Delighted to break the 50 MPG barrier!

[STC]

Hi everyone,

I just filled my tank! I’m thrilled to say that I was able to make 53 MPG on my Yaris, being only my ninth fill.

I decided to take my vehicle on a work trip instead of renting a car last week. The trip was from State College, PA to Reading, PA to Hershey, PA to Harrisburg, PA and back to State College. Total for the trip encompassed nearly 400 miles. All driving was on the Interstate and State Roads, except when I reached each city destination. Driving was between 50-60MPH on the Interstate and 40-50MPH on US, State, and Rural Roads. Average temperature for the two day trip was 72F day and 55F night.

It was very nice to take the long glides into Reading on SR 183. The road was like a big roller coaster for 20 miles. Driving back from Potters Mill, PA to ‘Happy Valley’, US 322 seemed like an even deeper roller coaster. On the Interstate I was able to take long glides using DFCO, but had to also glide throwing it into neutral in order to maintain my speed. I used the A/C in short cycles, 5 minutes for each hour of driving and none in the evening going home from Harrisburg. My luggage and equipment weighed in at around 100lbs. Before the trip, I increased my tire pressure to 38psi.

All in all, it was a great trip… the Yaris out-performed its FE expectations. Now I can go back a drive like I did on my first tank fill… LOL!

Cheers!

Gas Tank mile increments (non-ethanol gas used):
1st Bar drop (8/8) > 120 mi (120)
2nd Bar drop (7/8) > 69 mi (189)
3rd Bar drop (3/4) > 70 mi (259)
4th Bar drop (5/8) > 71 mi (330)
5th Bar drop (1/2) > 70 mi (400)
6th Bar drop (3/8) > 64 mi (464)
7th Bar drop (1/4) > 70 mi (534)
8th Bar drop (1/8) > 04 mi (538) [Slow Flashing]

Tank total : 538 miles
Fuel used: 10.148 gallons
MPG: 53.015

[Revsson]

Congratulations!
The best I have gotten so far is just under 48. I guess I need to think about
a Scanguage II and watch my tire pressures or something.

[BailOut]

Woot!

You are officially the 5th person to pull off a 50+ MPG tank with the 1.5L Yaris.

[sickpuppy1]

Congrats! I still havent broke the 40 barrier, but I also cant bring myself to do the 55-60 on the interstate either, and I know thats a big part of it.Good job though.

[STC]

Thanks guys!

I think what helped was maintaining my MPH speed between 47 and 52 for around 3/4 of the trip. This MPH zone is between 2,000 and 2,300 RPM (5th gear) in my car. I think this is the magic numbers for FE because of the lower RPM and lower wind resistance when it comes down to your MPH speed?

I used half neutral glides and half DFCO glides. Practically all my neutral glides were on the long grades of Interstate I-78 towards Allentown, PA. The section was great for this.... I was able to maintain my speed at around 55 MPH down the grade. On all off ramps short glides, I used DFCO to come to a stop. I also used DFCO on all the rural, state, and US roads...

I would not label myself as a hypermiler. Maybe a 'novice hypermiler'! LOL!

I do know I will be picking up either Scanguage II or Ecometer in the near future. Does anyone know if SGII can give you an average MPH speed in a trip? I would guestimate my average speed for the trip (highway) was around 50 MPH...

Cheers!

[landrym28]

Congratulations! I've broken 40mpg a few times, but nowhere near 50!

[Zaphod]

Originally Posted by STC

Thanks guys!

I think what helped was maintaining my MPH speed between 47 and 52 for around 3/4 of the trip. This MPH zone is between 2,000 and 2,300 RPM (5th gear) in my car. I think this is the magic numbers for FE because of the lower RPM and lower wind resistance when it comes down to your MPH speed?

I used half neutral glides and half DFCO glides. Practically all my neutral glides were on the long grades of Interstate I-78 towards Allentown, PA. The section was great for this.... I was able to maintain my speed at around 55 MPH down the grade. On all off ramps short glides, I used DFCO to come to a stop. I also used DFCO on all the rural, state, and US roads...

I would not label myself as a hypermiler. Maybe a 'novice hypermiler'! LOL!

I do know I will be picking up either Scanguage II or Ecometer in the near future. Does anyone know if SGII can give you an average MPH speed in a trip? I would guestimate my average speed for the trip (highway) was around 50 MPH...

Cheers!

That's how I did it, just keeping it between 45 and 60 with a lot of neutral gliding to pick up speed going down these hills.

I really think just keeping the engine at optimum temperature helped a lot too.

I know some people would get impatient with traveling so slow, but to me it actually helped to keep me busy for the long trip.

[talnlnky]

don't know if i'll be able to break 50 this year, but its warming up, and my tanks are getting better. 2 tanks ago was 41, last tank was 43.4, and so far scanguage puts me at just under 45mpg on this tank. Unfortunately, due to me changing careers in 1 month, I'll be on the road a decent amount doing city driving (probation officer) so my mpg's will probably go down due to sitting at lights. Last year I was aiming to break 47 or 48, can't remember which... came very close tho.

[Yaris Hilton]

Mileage is what it is. It's interesting to track, and to see if you can be more efficient with what you're doing, but I just can't see getting obsessed with reaching specific numeric goals. I'm happy with my in-town, mostly 8 mile commutes averaging between 34-38 MPG. Beats what I used to get pre-Yaris!

[smell my finger]

Nice,
I am in the 40's alot, but havn't gotten 50 on a tank yet. The short trips kill me, I think I need to take a nice long trip and I will get it.

[STC]

smell my finger: For this tank, I'm back to my normal daily driving route(s). The shorter driving lengths kill me too! I drive a little over 30 miles round trip a work day, approximately 10-12 miles of it city driving. My present mileage log compared to last logs shows I'll probably be in the mid-forties range when all is done. Long trips compared to short trips really do make a difference...

Yaris Hilton: Yep... mileage is what it is. For me it is fun tracking what my Yaris can do. Now that I know it can reach 50+, I'm satisfied. I'm very fortunate that my driving environment is more rural than city. Averaging mid-forties sure makes my last vehicle's (Pontiac Sunfire) FE look horrible...

[Yaris Hilton]

A Yaris is pretty hard to beat for mileage, other things being equal.

[STC]

The Pontiac Sunfire, 2.2L 5-speed I had was rated @ 37 miles to the gallon highway... higher than the Yaris. I feathered it and drove it conservatively on the highway... I never got over 41 MPG on it.

Yaris FE - FTW...

[sickpuppy1]

I just broke the 40 barrier last week, but I have to admit I dont try THAT hard to maximize. But still, hitting 40.5 made me just a bit giddy,lol. This weekend we went from sw of KC to St louis for a concert (Styx, Foreigner and Kansas) and graduation of a buds son. We were running quite late and ended up doing close to 80 with the AC on almost all the way there.Then around town driving and headed back. Expecting the worst, I was surprised to find 38.8 mpg for that tank. Cant imagine how good it would have been if I drove a bit more sane....

[Falconeer]

Guys, I am NOT being able to go above the 30-31 mpg mark... Any tips??

I think these factors might be affecting the ride:
1. Fuel is 95 Octane grade (the cheapest available here).
2. Engine is 1.3L
3. Ambient temps are always about 45 Deg Plus in this season.
4. AC is usually on but when I get 32 mpg I am doing mostly freeway without AC (AC on for 30% of time)
5. I ride alone with no luggage.
6. Tires are at 38 psi.

Any ideas??
Could fuel density be an issue?

[Yaris Hilton]

That 95 octane gas is equivalent to what's labeled 87 in the U.S. What the car's made for, and it should be fine. That's not outstandingly bad mileage. If you're like most drivers who stand on the accelerator and stand on the brake, it's pretty average I'd say. People who're getting 50 MPG are NOT average drivers!

[STC]

Originally Posted by Falconeer

Guys, I am NOT being able to go above the 30-31 mpg mark... Any tips??

I think these factors might be affecting the ride:
1. Fuel is 95 Octane grade (the cheapest available here).
2. Engine is 1.3L
3. Ambient temps are always about 45 Deg Plus in this season.
4. AC is usually on but when I get 32 mpg I am doing mostly freeway without AC (AC on for 30% of time)
5. I ride alone with no luggage.
6. Tires are at 38 psi.

Any ideas??
Could fuel density be an issue?

That would be about average for Yaris here in the USA. The factors you listed would have some affect on your MPG's. I know hot temperature is better than cold temperature for better mileage FE.

You did not mention driving style and other environmental conditions? This I believe is everything for getting higher gas mileage. Important factors are...

1. What speed do you maintain on highway and city driving?
2. Flat vs mountain terrain travel?
3. Duration and miles/kilometers of travel? Short or long travel?
4. Slow start vs fast start?
5. Breaking glides and neutral glides?
6. Average RPM during drive and travel?

These are just some of the driving styles and environment conditions that would have an affect on your mileage.

I would like to mention that here in my State, I'm fortunate enough to be able to get non-ethanol gas... Average is around 3 MPG better than ethanol gas...

Cheers!

[jambo101]

That 120 miles on the first bar is impressive,i usually drive easy enough to consistently get 40-45mpg but i can do no better than about 70 miles or 130kms on that first bar