illumik

With the rising prices of gas, I’ve never been more conscious of my driving habits.

I drive a 2003 Toyota Tacoma Pre-Runner Xtra Cab with an 18-gallon gas tank. I usually get between 250-260 miles out of a single tankful of gas before the low-gas light comes on.

I’ve read up and heard about a few techniques that seem to have helped me to get a little more out of a single tankful. I’ve managed to squeeze out over 20 extra miles out of my tank. Here are a few things I’ve tried:

• I don’t warm up the engine in the morning. I just turn the ignition and go. Apparently, newer models aren’t affected by not warming up your engine.
• When going down hill, I put the truck in neutral and coast.
• When driving on straight stretches of road, I speed up to just about the speed I want to go (right about the speed limit), put the truck into neutral and coast.
• When parking, I try to find a spot where I can park so I don’t have to back out. –> Reverse, stop, drive = a little extra gas used than just driving straight out.
• On freeways, I follow behind huge trucks that are going a little slower anyway, and that forces me to stay slower. Apparently, 55mph saves gas over going 65mph.
• I don’t try to maintain the speed limit when I’m going uphill. If I’m moving at a steady rate and I start to slow as I start to climb a hill, I don’t press down any harder on the gas. I just let the truck slow down and I still make it up the hill.
• I minimize my AC usage by opening my windows on surface streets. When I’m going faster than 50mph, I close the windows and use the AC. Supposedly, this is more efficient as driving more than 50mph with the windows open causes more drag on the vehicle and you’re better off using AC at this point.
• I roll through stop signs. Ok, I don’t always do this and I don’t condone it, but I’m conducting an experiment. A weak argument, but this was also a tip mentioned on the radio by someone conducting the same type of experiment (But he’s hardcore –> He takes his shoes off so he can get more sensitivity in his feet when pressing down on the gas). Gee,… the high price of gas is causing us to break laws. =/

All of this was just an experiment I conducted after my last refill and I was surprised at how much it worked. Now, I dind’t always follow the above points, since, well, I was just in a hurry sometimes, or it was too insanely hot and I needed the AC!

But I was still able to squeeze an extra 20 miles from my tank and at that point, my low-gas light wasn’t even coming on. I refilled today and am going to continue with my little experiment and see if I can get even more out of my tankful.

What was up with that sky here in South Bay this sad Friday, June 13, 2008?

Perhaps it was just some strange manifestation in nature of our collective hearts upon learning of Sean’s passing? It was like the sky grew “sadder” as the news reached family and friends as the day wore on…

Rest in peace, Sean… We’ll all miss you so much…