Hybrid Feedback Loops  

TreeHugger has a good post up noting that one of the best ways to improve car fuel efficiency would be to install devices that tell drivers how much fuel they are consuming in all cars. The theory being that if you get feedback about how your driving and car maintenance habits affect fuel efficiency, you are much more likely to make positive changes to how you do things (and possibly even go and get a more efficient car).

HybridBlog recently wrote about an idea that I had a while ago: Putting a mpg-meter, fuel economy gauge, fuel consumption feedback – call it what you want – in all cars. It's a small thing, but I think it could make a huge difference cumulatively. An excellent quote by Jamais Cascio of WorldChanging summarizes the situation: "One important reason why hybrid cars result in better mileage is that drivers suddenly have an indication of how various aspects of their driving habits shape mileage. Hybrid mailing lists are filled with people taking about "driver break-in periods" as new drivers, given immediate feedback from the car, learn how to drive in a mileage-optimal fashion. Most hybrid drivers see a steady improvement in mileage over the first year because of this."

Not only that, but if non-hybrid cars had these feedback devices, car owners would realize how bad their real-world mileage is.

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A lot of things have an influence on the fuel economy of a car: Driving style, weather (mileage can drop quite a bit during winter), tire pressure (we wrote about that), badly tuned engine, carrying unnecessary weight in the car, idling, cold engine & catalytic converter, etc. The driver can have an influence on many of these factors, but he won't do anything if he's not aware that he's getting sub-optimal mileage. Sadly, most people just assume that their car gets the sticker mpg, or worse, they don't even think about it (something else that a little fuel economy screen on the dash would help change).

With instant feedback – like in hybrid cars – things are different.