• Protip: Profile posts are public! Use Conversations to message other members privately. Everyone can see the content of a profile post.

Improve your mileage - Hypermiling an NSX

Joined
4 October 2002
Messages
569
Do we have any NSX hypermilers? For those unfamilar with the term, hypermilers or hypermiling is the process of changing your driving habit to get the most mpg.

Before any of you jump on with thoughts such as why drive an NSX and hypermile, rather just go buy a prius or civic Hybrid, I understand that. Hypermiling on an NSX doesn't do it justice. But just for kicks, what can the NSX do if one tried to extract every mpg out of his car.

Again this is just an exercise, not a way of life on the NSX. For example, Mr. Hypermiler, Wayne Gerdes gets 59 mpg on his non-hybrid 4 cylinder Accord. In a competition event held in a closed course, he extracted 180 mpg on his Honda Insight. You read that right and you can read all about it on the link below.

On my daily driver, I've implemented his techniques and improved my mileage by 40%.

Share your experiences if you have hypermiled an NSX. A detailed write up of hypermiling can be found below. Note - It is a long 4 page article but an entertaining and very informative reading.

http://www.motherjones.com/news/feature/2007/01/king_of_the_hypermilers.html
 
there are plenty more videos like this on you tube

<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/rw92E2RQahI&hl=en"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/rw92E2RQahI&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>
 
I would if I had that kind of patience..:smile:
 
I would if I had that kind of patience..:smile:


I know what you mean. The one thing that you can do if you don't have the patience is to coast or lift early when you know you are not going to make the light. Get to know the timing of the lights during your commute. Hence you can time it preventing situations where you are hard on the gas just to approach a red light and have to get hard on the brakes.
 
I semi-hypermile my cars. Coast, etc when I can, but I always end up in VTEC somewhere along the drive. :biggrin:
 
Yeah, me too. Picked up an easy 20% on my commuter.

Can't remember to do it in the NSX. I plan on doing it, but I get in the car and my foot gets a mind of its own.
 
^^^^ Lol so true...
 
People who drive like this are annoying, and probably contributing to more accidents on the road.

Relative speed is a very important factor in road safety, and people who accelerate more slowly than normal from a stop contribute to people behind them changing lanes, speeding up and changing back to pass them. That's two more changes and an increase in relative speed.

There is a woman who lives by me in her prius, and will not gas AT ALL in the neighborhood. She just idles from the gate to her house. It is incredibly asinine...

A good way to increase mileage that is often overlooked is making sure your tires are properly inflated and your car is well-maintained.
 
Doing 0-30 mph in 60 seconds and strictly obeying the speed limit will get you shot or posssibly worse.

I brake late and the pads on the NSX lasted 30k miles.
 
There is a time and place for everything. In crowded city driving, hypermilers could really be causing more traffic congestion, frustration and delays. At least the "instructor" was curteous, which is always needed on crowded roads.

Out on the uncrowded freeway, hypermile to your heart's content.

Same for sport driving - there is a time and place for it. Use good judegement and we'll all get along (at 80 mpg or 10 :)
 
there are plenty more videos like this on you tube

<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/rw92E2RQahI&hl=en"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/rw92E2RQahI&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>


What....a....Loser.


" Look, see, 71 miles per gallon. I'm actually a little disappointed. I usually get closer to 80 [driving my Pious like a retard on traffic-filled city streets] "
 
I get about 500 to 550 miles oe every full tank of gas out of my 04 civic cause i never floor it on my way to work(most time im on freeway). But then on the weekend I vtec the NSX none stop so there go my savings in gas.
 
There is a woman who lives by me in her prius, and will not gas AT ALL in the neighborhood. She just idles from the gate to her house. It is incredibly asinine...

I have yet to encounter a Prius driver who was not speeding on the fwy. I'm doing 65-70 in my Integra and I get passed by Prius drivers every day.
 
The Prius is far more about image than actual environmental impact. The future pollution caused by battery replacement over the lifespan of the vehicles makes diesel a much more attractive option. My dad gets 45mpg in mixed driving with his Jetta TDI. Way more torque than a Prius, too.

Nick
 
The Prius is far more about image than actual environmental impact.
Nick

I'll agree to that. It's funny how prius sales didn't jump until they abandoned the traditional econ-subcompact design of the 1st-generation prius and turned it into the bold "green" design of the 2nd-gen prius.

It's definitely a fashion statement to some people.
 
I do some of this stuff while driving my S2K. On the freeway I stay in the slow lane and do 55 with the CC on. I never accelerate hard from stop lights.

What's funny is that I've noticed that people who jack rabbit from light to light generally don't get to the freeways ahead of me and I normally pass them twice or so because going slower allows me to rarely brake for lights and keep my momentum up. Corners are never a problem and if it's safe I generally take them w/o braking. I coast down hills and stop accelerating whenever I can coming up to lights.

You can't do this unless you focus totally on your surroundings. I don't mind people passing me but it's ass to cut in front of others going too slow. You have to time lane changes correctly. I'm always looking ahead to see what color the stop lights are and how traffic is moving. You can hyper mile correctly w/o being a danger to others.
 
Well said Wing. I think the key is for the driver to use discretion and not hold up traffic or upset other drivers on the road. Obviously some of the hardcore Hypermiler do not abide by the courtesy principal.
 
great for a daily driver but not for the NSX. I want to drive the car... Doesn't make sense to hypermile a sports car if you wanted to go that slow and be late for everything you're better off buying a civic. I don't floor my car everywhere and I something cruise to a stop which I feel is fine but some of these guys going 15mph and shutting off the engine to cruise are lame! Just my opinion.
 
I wish mine got the mileage some of the guys here get- best for me was 26mpg, all freeway, and worst was 23mpg all city. Driving what I consider gently gets me 25 in mixed driving, and I'm not hammering the throttle or passing everyone, either.

Thinking of getting an old Civic as a second car. Even the hatchback would have more room inside, and 35mpg can't hurt.

Nick
 
Wow! Looks like we have a front runner at 33.59 mpg. Do I hear anyone higher than 33.59?

Within reason it is fun to nudge the economy envelope. On my recently acquired NSX (thanks Ken) I prep'd for an 800 mile trip to Utah. I pulled the injectors and had them cleaned. I had the alignment re-adjusted. I drove the speed limit and refrained from any aggressive accleleration. I verified my speedometer and odometer with a hand-held GPS. I drove 521 miles in the first leg and got 33.59mpg. I did not have any appreciable headwing or tailwind. I used Shell 91/93 octane fuel.

Dave
 
Back
Top