New 2014 Ford Focus Owner
 

Hi all,

Found this site while doing a search for fuel efficient cargo trailers of all things!

I have three vehicles I drive but the main two is my Kymco Downtown 300i Scooter that gets 70mpg and my new Ford Focus SE Hatchback that got only 32mpg off the first tank (hope it gets better once the engine breaks in). My third is a gas guzzling Ford E-150 I use to tow my boat but it only get occasional use.

I plan to drive the Focus across country to Yellowstone N.P. for 2 weeks and was looking for an inexpensive small cargo trailer to haul camping gear, supplies etc. Unfortunately there's nothing out there very streamlined or affordable.

I can weld and have fiberglass experience so I was planning on building my own. I hope I can find some advice here as to the box construction, aerodynamic shape (already played with the AST tool), and material selection.

Anyway, glad I found this resource!

Jeff

Welcome to the site Jeff. The Focus is a pretty nice car. You should be able to coax out more than 32 with a little practice.

As for the trailer, I'd suggest reading this thread over.

http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...tdi-26132.html

Jeff,
Welcome!
first piece of advise. Change the oil 3 times before 5k miles. That will flush out the 'wear' that is generated in the breakin period.
THe army did a study several yrs ago that validates this.

Coast, coast, coast. I got 61.2 in my 2011 Fiesta today on a round trip of 50 miles, mostly 65 MPH Interstate in heavy traffic. Pulse drafting at 55-65 gliding downhill at every opportunity. 3-4 stripes separation behind my drafting host. Coming back I got behind a logging truck with some huge pieces of Oak. I knew he was not going to do anything dramatic and everyone else was moving to the left lane to pass us.

You should be able to average 42-45 MPG at 60 MPH.

regards
Mech

Thanks for the welcome!

That Aero trailer is a nice project, good read!

I'll probably go smaller and out of fiberglass with more of a teardrop shape.

As far as changing the oil, I had planned to do it at 500 and again at 1000 but the third time is a good idea.

It will be tough for me to get better gas mileage during my commute as I tend to not have a lot of patience with some of the less than courteous drivers out there. Guess I need to alter my driving habits a bit!

ahhhh grasshopper........deep breath!!! :D

In my younger days I was the same way........;)

I only get upset when people cause me to miss my light timing. If I never stop for a red light my mileage skyrockets. My peak today was 64.2 coasting off the Interstate inbound, never touched the brakes (caught the only light green). Average speed for this tank is 42 MPH, range is 37 to 55, the higher the average speed the better my mileage.

regards
Mech

I really wanted a fiesta with the Ecoboost but just liked the room in the Focus better. Not to mention the huge incentives I got in addition to X-Plan pricing put me in a nice Focus for the same price as the Fiesta.

I'm right there with you when you miss light timing, too many people are diving (or rather not driving) distracted and I can't tell you how many times I've sat at a green light while some moron sat there fiddling with a phone.

I've been poking around in the aerodynamic forum getting trailer ideas. I have a little over a year to build this so hopefully I can come up with an efficient design.