Recumpence

As I said, the AC condensor is back there along with the top half of the engine radiator. Trust me, I had the front of the car apart, that is what is back there. So, I have some numbers for you; Over the last 8,000 miles I have averaged 54.5mpg. If I really try hard, I can average 57 or 58mpg. I have seen days up at 60mpg, but I have only had a couple of those and those days are done with pretty much no driving over 45mph. Again, I struggle to hit 57 or 58mpg in a given day of 130 miles of driving. Well, today (120 miles) averaged 61.1mpg! Now, granted that may be a one time anomaly. But, I highly doubt it. Why? Because today I had some interstate driving I did and it is very windy, two things that normally kill mileage. But, again, I rolled into my driveway at 61.1mpg for the day. :) Obviously, I need to see what my days average over a more extended period of time. However, I am more than excited with these numbers. Hopefully I can see another 3mpg improvment with the additional mods I have planned. I will keep you all posted as I put more miles on the car. Matt

I cut the panel with a saber saw and a masonry bit. The oval holes were cut with a 2 inch holesaw on my drill press and connected with the saber saw. The license plate opening was cut with the saber saw, then final trimmed with a Dremel. It is fastened to the facia with stainless screws threaded into an overhanging lip that is behind the grille. The stock grille will snap directly back on covering the holes. I have a fully equipped (though VERY small) machineshop. Matt

One major secret is to run the ac at about 78 degrees. That will save you a lot of gas. Matt

Odds are it was "Performing Scheduled Maintainence". I have had the screen blank on me with the car starting fine and not starting fine. Also, if you do not push the brake in at the correct time, but hit the button too soon, the car will not start. I have done that a bnuch of times at the beginning. Now it is second nature to hit the brake before the start button. It is one of those two things I would assume. Matt

I agree. The thing is, the rear of the mirror adds more drag than the front does. So, a boat-tailed mirror would do the most good. :) I removed my passenger side mirror for a while. But, turns out the temp probe is in that mirror. So, I put it back on. Besides, my wife hated being in the passenger seat without being able to see a mirror. I have been told that mirror deltion (deleting both mirrors) adds 1.5mpg to the mileage. That is nothing to sneeze at for such a simle mod. But, I cannot drive with just the center mirror. There are some really awesome looking petite outside mirrors meant for racing purposes. I may look into getting a pair of those. Matt

The warrantee is a good question. First, the center grille only affects the AC condensor and I almost never run the AC (the engine radiator exntends from the center grille all the way to the lower grille). My car will be out of warrantee sooner than most anyway. If I have to, I will remove the grille to bring the car in for service if I get worried. The grilles I am making will work fine in summer or winter. I can always make the openings larger with removeable panels for summer. I remember Ford saying that their 2010 focus benefits 1/4mpg by covering the fog lights. I have considered heat molding lexan covers for them. I may do that at some point. Matt

I posted pictures of the wheels in another thread. There isn't anything to see, really. They are clear Lexan wheel covers. You really cannot even see them unless you are looking for them. :) I am looking forward to having matching grilles for the upper and lower as well. I should gain another 1mpg or so with those (highway). Oh, in case you guys are wondering, the upper most grille is the opening for the engine air intake, the center [large] grille is the AC condensor, and the lower grille is the inverter radiator. The engine radiator encompasses the center and lower grilles [both]. The lower grille will have larger openings than the center grille shown. I want to make sure the inverter cannot overheat. Matt

It is g10 garolite (epoxiglass). UV resistant carbon fiber was too costly. Yes, I have a scanguage to monitor temperature. I was unsure about the look. But it has really grown on me. Matt

Well, guys the aero mods have begun. I made thes wheel discs a month ago, but removed them almost immediately. I wanted to wait until I made my new grille before I installed the discs to see a larger improvement all at once installing them both. :) Anyway, I expect to see about 2mpg improvement with these mods. We shall see. The next mods are the upper and lower grilles, a rear belly pan under the car, and a 3 inch lower chin below the nose. These mods should total about 5mpg gain on the highway and around 2mpg in town. My mpg averages around 57 to 58 right now. So, I hope these mods will put me over 60mpg consistantly. I have about 4 hours in the grille and 1.5 hours in the wheel discs. Here are some pictures. Enjoy! Matt

Yup, it is totally on the honor system here. Matt

Congrats, Dude. This is a hugely difficult task. Yes, the conditions are one of the most important ingredients. However, what many people may not realize is the huge restraint required over such a long duration to get anywhere near these numbers. For instance, you cannot floor the car (ok, maybe once), you really cannot use the AC other than the occasional couple minutes to scare away the heat. You cannot be careless with braking. You MUST use the natural terrain to your advantage. You must coast whenever possible. You must do your best to time each light. You must pulse and glide whenever it is humanly possible.............. There is just SO much you have to do consistantly for the entire duration of the tank that this is a monumental accomplishment. My heartiest congratulations to you, Man! Matt

Here is a picture I took today. If you look closely, you can see a Prius parking in the FE spot ahead of me in the distance. :) Matt

Man, that is awesome! It is tough to hit. But, you begin to adapt to this type of driving and it gets easier. Matt I am on my (if I remember correctly) 10th 700 mile tank in a row. :)

I think there is no way to enforce it. I would assume this is on the honor system. As for people not knowing what the C-Max is, try this one on for size; When I was shopping for my Max, I asked a friend (who's son works as a designer at Ford in Michigan) what his son (again, a FORD employee) what he thought of the C-Max and he simply answered "I have never heard of that car". I couldn't believe it.......... Matt

Yes, that is correct. Rules of drafting; #1 NEVER, EVER draft behind a gravel truck! #2 Look for mudflaps. #3 I rarely have issue getting chips if drafting behind normal cars like SUVs or vans. So, in some ways, those are best. Matt

Hello All, I just wanted to let you know about an interesting thing that happened to me today. My wife and I went shopping and when I pulled into the grocery store (local organic store), I saw the front most spot open. Hmm, I pulled in only to look up and see a sign that read "Fuel Efficient Vehicle Parking". Wow, the first time I have been able to park in a special spot! I thought for sure it would be a handicapped space, but NO, it was for FE vehicles only! I looked over at my mileage reading on the dash and at my wife and said "Well, at 51mpg on this trip, I would say I qualify to park here!" Cool! Matt Oh, the name of the store? Whole Foods..... :)

Hey Guys and Gals, I wanted to let you know that I have had two excursions into the city which required about 45 minutes of expressway driving (70mph) in each direction. In both instances in both directions I have been able to average over 50mpg. There are two secrets to this; #1 Keeping the engine running with battery level high (this is a long discussion as to why keeping the engine running is better on the expressway). #2 Drafting. I look for the perfect truck, van, or SUV to draft behind. What I have found is best is a flatbed semi. I think that has to do with the lower deck on a flatbed than a box. But, I have been able to see extended periods of 57mpg behind a flatbed and about 51mpg behind a semi at 70mph on flat expressways. Anyway, I know many of you do not like drafting (I do stay a reasonable distance back for safety reasons). But, it really makes a difference in mpg. Matt

I am a hyper-miler by my very nature. That being said, I do enjoy ignoring the MPG at times and just driving the car with the windows down and hitting the gas from time to time. Honestly, with Jus blowing me away on his latest tank, I am not too concerned with staying in the lead in the MPG race. So, though I am still paying attention to my mpg, I am beginning to have more fun with the car too. I love throwing the car through a hard corner to show off to whoever is in the car with me that this "Fat hybrid" really does handle exceptionally well. :) I love nearly everything about this car. Matt

Hmm, I have a scanguage too. I have to look into that. Jus, I know what you mean about high MPG being stressful. I can average up near 60mpg, but it takes WORK! I mean really hard work. However, 57mpg isn't too terrible. 54mpg is a piece of cake. My problem with getting even better FE is two-fold; #1 I still have alot of hills and my speed is frequently at 55mph. #2 I have to work out of my car. So, the AC is used (very sparingly, though) and I have to talk to customers and what-not. That takes away precious concentration from my driving. That being said, I still love getting 55mpg minimum even if I am not paying close attention. I even had one very long drive at over 60mpg with the AC on. That was one of those "Smooth roads with few stops" kind of trips. Matt

I have found the best strategy seems to be; #1 -Above 45mph, it is good to keep the battery level high. So, forcing the engine to run a bit more than you normally would is best. #2 -Under 45mph on level ground, use EV to your advantage as much as possible. #3 -35mph and under (again, on level ground), use P&G by punching up to speed anywhere from 2 to 3 bars depending on certain variables, and generally do your best to read the road conditions to glide as long as possible. These three principals are my current driving style. This has brought my average MPG up from 55-56mpg consistantly up to 57-58mpg. Oh, lastly, if you can do all of your driving under 35mph, that is best. Of course, that is not possible for most of us. :) Matt Jus has us pretty much left in his dust at this point. I am excited to see just how high this current tank takes him!

I have a tablet computer with a bluetooth keyboad I need to mount in the car. I also am fabricating a center platform to lay my clipboard to write on while in the car. I work out of my car. So, I need all the help/technology I can get. Matt

I am all for trying anything new. Yes, I love the "Game" pf pushing for max MPG. :) Once I settle into finding the absolute max mileage for my area of driving I will be doing a host of aero mods. So, I am curious to see how these work for you. The guys at Ecomodder are almost violently against them (well, many guys are). No-one there uses them. That being said, those guys hate buying stuff premade. They would rather make their own mods. So, that may be why they are against them. :) Matt

Here is my solution. It plays through the sound system using the RCA inputs and is AWESOME! I have 25,000 miles on my car. I am in it ALOT. Yes, I have it on when I drive at times. Of course, I cannot watch and drive. But, normally it is for background noise and to give me something to watch when I have a customer who is not home or I am stuck at a RR crossing. :) Matt

I know Jus stays in touch with Galpin Ford and I have a friend in the design studio at Ford. So, yes, they know we are here. :) Matt

62mpg is what is needed to reach 800 miles on one tank. That is what you are achieving. So, assuming you do not have any major problems or need to go on a long expressway trip that would kill your MPG, you will make it on this tank, easily. It is cool to do this kind of thing for the same reason auto manufacturers race. Those pusing the extremes show what is possible for the rest of the vehicles out there. :) Matt