Stay Cool While Optimizing Gas Mileage

these idiots talk about saving 100th of a MPH, who cares, be comfortable, this is just more idiots trying to justify their phoney baloney jobs

My dogs hate AC thats why I drive with my windows down. No I don't drive like that on the interstate.

What kind of article is this? You didn't give any kind of factual information. You're just telling people a silly opinion that doesn't apply to everyone.

There are so many variables with windows up and down you can set it for everyone just like that and say driving 45 MPH and below is ok to have windows down. The age of your vehicle, engine type, aerodynamics, etc. can all affect in varying ways. Of course most times the affect is very tiny between those various variables.

My old 95 escort I had for 15 years NEVER would work well with the A/C on, so in all those years I probably only used it maybe 10 times if that. The power it sucked from my engine was just awful, not to mention all the manufacturers that have set all their vehicles to turn on the A/C in a minor mode when you set your vents to upper window vent. I'd like to be able to operate my upper window vent without having the waste of having the A/C on.

Anyway, most of the time for the majority of you you'd be just fine operating your vehicles with your windows down at pretty much any speed. I've found this true in many MANY different vehicles I've driven over the years. The only exception I've found is that some vehicles can often benefit better by NOT using the A/C if the engine is not quite right for the A/C unit that is installed, as some can suck more power then they need to. For others you can get virtually similar gas mileage by using your windows down or A/C on and you won't notice a difference.

I recently acquired a new Jeep Wrangler and drove across country for work. On my way back I actually found my gas mileage increase a few miles MPG then what I had been getting the few months before while I had my windows open 95% of the time (was getting a few MPG more then what it was highway rated for, and I tend to drive at significantly high speeds). I rather enjoy myself better with the wind blowing through. The heat was intense in various areas cutting through Nevada, Utah, small portions of Colorado, and then the ridiculous excess heat in Kansas (115 degrees and probably 60 to 70 MPH winds). I opted for a little bit of A/C relief for a few hours, as I was also just getting over some kind of significant cough/phlegm problem the week before.

So all in all, don't believe some of these silly articles. Especially ones that don't give any kind of particular facts or details on what they did (or didn't) investigate on. They have no idea what they are talking about. AOL tends to just crank out junk, or advertiser based articles (basically promo's for the advertiser), and on occasion using "huffington post" to crank out some other ridiculous articles when most of the huffington people don't know what they are talking about or they're working in front of advertisers or even worse working through much of their political agenda, when they're supposed to be biased and not be writing for one way or the other (knock it off huffington).

I guess it's just the habit of having central air at home, getting into the airconditioned car while in the garage, etc. I don't even notice.... I'd love a nice cool evening....I even remember one a few years ago during "winter" and I was so excited!!!

I also live in south Fl., and I haven't yet seen the ten days when I can let fresh air in. lol....

I live in south FL. If we're lucky, there's maybe ten days a year when we turn the A/C in our cars off and let the fresh air in. Other that that, it's freakin' hot down here, and that sun!

also never roll your windows down when driving thru the ghetto lol

When it is 95 degrees out, driving around town with windows down, it is not that cool. Another time to not to drive with windows down is when you drive through a car wash.

Mythbusters did a story on this. They found that the savings is negligible and you may as well use your a/c if your hot.

I've always been under the impression that using your AC used more gas and therefore robbed you of mileage. So I hardly ever used it except when it just got so miserably hot I couldn't stand it.