Quote:
Originally Posted by UltArc
For me, if I was with two people I consider friendly, it would be no problem to travel at the speed limit. I hate to say my time is not worth a lot, but if I travel alone, I do push it more...I want to get there, so I get there a bit faster. With cruise, I can just sit back and relax compared to holding the exact throttle I want.
Plus, if one person is sleeping, and rotating out, 18-24 hour traveling is possible. I'd say time > money, but time well spent is valuable. I like having opportunities to utilize it. I think back to my road trips, and we calculated the time with extra travel time. Yes, we had to be somewhere in 8 days, but it was the journey over the destination. I know not the same for you in this case, but I would just plan to drive at the more reasonable speed.
Now, if I was losing someone close to me, the Mustang would be bouncing off the governor to get there.
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I just did a trip to Iowa and back over the holiday break. 1100 miles one way. It was me, the wife and my 8/4 year old daughters. The difference in 5 mph average speed is over an hour saved, one way! I set the cruise at 5 mph over the speed limit. I still got 28-29 mpg in the Mazda. I was happy. Even if I set it to 5 mph under the speed limit, I'd probably would of averaged only 30 mpg, but would have paid for it with my sanity. The last vehicle we took to Iowa was the Durango. It got 14.5 at 60, 14 at 70, and negative infinity above 71... So, 14 to 28 mpg is double. The eco mod was the vehicle switch.
Over a 3600 mile trip, I would surely be setting the cruise at 5 mph over. Even in my Civic LX, I think I would average right around 40 mpg with CC on. If I really was trying for mileage, I would probably get 42? 44? Most hypermiling gets tiring unless of course you are drafting. P&G for 3600 miles? Not me. DWL? Maybe, but staring a gauge that long trying to keep it in range would also get very tiring. So, how much would I save from 40 to 44 mpg over 3600 miles? Less than $30, but would shave how many hours off the trip? Probably enough hours to not spend another night in a hotel.