Used to drive 75 MPH and get 20 MPG on the highway. Im setting the cruise for 66-67 MPH now and getting 29 MPG. I actually wouldnt mind seeing the old 55 signs back up as a big screw you to the oil companies.
Really doesn’t matter on the 55MPH. I’ve had cars that get their best mileage at 45MPH, and had them that got their best mileage at 80MPH, and everywhere in between. It’s not just the speed, it’s the speed plus the engine’s characteristics and power output plus the car’s physical shape and weight plus the final gearing and transmission type that determines mileage. Change any one of these, and the speed for best mileage changes. The one I had that got its best mileage at 80MPH would return a third less MPG at 50 to 55MPH.
And on THAT note, I usually run around 70-75 on the highway (which is keeping pace w/the traffic, honestly..even semi’s down here gun it). I’m getting better mileage than EPA projections on my car. Of course, I think SOME of that is the fact that I coast a lot on the downwards and level spots....and any time traffic gets jammy.
What car gets better mileage at 80 mph than at 50 mph???????????????????????????????????????????????? Since it will take about 50+ more hp to overcome the increased wind resistance, I’m highly doubtful any vehicle will get better mileage at 80 than it will at 50-55…
What car gets better mileage at 80 mph than at 50 mph???????????????????????????????????????????????? Since it will take about 50+ more hp to overcome the increased wind resistance, I’m highly doubtful any vehicle will get better mileage at 80 than it will at 50-55…
Agreed: we don`t even have those kind of speed limits where I live.. I for one will be more than happy to see those gas-suzzling pickups and suv`s with one person driving them taken off the road. Just an absoulte waste of energy. You know, they were only invented in the first place for people`s vanity,, and how wasteful!! just a horrendous waste of non-renewable resources.
If you lived in Texas you’d be going 70mph. The state is a series of cities connected by highways through excruciatingly long sessions of boredom. There’s a reason why a lot of hybrids are selling there. That and a long habit of having some of the cheapest gas in the country.
I for one will be more than happy to see those gas-suzzling pickups and suv`s with one person driving them taken off the road.
I would look pretty silly trying to pull my trailer or boat (just a small fishing boat, so don’t get into an uproar) with a Geo prism. My road would swallow those little things and never even belch a tire back up. Believe it or not.....I actually WORK my truck and on many occasions, and I know this is a strong word, but NEED a truck. Hell, last year I got my big truck stuck twice to the point that I had to go back home and get my friggin’ backhoe to get me out.
If a fuel sipping vehicle was available that could address my needs, you bet I would have one, but they ain’t been invented yet. Now soccer moms......thats a different story.
Heck, I USED a truck every day for 30 years. But drive down the road in most places and look at pickups and big SUV’s. In 90% plus of the cases, you will see them empty. Of course, the same is true with passenger cars (driver only).
The car that did so well at 80MPH was an 89 Camaro RS with a 305 TBI and a chip. Other than having the 305 the car was a stripper model. Cruising at 80MPH kept the RPMs at about 2200RPM, which apparently was the sweet spot for that engine. And, this isn’t hearsay, this is what I did. In my military days my wife was staying with her parents in South Carolina while I was stationed in Maryland, and for the few months we were waiting on household goods to arrive from overseas so we could get her up I’d drive down to her parent’s house every weekend. To keep myself distracted while driving I’d make a game out of trying to get the best mileage out of the car. I could almost make it the whole way on one tank of fuel. Dividing gallons into miles would yield 30 to 31MPG if I travelled 80, 29 to 30 at 75, something like 27 at 85. You don’t have to believe, and I do know it’s hard to, but this is what I was getting. I believe because it was what I was seeing.
On the speed limits, I didn’t care about them then any more than I do now. Ran a remote mounted radar detector since I knew I’d be living near Virginia with that car, never had a problem. When in Virginia, if the detector went nuts I’d slow down and shut it off, and with no telltale signs of a detector the cops wouldn’t know who had it.
Give it a little while . . . the petro companies will whine to the Govt that people are driving less and they need some sort of bail-out from the Govt. Think that sounds far-fetched?? Try reviewing the airline industry.
If a fuel sipping vehicle was available that could address my needs, you bet I would have one, but they ain’t been invented yet. Now soccer moms......thats a different story.
If a fuel sipping vehicle was available that could address my needs, you bet I would have one, but they ain’t been invented yet. Now soccer moms......thats a different story.
Soccer moms address your needs?
Bart! Stop that! (where’s the smiley with the blue hair?)
There used to be a grassy hill on a certain piece of county school property ‘round these parts that was very steep. The game was to get your 4WD to the top without getting stuck. Some people couldn’t do it, it was that steep. One drunken evening, a few of us decided to try it with whatever we were driving, and I managed to pull it off. Hooked the front wheels over the top edge and bottomed out. The vehicle was a RWD 1982 Chevette.
I can get to the SC line from Baltimore in the Roady on one tank of gas. It’s also very sure footed in the snow.
If a fuel sipping vehicle was available that could address my needs, you bet I would have one, but they ain’t been invented yet. Now soccer moms......thats a different story.
