I think drivers are starting to slow down
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Eagleview
Veteran Member
In hot weather fuel your vehicles early in the morning . As the cool night makes the fuel contract . On a hot day the fuel expands and you get a little less for your $ . I used to haul bulk fuel in my semi . I'd have to fill the 36,000litre tank through the middle of the day and drive through the night to unload in Sydney . The dip sticks would be dead on the marks when i left and 1/2" down when i arrived . The cold night air streaming over the Aluminium tank would make the fuel contract . A 1/2" over 40' would amount to thousands of litres down . One guy used to think i was stealing the fuel but the others all new what was happening . Large fleet owners buying fuel by the tanker load should heed this advice as it could amount to thousands of litres lost or gained .
300UGUY
Super Member
I am crusing @70 now on I96 in Michigan. I used to worry about getting run over, now I am passing quite a few people. Place I work at, we have got some guys who transferred in form plants shut down in the last couple of years. These guys are driving 100 to 200 miles per day. Selling a house is hard, but these guys are bleeding at $200+ per week in gas.
RobJ
Elite Member
300UGUY said:
I pulled the tractor home this weekend. 55 all the way. On Hwy 19 it wasn't 2 bad, on a couple sections of 2 lane only only about 5 cars needed to pass me, I pulled over on the large shoulder. But when I got to I-45, I thought I was going to get rear ended a few times. About Willis the speed limit goes down to 65 anyway.
dmccarty
Super Star Member
I cross a major lake twice a day. During memorial day weekend the lake looked as busy as usual. Other than the holiday the lake does seem to have less boat traffic for this time of year. There are still boats out there, saw a guy trolling this am, but not as many as usual.
I also pass a couple of storage places. One has lots of RV and boats stored. There are ALOT less RV's in this place. It used to be pretty crowded. Can't figure out if the place is empty because people are on the road using the RV's or if they sold them. I'm guessing sold since I have passed this place for years and the RV were always parked in there like anchovies in a tin. Not now.
I did notice today on the drive in that there was a lot of 55 mph traffic. I don't know if this is because school is out so parents are on different schedules and/or if because I was a running a bit later than usual. There was quite a bit more traffic today.
I can work at home sometimes and last week I was able to do so twice. Saved at least $30 just working at home. When the kids get out of school I am hoping to work at home 2-3 days a week which saves $30-45 a week or $120-180 a month. Not to mention the time saved from driving.
Later,
Dan
I also pass a couple of storage places. One has lots of RV and boats stored. There are ALOT less RV's in this place. It used to be pretty crowded. Can't figure out if the place is empty because people are on the road using the RV's or if they sold them. I'm guessing sold since I have passed this place for years and the RV were always parked in there like anchovies in a tin. Not now.
I did notice today on the drive in that there was a lot of 55 mph traffic. I don't know if this is because school is out so parents are on different schedules and/or if because I was a running a bit later than usual. There was quite a bit more traffic today.
I can work at home sometimes and last week I was able to do so twice. Saved at least $30 just working at home. When the kids get out of school I am hoping to work at home 2-3 days a week which saves $30-45 a week or $120-180 a month. Not to mention the time saved from driving.
Later,
Dan
dbdartman
Platinum Member
I just ran the numbers on my NJ to Ar & back trip. Speed limit went up in Tenn & Ar to 70 from 65. This saved me over an hour travel time, but did eat into the MPG. This year's trip netted 23.53 MPG. Still not too shabby for a small 4WD truck (Colorado) with the optional engine (3.5l 5-cyl), auto trans, & optional gears (3.73:1).
Biggest MPG hit came in Va on the way back. Truck saw more WOT red-line shifts in Va than it has in the last 6 months! Why do drivers there wait until you're just about to pass to pull out in front of you (& NOT speed up, or even slow down)? Trip down wasn't bad (enter Va at midnight, enter Tenn at around 5AM), but Knoxville was fun with I-40 being closed.
Biggest MPG hit came in Va on the way back. Truck saw more WOT red-line shifts in Va than it has in the last 6 months! Why do drivers there wait until you're just about to pass to pull out in front of you (& NOT speed up, or even slow down)? Trip down wasn't bad (enter Va at midnight, enter Tenn at around 5AM), but Knoxville was fun with I-40 being closed.
RobJ
Elite Member
dbdartman said:
I'm guessing that's the vortec I-5? I rent a car every week to travel out of state and one week I got an H3. I believe the H3 is based on the Colorado and it had the I-5. Not to much power IMO but I also got 22-23 mpg on my 350 mile round trip including some city driving.
dbdartman
Platinum Member
Yes Rob, the same chassis/running gear in the H3 & Colorado/Canyon. I'm surprised you did that good with the H3 as their aerodynamics leave just a bit to be desired. You must have been taking it really easy. I've heard people complain that they couldn't do better than mid-teens with their H3, but by the same token I've heard people complain about getting the same mileage with their Colorado/Canyon I am, but with the 4-cyl engine!
I typically get 15-16 (winter) to 19-20 MPG (summer) with mine (2-4 mile round trips mostly).
I typically get 15-16 (winter) to 19-20 MPG (summer) with mine (2-4 mile round trips mostly).
Down here one of my biggest complaints about other drivers has always been that some idiots go 55 untill you try to pass them then right when you are next to them with a big semi coming at you they decide it's time to drag race.
If I were still a cop#!((!Y$T)&@*@&
Now I just keep it at 55 and I am nice enough to let people pass. I rarely slow down for anyone except maybe an occasional farmer with a big load but I would never cause a hazard by not letting someone around.
Surprisingly not many people are trying to pass me other than stupid kids out burning their parents money. Even on the 4 lane road, a lot of people come in behind me and just stay there. I think a lot of other people are feeling the pinch too.
If I were still a cop#!((!Y$T)&@*@&
Now I just keep it at 55 and I am nice enough to let people pass. I rarely slow down for anyone except maybe an occasional farmer with a big load but I would never cause a hazard by not letting someone around.
Surprisingly not many people are trying to pass me other than stupid kids out burning their parents money. Even on the 4 lane road, a lot of people come in behind me and just stay there. I think a lot of other people are feeling the pinch too.
RobJ
Elite Member
dbdartman said:
I was surprised to. I only hotrodded a couple times. Other than that 65 in that zone and 70 in that zone. It did drive nice (huge tires BTW), but very uncomfortable for me at 6'2". To get all that ground clearance, the seat is basically on the floor, then the foot area is cramped. My right foot was always twisted in a funny position. Thank goodness for cruise control! I rent at a MB dealer, special deal, anything I get is the same price, mostly C230 (30mpg) and last week a new C300 (28mpg). A BMW 3 series a time or 2 (BMW next door, Enterprise runs both), mileage sucks on those. One of my favs is the Mazda 6. Nice car and gets great mileage, about 35-36. Biggest shock, Mazda CX7 with the 4 banger turbo. No power and mileage in the mid 20's. Point is there are many cars out there that get great mileage. Hmmm, but my daily drivers do not...but they are paid for!