Hey guys, sorry it's taken me so long to respond. We've got a tropical storm going on down here in FL, and it knocked civilization out for the better part of two days. Just FYI, I'll be sending out copies of the book tomorrow night...so anyone who's in needs to PM me with an outside email address so I can send it.
VMan455: Yeah, I'll check on that. As I recall, the Viper in the MT article did have the three big hood vents, so I'll check it out and make whatever correction is necessary. Can't imagine it would be too much, since those vents primarily reduce pressure under the car to decrease lift...so I don't think there'd be too much of a difference in CD just from that. BUT, that being said, there probably are other factors that would affect it. So, I'll check up...thanks for the catch
Like I said, I'll be sending copies out starting tomorrow night, so send me an outside email addy through PM so I can send it.
JamesSQF: Well, man, if you don't think it would work for you, then go with what does. But you might want to try just maintaining a steady, lower speed. I (unfortunately) spent a lot of time on the West coast when I drove for Prime, and I never really had a problem with just maintaining a lower speed in traffic. Even in LA traffic, most of the time I'd just stick the thing in 6th gear and let it idle at about 10 mph. And that was in almost bumper-to-bumper traffic on the freeway.
Obviously, like you said, there is some psychology involved here...people are going to act differently around an 80K lb truck than they are a pickup truck. But, I've still found it to work driving a car in downtown Atlanta...the only major difference is that you do have to sustain a little bit higher speed, just to keep people from doing anything dumb. But Atlanta's just as bad as LA during rush hour, and it worked pretty well there. My last trip up there and back, I average 38 mpg in a 1992 Dodge Dynasty factory-rated at 26 mph. And that was through Atlanta rush hour and through the mountains. Average city mpg through Atlanta (as best I could calculate) came out to about 26, 27 mpg. And I've done the same thing with other cars in other cities, most often getting factory highway mpgs in bumper-to-bumper traffic. So, it's worked every time I've used it. But, you know how it is...results may vary lol.
It does take the patience of frickin Job, though...that's the hardest part. And, yeah, morons are going to jump in your lane and slam on their brakes. That's part of what you have to account for. But average speed is average speed. I never worried about the size of the buffer zone at all...could be two car lengths, could be 50. But half the people who jump into your lane will wind up jumping back into the other at some point, so, it all pretty much balances out eventually. Again, just my experience
Sentra SE-R: lol...yeah, I know. But I'd figure that most people would recognize it as at least as valid as the idea of hairy-palmed Morlocks. By the time the reader gets to that part (about 80 pages in), they're probably used to the metaphor. Here's the paragraph that leads off the braking chapter (about 20 pages in):
"In four words:
THERE IS NO BRAKE.
In a bunch more words:
Braking is The Great Evil. Take the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis, use it as an assembly guide, and chant backward in Latin to summon the spirit of a little Asian ghost girl who can assemble an hydraulic system, using The Pick of Destiny as a screwdriver. Fill that system with orphan tears, carve a pedal out of sulfur and pads out of orc bones, then use The One Ring in place of vacuum assist – those are your brakes. Savvy?"
So...yeah. I think the whole "Social Darwinism" thing is probably one of the LESS obtrusive forms of BS used to make a point. You think? lol
Far as drafting goes -- Oh yeah, it definitely works. I don't doubt that it did for you. But, it's probably worth mentioning that I once ran over someone's upper torso outside of Reading, Pennsylvania. Not because he was in my way...just because his torso was in the road. I didn't get the whole story, but from what I could tell, the Torso started out as a guy on an Enduro bike riding very close behind another truck about a half-mile ahead of me. There was a second truck between us. The lead truck had to slam on his brakes to avoid a car pulling in from the on-ramp, and the biker went under his rear bumper. He fell off, and went from man to man-minus-legs when the truck ahead of me hit him. I'm pretty sure he was still alive when my left-front steer tire went over his chest. I'm not going to get into the graphic details...especially what happened at the Blue Bell truck wash afterward.
I'm not really sure how far The Torso was behind the truck...driver said he never saw him in his mirrors, so it had to be less than 60 feet or so. But, suffice it to say, I think whatever fuel that guy saved probably leaked out of what was left of the motorcycle's gas tank. Not being preachy or anything, but you seem like a nice guy. Be a shame for the world to lose you
Euromodder: Yep, you might see some benefit from that far out...depends on the leading/trailing vehicles, speed, air density, wind direction ect. And 164 feet is far enough to be plenty safe at interstate speeds. So, I got no argument against that. And I'd even say so in the book, but I can't find any solid evidence to support a quantifiable benefit at more than about 120 feet. Which, at 95 feet per second, is cutting it reaaaaal close for my comfort. If you can find me something that supports a fuel economy gain from a safe distance (more than 150 feet or so), then, hell yes, please send it my way. I'd love to be able to cover the other side of the argument.
Fat charlie: Thankee much
That was my thought on it, too...to make it accessible. I'm really looking forward to having you guys read it, and see if it's successful in that way. Right now, I'm going through and smoothing things out before I send it out to whoever wants to take a look. Just send me your email addy, and I'll put you on the list.
I agree that intentionally following someone is probably a good exercise in patience...and, yeah, the fuel benefits are definitely a perk. Even if you're following a car the same size or a little bigger, you're going to see a boost in economy once you get in past the vortices. I've done it with cars, so, yep...it works. BUT, the times I've done it, we had either CBs or those push-to-talk radio phones. And with cars leading, you have to be way closer...for a typical car, you have to get within about 5 to 10 feet or less to get your nose all the way into the drag pocket. With a big pickup, maybe 10-15 feet, depending on the speed and the size of the trailing car.
It is a good training exercise, though. It's hard for most people to get their minds around that "It's OK not to be first" thing. Personally, I think it's little-man syndrome lol.