SlightlySubliminal

Hi all! I'm new to the Jeep community, I've always wanted one since I was a kid. I recently got a great job and some extra cash flow so I decided to turn in my Acura TL, and buy a 2010 Wrangler Sport. (I had 3 years of payments left on the Acura and my logic said to put those 3 years of payments towards the Jeep I always wanted). Thats probably me just rationalizing but oh well. I love it!!!! Can't wait for summer.

Sorry, I digress, I just wanted to ask a question about the ECO mode on the dash and figure out what it is/how to utilize it. I have done several searches through the forum and can't seem to find much info on it at all. Thanks guys and feels good to be part of the team!

duneslider

The only ECO mode I have heard of on a jeep is the PARK feature. I don't have an ECO on my jeep.

jp4fun

Congratulations on the new Jeep. The ECO is basically an idiot light that indicates when you are saving fuel. You will notice when you accelerate hard it says"ECO." But when you are just cruising it says"ECO ON."

Scopedog

The description of ECO is on pages 256 and 264 of the owner's manual. Both pages say basically the same thing so here is the info from page 256:

ECO / ECO-ON (Fuel Saver Indicator) — If Equipped
The ECO-ON indicator will illuminate when you are
driving in a fuel efficient manner and can be used to
modify driving habits in order to increase fuel economy.
The ECO display will toggle between ECO and ECO-ON
depending on driving habits and vehicle usage. Press the
Odometer / Trip Odometer / ECO (Fuel Saver Indicator)
button to change the display from odometer to either of
the two trip odometer settings or the “ECO” display.

On a different note, does anybody know why anyone would need the Elapsed Time display? Every time I get gas I reset Average Fuel Economy, Trip A & B, and Elapsed Time but I have no idea why ET is there. Its described on page 264 of the owner's manual:

Elapsed Time (ET)
This display shows the accumulated ignition ON time
since the last reset.

wxjeep

The only way I can figure is so you know your total running time for the last tank of gas. That is what I use it for.

Scopedog

I appreciate the feedback but I'm still confused. What is the value of knowing the total running time from tank to tank? Is there a helpful calculation that can be derived from it? Is this a common feature of newer vehicles? If not, does it have something to do with off-road use? It just doesn't seem like an important option worth putting on the computer display.

edit: It just occurred to me that it could be useful to know how long your tank actually lasted. It still seems like a strange option to have.

wxjeep

I like to know how long it took to get from point A to point B when I am driving somewhere. Using this I know my actual driving time minus the rest stops.

Jiblet

dunno about ECO, must be new on the '10s.

Engine running time is important to know (for some) because an idling engine isn't racking up miles on the odometer but it sure as heck is running, consuming gas, and wearing the oil, and moving components.

Aircraft engine maintenance is monitored by engine hours. Feel free to chime in all you aircraft mechanics, I know you are out there!

Consider comparing not just your miles per tank but also your miles per tank plus engine run-time. You'll start to understand why you get one mileage for city driving and another for highway.

It is also a consideration in why going strictly by mileage is a crappy way to monitor your engine oil life expectancy.

Menard666

I agree with this, however, you should not be able to "reset" the one in the Jeep so you know the total hours on the engine. Without writing the actual hours/minutes down every time, you have no way of telling the total hours on the vehicle. Unless I missed something and it actually does track the total?

wxjeep

You are correct in aircraft maintenance, maintenance is performed based on airframe and engine hours. Tractors and farm equipment also keep a tally of the hours. As was pointed out the biggest problem with using this to keep track of your total engine run time is the fact that it can be reset.