MPG on Truck vs. Car with same engine

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Ramblin Fever - I have a 2004 Pontiac Sunfire with the then new 2.2L Ecotec 140hp. I'm getting incredible mileage with that thing. Car isn't the prettiest sight but it pays at the pump! [Big Grin] You guys are making a seriously awesome point that 99% of the drivers out there don't get. Why do we have to drag race from stop light to stop light? What is the point??? I'm not sure whether or not to get upset at the light synchronization or people flooring it killing their cars and GUZZLING gas. If you try to drive smoothly (keeping it around 2k rpm) you get fingers and honks and people trying to get around you as dangerously as possible. On the freeways everyone is still going 90+mph and going 70mph gets people mad at you even in the slow lane! That is very frustrating. Maybe these drivers deserve higher gas prices?
 
A 6-foot wide and tall 4400lb mid-size SUV is relatively large and hard to see forward of in a Geo, Corolla or Civic. If someone wants to get by you so they can see down the road again, why get upset? You waste fuel by driving a SUV, they waste fuel by driving fast, the end result is the same.
 
My son's Cherokee gets around 25 with his 4.0 with 42RE automatic on long highway mileage. My wife gets 18 maybe 19 in her Wrangler 4.0 with 5 speed. I attribute it to aerodynamics. I think the Cherokee is about 300 lbs lighter then the Wrangler ..but both are between 3200-3500 lb.
 
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Originally posted by OriginHacker21: Maybe these drivers deserve higher gas prices?
NONONO! Don't you dare insinuate that wasteful habits and personal freedom have anything to do with the cost of fuel! It's simply the large oil company out to make a fortune off us all! [Roll Eyes] We should have an Excursion in every garage...make that TWO, and V-10 engines in them to boot, with automatic transmissions and 0-60 times of 6 seconds. I know that's a little over the top, but, as a country, we are reaping what we have sown in the way of fuel prices. I choose cars based on several things, but high on the list is Value and Economy. THEN, I drive carefully...that doesn't mean slow, but, I love a manual transmission because I pay close attention to lights, traffic ahead, hills, etc., and I usually get close to the HWY EPA mileage rating when I'm in the CITY! On the Hwy, I always exceed HWY EPA rating...and I'm speeding, like the vast majority, but, I do it sometimes in neutral going down steeper hills, and my slowest speed is at the top of a hill, my fastest speed at the bottom. Another thing to think about with regards to winter and summer mpg...there is more air resistance when it is cold...enough to make a difference when traveling at speed.
 
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Originally posted by Titan:
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Originally posted by OriginHacker21: Maybe these drivers deserve higher gas prices?
NONONO! Don't you dare insinuate that wasteful habits and personal freedom have anything to do with the cost of fuel! It's simply the large oil company out to make a fortune off us all! [Roll Eyes] We should have an Excursion in every garage...make that TWO, and V-10 engines in them to boot, with automatic transmissions and 0-60 times of 6 seconds. I know that's a little over the top, but, as a country, we are reaping what we have sown in the way of fuel prices.
I love how maybe 1.5 years ago i posted something along those lines about the excursion, and was spanked on here by about 50 different members talking about exercising their rights to drive whatthey want, even if it makes the price of fuel more expensive for EVERYONE... Now it seems that some folks have come around. Too bad it took $3/gal fuel to realize. JMH
 
Yeah JHZR2 - I could see how that would happen [Frown] . Change always requires drastic events in order to happen. I'm a history major (not done with college yet) and you see that throughout history. People don't change unless there is a revolution or shortage of food. I bet those same 50 members have changed their mind as gas nears $4/gal!! [Big Grin] You can do the classic: "I told you so!" [LOL!]
 
tonneau covers dont do much per my records... however they greatly enhance wet weather carrying capacity. highly suggested. JMH
 
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I'm not sure whether or not to get upset at the light synchronization
Today I drove home from work. From the first traffic light I drove about 62MPH and arrived at the next light 10 seconds after it turned red. (The speed limit is 55MPH). From that traffic light to the next one I again drove at 62MPH and arrived at the next light 20 seconds before it turned green (again, the speed limit is 55MPH). So it would seem to me that one needs to go about 70MPH from the first light to the second, and about 55MPH from the second to the third, in order to get both of them green. Oh, but if only it were that consistent. It's not. As far as I can determine one of the traffic lights has a different cycle length than the other, meaning that the speed one should drive from the 1st light to the 2nd in order to get a green CHANGES from cycle to cycle. Sometimes I've driven about 62MPH and gotten to the next light just as it was turning green. Consistency is so overrated, isn't it? Maybe I should file a FOIA request to get the programming for both lights, and a GPS clock (the traffic light controllers are time-synched to NIST according to what I was told) so I know how fast to drive...
 
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Originally posted by JHZR2: tonneau covers dont do much per my records... however they greatly enhance wet weather carrying capacity. highly suggested. JMH
I agree. I initially bought mine so that I could carry things in the bed when it was raining, but I did calculate fuel economy before and after. I got a 1 MPG gain with it on, but a lot of things could cause a 1 MPG difference. Just by changing the way I drive I see a 2-3 MPG difference, so the tonneau really isn't worth the cost if all you want is better fuel economy.
 
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Originally posted by brianl703: Oh, but if only it were that consistent. It's not. As far as I can determine one of the traffic lights has a different cycle length than the other, meaning that the speed one should drive from the 1st light to the 2nd in order to get a green CHANGES from cycle to cycle. Sometimes I've driven about 62MPH and gotten to the next light just as it was turning green. Consistency is so overrated, isn't it?
Yeah, like in Alexandria... it explicitly says lights are timed for 25 mph... theyre not. JMH
 
I wonder if they (Alexandria) ever replaced that green lens on the traffic signal on Duke St? For at least 3 years the traffic signal had a green lens with a hole in it so you could see white light through it. (Think about how many times the bulbs were probably replaced in that time...)
 
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Originally posted by 427Z06: A 6-foot wide and tall 4400lb mid-size SUV is relatively large and hard to see forward of in a Geo, Corolla or Civic. If someone wants to get by you so they can see down the road again, why get upset? You waste fuel by driving a SUV, they waste fuel by driving fast, the end result is the same.
Believe it or not, I get better gas mileage then most mid-sized cars do, in my, yes, probably 6' wide SUV that weighs more like 5500lb. Believe me, if I could find away to load the 500-1200# that I typically carry on any given day into a Hyundai Elantra without sagging the rear-end, or having a ladder stick dangerously out the back, I would. But, I'd have to put a lift on it, as the area I work in has big gapping mud-holes and good sized boulders that you have to wiggle around or over. I do see your point in them *needing* to get around so they can see, BUT they don't need to do it dangerously - that's my point. I could care less if they want to go around, but what gives them the right to cut me off at the same time?? They don't know what I do for a living, and they don't know that I *have* to drive something bigger, that's part of my job, my lifeline. This SUV is NOT a shopping mall or grocery getter, it is required for me to own a p/up or suv if I want to keep my job. But again, I do see your point, and I believe small car owners DO have a harder time in traffic, as I know in my town, it's overruled by big trucks, Suv's, and even mini-van's - which by the way, some get worse gas mileage then suv's do, and are just as *unnecessarily* owned/driven by most families who could just as well get by with a standard car. Number of children depending of course, but for a typical 1-2 child family, you don't *need* a 7-passanger van (which some can be the size of an suv or even bigger) to run to the store, soccer games, etc. To take vacations in, yes, but then you could just rent a car.
 
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Originally posted by Ramblin Fever: I do see your point in them *needing* to get around so they can see, BUT they don't need to do it dangerously - that's my point.
I agree, no one should be doing anything dangerously. And I'm not telling anyone how to fast to drive or what they should own. The only point I'm trying to make is that sometimes people in cars try to get around tall and wide vehicles so they can see down the road, look for a street or road sign, or place of business. This just may be the reason a car is racing down to the next light and every other light - to get in front and stay in front so they can see down the road.
 
Make your truck a convertible and lower it to car level, and change the gear ratio to super high (90mph at 2000rpm). Great mpg, but can't do much.
 
we should all drive bicycles... clean efficient transport. lol. or motorcycles with 20HP engines. tuned for efficiency, not killing yourself. I'd really like to have a motorbike for a DD... like a enduro Dirt bike or somin. But I don't trust other people.
 
Because of the different CAFE standards between trucks & cars, manufacturers can take cheaper shortcuts with truck engines.
 
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Originally posted by LarryL: The most cost effective thing might be driving habits, especially staying off the brake pedal. Use your driving skills to avoid the brake pedal and you just might see a useful improvement. I get upset a times with stupid drivers so I make it a game of it, to drive as smooth as possible, while listening to a book on a CD, or music. You will think you are loosing time, but such a little extra time is all that's required and you arrive a little safer and in much better spirits. It's hard to get started, but worth the effort.
Agreed! I am fanatical about my driving "smoothness". I drive at reasonable speeds, avoid quick starts and stops, keep the air in the tires at even/maximum pressure, etc. I don't brake when unnecessary and rarely even kick it into passing gear. I also drive mostly highway miles with very little stop and go in between. I tinka I'm going to get a tonneau cover and make my next tires highway tires!
 
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Originally posted by jmacmaster: To increase mpg, don't accelerate fast. If you have a manual, don't wind it out to a high rpm in any gear before shifting. Shift at or below 3,000 rpm. A lead foot is the biggest gas guzzler. Keep the engine tuned. Make sure the air filter and spark plugs are in good shape. Keep the tires at the pressure marked on your driver's door jam. If you have cruise control, use it on the highways.
Amen to all the above...it's an automatic, but other than that, I do all of those things, or don't do as appropriate. Always use my cruise, am very easy on the accelerator, and avoid high rpm's at all costs.
 
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