I think I opened Pandora's box with all of these discussions about cruise control. Thanks again for all your advice. VMV, what is grille blocking and do You have any pictures of how you've managed to accomplish this with your own car? I was also wondering whether anybody has had their ECU remapped and whether this has made a difference to the fuel efficiency of their car.

 

Little if any "ECU" (PCM) remapping is available and only at great cost. You would not be likely to get your money back but in any case such remapping as may be available is aimed at cars with performance-improving mods, not at better MPG. These are cars which will almost never be bought woth a view to good MPG.

 

But they're usually driving a BMW (or Audi) and after all that lane is theirs.

BTW, this sounds like the UK (or Europe) because you can pass on any side in the USA I think?

 

In North America it's customary to pass on the left, slower traffic to the right. In some places it is legal to pass on the right. But, with the slower traffic on the right, and the left lane going 1 mph faster, the only other option would be the shoulder.

If the road is clear, the slow lane is often the faster option because *everyone* is in the fast lane while the slow lane is wide open.

The problem here is not performance vehicles, they are generally out of sight and out of mind somewhere in the horizon doing their job running interference. The lane hogs are usually some mindless twit driving a SUV, van or some non-descript domestic sedan. Tractor trailers give them the *******, so they pull up to the end of the trailer and stay there for 15 minutes while they work up their nerve to pass.

The trick is to wait until they clear the tractor trailer and while they are still busy holding onto the fast lane, show them that a Jaguar has really big exhaust tips while flying by in the slow lane.

Even better is to sucker them into a tight curve and watching them chicken out in the mirror while pulling even further ahead.

 

Lol!

 

Sweet!

We have this problem a lot in the UK, with people who will sit in the fast lane at exactly the speed limit with a long line of frustrated normal folk behind them! As a lot of our "major" roads are only two lanes each way, this is a pain in the behind to say the least. Passing in the slow lane is technically illegal over here.

As for cruise control, I've used mine exactly once to see if it worked (it does). I've never had it before and found it slightly weird, and also a bit pointless given what our traffic density is like over here. I suppose on an empty motorway at night or something it might be nice, but no real need for it day to day.

 

Illegal in most places and a very bad and dangerous habit that should be illegal everywhere else. Some provinces and states are renowned for their 'left lane bandit' drivers who won't move over no matter what- even for emergency vehicles which forces others to pass on their right. Arrrrgh. It's a good thing I'm not a cop or have a gun.

 

It surprised the heck out of me the first time we went to Florida where (I assume!) it is legal - everyone seemed to be passing in whichever lane they felt like it on the Interstate. We'd had the whole "it's 55 mph and the cops have guns and no sense of humour" thing hammered into us by the tourist rentacar place, and we were probably the slowest thing on the road for the first couple of days!

 

I liked it. First time on their roads I could make fewer lane changes, which was safer. Later on I figured the speeds etc I could really do

I like the "free right" turns, too.

Time we adopted some of these.

 

Yeah, "turn right on a red" makes a lot of sense. Likewise, once I figured out the "real" speed guidelines the problem went away!

 

I use the cruise whenever I can when the freeways are "empty" enough to do it. It lets my right foot move around which makes it more comfortable to drive.

 

Florida is one of the fastest states I have driven in. The speed limit is 70 mph, but it is sparsely enforced in the rural areas. In Orlando, the 55 and 65 mph speed limits enforced in a scattered manner. A cop isn't going to pay much attention to you unless you are running more than 15 mph above the speed limit. That means that you are safe until about 85 mph.

Florida traffic courts are extremely friendly towards motorists unless you have traveled 30 mph over the speed limit. You can usually get an "adjudication withheld" if you show and plead no contest to the charge. That means you can get off with just paying a fine. If this cat and mouse game is going to be played, this is the way to do it. It sucks to get a ticket anywahere, but FL is one of the easiest places I have ever driven.

Long, straight roads invite speed and cops recognize that. If you keep it about 82 in a 70, you're golden.

Although Texas has a 75 mph speed limit in many rural areas, I would be wary of traveling much over 80. Texas cops are mean, nasty and love to enforce the "laaaaaaaaw." Fortunately, Texas has a 70 and 75 mph limit on many two lanes as well, so driving those roads is downright fun. In the six or seven county regions around both Houston and Dallas, the speed limit is 65 mph. The closer you get to the city, the faster the traffic gets with less enforcement. If it looks like a rural area, it is best to be armed with a detector, a laser jammer and a good sixth sense.

 

Or driving like an idiot. If you are just cruising along with the rest of the traffic flow, and in an unassuming looking car (no wings or loud pipes, etc.) you are unlikely to get singled out for a ticket. The cops along I-4 seem to have there hands full with tourist traffic, accidents and the weather.

 

I have a S type Jaguar v6 auto diesel 2005 getting an ave 29 mpg on a long run in Cruise
What sort of figure should I get and what can I do to increase it

 

You forgot to mention cup holders.