1st Annual Gas Mileage Contest (with Poll!)

[nonsequitur]

Let's have some FUN with a subject that has been beat around, perhaps unfairly to the MINI, in this environment of $2.00/gallon fuel. We might learn something interesting or unexpected! Since we're not driving an economy car, this is a CONTEST to generate honest numbers we can use to answer the most common question from those who don't know what else to ask about our cars:

What is the best gas mileage you can get with your MINI?

The contest rules:

1.
Record your AVERAGE MILES PER GALLON in the Poll,
from data on your car
generated in a continuous one-way run of ten (10) miles or more,
at a steady state speed of 60 miles per hour or more,
with the motor running and driveline engaged
(no coasting down I-80 to Sacramento!),
using OEM or aftermarket street-legal wheels and tires,
a full tank of fuel onboard,
and no heavily modified aero-bodywork
(no tail faring this year please!).

This should give us real-world numbers. The one-way run means you can collect data on a trip without retracing your 10-mile route in the opposite direction, but this creates room to cheat (so Rule 5).

2.
The MINI's computer should be used if you have it available in your car. This provides much easier calculations and accuracy because you can reset the computer while underway. This may give a slight disadvantage because most speedometers are a little "optimistic" by 2-3mph. Please validate your speedometer against freeway mileposts (60sec/mile) so you can make a confident claim.

3.
Your posted statement will be believed, so be honest with your claim!

4.
Complete the appropriate Poll option. Choose the right "box" for your calculated claim; ie "33.3mpg" is selected as "33-34".

5.
You may post in this thread with your "claim" details, if you want to be crowned the "MINI High Mileage Champion 2003 - <Category>" for your Motoring effort. Your post must include a very brief but accurate description of your attempt: Car, road location, road grade, car details, your mileage claim (in format "33.3mpg"), and any technique or tricks you used to get to that number you are claiming. Get into it, the statistics from everyone should be interesting.

6.
Winners will declared for each of the following cars:
MINI One
MINI One D
MINI Cooper
MINI Cooper CVT
MINI Cooper S
MINI Cooper S JCW
Classic Mini
Classic Mini Cooper
Classic Mini Cooper S

7.
This thread will close on May 30, 2003 to determine the results at that time, and to prepare the list of Winners which will be posted in this same thread before it is closed to further postings for 2003. If this works out and seems to be fun, we can try it again next year.

8.
Good Luck, and great mileage to you all!

MINI2 Search hit words:
Gas mileage, Petrol consumption, Fuel mileage, Fuel economy, Gas usage, efficiency

[motoring]

33.4 mpg from Fontana CA to Seattle WA, 1150 miles. Averaging 75 mph. Fully loaded. Two people, four race tires/wheels, and all the tools and clothes.

[tip]

I pulled off a 49mpg last summer on a road trip to Canadas east coast. I should be able to duplicate it this year. (730km on 40l of fuel) 401E in ontario through Quebec on the Autoroute 20 and into New brunswick 65mph (105kph) no stopping for 7hrs (not even for a pee). two people, A/C on and full weeks of baggage.

Charles

[Mini1380]

MC CVT.
823 miles, 3 tankfuls, 26.748 gallons, MPG 30.77 (32.25 , 30.38, 30.58 respectively). Car fully loaded with 3 people (1 was baby), cooler, suitcases, weekend trip from Little Rock, AR to St. Louis, MO, mostly freeway, 60 to 75 mph (one burst to 90 mph to past weaving semi). Tires 16 inch, 30 psi. Air conditioning on most of last 2 segments. First segment only 142 miles. Second segment included in town and around town driving.

[Sejanus]

Quote:

Originally posted by johnewald
(no coasting down I-80 to Sacramento!),

Hey!

[Dark Silver S]

OK, here's a legal hack not eliminated by the rules. Use the Car & Driver technique of closely (dangerous and illegal) following a large vehicle - drafting at it's finest. C&D used a Suburban fitted with extra wings in back, and drafted their test vehicle in between the windsw, about six inches away from the 'burban's rear bumper. Fantastic gas milage~(on the test vehicle, not the 'burban).

[nonsequitur]

Ooops!!! Part of the fun will be to see what people consider, or actually do here. Think SAFETY first, then enjoy some honest descriptions of the attempts.

We had quite a conversation about a faring around an opened rear hatch, or simply starting up high with the engine turned off or at idle (which is how I once got 101mpg many years ago on I-80), thus the expanded Rule 1.

[nonsequitur]

So for our Cooper CVT in a proper situation under these rules, I've repeated 41.2mpg several times over distances longer than 10 miles, at 60mph+ indicated, 5.5x15 7-hole wheels, 36psi, level road, very careful throttle, steady traffic in Puget Sound (rain), 1 person and gear, full tank. This may have to be my honest entry, but I'll continue to try.

Note: the Onboard Computer "jumps" between 40.5, 41.2, and 42.0 on these runs (between 11 and 20 miles) so I'm wondering exactly how it is doing these calculations?

[MarkL]

Re: OBC "jumps".

I suspect it's because the OBC is doing the calculation to the nearest 0.1 l / 100 km and then converting it to miles / US gallon.

40.5 miles / US gallon = 5.808 l / 100 km
41.2 miles / US gallon = 5.709 l / 100 km
42.0 miles / US gallon = 5.600 l / 100 km

Remember too:
1) In the UK our gallon is larger (1 Imperial Gallon ~ 1.2 US Gallon).
2) The rest of the world (and some of us in the UK) use l / 100 km.

[nonsequitur]

I love this list, and the people who use it. Thank you MarkL, I'll bet you are correct. There is always a reason for behaviors.

[Electrc109]

I regularly get 31-34 mpg driving around town. One time when I drove to work an hour north of town, I filled up before I left, and topped it off the next day. I recorded 41 mpg, and I wasn't even trying to conserve! =)

[Sejanus]

I don't think I can enter this contest. I seem to be incapable of staying around 60 mph for ten miles, for one mile frankly. The car is too much fun.

[GTmini]

Perhaps this poll might work out a little better if there were seperate polls for MINI and MCS owners?...b/c looking at the results so far makes me feel as if there's something wrong with my MCS's fuel consumption.

[nonsequitur]

While trying to confirm how to cheat these rules some, I recorded some interesting numbers on I-90 outside of Seattle, WA today.

My fully-compliant-with-Rules run used cruise control to hold steady at 60mph, so the engine was running and the transmission was engaged (it actually displayed engine braking to hold 60mph so there's room to improve). The 10mile requirement of Rule 1 spoiled several opportunities to record "99.9" (which is the maximum US mileage the computer will report out to the Tach face) because undulations caused it to come off max. I got a 4mile segment to max out at 99.9mpg.

I think with careful selection of the 10mile segment significantly higher mileage can be reported.

This is about as close to (no) "coasting down I-80 to Sacramento" as you can get without actually coasting, so as the Thread Starter I am not submitting a Claim here!

Using the significant road grade and calm winds to my advantage, with tires at 36psi, a full tank, one person aboard, and headed downslope, my computer showed mid-60s on two runs.

[edlfrey]

For now I submit 42.9mpg for 368 miles from Austin to Las Vegas, NV. This was the second leg of a 989 mile round trip from Reno to Las Vegas where I got 38.8mpg for the trip. All MPGs are manual calculations after filling the tank and subject to "fill up" error however my OBC has been quite close in the past and it recorded 38.5 for this entire trip.

jonewald:

I have recorded 45+mpg OBC for the 100 miles from Reno to Auburn on I 80 so I'm sure there is a 100mpg stretch in there somewhere.
I think that this MPG Contest is GREAT!
I propose a follow-up contest when this one closes. From a standing start you start your engine, accelerate to 60mph and then hold until 10 miles are completed. Turn around and do the run in the other direction; same start etc and then average the two runs. Any interest?