Wayne Gerdes and a reporter for CBS are taking two Prius from Chicago to New York as part of a news piece on hepermiling. They left this morning a 5:00 AM. You can follow Wayne's progress here. Also CBS aired a clip on the departure this morning. If anyone saw it and happened to record it please post it.
Are they going to show his tricks. I can average between 60 and 65 MPG on the highway if I set up the cruise between 50 - 55 MPH, but the wife gets mad if she is with me.
84.5 MPG !! Down hill with the wind at his back? More seriously, I'm not familiar with that part of the country. Are they driving interstates or secondary roads? Is extra instrumentation such as a ScanGauge permitted? The trip is what, about 800 miles? Possible to do it on one tank of gas at the posted MPG. But I suspect he'd be down to one blinking pip on the guess gauge. Does he carry a backup fuel supply, say one gallon in a can, just in case? Or is that outside the envelope for the news story; Folks, this is a real nail biter. Will Wayne make to Rockefeller Center, or will he be stranded in the middle of the Lincoln Tunnel at rush hour? Film at 6:00.
Here's the link to the CBS news item and video Double Your Gas Mileage By "Hypermiling", Expert Tells How; Bianca Solorzano Gives It A Go - CBS News I'm anxious to see how he does across I-80 in PA, since it's the interstate I drive on most often. At best I can get about 50 mpg going 65-75 mph. Lots of hills and large trucks.
JUST DRIVE IT. Hypermiling is not practical for the typical driver, and with some particulars safe or even legal. It's not something to endorse as a solution for our efficiency & emission problems. So... what is the purpose of this? .
I made the trip about 2 months ago from Akron I-76 - I-80 in PA to State College I got 54 MPG on the way there at about 70 MPH (good tailwind that day)
I GoogleMapped the path from Chicago, IL to the IL/OH border. Granted I don't know exactly where in Chicago they left from but Google calculated the distance as 178 miles. It took 4:35 to get from Chicago to the IL/OH border (11:50 - 7:15). That's 178 miles in 4:35 which comes to an average of 39.5 mph. The distance from Chicago to New York (again guessing) is 790 miles. At an average 40mph, he should be rolling (gliding) to a stop in around 19.75 hours. Assuming he topped the tank, he might make it on about 11.3 gallons.
Wayne called at 1:30 he was at mile marker 74 which puts him 248 into the trip. He actually got started at 7:15. that gives him an average speed of 47.3. This includes some city driving in Chicago and some traffic in Chicago on the freeway. He said he is going between 50 and 55 most of the time. At mile maker 74 (total 248 miles) he is at 72.0 MPG.
While a agree that hypermiling is not practical for the typical driver. It is good to determine what the car is capable of and find out what techniques actually work on the road. That way, these techniques and procedures when practical can be incorporated into future designs. Additionally, some techniques and practices may be used in normal driving. For instance, Warp Stealth is a technique that I use all the time in my area. I would not have know about it unless someone would have discovered it on this forum. I have no problem with people who have a Prius, and as you say, "just drive it". Unlike them, I like others want to see what are vehicles are capable of. You're not against that are you?
Perhaps I'm misunderstanding the meaning of the word hypermiling. As far as I know hypermiling is not impractical, unsafe, or illegal. On the other hand, some people might choose to drive in impractical, unsafe, or illegal ways to accomplish their hypermiling, but in no way does hypermiling require such actions. For that matter, some hypermiling techniques are actually more practical than the way many typical drivers drive their vehicles. Some hypermiling techniques result in increased safety, and all the legal hypermiling techniques are, well, legal. I have to disagree with you here. Endorsing and encouraging safe, intelligent, and efficient driving habits are a great way to increase the efficiency and reduce the emissions of the cars that are already on the road and unlikely to be replaced in the near future. What is the purpose of this? I don't know for certain what the chosen intended purpose is for CBS and Wayne, but it seems like one possible outcome is that a few more people will become educated to the fact that they can reduce their fuel usage by maintaining their vehicle properly and adopting a safer more efficient driving style.
It's not practical for the typical driver because the typical driver either isn't aware of the possibilities or won't make the effort to learn and apply it. Some particulars of "average" drivers' behaviors are unsafe and illegal. As Danny suggests, this is great for building awareness. Just like any one strategy, it's not a solution by itself. But unlike new cars, new technologies, and new fuel sources, modification of driving habits can be applied by anyone, in any car, now -- at practically no cost.
Any journey updates yet ? I saw the snippet on the CBS news site and saw them set off, read above their progress to date. Is there somewhere else to track how they are doing? Thanks
Is it still 2003 ? That's when this started. Read my blogs. We are looooong past the proving stage now. Mass rollout to the typical consumer is well underway. .
I'm kind of new to this Prius thing and I am still learning about the car. So sorry, I guess I still have a lot of catching up to do. I've only had my Prius for about 1 year and it still amazes me by it's capabilities. It is events like this that peak my interest and motivate me to learn more about this vehicle and others. I'll have to check out your blogs. Where can I find them?