Driving through Fall on road 242, West of Bend, Oregon - Click to EnlargeSorry, it's been a while since posting. I finished my West Coast roadtrip then had work to attend to, so updating slipped by the wayside.
Wind in Wyoming
The crowning achievement of the Yaris during my West Coast roadtrip (besides fitting a 9 and a half foot surfboard completely inside) was getting 50mpg for about 240 miles on Interstate 80 in rural, wind-ridden Wyoming. I have driven this stretch of road many times and believed if there was any place to get 50mpg, this would be the place. I-80 through Wyoming is a wind factory and I knew the advantage of a tailwind while heading east could help push the fuel economy into the half-century zone.
I'm guessing the tailwind was between 20 and 30mph during my drive. Even with the long, rolling climbs and descents and speeds of 70 to 75mph, I managed to get 50 miles per gallon from Little America to Laramie, Wyoming.
This was nearly the last leg of my 3000 mile trip, and I wasn't terribly excited about taking it easy on the throttle...I wanted to get home. Had I been more patient and kept the speed to 65-70mph, I'm sure MPG could have gone higher. Most big trucks and almost all cars were doing at least 75mph (the speed limit on that portion of Interstate), and I didn't want to be a burden to other drivers, so I stayed out of the way when possible. There were two construction zones that forced 55mph driving, so that couldn't have hurt the results.
Moment of Truth
When I pulled into the Laramie, Wyoming gas station with 241 miles on the trip odometer, I was so anxious to see what the fill-up would be. The first brick on the digital gas gauge of the Yaris didn't even disappear until 97 miles in and the gauge wasn't even to the half-empty (or full) mark when I pulled in. 4.8 gallons later, she was topped off! My excitement and audible, "YES!" made the local cowboys look at me with suspicion.
Wind, Friend AND Foe of MPG
There is something interesting to study on this stretch of road, however. Eight days earlier, I drove the same piece of I-80, but was heading west, into the wind. I did not drive with a light foot and noticed the difficulty of pushing through such a strong headwind. That strenuous portion of my drive yielded 38mpg, driving anywhere between 70 and 80mph. The headwind was quite stiff, at least 20mph or stronger. Quiet amazing that, per gallon, there was a 12 mile difference...just because of wind.
Thanks for reading, and stay tuned!
1 comment:
I have found that wind and 10 percent Ethanol fuel both have dramatic impacts on mileage in my 2008 Honda Fit. And I suspect this is true for most small, light weight vehicles. My typical mileage (mostly city but we are not so much stop and go where I live) is 39 mpg over time. However, strong head winds can cost me 2 mpg, as can 10 percent ETH fuel.
Best mileage was driving a long distance on a 60 mph highway (versus 70 where I live) and mileage went up to about 41 mpg on the slower highway. I have a 5 spd manual and I do coast a lot in city driving, especially when approaching stop signs and signals.
Absolute worst mileage will occur in extremely cold weather (typical of all small engines too - even the Prius mileage suffers). I live in a northern city and at 10 to 15 deg F, mileage drops to 32 to 35 mpg (there is also typically ice on the ground that harms traction too).
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