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Old 11-16-2017, 07:21 AM   #8 (permalink)
slowmover
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Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Fort Worth, Texas
Posts: 2,442

2004 CTD - '04 DODGE RAM 2500 SLT
Team Cummins
90 day: 19.36 mpg (US)
Thanks: 1,422
Thanked 737 Times in 557 Posts
60-mph is the wall. Test it. And correlate against the engine hours for just that drive on just that road. What's the annual percentage difference? Cold cash savings.

It's not enough, is it, to justify being 10-15/mph slow on a metro road?

That car is tiny. Not worth the risk.

Besides, if one wants bragging rights about FE that's a matter of loading the vehicle to maximum vehicle manufacturer weight number. Then bringing the average high. Make this something other than a stunt. Make it about skill.

Skill is in understanding that highway MPG is not high. Steady-state is high. So the test is in bringing town mpg close to country mpg. Empty and loaded.

If one sees 40-mpg average over 10k (250-gl) then the annual fuel bill at $2.50/gl is $625 . At 30-mpg (333-gls) it's $835.

Run at a higher speed. 59-mph won't change that $4/week "savings" enough to matter. Because the annual average wouldn't change that much. Focus on the 80-gals, instead.

The annual average is gallons consumed against engine hours. High average mph wins.

Keep the risk low, is the first priority. Second is component longevity. FE is last. It's not a "win" worrying over 47-cents per day when what's least important is made first.

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Last edited by slowmover; 11-16-2017 at 07:34 AM..
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