed up going down hills, and coast going up hills (it is much more fuel effecient)
Accelerate at peak torque and low RPM’s (about 60-70% throttle to shift into taller gear)
DWB = Drive without using brakes as much as possible (use bigger following distances … less wasted brake energy)
Turn off engine at long lights (turn key back to on without starting to activate air bag functions)
Use cruise control on flat highway stretches (saves avg. FE of about 7% according to Edmunds.com)
Keep tires properly inflated … some people increase them to max PSI (less rolling resistance)
Keep perfect tire alignment on car (a pulling tire hurts your fuel economy)
Reduce the drag coef. on your car (Aerodynamic changes = grill block, under belly pan, wheel covers, etc.)
Use compressor to keep air cleaner blown clean of dirt (only needed if you have an older car)
Only use AC at speed above 45mph (windows slightly down otherwise)
Always keep engine tuned up
Run light weight Synthetic oil (that is recommended by your manufacturer)
Engine off coast – very controversial technique … not recommended or non-hybrids (but some hybrids do this automatically)
Start using websites like www.GasBuddy.com to find the cheapest gas price near you
Use a gas credit card that gives you a discount for gas purchases

Note: This is just a partial list, as there are many other things you can do to get better fuel economy.




Questions or feedback: email Mark Grove (markjgrove@yahoo.com)

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