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Fuelswapping - The New Gas Game?

Posted by Sean | Posted under Games, Gas | May 29, 2008

I’m locked in an epic struggle with David of DavidMakesCents.com to see who can improve fuel-efficiency the most in the next week. Okay, it is not a big deal, as I’m only making a few minor tweaks, plus I have no idea how hyper he is about hypermiling. Yet the pyschology is interesting. Will I get intense after a half tank? Will I cut a hole in the floorboard and self-power my car like Fred Flinstone? Equally interesting is comment #9 by Tona Tovar of MoolahBlog that starts out saying:

I just borrowed a friend of mines’ car to see what I
would to try and maximize my Mileage when driving.

What if people swapped vehicles…
to compare their fuel efficiency?

Okay, not everyone can should swap autos on a whim. Insurance coverage, or lack thereof, is a major consideration. But what about people who are insured to drive each other’s vehicles, say, husbands and wives? What if us married folk swapped with our spouse for a week or two? Would it be a useful see how much of our fuel (in)efficiency is vehicle-specific vs. driver-specific?

Fuelswapping - The Offical Rules

  1. Each player establishes a baseline for their own vehicle.
  2. Once established, players swap for set amount of time.
  3. Players may not physically alter the other player’s car!
  4. No secret topping off. Same goes for secret siphoning.
  5. At the set time, both players refuel and tally the results.

In the name of (weird) science…

  • Have you ever switched cars for this reason?
  • Would you?
  • Would your partner?
  • Do you think there would be any difference?

Admittedly, Mrs. Sean is not crazy about my car so this idea could be a hard sell…

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4 Comments so far
  1. David Carter May 29, 2008 7:31 pm

    I’m really not that hardcore about my hypermiling, I actually turned on the a/c today b/c it was real hot. I do drive pretty conservatively, my tank is starting to run dry, I hope I am doing well.

    Tony wasn’t really swapping cars, he was more just borrowing it b/c he doesn’t have one. Swapping would be a fun game to see who could do better though.

  2. Sean May 29, 2008 8:17 pm

    Hehe… getting hotter over here, too. I can take warm, but I don’t want to hypermile my deodorant.

    Yeah, I gathered Tony was borrowing not swapping, but it set off a spark in me. I’m funny like that.

  3. Tony Tovar June 10, 2008 11:12 am

    However, I have actually done this before! I remember once I was going on a trip to South Padre Island, TX and requested from a friend if I could borrow her car for the trip and she could use my truck during the weekend with a full tank of Gas but that she should last on half of it at least for what she does. It would cost her nothing but miles on her car and I would be extremely greatful! :D She let me borrow her car, we exchanged insurance and everything turned out okay!

    However, I think it would be a nice thing to lend my truck out to people I don’t know for a cheaper price than the rental companies. Sounds like a nice idea that could be implemented with a little help from Craigslist! :D

    Respectfully,
    Your Moolah Man Tony Tovar
    Moolahblog(dot)com

  4. Sean June 10, 2008 10:05 pm

    * update *

    DW drove my car several times this week, and MPG was 28.73

    Just last week, I was disappointed at “only” getting 32.08!