[AT] OT: Gas story

[Alan Nadeau]

Kind of an interesting observation about miles per hour and miles per 
gallon.  Our current family vehicle is a Honda Element, high tech 2.4 liter 
4 cylinder and a four speed automatic.  Slow cruising will get 25-26 mpg. 
Last year we took it to Erie, PA, traveled I-90, pulling one of those 
lightweight 4x8 utility trailers.  Running empty and trying to make time I 
was driving 65-70, mostly with the cruise control set.  Coming back there 
were two snowplows on the trailer dismantled and partly crated, a package 
that caught a lot of air, so it was fairly "draggy".  Due to the load on the 
trailer I ran just over 60 coming home, again, on cruise for the most part.

The Honda has the aerodynamics of a brick, no way around that.   Air 
resistance increases with the square of velocity, drag at 60 is four times 
what it would be at 30, in an ideal world.  Coming home at roughly 10 mph 
slower but pulling an additional 1200 lbs and some increase in air drag we 
got slightly better mileage.  Not a lot, maybe 1/2 mpg.

Years ago I hauled a TEO Ferguson out to Indiana for Spencer.  Had it on a 
12' trailer behind my sons 97 K2500.  Again, I don't remember the exact 
numbers but coming back I got only .1 mpg better than going out.  Ran about 
the same speeds too.  The trailer has a 3' high mesh tailgate and at speed 
it acts like a solid sheet being dragged through the air.  Apparently the 
tractor smoothed the airflow enough to almost offset the effort needed to 
pull and extra 2500-3000 lbs.

Lots of funky factors involved with the fuel consumption business.


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Francis Robinson" <robinson at svs.net>
To: "Antique tractor email discussion group" <at at lists.antique-tractor.com>
Sent: Tuesday, July 03, 2007 8:52 AM
Subject: Re: [AT] OT: Gas story


>       People don't have to go to extremes with fuel mileage... If starting
> tomorrow all drivers across the country would just switch to driving
> "reasonable" the amount of fuel required would drop like a rock. Maybe as
> much as 15 to 20%. That is not small potatoes. Its never going to happen 
> of
> course... but what a difference it could make.
>    The public wants good mileage but they want the car makers to do it for
> them...
>
>
> --
> "farmer"
>
> Francis Robinson
> Central Indiana, USA
> robinson at svs.net
>
>
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