chargerucd Posted August 9, 2006 Posted August 9, 2006 Hello, I just wanted to share something weird i found out last week, Like all of us i have been keeping track of changes to the car and what effect they have on the mileage. well i drive 50 miles each way to work. so one day i had to carry some heavy objects in my trunk (about 150 lbs) but mi initial thoughtwas that this would riun my mileage But in the end i recorded a HIGHER mileage by carrying the weight in my trunk (29 where i usually get 26). Pending further experiments, i would say that for highway driving without the STOP AND GO. you will get a couple more miles by putting some junk in your trunk!! (no pun intended) let me know if anybody else has seen this. chargerucd
LEXIRX330 Posted August 9, 2006 Posted August 9, 2006 Hello, I just wanted to share something weird i found out last week, Like all of us i have been keeping track of changes to the car and what effect they have on the mileage. well i drive 50 miles each way to work. so one day i had to carry some heavy objects in my trunk (about 150 lbs) but mi initial thoughtwas that this would riun my mileage But in the end i recorded a HIGHER mileage by carrying the weight in my trunk (29 where i usually get 26). Pending further experiments, i would say that for highway driving without the STOP AND GO. you will get a couple more miles by putting some junk in your trunk!! (no pun intended) let me know if anybody else has seen this. chargerucd Maybe because it lowers the back of the car and decreases the wind resistance????? Not sure but it is interesting! :D
mrbutz1 Posted August 9, 2006 Posted August 9, 2006 Hello, I just wanted to share something weird i found out last week, Like all of us i have been keeping track of changes to the car and what effect they have on the mileage. well i drive 50 miles each way to work. so one day i had to carry some heavy objects in my trunk (about 150 lbs) but mi initial thoughtwas that this would riun my mileage But in the end i recorded a HIGHER mileage by carrying the weight in my trunk (29 where i usually get 26). Pending further experiments, i would say that for highway driving without the STOP AND GO. you will get a couple more miles by putting some junk in your trunk!! (no pun intended) let me know if anybody else has seen this. chargerucd Maybe because it lowers the back of the car and decreases the wind resistance????? Interesting. Perhaps I should stuff an elephant in the trunk of my ES. Would it help boost my wallet-emptying 14mpg city? Keep me in mind folks, I'm in the process of trying every single technique I can find on these great boards to boost it...once I've exhausted everything I can do and it's still hovering around 14-15mpg I'm going to come back and ask the experts here for a miracle. How would I know if my gas tank leaks while I'm driving but not while parked? That's quickly becomming the only thing I can think of after O2 sensor replacement, Seafoam and air intake cleanings...! Not sure but it is interesting! :D Hello, I just wanted to share something weird i found out last week, Like all of us i have been keeping track of changes to the car and what effect they have on the mileage. well i drive 50 miles each way to work. so one day i had to carry some heavy objects in my trunk (about 150 lbs) but mi initial thoughtwas that this would riun my mileage But in the end i recorded a HIGHER mileage by carrying the weight in my trunk (29 where i usually get 26). Pending further experiments, i would say that for highway driving without the STOP AND GO. you will get a couple more miles by putting some junk in your trunk!! (no pun intended) let me know if anybody else has seen this. chargerucd Maybe because it lowers the back of the car and decreases the wind resistance????? Interesting. Perhaps I should stuff an elephant in the trunk of my ES. Would it help boost my wallet-emptying 14mpg city? Keep me in mind folks, I'm in the process of trying every single technique I can find on these great boards to boost it...once I've exhausted everything I can do and it's still hovering around 14-15mpg I'm going to come back and ask the experts here for a miracle. How would I know if my gas tank leaks while I'm driving but not while parked? That's quickly becomming the only thing I can think of after O2 sensor replacement, Seafoam and air intake cleanings...! Not sure but it is interesting! :D Whoops...I meant to type the following here, not in the middle of the previous post! Interesting. Perhaps I should stuff an elephant in the trunk of my ES. Would it help boost my wallet-emptying 14mpg city? Keep me in mind folks, I'm in the process of trying every single technique I can find on these great boards to boost it...once I've exhausted everything I can do and it's still hovering around 14-15mpg I'm going to come back and ask the experts here for a miracle. How would I know if my gas tank leaks while I'm driving but not while parked? That's quickly becomming the only thing I can think of after O2 sensor replacement, Seafoam and air intake cleanings...!
LEXIRX330 Posted August 9, 2006 Posted August 9, 2006 Whoops...I meant to type the following here, not in the middle of the previous post! Interesting. Perhaps I should stuff an elephant in the trunk of my ES. Would it help boost my wallet-emptying 14mpg city? Keep me in mind folks, I'm in the process of trying every single technique I can find on these great boards to boost it...once I've exhausted everything I can do and it's still hovering around 14-15mpg I'm going to come back and ask the experts here for a miracle. How would I know if my gas tank leaks while I'm driving but not while parked? That's quickly becomming the only thing I can think of after O2 sensor replacement, Seafoam and air intake cleanings...! Maybe...ask the elephant in your trunk to see if it is coming out while you are driving! J/K! :D
mrbutz1 Posted August 9, 2006 Posted August 9, 2006 Whoops...I meant to type the following here, not in the middle of the previous post! Interesting. Perhaps I should stuff an elephant in the trunk of my ES. Would it help boost my wallet-emptying 14mpg city? Keep me in mind folks, I'm in the process of trying every single technique I can find on these great boards to boost it...once I've exhausted everything I can do and it's still hovering around 14-15mpg I'm going to come back and ask the experts here for a miracle. How would I know if my gas tank leaks while I'm driving but not while parked? That's quickly becomming the only thing I can think of after O2 sensor replacement, Seafoam and air intake cleanings...! Maybe...ask the elephant in your trunk to see if it is coming out while you are driving! J/K! :D Hahaha...okay, that did make me laugh. I'll ask him.
mburnickas Posted August 9, 2006 Posted August 9, 2006 where you going downhill the complete way! :D :D :D
LEXIRX330 Posted August 9, 2006 Posted August 9, 2006 Whoops...I meant to type the following here, not in the middle of the previous post! Interesting. Perhaps I should stuff an elephant in the trunk of my ES. Would it help boost my wallet-emptying 14mpg city? Keep me in mind folks, I'm in the process of trying every single technique I can find on these great boards to boost it...once I've exhausted everything I can do and it's still hovering around 14-15mpg I'm going to come back and ask the experts here for a miracle. How would I know if my gas tank leaks while I'm driving but not while parked? That's quickly becomming the only thing I can think of after O2 sensor replacement, Seafoam and air intake cleanings...! Maybe...ask the elephant in your trunk to see if it is coming out while you are driving! J/K! :D Hahaha...okay, that did make me laugh. I'll ask him. SORRY! I had to do it!
chargerucd Posted August 9, 2006 Author Posted August 9, 2006 Hello, no, not downhill, here it is pretty leveled, the thing that i think helped was that the freeway ride there is no stop and go, so momentum i think helped the car keep it's speed. i do believe in the city the mileage would have killed the mileage as one would expect. but in this case it helped. weird ha Whoops...I meant to type the following here, not in the middle of the previous post! Interesting. Perhaps I should stuff an elephant in the trunk of my ES. Would it help boost my wallet-emptying 14mpg city? Keep me in mind folks, I'm in the process of trying every single technique I can find on these great boards to boost it...once I've exhausted everything I can do and it's still hovering around 14-15mpg I'm going to come back and ask the experts here for a miracle. How would I know if my gas tank leaks while I'm driving but not while parked? That's quickly becomming the only thing I can think of after O2 sensor replacement, Seafoam and air intake cleanings...! Maybe...ask the elephant in your trunk to see if it is coming out while you are driving! J/K! :D Hahaha...okay, that did make me laugh. I'll ask him. SORRY! I had to do it!
SKperformance Posted August 10, 2006 Posted August 10, 2006 You are not alone i find a slight improvement in having more weight out back in my car over being lighter. I think it has to do with a few things with aero dynamics. It lowers the whole car creating less drag as well as lifting the front slightly to offset the weight to the center and distribute it more evenly. Also by having the front air up a bit it will cause the car to lift slightly and use the air resistance to life and lighten the car .
tckcumming Posted August 12, 2006 Posted August 12, 2006 You are not alone i find a slight improvement in having more weight out back in my car over being lighter. I think it has to do with a few things with aero dynamics. It lowers the whole car creating less drag as well as lifting the front slightly to offset the weight to the center and distribute it more evenly. Also by having the front air up a bit it will cause the car to lift slightly and use the air resistance to life and lighten the car . Reminds me of an experiment I did a few months ago... see the photos... I was going to post these under the topic "My spoiler is bigger than your spoiler!!", but they seem to fit here better.. That's an old ('60's) factory hardtop for an MG, I was trading it for some other MG parts. The guy I was trading with lived about 350 miles (600 KM) from me, straight down the 401 (a multilane expressway here in Ontario Canada). I drove there at a nice steady 70 - 75 mph with my "spoiler" in place and checked my gas mileage. Then I did the return trip at about the same speed a few days later and checked mileage again. Here are my results: Mileage with hardtop sticking out of trunk : 22.2 mpg. Mileage without hardtop, return trip, trunk closed : 26.2 mpg. The car was surprisingly stable at speed with that big lump hanging out the back. I was expecting it to be a little "squirrelly" at 75 mph, but it was OK. The steering felt a little more vague than normal (front end lifting a bit?), but not enough to make me slow down. I could even see everything behind me in the rearview mirror, through the glass in the hardtop. Lots of funny looks from other drivers as I blew past them on the highway. What does all this prove? Absolutely nothing. Your mileage may vary, blah blah blah. tck...
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