Best Gas Mileage Cars

Does the type of pavement actually affect fuel efficiency? Common sense dictates that it probably should. After all, a rougher pavement like gravel should produce more friction on your tires compared to concrete for asphalt. And more friction should mean lower fuel efficiency, correct?

The answer is yes and no. The Portland Cement Association conducted a study to see if different pavement types actually affected overall fuel consumption. For this study, they tested a wide range of vehicle types, including cars, trucks, and semis. Other factors such as roadway design, pavement conditions, and straightness of the roadway were also taken into account. They tested four different types of pavement in the study, including asphaltic concrete, cement concrete, asphalt surface treatment, and gravel. Also, they tested the different speeds to see if that affected gas mileage.

After running many tests with different cars, trucks, speeds, pavement conditions, and more, they came to the conclusion that pavement type did not significantly affect the fuel efficiency of automobiles. Some automobies would have higher gas mileage on asphalt, while others fared better on concrete. However, what they did discover was that semitrailer trucks on concrete pavement averaged one mile per gallon better than on comparible asphalt pavement – a difference of 20% between the two pavement types. They say that this follows logic since trucks cause more deflection on flexible pavements than rigid pavements. More deflection means less energy going to actually propel the truck forward.

So there you have it. For most of us, the type of pavement isn’t really going to affect our gas mileage. Now if you’re driving a semi, then stick to more rigid pavement and save up to 20% in fuel.

To really increase your gas mileage, why not install an apparatus that helps fuel your car on water? Gas4Free does just that. Check it out here.

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Smart Car Gas Mileage – Is It As Smart to Purchase One for Its Fuel Efficiency?

Smart car gas mileage figures for city and highway driving. Investigating how fuel efficient this car is in its various guises.

Smart car gas mileage might be one of the most important factors that will decide whether the smart automobile will improve its market share. The Daimler automobile is set to make its debut in the United States in 2008 and will soon be joining other eco-automobiles that had suddenly become quite a trend in automobile manufacturing.

The debate surrounding smart car gas mileage is yet to reach its conclusion. The manufacturer has touted the stylish design of the vehicle and its fuel efficiency. However, not everyone is convinced of the gas efficiency of this tiny automobile.

The smart car measures 98.4 inches in length. The idea behind its size is to allow the automobile easy parking, with two or three smart cars able to occupy a parking slot reserved for a single regular-sized car. The smart is offered in various models; the Smart Fortwo, Roadster, Crosstown and the Forfour supermini.

Designed as an ecological vehicle, the automobile has a hybrid engine and other innovative features developed with ecological purposes in mind. An electric version of the smart car is also being offered in Great Britain as a lease vehicle.

The size, according to its manufacturer, will help give the automobile fuel efficiency not found in bigger, heavier models. However, some industry observers have criticized the car’s fuel efficiency claim, arguing that its gas mileage is lower than Toyota Prius and the Honda models, Insight and Civic Hybrid. Despite this argument, the smart vehicle still comes up fourth among the most fuel efficient cars in the market. In the United States, at least. The smart records an mpg rating of 33 city and 41 highway.

The original version of the vehicle, the Smart Fortwo, can seat two and comes in a coupe version. It has three variations; Pure, Pulse and Passion. The Pure and Pulse models feature Softip manual transmission systems, while the Passion is equipped with the Softouch automatic transmission system.

Reports on the fuel economy of the smart vary. The automobile does have valid claims for being fuel efficient, but other bigger brands and models can claim even better gas mileage and efficiency. The automobile was developed with the idea of creating an affordable, eco-friendly automobile that young people will like. Its entry in the U.S. market will likely decide whether it has fulfilled its initial purpose.

The issue of smart car gas mileage has been questioned, not because it isn’t true, but because upon comparison, some car reviewers have found bigger models that have better fuel efficiency performance. However, one cannot hold that against the smart. The car still has a pretty good level of gas mileage performance. And it does look interesting once you get used to its miniature size.

If you are looking to purchase a smart car, you can save thousands by going for a quality used model. To find one in your area, head over to eBay Motors and get find cheap smart cars for sale.

Read more information about Car Gas Mileage Comparisons and other vehicles capable of achieving high mileage figures at Gas Mileage Devices.

By Dean Forster

Smart Car Safety: How Does It Rate?

2009 Brabus smart fortwo 112 Hey smart car—how smart are you? Since the late 90’s, thousands of smart cars found homes in European towns, villages, and sometimes apartments, before steering their way (smartly mind you).

It’s Official: The smart fortwo mhd Is Australia’s Greenest Car

Research car sales with auto news and reviews of cars. Submit free no obligation enquiries to receive the best price from our dealer network. 

2005 Smart ForTwo Review

As we write this review the Smart Division is being reorganized for efficiency, dropping the roadster and sport-ute models. The good news is the brand is safe for now. 

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Consumers buy goods and services with the expectation that these will satisfy them. In taking care of your exhaust system, high cost would not necessarily mean better performance and satisfaction upon payment. In maintaining an old car part such as the Oldsmobile exhaust, vigorous care is essential. It is therefore a must to know the basics of taking care of your Oldsmobile exhaust system that would not make you spend more.

One of the cheapest ways of increasing engine efficiency is through having well designed exhaust system. Eventually, it would therefore increase engine power. Keep in mind that on a four stroke engine, only one stroke does work; that is the power stroke. The other three strokes – intake, compression and exhaust – absorb some of the power that was made on the power stroke. If you can minimize the amount of power that is lost by these idle strokes, you will have more power available to drive the wheels, which is what the engine is supposed to be doing.

A V-8 engine requires two exhaust manifolds and one or two mufflers. It is often accompanied by resonators. When one muffler is used, the exhaust pipe from one manifold meets the other one in the form of a "Y". This is also known as a "Y-split" exhaust. Most V8s use what is called a Dual Exhaust system. A Dual Exhaust system requires two exhaust manifolds and two mufflers. Each side of the exhaust system is completely separate from the other. The advantage of a dual exhaust system is that the engine exhausts more freely, thereby lowering the back pressure which is inherent in an exhaust system. With a dual exhaust system, a sizable increase in engine horsepower can be obtained because the "breathing" capacity of the engine is improved. It thereby leaves less exhaust gases at the end of each exhaust stroke. This, in turn, leaves more room for an extra intake of the air-fuel mixture.

The purpose of the exhaust system is to control the emissions and exhaust produced by the engine. This is to turn the harmful pollutants that your car produces into harmless ones that don’t ruin the environment. These pollutants include unburned hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and dioxide, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, phosphorus, lead and other metals.

The stock exhaust system is a compromise between noise, cost, warranty, and space limitations. The stock type mufflers cause some back-pressure, which adversely affect performance. The pipe configurations and/or size also cause back-pressure in many applications. In addition, most of the standard exhaust manifolds are made of cast-iron, because it is vastly cheaper and much quicker to manufacture than a crafted branch exhaust manifold. The weight and the thermal characteristics of the cast-iron, however, limit the length of the individual runners, and its shape causes the gasses to follow some abrupt turns. The silencers are also mostly not built to enhance the gas flow out of the combustion chamber. This means that the engine has to force the exhaust gasses out of the combustion chamber on the exhaust stroke, with the result that the chamber still has some spent gas inside when the fresh charge of air/fuel mixture arrives. This residual gas, which has done it’s work, and will not burn again, takes up space in the chamber which could otherwise be filled by a healthy, combustible mixture that can produce power.

The situation worsens as engine revolutions increase, so does the back pressure in the exhaust system, because the engine has to pump more gas through the restrictive outlet. It is common to see back pressure rise to 5psi on some engines at peak power. At the end of the exhaust stroke, the spent gas that is still inside the combustion chamber, remains at that pressure. Next, the intake valve opens, and this pressurized exhaust gas pops out through the intake valve into the inlet tracts. This pushes back the fresh charge of combustible mixture. When the piston has traveled down far enough to draw in the intake charge, you now have a very much diluted mixture, further reducing the efficiency of the engine.

It is really true that there are more gains to be had from making sure that the exhaust gasses are effectively removed from the combustion chamber. Smoothly bent pipes, relatively free flowing mufflers, headers, and a balance pipe will result in a more efficient exhaust system and thus greater performance. A well designed exhaust system can even draw the gasses out of the chamber, using the momentum of the gas traveling down the pipe to suck the residual gasses out of the combustion chamber. The gas traveling down the pipe creates an area of low pressure behind it. This does not only purges the combustion chamber, but also draws more mixture into the chamber during the valve overlap period. So, instead of having high pressure exhaust gas popping into the inlet tracts, you now have a partial vacuum inside the combustion chamber, which pulls the fresh charge into the chamber whenever the intake valve opens.

By: Jerick Brooks

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