What Is Hypermiling?

A Hypermiler is someone who makes adjustments in their driving habits to maximize their gas mileage.  There are many techniques that work whether your driving a hummer or a hybrid.  Anyone can be a hypermiler and take their gas guzzling vehicle from getting 10 mpg today to 15 mpg tomorrow.  Hypermiling will increase your gas mileage and put more money into your pocket.

The term “hypermiler” comes from hybrid vehicle driving clubs and Wayne Gerdes in particular. 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. 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.

Wayne Gerdes of Wadsworth, Ill,  knows how to wring a gas tank dry.  He is the ultimate hypermiler and the man who coined the term “hypermiler”.

He can squeeze 84 miles per gallon from your standard-issue Ford Ranger pick-up. He once averaged more than 100 mpg during the course of an entire summer. And while behind the wheel of a hybrid electric Honda Insight, he coaxed the vehicle into yielding an astonishing 180.1 mpg. Gerdes can do these seemingly impossible things with a car because he is one of a rare breed of drivers known as hypermilers.

Remember the window sticker on your car when you bought it? Did you ever get the miles per gallon that it showed? I certainly never did. Normally I got as much as 1/3 less MPG than the value advertised.  Hypermiling can help you achieve the miles per gallon your vehicle is supposed to get and give you more bang for your buck in the meantime.