Wade Burtch

I think that proper pulse and glide driving (like anything, as long is it is done in a reasonable manner) benefits the traffic flow. In Traffic by Tom Vanderbilt, which is a fascinating book about peoples' driving habits there is much discussion about the fact that, while in traffic, acceleration then rapid deceleration sends ripples backwards, which has an overall slowing effect to the flow of traffic. Here is a good explanation I found of the best driving habits to manage the most efficient traffic flow: Cars have brakes that are much more powerful than their engine, and will diminish speed fives times faster than it can build it up again. Therefore, once traffic becomes stuck and stands still, the traffic would take five times more than it was standing still to return to the same free flow speed before the traffic jam. If all drivers tried to drive like you (and me) by crawling along steadily through the jam, they would dissolve the jam. In practice, people are in a hurry and are afraid that another driver will take up the space in front, so they immediately accelerate, only to brake not 50 meters later. This makes the jam move in "waves" that run against the direction of traffic and this costs in gas consumption, rear-end "fender-bender" collisions and a lot of nerves and wasted time. Instead, follow these guidelines: 1. Maintain a safe following distance while driving (at least two full seconds) 2. Drive at the speed of traffic and keep right 3. Look far ahead and anticipate the need to slow down in advance 4. Slow down early and gently and try to avoid stopping completly 5. In the jam, maintain the gap and accelerate gently to keep on moving steadily through the jam. This description is inadvertently describing pulse and glide (with the exception of #5 - the acceleration should be somewhat brisk up to the coasting speed). The best driving habits for maximizing fuel economy in a hybrid parallel the best driving habits for maximizing traffic efficiency for all the cars on the road.

Is there anybody out there with a 2014 Fusion hybrid SE, who has run 16 inch wheels? Tirerack says they won't fit, but as far as I am able to tell, the Hybrid SE has the same brakes as the standard Fusion, which runs 16 inch wheels. 16 inch wheels/tires are better and cheaper for snowtires. Tirerack says they won't fit, but I have a strong hunch that they are using a computer program based on OEM equipment, not actually on what fits. Any thoughts?

Thank you Hybrider! I tried it and it worked. However, to confirm, I called Tirerack, and they say that it wouldn't work - if the tirerack.com site says that only 17 and 18 inch wheels fit the hybrid SE, than only 17 and 18 inch wheels will fit, according to the guy I talked to. He also said that if I order them anyway (using the method you described), and they don't fit over the calipers or whatever, than tirerack wouldn't issue a refund. I feel like he's full of baloney, yet I'm afraid to spend a boatload of money on these wheels/tires only to find out that they don't fit.

Hi! I'd like to buy 16 inch wheels with snow tires on my Fusion Hybrid SE this fall. But Tirerack (and everywhere else I've tried) says that the smallest wheel I can put on the vehicle is 17 inch. The tires are dramatically more expensive on 17s than on 16s.

Hi everybody. I came to this topic after repeatedly encountering the same phenomenon as Aquineas. On road trips, I get better mileage when I travel at around 75 mph than when I travel around 65. The first few times I figured it was a fluke. But time and time again, I do better above 70 than below. I have a theory. Most of my travels are in Pennsylvania, where it is usually hilly. When going slower, generally the ICE charges the battery uphill, and the car is in EV mode downhill. When going faster, the the battery assists the ICE uphill (hybrid drive), and the ICE is more likely to remain running while going downhill. It uses this time to charge the battery. Could it be that the latter combo of ICE/battery charging and assisting is more efficient than going into EV mode down every hill, draining the battery so it can't assist while going back up the hill?

My first 450 miles I've averaged 40.1 mpg. The weather has been somewhat cold too. So if that is likely to be on the low end of what I can achieve in this vehicle, I'm pretty happy!