I have 3320 miles on my little car and I finally broke 40 mpg. (41 actually) Here is what I learned:
1) The computer for shifting in automatic mode is an idiot. You can't get mileage ( or at least I can't) in automatic mode.
2) You have to follow the rule of driving the smart as if you stole it - it is more fun to drive and it gets better mileage.Go figure. In fact, my local smart dealer literally told me to drive it this way.
3) Well, there is no 3
What a wonderful car.
Dan
1) The computer for shifting in automatic mode is an idiot. You can't get mileage ( or at least I can't) in automatic mode.
2) You have to follow the rule of driving the smart as if you stole it - it is more fun to drive and it gets better mileage.Go figure. In fact, my local smart dealer literally told me to drive it this way.
3) Well, there is no 3
What a wonderful car.
Dan
Tags: mileage
Replies to This Discussion
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Well I am going to try manual shifting. Will see how much better it gets mpg.
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Permalink Reply by mr bad example on -
weird, smart segregates it's programming. my smart will go into 5th at 34MPH/55KPH in auto. i find my milage, so far is best in auto mode. a couple days ago i drove in manual, shifting at 3000 rpms instead of about 2000 in the auto mode and got slightly less milage (2mpg lower than auto. but i've had a bad week, chicago has had unseasonably low temps and high winds, algore, eat your lying heart out!)
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It is weird. The non-USA programming seems to contradict itself. It indicates to shift from 4th to 5th at around 55 kph with the upshift arrow when in manual... but Auto does not use that shift point... on ours that is. On the USA model, it seems that the Auto program shifts at the same point that the manual programming prompts to shift. This anomaly had me confused for a while... I thought it may have the Aussie pulse because the auto porgramming was an add on option; but then some Europeans on this forum reported the same thing; so I'm assuming (a dangerous thing to do) that it is USA vs the World when it comes to implementing Auto. The other difference is: the World only gets N and R on the shift stick; No P and D.... so our shift sticks don't suffer the buggy switch 'cos we don't have it.
Manual shifting the smart takes a little practice and learning when to use the paddles and when to use the stick. Paddles are quick and easy, stick is a bit clunky and noisy... but doing a sharp turn at suburban speeds with the steering wheel turned a lot, finding the correct paddle is not easy... best to change down using the paddle before starting the turn; or use the stick to shift down.. but go slow enough and apply the brakes and in manual mode, my car will have shifted down a gear or two... so trying to find a clear spot through the turned steering wheel to see the gear indicated on the panel... ahhh... can be a mess! Auto downshift in manual mode... makes a weird kind of logic with a sequential shift system...?
Did you not suggest a while back that a gated stick shift would be nice? Yes! It would be!
(Anyone found a device to replace the clock pod innards with a gear number indicator?)
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Permalink Reply by Carlos on -
Important change:
In Europe smart changed the auto mode for modelyear 2009. In auto mode it will shift into 5th around 65 km/h, with little throttle. Previously it was about 80 km/h. On the dutch smart forum, there are few experiences.
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Permalink Reply by mr bad example on
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i woke up late yesterday for our smart meet, i crawled out of bed at 10am, i showered and shaved and then drove 40 miles, mostly at 80MPH and got there at 11am, while clocking 40.8MPG. 40mpg is nothing but easy when the temperature is over 30F.
when i started my trip, the GPS gave me an arrival time of 11:20am, that's at posted speed limits, i pulled into the lot at 11:01am, i passed everything on the road, my top speed was 83mph, the joys of having a SG2.
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So what am I doing wrong? I've had my 451 almost a year and my mpg averages 28. Most of my driving is highway and I normaly shift manually. The tranny has been updated and I do drive with a bit of a lead foot (70-80 mph on the highway) but should my gas milage be so low?
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Permalink Reply by Richard D. Masters on -
My lifetime average is 51+ mpg over 30,000 miles. Most was highway driving using the constant throttle technique. That means I don't move the accelerator pedal once I reach cruising speed. I usually drive entire tanks barefoot for a few extra mpg thanks to the increased sensitivity. I always take advantage of downhills by coasting or pulsing. I usually let the computer choose the shift point in auto but on downshifts I always back off to avoid accelerating uphill. My speed is dependent on wind direction. You can go faster without mpg penalty with a tailwind but with a headwind you have to slow down. The lighter the vehicle, the more important the drag consideration - so Smart Cars are super-sensitive. I always crest grades slower than my average speed. Steep downgrades are done in 5th gear because by default FI is off. All my 60+ tanks were made at 60 to 65 with a tailwind. Usually 50 to 44 mph seems to be the sweet spot; anything more is wasteful. You can't have it both ways because the force of drag at speed is the cube of velocity so there is a definite point where mpg falls abruptly for each car, depending on that car's Coefficient of drag . I may have been driving too slowly for the first 20,000 miles. I will follow a truck at one second separation in headwinds. I use a headwind and crosswind indicator mounted outside on the cowl. I do not use a tach, Scangauge or vacuum gauge.
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I now have close to 20,000 mi. on my car and still only getting 28 mpg no matter how I drive. I've tried auto, manual shifting w/ rpm's in the low 3000's, manual shifting by feel, driving like grandma and driving like a felon, and no matter what my mpg stays at around 28 mpg.
The dealership says nothing is wrong with the car but I can't believe that. The tailpipe is very black on the inside so I think that it is burning way to rich.
Any ideas?
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Hello smart driver!
smart is just great! 've Been to 600,000 miles on the road!
And since 1998! And I already have my 11 SmartCar.
smart is my life!
I can sympathize with you!
Too bad the smart has come so late in the U.S..
Greetings from smart-werner www.smartw.de
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god, this new device will make smart drivers a bunch of distracted idiots!
i'll stick with my green tennis ball (garmin i2 street pilot) and radio 10! call me a luddite, i don't care!
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