Don't understand those who speed, that is, travel above the lowest RPM for their top gear. As we all know, MPG drops off after this point. It's gearing that's at the heart of the matter. Anyone who drives faster than the lowest speed at which their tranny stays in top gear on the hyway is 'throwing money away'. This is non-sensicle. Very few of us have money to simply 'throw it away'. Speed, whether one is hauling, towing or simply moving on down the way, is ..., well, the mods might be tempted to delete this post if I spelled it out!
Sixty-two MPH most of the time! That's me! I work too hard for my money, and any work is time out of life, out of camping!
Herb
Fulltiming since 09/06. Me and her.
'06 Chevy 3500 D/A, Crew, LB, DRW, 4x4, AirSprings, Double-leaf SuperSprings, Rancho 9000X, Hellwig Anti-Sway, XM Radio
'06 OKanagan 116 TC (2 slides), solar, satellite, Direct TV, Onan genset, Laptop w/ AirCard
doc.herb wrote: Don't understand those who speed, that is, travel above the lowest RPM for their top gear. As we all know, MPG drops off after this point. It's gearing that's at the heart of the matter. Anyone who drives faster than the lowest speed at which their tranny stays in top gear on the hyway is 'throwing money away'.
Not necessarily. Campers have horrible aerodynamics. Power to overcome drag increases with the cube of speed. You may have better fuel efficiency by dropping another gear and poking along at 45 MPH.
doc.herb wrote: This is non-sensicle. Very few of us have money to simply 'throw it away'. Speed, whether one is hauling, towing or simply moving on down the way, is ..., well, the mods might be tempted to delete this post if I spelled it out!
Sixty-two MPH most of the time! That's me! I work too hard for my money, and any work is time out of life, out of camping!
Herb
Tell you what: Don't judge me and I won't judge you.
You spent easily $30K to $40K more on your truck and camper than I did. Simply for your enjoyment - you don't NEED a nicer camper.
That $30K can buy a LOT of fuel. I chose to have a cheaper camper and truck. I spend a piddly amount (by comparison) on fuel so I'm not poking along in the right lane. I chose to spend my time doing things other than driving, and when the speed limit is 70 I'll be doing 70, thank you very kindly.
We are traveling more now because fuel will cost more next year. This means that we are saving money by traveling now!!! We're trying to peg the needle on our "fun meter".
I did find a nice inexpensive solution. I bought a 1984 Honda Accord from a older couple that were original owners. I use it to commute back and forth to work now. The little deal gets 34mpg and has become the perfect training vehicle for my 15 year old daugher to learn with.
Diesel fuel is $3.40. My trips are never to expensive fuel wise because I am a father with 2 daughters in school and still a slave to Corporate America and can not go to far. I can hardly wait to pull the plug. My wife and I have some good plans....
Slower? oh yeah. Used to cruise at 70-75 w/ lance and cycle trailer in tow. Now I'm running at about 60-65, keeping an eye on the tach. As was mentioned before, the Cummins 600/325 diesel has a strong torque peak at appx 1600 rpms. I try to respect that now. Of course I shoot it all to hell when I hop on my Yamaha FJR and flog the beast. It can deliver 40-45mpg but with my antics, 32-36mpg is average. Gotta go like the wind sometimes
Beach Bum™ 04.5 3500 Dodge Ram Cummins, 4x4 srw, 9000s 05 Lance 981, Solar, 22" LCD, 5.1 surround 1K watts, Hon 2k 04 Paradise Point 33RL
04 Honda GoldWing 05 Yam FJR 1300 2) 87 Hon XL600R Toy Trailer 7x14 WAY too many toys, never enough time
I can't beleive nobody caught my math mistake (the hours).. I originally calculated based on a 30mpg commuter but then revised it thinking he's probably driving a truck.
Seriously though, buy a used honda or toyota commuter for $10,000 or so, get a 3 year loan, and you're ahead at the end of the month compared to driving the truck.
BrandonR wrote: I can't beleive nobody caught my math mistake (the hours).. I originally calculated based on a 30mpg commuter but then revised it thinking he's probably driving a truck.
Seriously though, buy a used honda or toyota commuter for $10,000 or so, get a 3 year loan, and you're ahead at the end of the month compared to driving the truck.
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Cummins, 4x4 srw, 9000s
