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Posted 25 October 2015 - 09:56 AM Now that temperatures are going down for Newbies you may have noticed your MPG's go down also. You can expect 2 MPG drop for each 10*F drop in temperature. So a temp drop from 70*F to 40*F would be a drop of 6 mpg. Here is what you can do to to get some of that back without spending a lot of money. 1. Use some kind of Grill blocking method, Grill Covers, foam insulation or tape. Center Grill opening should be covered all year around, I have been using Grill Covers for 4 1/2 years/ 150K mi. now. I only remove the lower Grill Cover when going on long uphill grades. Worth 2-4 mpg's Grill Cover using Clear Packing Tape Grill Cover using Velcro attachments LEXAN Plastic 2. Use 50 PSI in your tires, not much difference in ride quality, but it improves mpg's and your tires wear great. I got 64k mi. on first and second set. Worth up to 1mpg. 3. Oil Pan Heater speeds up ICE heating and heat available for the car heater. The only Oil Pan Heater I could find small enough to fit the bottom of oil pan was a Wolverine Model 9 Oil Pan Heater which you can get on eBay. You can put one on the back of the block to have a total of 250 Watts, but enough to raise WT by 40-50*F. Worth about 2-5 mpg on short trips and you have heat almost immediately. YA! BTW I put a block heater in mine which adds about 400watts and 65*F increase in temp which is great, but it is very hard to install. 4. Park facing the Sun which will keep ICE and inside of car warmer. If you can use seat warmers instead of heater. Worth 1-4 mpg. Make trips during the warmest time of the day. These are kind of obvious ideas, but they are worth mentioning. 5. Premium Gas is worth 2 mpg in my experience, but may not be worth the additional cost. That is what I use. Note: 1. The first time you start the car, cold or hot, HVB charged or not, ICE will start running when you hit 35mph to lubricate Transmission. 2. ICE wants to get to 128*F before it will operate normally. With ICE block heater and oil pan heater I have been able to get to this temperature and be in normal mode almost from the start. I think it is more efficient to use the EV to get to speed so when ICE comes on it is making significant power to move car, charge HVB and heat up up the ICE quickly. 3. When temps drop below 70*F it's time to block the top grill to keep the ICE compartment warmer. This can be done as simple as using clear packing tape from hood down to bottom of top grill or use LEXAN sheet cut to fit the opening. 4. When accelerating use two BARs on the Empower Gauge, this is where the ICE is most efficient, heats up ICE quicker and charges HVB faster. 5. Use EV from a start to 15-20mph, this gives good acceleration and is more efficient than ICE at those slow speeds. Remember you want to minimize ICE time and maximize EV time to get good gas mileage. Paul

Took me about an hour with pipe insulation and wire ties. It's been 3-4 weeks, so I guess they're not going to fall off. Sure wish someone would sell something like the zippered "bras" they used to make for BMWs.

What are the most essential tips we need to know to improve MPG when the weather turns cold and outside temperatures are constantly below 30 to 40 degrees?