2.0 - 2.5 MPG gain 4 free

[RedSHED]

The pro's know.

Schneider reduces speed governors to 60 mph. Story here.

And they aren't alone. Con-way's gone to 62.

[Wabbiteer]

It's all about gallons-per-hour and reducing required stops in my book.

70mph seventy miles at 10mpg = 7 gallons x $3.65 is $25.55 per hour...

55mph seventy miles at 14mpg = 5.2 gallons x $3.65 is $18.25 per hour...

$7.30 an hour is a humble payback; increasing a tank of fuels range by 30% and keeping my exposure at fueling stops to a minimum is worth a lot too.

What I will do is try and keep off your roads at peak travel times... And happily lead or follow a string of vehicles doing the same!

[richie rich]

you meet the nicest people in an airstream,or so the ad goes.if you choose to drive 70mph and cost ,responsibility or risk do not factor in your mind please let others who care be privy to your location.i like meeting those nice people,but i may never get that chance if i'm in your realm of highway or state of mind.the topic is fuel savings,but thank you for injecting your thoughts on traffic flow.

[slowmover]

Originally Posted by easyride

I`ve Had Too Many Close Calls Caused By Slow Movers

One must assume that around any curve, over any hill, etc, that there may be a vehicle stopped dead in the road. People dazed and injured. On this problem I have happened twice, and it was scary bringing 78,000-lbs to a full, fast stop. But I was already below my governed speed of 68 mph and anticipating such a problem.

There is always someone out there moving slowly on the Interstate, for whatever reason they deem appropriate. So long as they are within the posted limits, then they have the same rights as all others. There is NO obligation to "get out of the way" "go with the flow" or other inane rationalizations people come up with (unless the overtaking vehicle is an official police or emergency vehicle to whom all traffic must yield).

For the non-Interstate highways, in most states, one is required to move out of the way of traffic when it is safe to do so. I have only rarely encountered drivers who lacked the courtesy, when driving slowly, to stay out of the way on such roads. And, so what?

I agree that 55 is slower than I like, thus I choose 62-63 as it gives me a good blend of fuel mileage & perceived speed (not just actual) . . BUT I can drop a gear and just touch the brakes and I am below 50 mph at which I have verified is a speed where I can do double lane changes all day with my rig.

I have no idea what problems the other (slower) driver is dealing with, it may be a cluster of minor problems or a serious one. I do know that we share the road, and that speeding drivers (too fast for conditions) are the drivers most likely to be the cause of an accident.

"Close calls" are not caused by slow-movers, they are, as above, caused by those traveling too fast for their ability, their skill and the common sense rules we are all to abide by.

[rwnash]

Thought I'd add another observation to this discussion: transmission slip. I suspect that most of us have automatic transmissions that complicate the fuel economy equation. On my recent trip to northern Michigan I noticed a bit of change in tachometer RPM at a constant road speed in high gear. It seems that the transmission "unlocks" when more power is required as in going uphill. This tendency is more common at 50 than 60 mph with my current setup: 86 25 foot A/S (6100 lbs loaded) & 2003 Chevy K2500HD with 6.6 diesel. (It is also my impression that the older 75 Trade Wind was much lighter - but I never put it on the scale - and this "problem" was not as noticeable.)

My next trip I'm going to try and run a little faster and see how it effects fuel consumption. That is, if traffic conditions permit. On busy highways I prefer to get behind a truck in the right lane and stay there - a good safe distance back. It makes driving easy and everyone can see the truck and pass him at the same time.

Whit Nash

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

[quote=rwnash] On my recent trip to northern Michigan I noticed a bit of change in tachometer RPM at a constant road speed in high gear. It seems that the transmission "unlocks" when more power is required as in going uphill. This tendency is more common at 50 than 60 mph with my current setup: 86 25 foot A/S (6100 lbs loaded) & 2003 Chevy K2500HD with 6.6 diesel.

Hi, rwnash. I can't speak for newer Chevrolets, but Fords will unlock the torque converter when ever you back off of the throttle; This will momentarily raise the RPMs about 500 and slowly return to the locked converter mode.

[slowmover]

Better MPG's

Dug this back up per a request on this tool. This is a high horsepower modified truck (poor mileage compared to mine). Much of the info quoted is from CUMMINS in re Class 8 trucks, but this man has revised it nicely for our little 'uns.

Diesel men, note the graph at bottom on EGT versus fuel consumption.

[HiHoAgRV]

Yesterday driving north through the Colorado high plains I found the best natural MPG improvement. 60mph cruise and a 35mph tail wind. 180 miles and the MPG-O-Meter showed almost 20 (calculated was 17.4)