10 Gas Saving Tips Debunked
Posted by Stretch | Filed under Cars
With the rise of gas prices, websites all over the web are popping up with gas saving tips that you can do with your car. Unfortunately, most of their “tips” do little to nothing to actually help your gas milage.
1. Turn off your engine if you are going to be idling for more than 30 seconds. Millions of gallons of fuel are wasted each day from idling. Your starter and battery system can handle the increased activity.
This hardly helps. When you go to turn the engine back on, its has to load the engine with fuel, thus using all the fuel you just saved by turing it off. To top it off, and contradict the author, its puts extra stress on the electrical and starting systems of your car.
2. Change your air filter every 10,000 miles. Just like a marathon runner, your car needs to suck in air without restriction.
This should be done regardless of gas mileage. A clean air filter will let the engine run smoother as it can get the air it needs to run.
3. Install a real-time fuel consumption meter if your car does not have one already. This way, you can see what you are doing while you are driving and make the needed adjustments to save fuel.
Most modern cars have this installed, but with some cars, this still won’t help your mileage. No matter what you do, you will never get double digit gas mileage on the stock engine of your Hummer.
4. Pump up those tires. Higher tire pressures result in lower rolling resistance, so your mileage will improve. Not too high, mind you, but a tad over the “recommended” from your car and tire manufacturer. Remember, they don’t want you to get good mileage.
Leave your tire pressure at the recommended pressure that is written on your car. Doing this is not only unsafe for you, but also other drivers. The .01 gain in mileage is not worth the risk. Over inflating your tires causes you to lose traction, and if you have to do an emergency maneuver, you could end up sliding.
5. Turn off your air conditioning, but only at lights or in slow traffic. When you really get going, the open windows produce drag that will offset any savings you might imagine from having the AC off.
This one is actually true, Mythbusters tested this one, twice. If you are going under 50mph, leave your windows down. Above that, the drag is considerable, and they say you should switch to A/C.
6. Reduce the weight of your car. Remove all non-essential items from the trunk and the interior of your car. Weight takes energy to move, so the lighter your car the less energy you will lose. Keep the spare tire and the jack, but almost everything else can go. If you don’t have a family, take out the back seat. Invest in custom wheels if they are significantly lighter than the stock wheels. Carbon fiber parts (like the hood or trunk) are great, too, although they may be a bit expensive.
Stripping your car is going to do pretty much nothing. And to do it to have any effect, you’d want to take out the spare and jack, which he says to leave in. The back seat doesn’t weigh much, less than what a full grown adult would. Lighter wheels are a good idea though. When buying a car, look for the aluminum wheels, not the steel wheels. While only a few hundred dollars more, they are much lighter than the steel ones. Carbon fiber hood and trunk? I’m pretty sure most people wouldn’t want to spend the money on that just to get a slightly higher mpg rating. Carbon fiber hasn’t quite reached the affordable level yet. If your are gonna take out the rear seat to save weight, you might as well include the carpeting, sound deadener, and the radio. Strip it down to just the chassis and seat in the interior, in which case, you might as well just drive a race car.
7. Don’t keep your gas tank full all the time. Remember, fuel equals weight and you must do everything you can to make your vehicle lighter. Keeping about a half tank or less all the time should allow for emergencies but also keep your weight down.
Keeping your gas tank half full will keep your car lighter, but it also lets contaminates in. The emptier the tank, the higher chance of water mixing in, especially since most states use some mix of ethanol and gasoline. The ethanol attracts water.
8. Wax your car and keep it clean and waxed. Drag (friction with the air) greatly reduces fuel economy. A clean and waxed vehicle will have reduced aerodynamic drag, thus providing better mileage. If you have a luggage rack, take it off. If you have a moon roof, keep it closed. Smooth is what you want.
While waxing might not help. A clean car will be smoother than a car covered in dirt, and chunks of mud. Taking off the luggage rack, or at least the center rails will make your car slightly lighter, but most importantly remove drag.
9. Don’t drive a lot with a cold engine. Cold engines do not run efficiently. Use a block heater to pre-heat your engine if you are taking many short trips. If you can combine your short trips it will help, as driving further will allow your engine more operating time at higher temperatures.
This one is spot on. A fully warmed engine will run much more efficiently than one that is cold and only running for a few minutes.
10. Use cruise control whenever possible. The car’s ability to maintain a constant speed is better than your ability to do so. Small, more precise, and constant adjustments made by the car’s cruise control system will save you fuel.
The only way this is true is if you drive a stick, or are on perfectly flat ground with an automatic. With a stick, the car is locked into one gear, unless you change it. So the only thing the car can do is give it gas. With an automatic, if the car needs to go faster, the cruise control will floor the gas, and downshift, so that the car is now at 3-4k rpms. Last time I checked, 3-4k rpms does not get good gas mileage. Cruise control can’t anticipate hills, so once you get to that hill, it floors it, again wasting gas. A human driver can see the hills, and accelerate before the hill to continue up the hill at or near speed.
The best tip to save gas and get better gas mileage is to accelerate slowly, and cruise at 55mph instead of 65+mph.
Cadillac CTS-V Posts Record Nurburgring Time
Posted by Stretch | Filed under Cars
The Cadillac CTS-V has posted a record lap time on the Nurburgring. Just under 8 minutes, at 7:59.32, its the fastest production sedan around the track.
Just to put it in perspective, according to Wikipedia, the 2005 Aston Martin V8 Vantage did it in 8:03, the Dodge Viper SRT-10 lapped it at 7:59, and the Ferrari 360 Challenge Stradale posted a 7:56 lap time.
Maybe GM has figured out how to produce a decent performance car that can actually be usable. The Corvette is currently the only car they offer with any decent performance. Hopefully they have quality control under control on the CTS-V also.
Via Autoblog
Desktop Release: The Seventh
Posted by Stretch | Filed under Cars, Desktop Releases, Photography
Another one from the Syracuse Grand Nationals Auto Show.
This is one of the few Cobras at the show.
Taken with the following settings ƒ5.6 • 53mm • 1/160th • ISO 100
NYC Drive In
Posted by Stretch | Filed under Cars, Movies
Drive ins were very popular in the 70s. Now its hard to find one. But your chance of finding one on New York City just went up.
Cruise downtown and park yourself at DRV-IN—Manhattan’s only drive-in cinema. Seven days a week, twice a night, passengers are transported
to another time and place. Under starry skies and the foliage of a potted oak tree, guests watch classic films in a one-of-a-kind 1965 Ford Falcon convertible. With seating for six and a full concession stand, this unique theater setting is one of the Lower East Side’s most intimate experiences. Starting with films from 1960 and progressing chronologically each night, DRV-IN speeds through four decades of cinematic achievement.
Via Boing Boing
Desktop Release: The Fifth
Posted by Stretch | Filed under Cars, Desktop Releases, Photography
Photo of the grill of a streetrod from the Syracuse Grand Nationals car show.
