This has become an incredibly complex decision!
The questions only you guys can answer:
- how much is going from ~2.5m high to less than half that really going to help me? It
should help a lot. However, why is it my unmodified vehcile gets 35mpg when the same unmodified model without the high roof (only about 0.40m lower) get the same mpg?
- which cars are popular for ecomods in Europe? In America the Honda and Metro are popular. But there are better options here. It's a lot easier if someone has gone the path before you. For example, I'm familiar with the VW T4 5th gear mod and I know there are camshafts available for American vehicles but what about vehicles popular in Europe?
Is a Skoda Octavia a good car to ecomod or is it something no one's done before?
The long winded going through it all... (possibly self!) discussion:
Knowing I'm pushing a high top through the air is the bind really. I know that will always limit me. However... still can't see an option compelling enough to replace.
I mean, it's a very aerodynamically dirty van. High top, bits sticking out of the roof, massive wing mirrors, rough underside. Yet I get 35mpg.
Let's say Vauxhall Astra van. Enough room in there and maybe 55mpg before mods.
Only thing is, none for sale on ebay germany.
What about the Renault Traffic? Only 45mpg at best. The Astra 1.3CDi sounds very interesting. What a small engine! And it's 6 speed. But can't see a left hand drive version from Opel... as far as I can see.
Can we say from this that my van would be as good as modern diesels if it wasn't for the high top? How much is that high top costing me? I thought it was a lot, but now I compare to the other options I wonder if it's not as bad as I think.
Other options?
Skoda Octavia Estate... (55mpg ish again)
attach a fold up bed to the bed of the rear seats. Add a heater. Swap the starter battery for a deep cycle and keep an eye on voltage with a battery meter. Ecomod with a smooth underside and pizza pans.
The funny thing is... diesel...
This ties in with something else I'm working on.
I am actually looking at half face masks for my bicycle in the city where bicycles make the most sense. You can't really get away from the fact that diesel is a dirty fuel. Not like LPG at all in that it has particulates
and a whole swathe of chemicals that a face mask can't really filter out. fter some incredibly confusing research into this I found you can choose only about 2 filters at a time, a HEPA filter and a chemical filter - If you filter out carbon monoxide then you're left with benzene and the rest... And besides, wearing one of these things is a pain... there are only full masks with camelbak adapters. Pollution is a pain in the neck for me. So much so if my love of my life has to live in a city I think I would have to leave her. I can't love without health. A list of carfree cities here:
List of car-free places - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (I can't stand the anti car movement by the way. I love cars, it's the fuel that I can't stand. At least biodiesel is a nice fuel, even if it is dirty my proxy due to cleaning out the soot left by diesel)
I'd love to live somewhere like that but
also have something parked on the edge of town.
...so to sit in a diesel seems hypocritical. Yet I need the range to get across Spain with a surfboard. By the way, motorists get more fumes than cyclists. This makes long journeys hard work. For example, if I take a holiday skiing and choose to drive, by the time I get back my lungs and body feels much the same as it did when I left... very pronounced. I really think it makes sense to have some basic filtering on the air coming into the cabin even if it costs efficiency.
solarguy: Is diesel fuel cleaner? I've heard not actually. I don't know if what I've heard is accurate but I'm sure I remember someone saying to me that the UK has very poor standards for diesel whereas on the continent (& probably wealthier US states) standards are a lot higher. However, I'm a diesel van too. Very much so. I just like the technology. Just having problems at the mo with cycling, which I hope I can nail with displine of keeping a mask on.
dremd: Thanks for the info for American vehicles. I'm going to Buenos Aires in a week or 2 and I wondered about buying a van there. They don't have cheap cars though($1200+) so I may hire instead to get to and from the beach. Intresting you only get a choice of 2!
I'm leaning toward a diesel because I can't stand driving low torque petrol cars now... an estate I can customise, parked out of town I can cycle to with a fold-up.
But as I say... how much is this frontal area reduction from ~2.30m to less than half that going to help? ...how much does Cda matter?
Thanks for all the info people! All good stuff. A suprisingly complex decision this is turning out to be. I'll put a summary in the OP when done.