Has anyone used the Scan Gauge? We have a 5 speed manual Toyota truck, and am considering buying a Scan Gauge to help me increase my gas mileage. We have a Prius as well, and I use the mpg read-out to help me adjust my driving for maximum fuel efficiency. It seems to work well, because my mileage is conistently 50+ mpg. Unless it is windy, raining or the AC has to work very hard. I have figured out that after I have saved 40 gallons of gas, I will have paid for the Scan Gauge. Thanks for any feedback you can provide.
I use the foot gauge (: Do you really need a fancy gadget that tells you pressing down on the gas peddle uses more gas?
My brother in law bought one for his Yaris and seems to like it. It does give you instanteous gas mileage mpg, trip mileage, average trip mpg, and other data. It is a great training tool for attaining fuel efficiency because it will show how much excess speed costs in mpg; how much can be fuel can be saved by judicious acceleration; what the effect of ambient wind is on fuel mpg; what can be gained by coasting up to stop lights; if you are into experimenting with hypermileage, it can be a research tool; etc.
On the flip side it would be a distraction to the driver’s attention to the road. It might be good to have a copilot to watch the gauge and tell you when you are not doing well. Also make sure the ‘scan gauge’ will work with your truck as I think it only works on OBD II systems. It is too bad the parts stores will not let you test drive the ‘scan gauge’ before you buy. They could secure it by having you leave a copy of you ID or a credit card voucher.
Let us know how this works out if you do get the ‘scan gauge’.
I have one, mainly for other reasons, but it does help with what you want. However the same things you are learning about driving your other car, will apply equally to the Toyota.