"Hypermilers" - Who Are They and What Do They Do?

Have you heard the term "hypermiler" lately? I seem to be hearing or seeing it at least a couple of times per week, but I have a sneaking suspicion that it still might not be a term familiar to most people, so I thought a little explanation might be in order.

So, I guess we should start with just what exactly is a "hypermiler" anyhow? "Hypermilers" are drivers who exceed the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated mileage on their vehicles by modifying their driving habits. The term 'hypermiler' originated from hybrid vehicle driving clubs. As people began comparing fuel efficiency, they noticed that by using certain driving techniques, they could greatly improve their mileage. With the aid of real time mileage displays, drivers were able to refine these driving techniques and greatly exceed the EPA rating for their vehicle. Decades before the word 'hypermiler' was used, the techniques were used in events such as Mobil Economy Run dating to 1936. [1] Gas rationing during World War II forced some drivers to adopt these techniques, but they largely fell out of favor with the population after the war. This 1-paragraph definition comes from "wikipedia". If this topic interests you as it does me, I would encourage you to go to the site as there is a variety of additional information on the subject that can round out your knowledge nicely on the subject, or make you a "hypermiler" recruit, whichever comes first.

I guess, then in layman's terms" a "hypermiler" is someone who wants get every last possible drop out of a gallon of gas, and frankly who can blame them as gas prices continue to resemble a roller coaster rising and dropping, seemingly these days by the hour. I can't tell you how many times I have driven past a station in the morning, only to return later in the day to see a different set of prices on the sign in front of the station. I guess you could say that "hypermilers" are out to lessen the aggravation of frustrations associated with fuel prices, while at the same time teaching us very useful every day techniques to be as fuel efficient as possible, which of course is our best way as consumers of fighting back against these rising prices.

Some "hypermiler techniques may seem a bit silly, others you have seen before during other times and discussions about fuel economy, but I think that "hypermilers" are going the the extra mile (sorry, couldn't resist) to educate us on just how big a difference that paying attention to the little things can add up.

Things such as avoiding "jack rabbit" starts and slightly over-inflating tires are things that we have heard before, but usually in a singular sense at one time or another. "Hypermilers" have brought back these terms and techniques as part of a bigger picture that now includes things such as shifting into neutral going downhill, driving 5 miles per hour below the speed limit (good luck with that one, more later though) but staying in the right lane, coasting to a stop at red lights, monitoring your mileage on a "real-time gauge" and adjusting as you drive and even parking at the highest point of a parking lot, and let gravity do its thing to get a car moving.

However, the most interesting hypermiling technique I came across was "drafting", similar to a race car behind larger vehicles. Riding the right rear corner of a tractor trailer to cut down wind resistance cuts down fuel consumption significantly, but this can be dangerous if you follow at too close of a distance. The driver of the rig must be able to see you in his or her mirrors, so a gap of about 1 second should do the trick, although the temptation to get even closer can produce some amazing results as it relates to gas mileage can cause some "hypermilers" to also become daredevils.

I promised a bit more on driving 5 miles per hour below the speed limit, and it will be my conclusion as well. Ask your self a question, would it be so bad to add an hour to a vacation or business trip for driving time to save fuel significantly? How about an extra 15 minutes for a daily commute? Imagine if everyone just tried it without the government debating lowering the speed limits again. This could send two very significant messages to our government officials. One being of course that we, the people, can solve the fuel price crisis without their help by working together, and two that we also are willing to sacrifice a little bit more of time to conserve fuel for the greater good of everyone. Something like this needs to get started though as a "national cause", it can't begin one driver at a time as that poor person will just get run off the road, so how about it, are you the person that can get the ball rolling?