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Thread: Doing first long distance road trip in the G4, rostra cruise installed

  1. #11
    Senior Member Dirk Diggler's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by A-Aron View Post
    Lol, I did it and was way more concerned trying to get it to work on my laptop than hooking it into the car... lol backwards thinking I know... but I have had many more computer problems than car problems....
    Love the simple steering wheel controls and factory look and parts.. all said and done less than 200$.
    Ps, dirk,, not concerned at all about the bike and racks hurting the cvt.. mines a 5 speed..
    Another thing I noticed is the factory cruise seems more stable than any of my previous cruise control vehicles..
    Only experience with Rosta cruise was in my brothers 1980 Toyota carola wagon.. the car I learned to drive stick in. It functioned fine but had hill lag then would overshoot..
    sorry for little off topic.. safe travels
    Mine has hill lag and overshoots! It did fine on flat survaces but any short steep hills would kick it up to 5k rpms, unnerving.



  2. #12
    Senior Member Dirk Diggler's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bigdeezy View Post
    I’ve loved all of my Rostra kits in all of the cars that I’ve installed them in over the years. I’m sure that you will too!

    How is the center arm rest? Is it long enough to rest your elbow on while holding the steering wheel? I can do that with my left arm but it gets sore after a little while because the door panel surface is hard plastic. I was thinking of getting an arm rest but didn’t know if it would do what I want it to do.

    I’ve recently bought and installed WeatherTech mats all the way around, including in the hatch. I love them! Fantastic products that are well worth the price.

    Next on my list is a pet hammock for the back seat. The hatch area is too small for my two dogs and I don’t want to have the seats down with them roaming around. I found a nice one on Amazon for $35.

    I’m possibly going to get front seat covers as well, but haven’t found any that I like just yet.

    So, hopefully all those items will make for much more comfortable road trips - dogs included.
    Armrest is fine, but def get an elbow buddy with it it raises it up and has better cusion.

  3. #13
    Senior Member Top_Fuel's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dirk Diggler View Post
    We just got down here and we noticed we never got more than 33 mpg the whole ride!

    ...combined weight of 425lbs
    ...50% of the drive...cruise control.
    ...about 75 mph the whole way down 500 miles Atlanta to St. Pete
    ...AC on Medium
    Factory cruise may net you a couple MPGs under the right freeway conditions with a CVT. But the 33 mpg mileage in your example is a direct result of the other things you mentioned.


    Driving fast

    They call these things "city cars" for a reason. Mirages are not at their highest efficiency when screaming down the interstate at 75 mph and 4000 RPMs. If you had factory cruise, your RPMS may be as much as 500 lower at that point. That's significant but it's not going to get you 10mpg. I do about 60% freeway driving and my car has never been close to 70mph. I know...that would get me killed on I-75 in GA or FL.


    Using the AC

    I know you live in Georgia and it's hotter than h*ll down there, but these cars do not deal well with any kind of engine load. Whether it's the AC compressor constantly cycling or that extra 425 lbs you were hauling, those are both bad news for fuel mileage...with the AC being the biggest offender by far.


    Using cruise control all the time on the freeway

    Setting the cruise at 75 mph in a Mirage and just kicking back is going to net you some pretty bad mileage. If you leave it to the car to maintain that speed up a grade, your fuel economy is going to get pummeled as the throttle opens wider and wider to maintain that speed. The factory cruise control will actually turn OFF automatically if it can't maintain the set speed for a certain time period.


    Combining any/all of the above conditions

    Don't tell me you went up a grade with the AC blasting and the cruise control on 75mph? Holy cow you may have been getting 15 mpg during that scenario and you didn't know it.


    The Mirage doesn't give you good usable feedback for instant fuel mileage. If you had a ScanGauge, you would be able to see how individual forces affect fuel mileage. For example, you would see your instantaneous fuel mileage drop by something like 7mpg every time your AC compressor cycles on.

    I have never taken my Mirage on a trip longer than maybe 250 miles one way. I like my car but I can't imagine putting this thing down to Florida. If I decided to drive 1000 miles to St. Pete, I would rent a car.

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 52.2 mpg (US) ... 22.2 km/L ... 4.5 L/100 km ... 62.6 mpg (Imp)


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  5. #14
    Senior Member Dirk Diggler's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Top_Fuel View Post
    Factory cruise may net you a couple MPGs under the right freeway conditions with a CVT. But the 33 mpg mileage in your example is a direct result of the other things you mentioned.


    Driving fast

    They call these things "city cars" for a reason. Mirages are not at their highest efficiency when screaming down the interstate at 75 mph and 4000 RPMs. If you had factory cruise, your RPMS may be as much as 500 lower at that point. That's significant but it's not going to get you 10mpg. I do about 60% freeway driving and my car has never been close to 70mph. I know...that would get me killed on I-75 in GA or FL.


    Using the AC

    I know you live in Georgia and it's hotter than h*ll down there, but these cars do not deal well with any kind of engine load. Whether it's the AC compressor constantly cycling or that extra 425 lbs you were hauling, those are both bad news for fuel mileage...with the AC being the biggest offender by far.


    Using cruise control all the time on the freeway

    Setting the cruise at 75 mph in a Mirage and just kicking back is going to net you some pretty bad mileage. If you leave it to the car to maintain that speed up a grade, your fuel economy is going to get pummeled as the throttle opens wider and wider to maintain that speed. The factory cruise control will actually turn OFF automatically if it can't maintain the set speed for a certain time period.


    Combining any/all of the above conditions

    Don't tell me you went up a grade with the AC blasting and the cruise control on 75mph? Holy cow you may have been getting 15 mpg during that scenario and you didn't know it.


    The Mirage doesn't give you good usable feedback for instant fuel mileage. If you had a ScanGauge, you would be able to see how individual forces affect fuel mileage. For example, you would see your instantaneous fuel mileage drop by something like 7mpg every time your AC compressor cycles on.

    I have never taken my Mirage on a trip longer than maybe 250 miles one way. I like my car but I can't imagine putting this thing down to Florida. If I decided to drive 1000 miles to St. Pete, I would rent a car.
    Wow! I just showed my fiance your report and her and I were both deeply impressed! What a great, thoughtful response brother. Here we were thinking we might need yet another new engine. You put our mind at ease my friend, I thank you. I guess we should be greatful for the 33 mpg gallon average huh? Great lil car. It did fine on the highway, we push the hell out of it. Wind of course, caused some wrist fatigue, constantly correcting the steering. But hey, 700 miles for only $45 bucks in gas.

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    Not apples to apples..
    my G4, 5 speed, manual ac / heat controls with enslave at 40psi. Running expressway from Jamestown ny to Pittsburgh pa and around Pittsburgh area then back.. speeds around 65/ a fair bit of 73 mph running cruise, was not running ac. My boy and I netted 46.9 mpg at the pump for the trip..
    think I was getting better mpg at 70 then 65 ..
    but don't have scan gauge to prove anything..
    think the new 15" rim tire combo is costing a slight mpg penalty vs enslaves on that trip.. but willing to trade a couple mpg for a better gripping combo.. I'm sure the keep me more planted and probably reduced braking distance by a good margin..
    If I run ac, I usually run it on downhills and kick it off for up hills.. that way I don't get big ac penalties.

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    Kicking off your cruise and follow someone for a while will help your mpg a lot.
    Name:  IMG_0674.jpg
Views: 354
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    Following this truck to buffalo to pick up a trombone for my son..
    P.s. By the time I was done with the tank I didn't average those numbers.. wish I did...
    But letting someone "break the wind" for you means they pay a penalty for you..
    Flat bed trailers won't give you the wind wash box trailer will..
    safe travels and good luck

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  10. #17
    Senior Member Top_Fuel's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dirk Diggler View Post
    I guess we should be greatful for the 33 mpg gallon average huh?
    Absolutely...there's nothing wrong with your car. You're asking a lot of that 1.2 liters of fury buried under the hood.

    Look...it takes some effort and the right driving conditions to consistently average 45+ mpg in these cars. Given your current driving trip to Florida, you aren't in the ideal situation to get big MPG numbers. But decent numbers in a Mirage are still pretty good!


    700 miles for only $45 bucks in gas.
    You got that right!

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 52.2 mpg (US) ... 22.2 km/L ... 4.5 L/100 km ... 62.6 mpg (Imp)


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  12. #18
    Hubcap Enthusiast Scratchpaddy's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by A-Aron View Post
    Kicking off your cruise and follow someone for a while will help your mpg a lot.
    I've noticed that too on long trips, with several different cars. I don't think it has much to do with wind resistance ("drafting"), actually. If I get behind a big truck and stay there, even hanging far enough back that their draft has little to no effect on the car, my average MPG goes way up. I assume it's because big trucks mostly drive slower than the rest of traffic, and any speed changes they do are gradual enough that you never need the brakes.

    To add to the points Top Fuel made, keeping your distance from whoever's in front of you also helps MPG, so you can coast instead of hitting the brakes if there's a slowdown. Tailgating with one foot on the gas and one on the brake murders efficiency.

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    Quote Originally Posted by A-Aron View Post
    Kicking off your cruise and follow someone for a while will help your mpg a lot.
    Name:  IMG_0674.jpg
Views: 354
Size:  83.0 KB
    Following this truck to buffalo to pick up a trombone for my son..
    P.s. By the time I was done with the tank I didn't average those numbers.. wish I did...
    But letting someone "break the wind" for you means they pay a penalty for you..
    Flat bed trailers won't give you the wind wash box trailer will..
    safe travels and good luck
    Was the trombone rusty? Lol

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    Dirk Diggler (06-11-2019)

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    Help,, we need a tow truck for pryme..
    think his mind is stuck in a gutter somewhere.

    No it was just tarnished.... lol

    I follow at a distance where other cars feel free to squeeze between me and the one I'm following.
    I usually use cruise. I can easily see mpg rise following people at expressway speeds vs. running alone.



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