Fuel economy myths

"Jeff" <kidsdoc2000@m> wrote in message
> A 80,000 lb truck will move 320,000 lbs per mile per gallon of fuel while
> a 3000 lb car that gets 40 mpg will move 120,000 lbs per mile per gallon
> of fuel. Trucks often get high mileage, more on the order of 5 or 6 mpg.
>
> Jeff

Based on your figures, we could save a lot of fuel by putting seats in those
trailers and loading up a bunch of people all going to the same place. All
we need is a good name for it and people will want to ride the new vehicle.

How about calling it the People Truck? Or the People Hauler? Or the
Omnibus? Yeah, then it would be shortened and just called the Bus.

Think it would ever work?

Edwin Pawlowski wrote:
> "Jeff" <kidsdoc2000@m> wrote in message
>> A 80,000 lb truck will move 320,000 lbs per mile per gallon of fuel while
>> a 3000 lb car that gets 40 mpg will move 120,000 lbs per mile per gallon
>> of fuel. Trucks often get high mileage, more on the order of 5 or 6 mpg.
>>
>> Jeff
>
> Based on your figures, we could save a lot of fuel by putting seats in those
> trailers and loading up a bunch of people all going to the same place. All
> we need is a good name for it and people will want to ride the new vehicle.
>
> How about calling it the People Truck? Or the People Hauler? Or the
> Omnibus? Yeah, then it would be shortened and just called the Bus.
>
> Think it would ever work?
>
>

I'd like to see some backup of this math.

tractor trailers can haul 100,000 legally, to 108,900 legally in the
state of maine, this is slighly higher in canada up to 137500 on a
btrain, btrains get around 4mpg... up to 5 depending on the roads.

What can a diesel 1ton truck haul at 20mpg?

Daniel Who Wants to Know wrote:
> "PerfectReign" <theperfectreignm> wrote in message
> news:5mlo45Fe1lllU1@mid....
>> If I have to choose between being cramped up in a subcompact Prius or
>> Accord
>> or Volt vs. being able to not have my heat touch the roof of the truck in
>> a
>> Suburban I'll take the Suburban/Silverado/Yukon/F150/Ram 2500...
>>
>> ...until they make a car/truck that gets the kind of mileage of a Prius
>> but
>> is not a matchbox in size, then I'll keep driving the large cars.
>>
>> I recently got my dad's '99 Sebring. It is a fun subcompact car, but my
>> goodness it is small! And it only gets about 5 MPG better on the highway
>> than my Avalanche.
>>
>>
>>
>
>
> I already knew that the current (NHW20) Prius was classified as a mid-size
> but I had to look up the other 3. The Accord and Sebring are both also
> mid-size and I am not sure about the Volt but if you call mid-size cars
> subcompacts then what do you consider a true subcompact like a Yaris or
> Aveo? It would seem that you would probably rank them right up there with a
> key slot. Along the same lines a full size would be a compact car to you.
> Assuming all of this is true what would you consider to be a full size car?
> Perhaps a stretch limo version of either a Crown Victoria or a Delta 88? I
> am just trying to understand your post better.
>
>

They call an impala a full size car... they are a midsize car...

a taurus is also a midsize car...

Picasso wrote:
> Edwin Pawlowski wrote:
>> "Jeff" <kidsdoc2000@m> wrote in message
>>> A 80,000 lb truck will move 320,000 lbs per mile per gallon of fuel
>>> while a 3000 lb car that gets 40 mpg will move 120,000 lbs per mile
>>> per gallon of fuel. Trucks often get high mileage, more on the order
>>> of 5 or 6 mpg.
>>>
>>> Jeff
>>
>> Based on your figures, we could save a lot of fuel by putting seats in
>> those trailers and loading up a bunch of people all going to the same
>> place. All we need is a good name for it and people will want to ride
>> the new vehicle.
>>
>> How about calling it the People Truck? Or the People Hauler? Or the
>> Omnibus? Yeah, then it would be shortened and just called the Bus.
>>
>> Think it would ever work?
>>
>>
>
> I'd like to see some backup of this math.
>
> tractor trailers can haul 100,000 legally, to 108,900 legally in the
> state of maine, this is slighly higher in canada up to 137500 on a
> btrain, btrains get around 4mpg... up to 5 depending on the roads.

Put your numbers in, and you get similar results. Trucks can haul more
stuff in terms of tons of material hauled per mile per gallon of fuel
burned. You want to argue that trucks can haul a 500,000 lbs of stuff a
mile per gallon burned, go ahead. But the point is that when hauling
things, trucks are more efficient at hauling stuff than cars.

Railroads even more so.

> What can a diesel 1ton truck haul at 20mpg?

Probably about 1 ton.

Jeff

Mike Hunter wrote:
> Get real, GM offers more models that get 30 MPG or more than ANY other
> manufacturer.

Really? that would be a fairly impressive (if not impossible)
improvement - getting close to 100% engine efficiency probably Soon
we'll be using antimatter anyway wont we....

Chevy Man wrote:
> Only thing I see that will force higher fuel economy is for gas to get up to
> around $10 a gallon. Most people have not even slowed down at $3.

Wont affect anyone anyway - in the uk we pay the equiv of 7.70 a US
gallon - people here are still happily ploughing around in 20mpg cars
(me included).

Mike Marlow wrote:
> Either you are very tall, or you have not sat in many GM products. All of
> mine would easily seat me too far back for my 5'8" frame. All very
> comfortably seat 4, and some actually did well with 5. Others - not so good
> with 5, but those should never have had a 5th seat belt anyway.
>

I've had 13 (I think) GM's, and the seat was never far enough back for
me. Japanese cars seem to use the internal space better, I have no other
explanation.

b

Picasso wrote:
>
> Edwin Pawlowski wrote:
> > "Jeff" <kidsdoc2000@m> wrote in message
> >> A 80,000 lb truck will move 320,000 lbs per mile per gallon of fuel while
> >> a 3000 lb car that gets 40 mpg will move 120,000 lbs per mile per gallon
> >> of fuel. Trucks often get high mileage, more on the order of 5 or 6 mpg.
> >>
> >> Jeff
> >
> > Based on your figures, we could save a lot of fuel by putting seats in those
> > trailers and loading up a bunch of people all going to the same place. All
> > we need is a good name for it and people will want to ride the new vehicle.
> >
> > How about calling it the People Truck? Or the People Hauler? Or the
> > Omnibus? Yeah, then it would be shortened and just called the Bus.
> >
> > Think it would ever work?
> >
> >
>
> I'd like to see some backup of this math.
>
> tractor trailers can haul 100,000 legally, to 108,900 legally in the
> state of maine, this is slighly higher in canada up to 137500 on a
> btrain, btrains get around 4mpg... up to 5 depending on the roads.
>
> What can a diesel 1ton truck haul at 20mpg?

3,000 x 40 = 120,000
80,000 x 4 = 320,000
2,000 x 20 = 40,000

Jeff wrote:
> Picasso wrote:
>> Edwin Pawlowski wrote:
>>> "Jeff" <kidsdoc2000@m> wrote in message
>>>> A 80,000 lb truck will move 320,000 lbs per mile per gallon of fuel
>>>> while a 3000 lb car that gets 40 mpg will move 120,000 lbs per mile
>>>> per gallon of fuel. Trucks often get high mileage, more on the order
>>>> of 5 or 6 mpg.
>>>>
>>>> Jeff
>>>
>>> Based on your figures, we could save a lot of fuel by putting seats
>>> in those trailers and loading up a bunch of people all going to the
>>> same place. All we need is a good name for it and people will want
>>> to ride the new vehicle.
>>>
>>> How about calling it the People Truck? Or the People Hauler? Or the
>>> Omnibus? Yeah, then it would be shortened and just called the Bus.
>>>
>>> Think it would ever work?
>>>
>>>
>>
>> I'd like to see some backup of this math.
>>
>> tractor trailers can haul 100,000 legally, to 108,900 legally in the
>> state of maine, this is slighly higher in canada up to 137500 on a
>> btrain, btrains get around 4mpg... up to 5 depending on the roads.
>
> Put your numbers in, and you get similar results. Trucks can haul more
> stuff in terms of tons of material hauled per mile per gallon of fuel
> burned. You want to argue that trucks can haul a 500,000 lbs of stuff a
> mile per gallon burned, go ahead. But the point is that when hauling
> things, trucks are more efficient at hauling stuff than cars.
>
> Railroads even more so.
>
>> What can a diesel 1ton truck haul at 20mpg?
>
> Probably about 1 ton.
>
> Jeff

Oh i'm not arguing with you.

I'm just stating the payloads...

I hear ya on the railroad... 3 engines pulling 150-200 cars, which is
the equivalent of anywhere from 400-600 maybe more trucks on the road...
thing is, the rail is expensive too.. and you have to get it on the
rail... then the rail moves it, then get it back off the rail... all the
handling costs money too... its often cheaper (depending on distance of
course) to use a truck.

Picasso wrote:

> I hear ya on the railroad... 3 engines pulling 150-200 cars, which is
> the equivalent of anywhere from 400-600 maybe more trucks on the road...
> thing is, the rail is expensive too.. and you have to get it on the
> rail... then the rail moves it, then get it back off the rail... all the
> handling costs money too... its often cheaper (depending on distance of
> course) to use a truck.

Trains *CAN* be difficult to steer too!

Bill Putney
(To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my
address with the letter 'x')