saving gas or not saving gas.... that is the question

[Tom_G35C]

I also heard that the break-even for gas savings is that you should shut off the car if you idle for 30 sec or more. I tried it at major traffic lights and my city gas mileage improved by 0.4 mpg (from 16.3 to 16.7mpg).

It was not too hard to shut it off and restart when I saw the traffic light start to change, but I had to keep watching the light. Also, the A/C and turn signals didn't work when I turned it off.

In Europe it is the law to shut off your engine when you are stopped a while at a traffic light. It's the law for pollution control.

So if it improved MPG by 0.4 in city driving, it saved me about 0.5 gal of gas per fillup, or $2. I'm not sure that it's worth the inconvenience except on principle to save gas.

[mward]

Alternative plan: floor it every chance you get, give OPEC the finger each time, pay the money, have FUN, and buy the fastest hydrogen-car you can get in 5 years. Don't forget to take super good care of your car, leave it stock and sell it on Cars.com to someone else for half of what you paid for it.

[the750]

Originally Posted by thatguy

I thought about the SAME THING for use on the highway behind a semi!
Probably some sort of retractable tow bar with a hook thingy on the end of it. That way if he did a brake check I would...well...survive.

don't even try it! i copyrighted my invention yesterday...