A team of drivers and engineers are about to get to know each other very well as part of a nearly two-day long race to see just how far the new Ford Fusion hybrid can travel on a single tank of gas.

On Saturday, a team will set out from Mount Vernon, Virginia to see if the Fusion will average 57 miles per gallon when driven by NASCAR driver Carl Edwards, a team of Ford engineers, and a self-professed “hypermiler” known for milking more miles about of regular cars.

Some tactics planned by the team to increase mileage can help lower gas consumption in many other cars, including anticipating traffic conditions, minimizing the use of accessories, and allowing the car to coast when possible.

Proceeds from the event will benefit the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

Buyers who may not be in the market for the 2010 hybrid can nonetheless use those tactics to improve the fuel economy on used versions. The 2009 model averaged about 23 miles per gallon in city and highway conditions, as did the model introduced the year before.

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