If you are reading this blog, you are likely well aware of the growing green sentiment all over the world. Here in the U.S., gas prices have finally begun to approach what they are on the rest of the globe, and this action has prompted a new word: hypermiling. First coined in 2004, the word took just four years to win Oxford Dictionary's Word of the Year award, proving that eco-friendly driving is on the upswing. Just what is hypermiling? Well, now that it's officially Oxford's Word of the Year, let's ask them.

"Hypermiling" or "to hypermile" is to attempt to maximize gas mileage by making fuel-conserving adjustments to one's car and one's driving techniques. Rather than aiming for good mileage or even great mileage, hypermilers seek to push their gas tanks to the limit and achieve hypermileage, exceeding EPA ratings for miles per gallon."

So, there you have it. The practice may be controversial, but the word is here to stay. Also, in 2006, the Word of the Year was "carbon neutral" and in 2007 it was "locavore." Thanks for the tip, Rebecca!

[Source: Oxford University Press Blog]

Not satisfied to show off its hypermiling credentials in Australia and the UK, Peugeot is showing off that its compact 308 HDI can spot great mileage in South Africa. A 308 participated in the Coast2Coast challenge running 1689.7 km from the East Coast city of Kleinzee to the West Coast city of Umhlanga - on a single tank. The average fuel consumption of the car was just 3.4 liters for every 100 km. That translates to 69.15 mpg U.S. The model was a standard 1.6-liter 110 hp model fitted with a Diesel Particulate Filter and Peugeot's automatic double clutch gearbox, named EGS6. Standard emissions from this car are 120 g/km of CO₂, so it's got that going for it. If you think that proving 308's efficiency required an expense and polluting event, well, at least the Challenge Coast2Coast decided to offset its emissions by planting trees in Orange Farm, south of Johannesburg.



[Source: Auto News, Auto World]

When the new Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan go on sale early next year, everyone from basic commuters to the most avid hyper-milers should be able to get what they want out of the new SmartGauge cluster. Typically on hybrid vehicles, all the information about power flow and battery state of charge is displayed on a central screen with the navigation system putting it out of the drivers line of sight. SmartGauge puts it all front and center and allows the driver to determine how much or little information they want. The system consists of a standard analog speedometer flanked by a pair of 4.3 inch WVGA (800x480) LCDs. That's the same size and resolution as the Sony PSP. A button mounted on the steering wheel allows the driver to select from four main configurations with varying amounts of data.

The most basic is the Inform mode for people who just want to drive. Inform provides the fuel and battery level, coolant temperature and PRNDL displays. The default when the car is delivered is the Enlighten mode which adds the instantaneous mileage, tachometer and battery charge, discharge indicator. Engage substitutes more detailed power flow, average mileage and the leafy green driving indicator that we heard about the other day. As your driving style gets more efficient, you get more leaves on the tree. The hyper-miler special is called Empower. This adds mileage history bars on the right and an accessory drive power draw indicator on the left. The latter lets you see how much juice is being drawn by the air-conditioning, lights, wipers etc. All of the displays can customized so that the driver can select the information they want. You can check out a guided tour after the jump with Ford Senior Technical Leader Jeff Greenberg after the jump.


[Source: Ford]

You drive like crap and you know it. Stop the burnouts, late braking and 100-mph freeway sprint and you just might make a tank of gas last longer than a day. Sure, automakers like Ford could spend a few million on lectures to teach car buyers a thing or two about better driving. But if you didn't get it in Driver's Ed, you're not likely to get it now. Instead, Ford's new Smart Gauge will teach better driving through rewards. Do a better job controlling your right foot, and Smart Guage adds a green leaf to a display next to the speedo. The better you do, the more leaves you get. Nancy Gioia, Ford's director of hybrid-vehicle programs, tells The Wall Street Journal, "You don't have to count the leaves. But if you're in a forest of leaves, you'll know you're doing well."

You can also grow your Virtual Dash Tree™ for a chance to defeat the boss monster on the final level and, if successful, Smart Gauge will reward drivers with Fordelicious Fruit™, which you can trade for Microsoft Points that can be used to pay for your Sync subscription. No. Not really.

Ford is expected to announce the Smart Gauge today and it will initially be available on the hybrid versions of 2010 Mercury Milans and Ford Fusions.

[Source: The Wall Street Journal]

After seven days and 2,832 miles, I'm finally back home. My week-long stint on the Audi Mileage Marathon is over and I believe I've learned a thing or two about hyper-miling. Teams running in the event were scored based on a formula that included fuel efficiency and speed. The fuel efficiency component was weighted twice as much as speed. Audi engineers included speed mainly to ensure that drivers didn't just go unnecessarily slow to maximize fuel economy. Audi officials specifically warned us at the start that this event was not about hyper-miling, but when you put several dozen journalists in cars and ask them to see who can get the best mileage ... well let's just say they are a competitive bunch.

I participated in the first two of four waves of the marathon going from New York to Chicago and then on to Denver. On the first wave, my co-driver Jason Allan and I mainly stuck to just trying to drive gently, avoiding aggressive acceleration or braking. We didn't do any drafting or early shutdown of the engine. Aside from some hilly terrain in Maryland and Pennsylvania, most of the terrain was relatively flat. Compared to what we would see in wave 2 our average speeds were a comparatively low 52.4 mph, due in large part to time driving through traffic in places like Washington, New York and Chicago as well as frequent slowing for toll booths through most of the states on route. Find out how things changed after the jump.

After twenty days on the road John and Helen Taylor have completed their journey around America and earned a new entry in the Guinness book of world records. After 9,419 miles through 48 states, the Taylors consumed just over 11 tanks of ultra low sulfur diesel. That works out to 58.82 mpg and 853 miles per tank of fuel. The couple did the trip in a completely stock 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI. The Taylor's stated goal is demonstrate what can be achieved by common sense changes to driving techniques. Through a combination of a light right foot, driving about 5 mph under the speed limit and proper maintenance they hope to teach people how to get out the most out of their car.

[Source: FuelAcademy.org]

Helen and John Taylor have reached the one-third mark of their nationwide trek to demonstrate how much impact driving behavior can have on fuel efficiency, and it's working. The Australian couple are well on their way to setting a new world record. After 2,753 miles and eight days of driving they are averaging 58.78 mpg (U.S.) in a new VW Jetta TDI. The Jetta is completely stock including the OEM tires and transmission. That nearly 59 mpg average is well above the 30/41 mpg EPA ratings for the Jetta TDI and includes time spent in bumper to bumper traffic in places like New York City.

The Taylors also prefer to be called fuel stretchers rather than hyper-milers. Unlike hyper-milers, they don't use tactics like drafting behind trucks or rolling through stop signs to avoid acceleration. Instead they focus on vehicle maintenance, tire pressure, avoiding idling and watching their speed. Judging by their performance so far, it's working. We'll be seeing the Taylors in California next week when they stop by during a media drive for the Jetta TDI. If you have any questions you'd like to ask the Taylors, leave them in the comments here.

[Source: Volkswagen]

We've written about the exploits of Helen and John Taylor on several previous occasions. The pair like to get into cars and see how far they can drive between fill-ups. Their most recent adventure took them around Australia in a Peugeot 308 with an average of 75.6 mpg (U.S.). Today, they are setting off from Chantilly, VA on trek intended to carry them through all 48 contiguous states. The 8,000 mile trip is expected to take three weeks and only include 12 (!) refueling stops. They are hoping to beat the current world record for a cross trip of 51.8 mpg. The pair already set a world record driving around the world in 24 tanks of fuel in a VW Golf in 2006 and this time around they will be driving one of the new 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDIs. The trip will take Taylors counter clockwise around the country using the usual array of efficient driving tactics including not idling or speeding and minimizing drag.

[Source: Volkswagen]

Hypermiling is too strong a phrase when you apply the MPG-increasing practice to a Jaguar XK-R. Extra-miling might pass muster, but all it amounts to in this particular instance is driving a $104,000, 420 horsepower Jaguar convertible like it's a $22,000 Camry.

Why not go for big dollops of both performance and luxury when you're trying to rock every possible mile out of a tank of fuel? With that in mind, we lined up a Jaguar XKR convertible filled to the hilt with everything but the
$8,000 brake upgrade. When it arrived, the last thing on our minds was what kind of mileage it gets. Dressed in a metallic red called "Radiance" which complemented the tan leather interior and matching cloth top, it looked like the ride home from the office was going to be a good one. Then the thunderstorms rolled in and stayed for a week. Hit the jump to see how we dealt with the weather in our XK-R.

When drivers set out to hypermile, there is a spectrum of techniques that they can use. These range from the good - don't blast away from a red light and don't speed up then slam on the brakes at the next red - to the risky. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. may be able to use hypermiling tricks like shutting down the engine at high speeds to win a race, but that doesn't mean you should try it during your commute.

The AAA thinks we need a reminder to not risk our lives - or endanger others - in order to save a little bit of gasoline. Drafting, coasting and "rolling through stop signs and driving at erratic and unsafe speeds" are specifically mentioned in the group's official statement on dangerous hypermiling (read it after the jump).

Who's performing these techniques? It's hard to say, but we can assume that the AAA knows a thing or two that we don't. After all, they're out there rescuing the increasing number of people who are running out of gas these days.

[Source: AAA]

After evaluating supercars to see which could go furthest on a gallon of gasoline, the crew of Top Gear decided to try again. What they apparently set out to do was demonstrate the impact of driving behavior on fuel economy. All hypermiling enthusiasts will gladly expound on how modifying your driving style can take you above and beyond the EPA mileage ratings. Of course, Jeremy Clarkson had to demonstrate this by taking the negative approach. He pitted a Toyota Prius against a new BMW M3. No one would ever expect the 414hp V8 powered M3 to get better mileage than a Prius. Unless, of course, you pushed a Prius around a test track as fast it would possibly go and then pacing the hybrid with the M3. Not surprisingly, thrashing a Prius around a track for ten laps provides less than stellar mileage results. Check out the video after the jump to see if the Prius or M3 won this HYPO-miling contest.

[Source: YouTube]

Photo by SoldiersMediaCenter. Licensed under Creative Commons license 2.0.

Hypermiling techniques are nothing new for people who want to save fuel. Often, these techniques involve avoiding sudden acceleration and slamming on the brakes. So, what do you do if you want to conserve fuel while speeding up and slowing down as quickly as possible? Why not turn to Dale Earnhardt Jr. for some advice.

Dale, Jr. squeezed out a recent win at the Michigan International Speedway by, basically, race hypermiling. He drove his last 110 miles (55 times around the two-mile track) without refueling. At his last pit stop, his crew estimated he'd need to refuel with about six laps to go, but Earnhardt turned the engine off and coasted when the caution flag was out to stretch his distance. He was actually coasting when he crossed the finish line, and ran out of fuel almost immedieately after the win.

According to Earnhardt, hypermiling techniques are not his trick alone on the track: "Everybody's doing it," he told the AP/ESPN.

[Source: ESPN via EcoModder, h/t to Darin]

Hypermilers know this already, but What Car?, the British automotive media outlet, released the results of a study today that shows just how much money can be saved by some sensible - in this case slower - driving. The savings can be pretty dramatic: up to £1.20 ($2.34USD) every eight minutes. How? By driving the car at its most economical. What Car? asked fuel economy expert Peter de Nayer to test five cars - a Toyota Aygo, Nissan Qashqai, Volkswagen Passat, Citroen C4 Picasso and Land Rover Freelander - to find out at what speed they are the most efficient. De Nayer's test found that, on average, going 100mph uses five times as much fuel as going 50mph. Not sure why that matters, as not many people are cruising around at 100mph, but the advice to slow down is a good one. What Car? recommends a 70mph top speed on the highway, driving in the highest gear possible and not racing a way from stoplights or slamming on the brakes. What Car? also found that 62 percent of motorists in the UK don't know what the right speed is to save the most fuel while you're on the go. Their "Slow down, save fuel" project goes live today, and you can read more after the break.

Here in the U.S., hypermiling has largely been the province of hybrid drivers. That doesn't mean that only hybrid drivers can take advantage of those driving strategies. When last we heard from Helen and John Taylor, the British couple had just completed a run from Britain to Poland in a pair of diesel-powered Jeeps at 55-56mpg. After that jaunt they headed to Australia for another hypermiling adventure. This time around they used a Peugeot 308 HDi 110. The pair drove the C-class sized hatchback 9,000 miles around the coast of Australia over 25 days. On one stretch, they traveled 1,192 mile on a single 60L tank of diesel and they averaged 75.6mpg (U.S.) over the whole journey. That was enough to gain two slots in the Guinness book of World records for longest distance on a single tank and highest mileage for a journey. The 308 was completely stock with nothing added or removed and also carried the couple's luggage for the 25 day trip.

[Source: Peugeot UK]

Since the advent of the hybrid at the turn of this century, an increasingly large group of hardcore fanatics have taken up hypermiling. For the uninitiated, hypermiling is the practice of using modified driving techniques to get the maximum possible fuel efficiency. There are hypermilers who claim to get over 100mpg from their Priuses and Insights. The problem is that techniques like pulse and glide involve significant fluctuations in speed. By accelerating quickly and then coasting for long periods using regenerative braking to recharge the battery as much as possible and then repeating ad nauseum, they minimize the load on the engine. This is fine when a vehicle is driving in little or no traffic. Unfortunately, when there are other cars around, an extreme hypermiler can pose a real impediment. Differences in speed are often a source of accidents and people who aren't driving hybrids won't want to be stuck behind someone coasting along. There is nothing wrong with trying to maximize fuel efficiency and everyone should be trying to drive efficiently. However, even hypermilers need to be cognizant of other drivers around them and avoid being obstructive.

[Source: Consumer Reports]