Nina,
Yours are good driving habits - you've been shifting in the best part of a
B's engine's powerband to give adequate power combined with reasonable fuel
economy.
The Saturn's shift light has, however, a different purpose - to help owners
achieve the fuel economy advertised on the sticker that graced a window when
the car was new. I haven't driven a Saturn but my guess is that, driven the
way you drive your BGT, it would be a whole lot more fun but use a bit more
gas.
Lawrie
-----Original Message-----
From: Nina Barton <ninab@scoresheet.com>
To: mgs@autox.team.net <mgs@autox.team.net>
Date: Friday, November 10, 2000 10:03 PM
Subject: somebody explain shifting and RPM to me
>Hi List,
> I have always driven my MGB, and other cars, in the following
>manner. Start from stop, rev up to what seems an appropriate level
>(usually 3500 or so in the BGT), shift, rev up to somewhere around the same
>level, shift again, etc. I recently had problems with the troop carrier (a
>93 Saturn) which turned out to be that the bulb on the dash showing optimal
>shift for premium gas mileage had burned out. I didn't know it was there,
>as the previous owner had taped over it. It has now been uncovered, and
>besides being a pain in the a**, I notice that it suggests that I shift
>from first to second around 3000 Rpm, second to third at 2500 Rpm, and
>third to fourth at 2100 Rpm. Why? It seems like I'm not going fast enough
>in the car when the shift light comes on, much of the time, and it goes
>against my whole driving style. If one of the knowledgeable people on this
>list could explain why lugging your engine is good for the car, I'd like to
>know. Thanks, Nina
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