Hello from the Hoosier state!

[hotrodf1]

Hello from Indiana,

I'm Jeremy Moen. I have a '01 Dodge 3500 dually with a 5 spd and Cummins. Has a few power mods and I guess efficiency mods to some degree.

I've been looking through this site a bit and am pretty amped to read through all the info here. I did not know this hypermiling and stuff existed. I find myself thinking about fuel economy quite a bit, especially standing at the diesel pump.

I live close to where I work, so aero isn't of prime importance in day to day commute. I get about 18 mpg going back and forth to work usually, a tank of diesel lasts a month or more. (2nd and 3rd gear, 20-30mph mostly). Aero IS important to me when I use the truck what I bought it for - to tow my 26ft enclosed car trailer to road courses around the mid west.

The Dodge gets about 22-23 mpg (overall hand calculated average) when I'm on interstates around 65 - 70 mph. That gets knocked down to about 12.5-13 pulling the trailer (empty or with a car in it).

Needless to say, I'd love to find some aero mods to help streamline my rig and get a couple more mpg. That would make a big difference in the cost of a weekend of fun.

I actually tried making a wing out of some leftover plywood I had around, but the results were not real conclusive. Some weather on the way back I think skewed it. But now that I found this site, I'll surely get some good feedback from you experts out there.

So for now I'll just keep reading and learning.

A big thanks to all of you that invest your own time and money in experiments etc., and are willing to share your experience and knowledge on a site like this to benefit others!!

[MetroMPG]

Welcome to the forum.

If you search around the aero subforum, I believe you will find a few good threads about modding a cargo type trailer for reduced drag.

[larrybuck]

Welcome! Plenty of info here. What do you race if it's ok to ask?

[hotrodf1]

Originally Posted by larrybuck

Welcome! Plenty of info here. What do you race if it's ok to ask?

Thanks for the welcome all. Looking forward to learning a lot.

I run with the NASA group, Great Lakes / Midwest / Mid South. The racecar started life as a 91 Z28 but is now a fully prepped racing machine to run in the American Iron series. Nickname: The Menace. (car, not me. My nickname is lawnmower man, a rather dubious honor I suppose).

This year I am an instructor (ride along as passenger with new drivers) because you get "free" track time - no entry fee. This is good for me since I have a 4 month old and wife to take care of (who now is no longer working). We also tend to camp in the trailer to save $$. You get the idea. I am not the typical deep pocketed road race guy. Which is why it would be great to cut the cost of towing a bit.

Video and pics on my facebook page for anyone interested enough to venture there. Name is Jeremy Moen, from Evansville Indiana. Or search youtube for Menace Gateway for the last couple I posted.

Budget budget budget. Where have you gone??? :