Road trip!!!!

[Christ]

I recently committed to buy a VF700 engined Golf Cart project from a friend in Georgia, USA (Kennesaw, specifically).

I was initially going to use my Festiva with a trailer, but the Festiva's been angry with me lately, so I decided against chancing an already ill car for a 1600 mile round trip with literally no time for failure.

Instead, I mounted a class 3 hitch I had laying about to my 1992 V6 Camaro, and took off GA bound from Elmira, NY.

Here's the record of fuel used during the trip. I started out with a full tank, but did not log that, since I always keep my tanks filled for exactly this reason:

1. 257.5 miles - 9 gallons
2. 206.1 miles - 8.827 gallons
3. 339.0 miles - 13.61 gallons

Return trip, towing a just purchased/assembled 4x8 Harbor Freight folding trailer with 8" wheels:

1. 257.5 miles - 10.6 gallons
2. 169.0 miles - 9.53 gallons
3. 247.6 miles - 11 gallons
4. 236.3 miles - 11.5 gallons

My fuel stops were largely determined by fuel prices, not by mileage. (Obviously).

You can see a particularly bad tank there, and I'm not sure why it happened, but I would like to blame the trail for it. That particular tank seemingly was more uphill than not, but I'm not gona call it a statistical extreme even though its' outside the averages for the rest of the fills.

Going by what I have there:

1. 28.6MPG
2. 23.3MPG
3. 24.9MPG

R1. 24.3MPG (Weird tank... about 60% not towing. I leave it on the towing side because it sort of nullifies the next one to bring out the correct average for the return trip.)
R2. 17.7MPG
R3. 22.5MPG
R4. 20.5MPG


Average MPG on fills for the trip down - 25.6MPG
Average MPG on fills for the trip back, towing - 21.3 MPG

The car is a 1992 Camaro RS, 3.1 V6 auto in need of a tune up, with a 4 spd auto CLK transmission.

245/55R16 rear, 205/60R16 front tires on OE RS type wheels. Missing the front air dam and lower grille. A/C components removed, otherwise completely stock. Stuck open thermostat. Bad wheel hub ball joint carrier on the driver's sight, causes slight vibration, but no perceptible tire wear.

I'm pretty pleased with it overall, especially considering that it tows just like it drives.

BTW - The average speed for the trip down was 75-80 MPH once I got through the first 45 min of the trip. The average speed on the way back was 65MPH until I got to the last 45 min of the trip.

Route was PA 14S to US 15S to I81S to I40W to I75S into Acworth, GA.

[larrybuck]

I realize you had time constraints but those are high speeds to me. I'm glad you had that much of an aero tow car.
Mpg not too bad for what you were doing.

Those bolt together trailers are fun to assemble!

Glad you had a safe, successful trip. Are you going to use the cart as is, or are you pulling the motor out for some other project?

Cheers!

[Christ]

Originally Posted by larrybuck

I realize you had time constraints but those are high speeds to me. I'm glad you had that much of an aero tow car.
Mpg not too bad for what you were doing.

Those bolt together trailers are fun to assemble!

Glad you had a safe, successful trip. Are you going to use the cart as is, or are you pulling the motor out for some other project?

Cheers!

My normal average speed is 45-60 at home on country highways. I was on the interstate highway and knew it would be a difficult weekend without sleep and including having to assemble a trailer (which I had no experience with specifically).

Not that it makes any difference in this forum, but I will also add that I OC'd my defense handgun the entire trip without issue, as well. I found that quite surprising, considering the areas and times I'd been stopping (mostly night, made the whole trip from here to there arriving at Dawn at the friend's house.)

The Golf Cart will be continued as-is with my own little touches. It's already runnable, albeit needing a bit of touching up and finishing work to be useable in it's full capacity.

Not something that will likely be covered on this forum 1. Because I can't readily use it legally on the streets here (non-registerable off road vehicle), and 2. It's not exactly designed for fuel economy so much as being able to do 140MPH on a Golf Cart. (Yes, yes I am.)

However, I will likely also use it in a utilitarian capacity, as well... like I do with nearly everything else I own.

I initially thought I would ride my Katana down, since it still gets 50+ MPG at speeds approaching reckless endangerment and rent a truck to haul the bike and the cart back, but I don't trust the bike that far, and I kinda needed a small trailer to haul scrap and such. It was definitely a fun adventure for me.

[larrybuck]

Sounds like that cart will be wicked fast indeed.

I have observed low power lawn mower racing in my neck of the woods.

Then I watched V twin variants on U-Tube.

My friend; you could start a whole new race series!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Christ]

I'm building a small race track in the lower field once i get moved here for my son. I also plan on using it myself. >:)

Not only that, but just cuz I can't "legally" operate my cart on public roads, doesn't mean I actually won't do it. There are plenty of back roads and no cops around here, so if I feel like going for a potentially "endangering my own life" cruise, I'm gonna. :)