RE: How To Get Better Gas Mileage, Contributed by @sharingeverybite
I agree with most of these, just a caveat on the AC vs windows down. There has been research, and it goes both ways. Essentially, rolling the windows down increases the air resistance on your car, reducing your gas mileage. The question being, does the AC use more gas, or the air resistance from rolling down the windows.
Mythbusters did a segment driving an SUV at 55mph around a race track, and found the AC witht he windows up was more efficient than rolling down the windows:
But mythbusters then did another test (with more flawed testing standards in my opinion) and found the opposite result, with the windows being rolled down the better option:
GM and SAE also did a test (in 2004, AC could be more efficient by now, and cars could be more streamlined to have less resistance with the windows open) finding that rolling down the windows was more efficient at all tested speeds: http://www.businessinsider.com/car-fuel-efficiency-ac-air-conditioner-on-windows-down-open-2013-9
At the end of the day, it seems this point is still in contention, and it would require a large, well done test to give an accurate answer.
Thanks for sharing! I didn't realize there was another argument out there about this. I'm sure you're right about certain vehicles being more streamlined for efficient airflow. I wonder if there's a certain speed at which this becomes more relevant? For instance, at 35 MPH, it's better to have the windows down, but as soon as you get to 55 MPG, the drag starts to take away from the MPG.
All I can say for certain is that in my experience, having the AC on (with my Prius C Three hybrid) always gives me worse MPG. I haven't noticed that leaving the windows down affects anything significantly enough to notice a decrease. That being said, it's also possible I have this bias since I didn't know it could be a wash and paid less attention. So many factors! lol