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03-23-2018, 08:55 PM   #886
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QuoteOriginally posted by ThorSanchez Quote
15mpg in an A3? You'd have to drive like an absolute lunatic, or have some kind of ECU remap for pure performance. The stock ratings for the A3 have been at least in the mid-20s city and 30+ or even 40 highway for quite a while. To even get under 20 you'd have to be drag racing at every stoplight.

She's not drag racing per say, but she's always fast off the line and does a lot of 0-60-0 between stop lights on city streets. Highway is better at 20+mpg, but it's still not great cruising at 75-90+mph. Her car was rated at 21/28 too, so 40 highway was a stretch even driving 55 on the highway.

03-24-2018, 06:13 AM   #887
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QuoteOriginally posted by ChrisPlatt Quote
No, gas is cheap here too, for now. If it ever gets back up around $4 - and I'm quite certain it will - many will be trading in their trucks and large SUVs.
Maybe so up there, but down here in Texas, pickup trucks are a way of life. And as a direct result because of their similarity, so are Suburbans and Expeditions. Turning in an F150 for a Prius would be like giving up your firstborn son to strangers who are offering you a mule in his stead.
03-24-2018, 09:28 AM   #888
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QuoteOriginally posted by ThorSanchez Quote
My '14 S4, which has a supercharged 333hp six-cylinder that is tuned for more performance than mileage and weighs 3800 lbs, gets 23-24 in normal use and over 25 on the highway. I don't think I've ever had a tank of gas where I've averaged under 20.


The current A3 has a 200ish hp four cylinder that's rated 26 city and 35 highway, and it weighs 500 lbs less than the S4. I don't know if you could get the thing under 15mpg if you were just hooning the crap out of it at the Top Gear test track.
I drive a Golf 7 with a 1.4 TSI with 140 hp, 6 speed manual and cylinder deactivation tech. I can get the car to around 48 mpg, but I can also easily do 11 mpg or even worse. On the highway. Driving style makes quite a difference. One is cruising at around 60 mph, the other is cruising at 125 mph.

---------- Post added 24-03-18 at 17:36 ----------

QuoteOriginally posted by beholder3 Quote
We pay 1.40 EUR per liter here. That would be 2.25 CAD / 1.72 USD.

Combine that with no speed limits on many highways, leading to higher speeds and much more fuel consumption and you can guess that a lot of people have a focus on just that fuel consumption.
Much less likely to buy a car that can't even go 200km/h / 124 mph at least as well (if you look for a new middle class car).
I think what many people miss though is to never drive a car that only barely can make the speed you want to travel at, if fuel consumption is an issue. At the top speed of my Golf, a Jaguar F-Type R with 550 hp will probably use less than my car. It's frugal at low speeds, and I mostly cruise at 120-140 km/h (to save some money...).

Also, IMHO many Germans don't drive all that fast anymore. It's mostly a sea of 130-140, interrupted by a few company cars which of course drive faster because the driver doesn't have to pay.
03-24-2018, 09:44 AM   #889
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the HUD on the new to us 2016 GMC Acadia Denali we got 2 weeks ago ( at 35,200 miles ) makes it easy to track how fast you get away from a complete stop.

I am being very conscious not to " jack rabbit " away just because I am curious as too how good gas mileage I might be able to get

last weekend, on a trip from Topeka to Omaha, and driving in Omaha I got 18.8 mpg

it has a V6 and a towing package

the thing that is throwing me is that I mentally compare its range to the older, bigger and heavier 2002 Suburban

but then I realize the difference not mpg but tank size

the Suburban had a 32 gallon tank

the Acadia is 22 gallons

makes a difference indeed

03-24-2018, 12:13 PM   #890
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QuoteOriginally posted by Aslyfox Quote
the HUD on the new to us 2016 GMC Acadia Denali we got 2 weeks ago ( at 35,200 miles ) makes it easy to track how fast you get away from a complete stop.

I am being very conscious not to " jack rabbit " away just because I am curious as too how good gas mileage I might be able to get

last weekend, on a trip from Topeka to Omaha, and driving in Omaha I got 18.8 mpg

it has a V6 and a towing package

the thing that is throwing me is that I mentally compare its range to the older, bigger and heavier 2002 Suburban

but then I realize the difference not mpg but tank size

the Suburban had a 32 gallon tank

the Acadia is 22 gallons

makes a difference indeed
Miles per gallon is an interesting subject. We have two cars, both large sedans. One is a 2007 Buick 6 passenger sedan and the other is a 2015 Impala, the newer style which is based on the GM...German Opel designed Epsilon II LWB (long wheelbase) platform.

The Buick has the older, but legendary Buick 90 degree 3800 cc V6, which has very good low and mid range torque. The car is around 3500 lbs and has a 4 speed automatic.

The Impala is also about 3500 lbs. but uses the GM 3.6 liter DOHC, 4 valves per cylinder, V6 engine...puts out 305 hp, has a 7000 rpm redline and a 6 speed automatic.

They both get about the same MPG. In the city the mileage is ok. On the highway the MPG of both cars is excellent, not too far from the highway MPG our previously owned Toyota Matrix with it's 1800 cc, DOHC 4 valves per cylinder, 4 cylinder and 4 speed automatic.

Some will say that's impossible, but the Toyota only got about 2-3 mpg better at highway speeds than our two large sedans with much bigger engines, Reason why was at highway speeds ( 60 mph) the higher gearing, the slippery aerodynamics of the large cars were better than our slab sided utility Matrix. At 60 mph the 126 hp Matrix engine was revving around 2600 rpm +/-...while the Impala with it's 305 hp engine and higher gearing , is loafing at around 1600 rpm or so. Couple that with what I would say...less aerodynamic drag with the Impala and the fact that on highways on the Canadian prairies around here...once you get to constant cruising rpm (using cruise control) the rpms are fairly constant, as there is little traffic.

Where our Matrix got significantly better MPG was in town, during heavy, stop and go traffic. Stop and go constantly worked to the smaller car's lighter weight (2500 lbs or so) and smaller engine...as the larger car had to move almost half a ton (1000 lbs) more from a dead stop over and over again in heavy city traffic.

Once out on the highway...both cars were going at a constant rpm (1600 rpm vs 2600 rpm) and the extra weight was not as much of an issue as in stop and go and the better aerodynamics of the Impala compared created less aerodynamic drag, compared to the more boxy utility styling of the Matrix.

Of course if the highway had heavy traffic and a lot of passing went on...constantly accelerating a heavier weight (large sedans) would take a toll on MPGs....more so on the heavier sedans, than the lighter Matrix.

My guess anyway.

I constantly (daily+) check MPG and cold tire , air pressure on our vehicles. Always keep my air pressure a bit more than factory recommendations to counter air pressure loss with cold. But I only keep the pressure a few pounds over ...too much is not good and can be detrimental to handling and tire life. Fortunately it's easy when you have an electronic tire pressure system check, that monitors individual tire pressure to the individual psi.
03-24-2018, 12:40 PM   #891
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QuoteOriginally posted by Aslyfox Quote
the HUD on the new to us 2016 GMC Acadia Denali we got 2 weeks ago ( at 35,200 miles ) makes it easy to track how fast you get away from a complete stop.

I am being very conscious not to " jack rabbit " away just because I am curious as too how good gas mileage I might be able to get

last weekend, on a trip from Topeka to Omaha, and driving in Omaha I got 18.8 mpg

it has a V6 and a towing package

the thing that is throwing me is that I mentally compare its range to the older, bigger and heavier 2002 Suburban

but then I realize the difference not mpg but tank size

the Suburban had a 32 gallon tank

the Acadia is 22 gallons

makes a difference indeed
I had dual 40’s on my 96 Suburban. . . . The time it coast north of $300 to fill the bastid convinced me to move on.
03-25-2018, 12:24 PM   #892
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QuoteOriginally posted by lesmore49 Quote
I constantly (daily+) check MPG and cold tire , air pressure on our vehicles. Always keep my air pressure a bit more than factory recommendations to counter air pressure loss with cold. But I only keep the pressure a few pounds over ...too much is not good and can be detrimental to handling and tire life. Fortunately it's easy when you have an electronic tire pressure system check, that monitors individual tire pressure to the individual psi.
Is too much pressure really an issue? For me it sharpens the handling. As long as it doesn't bulge at the center it's fine. Officially I should be running 2.2 bar, but I tend to run at 2.6. It does hurt comfort a little...

I'm also not too concerned about accelerating fast. After that I try to drive as smooth as possible, and to avoid braking. Braking is the worst thing you can do, in terms of fuel economy (except for driving very fast... especially with a turbocharged engine, which gets too hot, so it injects more fuel to cool the engine down again. IIRC.).

03-25-2018, 01:30 PM   #893
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QuoteOriginally posted by kadajawi Quote
Is too much pressure really an issue? For me it sharpens the handling. As long as it doesn't bulge at the center it's fine. Officially I should be running 2.2 bar, but I tend to run at 2.6. It does hurt comfort a little...

I follow a similar routine re; tire pressure as you do. Manual says 35 psi for my tires...I usually run at 37-38 psi in summer and set 41 psi in winter. In our winter our temps go down to -25, -30 C every so often and our cars are in an unheated garage. When outside temps plunge, tire pressure also plunges with them, even with nitrogen at these extreme temps...so my 41 psi set in a warm dealer's garage will go down a few psi when cold, sitting in an unheated garage in -25.

I'm also not too concerned about accelerating fast. After that I try to drive as smooth as possible, and to avoid braking. Braking is the worst thing you can do, in terms of fuel economy (except for driving very fast... especially with a turbocharged engine, which gets too hot, so it injects more fuel to cool the engine down again. IIRC.).
Same here. I follow Jackie Stewart's old dictum...drive smoothly...as if you have an egg under the gas pedal. I let the engine's torque do most of the work...short shifting the rpm.
03-25-2018, 04:37 PM - 1 Like   #894
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QuoteOriginally posted by lesmore49 Quote
Same here. I follow Jackie Stewart's old dictum...drive smoothly...as if you have an egg under the gas pedal. I let the engine's torque do most of the work...short shifting the rpm.
I love his new commercial:

jackie stewart beer commercial - Bing video
03-25-2018, 05:42 PM   #895
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QuoteOriginally posted by Aslyfox Quote
Great advert...and featuring Jackie Stewart no less.

Wisdom...well presented... in that video.
03-25-2018, 05:47 PM   #896
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I never had the opportunity to watch him race but I remember him as a commentator for racing and other sports

I still like the " Flying Scot "
03-25-2018, 08:50 PM   #897
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QuoteOriginally posted by Aslyfox Quote
I never had the opportunity to watch him race but I remember him as a commentator for racing and other sports

I still like the " Flying Scot "
I remember reading a story about when Stewart first started car racing. His mother didn't want him to race as she was concerned about the potential danger, but he decided to enter some local races near his parents home in Scotland.

To enter the race there was of course paperwork to complete and rather then using his name Jackie Stewart, he wrote down a pseudonym... A.N. Other.

Good thing he did, as I believe he won some races and the Scottish media reported in the newspaper that a new driving star had emerged...a fellow by the name of A.N. Other. His mother didn't realize that Mr. Other was her son, although she eventually knew he was racing.
03-26-2018, 05:15 AM   #898
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03-26-2018, 09:20 AM   #899
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That's obviously a Nikon F he has stuck to his helmet, but what lens is that? Looks like some sort of pancake model. I'm less than familiar with Nikon's pancake offerings.
03-26-2018, 09:30 AM   #900
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QuoteOriginally posted by ChrisPlatt Quote

Chris
i guess that there must be some type of remote shutter trigger

I don't think it is advisable to take a hand off the steering wheel at speed
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