Mileage gadget

[david duboe]

http://www.scangauge.com/

Has anyone used one of these. Seems pretty neat.

[Patrick M.]

There's a guy on the Odyssey forum (or is it the Casita?) who swears by it for monitoring MPG. He said when he comes up behind a big truck he can see his MPG significantly go up!

[Gina D.]

I have a computer like that built into the console of my Jeep (God only knows how much extra that costs as an accessories when it was new LOL!)

I find it useful for knowing where my significant gas use is on my commute and I make adjustments to my driving habits accordingly.

[Ed Harris]

I have the ScanGauge II and I move it between two vehicles.
I provides me some gauges I otherwise would not have.

I am not too sure I trust what it tells me but I do have fun with it.

Ed

[Darwin Maring]

My spouse is constantly letting me know what I’m doing wrong so the last thing I need is a gadget that does the same thing.

[Pete Dumbleton]

I'd LOVE to have one, but my '98 Ranger was the last year before they started making provision for the sensors required to feed the info to something like the ScanGauge...

[Bigfoot Mike]

I’m looking at this tool and think it is a good thing. Now my new truck has an on board system that gives me the MPG, amount of fuel left, etc. etc.

Are they the same?

My on board computer differs from my hard numbers when I do the math for MPG. It always gives me a couple MPG more then reality.

[Chester Taje]

I am like Mike. My truck has a on board computor. I watch it all the time. If i can keep my fuel consumption in the 12 liters per 100km i am doing good. If it goes higher than that i am pushing it. Around town it is useless. Only really works on highway.

[jimliston]

My spouse is constantly letting me know what I'm doing wrong so the last thing I need is a gadget that does the same thing.

Roger that, good buddy.

[Chester Taje]

Some more info.

http://www.popularmechanics.com/automotive...to/4267957.html

[Gina D.]

It always gives me a couple MPG more then reality

Mine measures the mph based on what is happening at that moment.

I can watch it change from 20 mph to 18 mph within a mile when the terrain changes, or I am idling in traffic etc.

It don't beleive it averages. I still do that with a pencil..

[Pete Dumbleton]

The big value in instantaneous MPG readout is training yourself in fuel-saving driving. For that, it matters more that it's consistent than accurate so you can see what your foot is doing.

If it totals and averages, etc., well that's good also. I would be more inclined to trust written and displayed fuel consumption numbers over a fairly large number of tank fills, like ten.

Also, as Ches's link mentions, a simple vacuum gauge can be used as a foot-training aid.

[Ed Harris]

OK Here is my informal review based on over 1 years use in three different vehicles.

I do not really trust it.

I realize it gets all of the data it uses to make some reports directly from various engine computers.
The computer is not really our friend.

As for the MPG display: It samples way to often for me to get any real benifit from it.I can be driving with my foot not moving at all and it almost never stops changing and I mean changing wildly. One second it will say 72mpg and the next second it will say 5.4mpg.
I too figured could use it to enhance my mileage but all it has done is to teach me what I already know,stay off the gas and I get better mpg.
That is the only trend I notice.

My favorite feature of the Scan Gauge is that it lets me display any 4 gauges at a time from its list of gauges.
Not all gauges are available with all cars,it depends on the particular cars computer.
That said,my truck which is now my tow vehicle has no gauges at all really,it is a "Work Truck".
So it is nice to get a Tach,Coolant Temp.,Tranny Temp and one other gauge.

I vary between the aformentioned MPG and MPH gauge,I just like the digital readout.

Also you need to find a good postion to stick the device because after buying it and learning to use it you are going to be looking at it every moment you are driving,I promise that!

So far the daily.weekly mileage reports rarely match my own calculations although they are close.

What I find really amusing is the speed readout.
Between it,the trucks Speedo and the GPS(a whole other story of trust and deceit) I seem to be going three different speeds at all times.
I have decided to trust the GPS but I am not too committed to it.

I do not really speed much at all but I know the biggest fuel savings come at a certain speed sweetspot so I try to keep it there while being mesmerized by the ever changing ScanGauge MPG display.

I would buy it again,it is fun and useful for coolant temp. alone when towing but again I do not really trust it that much for MPG.

I also became a "Dealer" to get a better price and that only required buying 2 units so that is something to look into,it was no problemand required no real effort but I already sell consumer electronics too and speak the lingo to manufacturers.

Feel free to ask anything specific.

Ed

[david duboe]

to everyone for your posts. I am still undecided, but better informed. Some one mentioned, this forum or another, using a vacum gauge. I may try that.

Thanks again

David

[Lisa M.]

The problem with reading the boards is you find new things you want! I want to add this one to my list! All I know is my gas mileage is much higher going 55 than 65--and makes anyone drving with me crazy because they think I'm going too slow. As a friend pointed out to me yesterday on the way home from work (we're carpooling which really helps!), "Lisa, the speed limit is 65." "Yes, that's the MAXIMUM speed, not the minimum."

I'm thinking if I get it before I go to Bandon and beyond this summer, it may have some new tricks for increasing my gas mileage and may pay for itself fairly soon.

[Darwin Maring]

In days gone by, JC Whitney sold a really great looking Vacuum gauge device that was multi colored (Red - Yellow - Green) that had a needle that moved based on the vacuum of the intake manifold. It would move to red when you pressed down on the accelerator thus telling you that you were getting rotten MPG when gas was 35 cents per gallon. The gage was Really COOL Looking more than practical.

Also in those days when your windshield wipers and distributor ran on the vacuum, your wipers would STOP when you accelerated to hard.

I have not seen one of these gages in years and wonder if they would work today in the throttle body fuel injected vehicles and also wonder if it would upset MS. Computer that is running everything in and on the engine.

[Gina D.]

Also in those days when your windshield wipers and distributor ran on the vacuum, your wipers would STOP when you accelerated to hard.

I had one of those without the gage.

It was called a VW Bus

[Alf S.]

Hi: I bought a really neat gadget to boost my gas mileage!!! It's called a locking gas cap. Before I bought it someone cut the cap off the string and was helping them selves to the gas... drastically reducing my mileage.
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

[Palmer M]

Take a second look at General Motors. My first car, a 1977 Cadillac DeVille 425ci (7 liters!) had a computer that gave most of that information, including instant and average mileage, and range. That car was lemon yellow with plaid cloth seats! On later Cadillacs I owned, the computer trouble codes (I never had any except for 1 oxygen sensor) could be checked by putting a paper clip into the data port, turning the key "on", and counting the flashes of the "check engine" light. I carry a simple $120 tool to read trouble codes out of '96 and up vehicles.

My sorry Dodge at least displays the temperature and the compass direction.

My mother's much-newer Honda Odyssey doesn't have a compass, and she had to add a poor retrofit XM unit to get satellite radio. Even though the radio says on the face, "XM Ready", it would cost $700 to actually receive it through the original radio. There is also no trip computer.

My father's Pontiac Aztek shows in a neat scrollable display: temperature, direction, instant mileage, average mileage, tire pressure, average speed, oil life indexed to engine RPM, etc.
The car has satellite radio intuitably controllable from buttons on the wheel, and you can make a hands-free satellite phone call dialed by voice. The car emails the owner monthly with a check of essential measures, and tells you if something needs attention. If something is out of order (tire pressure uneven, service overdue, trouble code reported) the car will send you an extra email. If you crash, the car calls emergency services automatically. The emails from the car actually include details like miles-traveled-per-day, helping you with the gas budget!

I bought that first Cadillac at age 17 in 1987 and have owned many more. I don't think I would invest in an OBD II device to improve the old Dodge; I will save the money and put it into a GM truck that has all that built in to begin with! I started driving with mileage monitors and I think instant and average MPG displays should be required on all vehicles.
P

[Pete Dumbleton]

Darwin, I had one of those on my '64 Dodge Dart!! They still make them and I used one to find a partially blocked sock filter in the fuel pickup tube in the fuel tank of my '82 Dodge pickup truck.

http://www.automotive-diagnostic-tools.com...inn3620-ast.htm

Would need to find a tap-able full vacuum source on engine. I still halfway expect wipers to stop when I apply uphill throttle in rain