Tank #252 - 22 September 2K10

It's supposed to be like a thousand degrees outside today, so I sneaked
out of the office at 7:00 a.m. to refuel at the mighty Exxon of
Woodbridge. The car had gone 447.7 miles and I put in 11.345 gallons,
which made for a fuel economy of 39.46 miles per gallon, the highest so
far this year, and the first tank over 39 mpg since Labor Day weekend.

I believe this was due to several factors, someo fo which were byond my
control.

First, I checked the tire pressure and made sure they were all at 40
psi. They all were close to 40 but not quite. So harder tires = better
mileage. Second, I actively sought drafting and coasting opportunities,
and drove less than 70 mph on the highway. Third, traffic has been
surprisingly light over the past week, particularly on my way home.

There were two times (one on the way to and one on the way from fork)
that heave traffic caused me to drive slowly in stop-and-go conditions,
so I imagine that if those days had lighter traffic, my mileage would
have been even better.

This was my 34th tank this year. Last year, my 34th tank came on 2
November. But miles traveled over those 34 tanks is similar: 14,209 in
2009 and 14,394 this year. Cost is about 20% more.