Date:         Mon, 16 Feb 2004 18:52:11 -0600
Reply-To:     Stan Wilder <wilden1-1@SBCGLOBAL.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Stan Wilder <wilden1-1@SBCGLOBAL.NET>
Subject:      Re: "green" cars (NVC)
Comments: To: David Brodbeck <gull@gull.us>
In-Reply-To:  <40315FCD.9020409@gull.us>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

-----Original Message-----
From: David Brodbeck [mailto:gull@gull.us]

Stan Wilder wrote:
> Mine goes from 17 mpg at 70 mph to about 22 mpg at 55 and lighter weight
> cars do even better on the spread.

My '94 Honda Civic, in spite of being a very "slippery" car, lost 3 mpg
(from 40 to 37) if I drove at 75 mph instead of 60.  Adding a roof rack
and a bicycle would trim off another 4-5 mpg, due to the added drag.
Stuff hanging out in the air stream -- big mirrors, luggage racks, kewl
wings on the trunk -- all contributes to drag and reduces your highway
fuel economy.

Dunno what kind of milage the Volvo gets yet.  The odometer doesn't work
in cold weather.  It's not very aerodynamic, though.  (Both Volvo 240
owners and Vanagon owners refer to their vehicles as "bricks".)
--------------------- Clip ------------------
Here's a good laugh for you.
Porsche has a habit of building some expensive high speed cars.
Some of them will reach 180 mph +, some have even been faster.
It's always nice to see in the owner manuals that the top speed can be
increased by 1 MPH just by removing the right side outside mirror.
In 1970 the US required a heavy shock absorbing bumper to be installed and
almost every Porsche lost 3 to 5 mph off the top speed just by replacing the
pre 70's knife edge bumpers with the broad faced bumpers at five times the
weight.
Porsche has never sought fuel economy except in tightly monitored race
situations. It is surprising that most Porsche get good fuel economy and
most 64 to 2004 still weigh in at only 2100 to 2700 pounds (Boxters
Excluded).
The same 1970 series body can have from 80 to 600 horsepower without major
changes in anything but fender flares, tire sizes, shocks.

Stan Wilder