Top UP or hardtop wil improve highway mileage. I imagine having the top down on the highway hurts mpg a bit.

 

i get 500mpg with the top down all the time guys

 

try timing stop lights when driving in the city. if u see red in front of you theres no point in speeding towards the light to just hit the brakes to stop. just slow down and cruise and try to hit the light right when it turns green so you dont have to stop and if you see a stale green light speed up to catch it.

 

First of all how do you figure coasting uses no gas? your engine is still at idle.

On other hondas, if you hook up an afr gauge, you will see that coasting in gear, will determine an 'air' reading. Which is different than the afr of lets say 14.8 that will appear at idle. Now, coasting in neutral...some would say that is counter productive because it is a COMPLETE waste of gas.

BMW, apparently, did a study a while ago and they found that the best mileage was obtained accelerating moderately up to speed. But, then again that isnt a Honda that was tested.

 

Sweet spot is the engine rmp at which the car will achieve it's intended use in the most efficient way.

For acceleration = highest rpm before power goes down and rpm's in next gear produce most power. Usually, just before redline to ~6k in next gear.

For fuel economy = lowest rpm before power goes up and rpm's in next gear can actually move the car without "bogging"(?sp) the engine.

[QUOTE=ikeyballz,Feb 21 2009, 09:33 PM]
the BEST way to save gas though, imho, is to just drive slower/calmer, dont jackrabbit start/slam brakes to stop.

 

how much engine wear does engine braking cause?

 

none, relative to the alternative.