The Tulsa Forum by TulsaNow

Very impressive. The guy who did it, whom I've corresponded with about hyper-miling with Honda Insights, got 28 mpg in the same truck in a trip from Phoenix to Chicago.

http://www.thefordstory.com/green/journalists-squeeze-2011-ford-super-duty%C2%AE-for-impressive-fuel-economy/

I seem to get stuck behind hyper-milers on the on ramp to the highway. They want to get up to speed a little slower than the rest of us and often create dangerous driving conditions.

It must be the new physics where you can blend into traffic seamlessly while going 10 to 15 mph slower than the through traffic.  Then, to make up for going slow at the entrance ramp, you step on the brakes to make sure you are down to exit ramp speed before entering the exit ramp. (Exit ramps backed up to the main road are, of course, a different story with their own hazzards.)  

Just to get back on topic ( ;D ), the energy you think you are saving on gas causes others to take evasive action using more energy than you have saved.

Drives me nuts!

Chrysler is advertising a Hemi that switches to less than 8 cylinders when power is not needed.

Anyone else remember the Cadillac 8-6-4 from about 20 years ago that almost everyone laughed at?

I think the point that's been lost in this article is that vehicle makers can indeed make useful and big vehicles that get pretty good mileage, after insisting for years that they can't.

These guys were challenged to get 25 mpg on a huge Ford heavy-duty truck, and got it easily and then some. That would have been unthinkable a few years ago. And improving mileage for trucks from the mid- to high teens to the 20s makes a big impact on fuel consumption.

Not only have they denied for years that better mileage is achievable, they also paid of Congress to relax fuel standards as well as crash standards.

There used to be a 5mph bumper impact rule until the Reagan years... no damage for end impact of 5mph or less.  Now, the average damage is over $1500 for a 3 mph according to what I see from the IIHS.  If you can believe them....insurance companies.

Think that affects your premiums??  Whew, thank God for deregulation!!

I remember reading that the 5 mph bumper made premiums go up.  It turned out that the structure to prevent damage at 5 mph was a lot more expensive to replace or fix than the older stuff and enough "accidents" were over 5 mph that the average repair costs increased.  That's been a while, probably when there were still actually bumpers. 

You probably need to go re-read/research that.  Not even close to reality.  ALL repair/insurance costs were proportionately lower, even adjusted for inflation and every other cost standard.  The "deregulation" we so blindly embraced has done nothing but make costs higher.

The "bumper" on my sister's '06 CR-V did not fare so well against my '91 Accord's rear bumper when she failed to clear it and hit it at low speed. It's got a nice dent in the plastic that doesn't appear to be easily removable.

While I can't say whether or not that's common to newer bumpers, I can say that someone slid into my Accord on wet pavement when I was stopped at a yield sign some years back and again did no damage. It may not be the most luxurious ride, but it's hard to break.

You evidently have some research or evidence indicating that the 5 mph bumper resulted in lower insurance rates than before the 5 mph bumper that contradicts my memory.  Please post it so I don't waste my time trying to find something I remember from more than 20 years ago.

Nathan, you can attempt the repair with a heat gun (similar to a hair dryer, much hotter temp) and some dry ice or cold rag.

Here's how that works, basically:

http://www.ehow.com/how_2138388_fix-dents-plastic-bumper-covers.html

Here is just a quick statement from IIHS.  The people who actually RAISE your insurance bills....
Check out the News Releases from Aug 27, 1997 and May 8, 1997.  This has been common knowledge and REPORTED in the REAL news (NOT anything with Murdoch in it) for 20 years or more. 

So, we moved from a 5mph bumper standard with no damage, to allowing car makers to do whatever they want in the name of "deregulation" ala Reagan.  Now there is some kind of progress.   Saturn was the best in 1997 at $655 damage, while the Hyundai was over $3000. 

And the luxury guys?  Well, hold onto your panties...a walking speed impact - 5 mph - on a Lexus caused $6190 in damage.

http://www.iihs.org/research/topics/bumpers.html

How is THAT hopey/changey thing working out for ya'??

That Ford is a good truck.  The lower rear-end ratio and the big tires don't hurt, either.  I have driven both the Ford and Dodge diesels for hundreds of thousands of miles and have gotten 25 mpg on both from time to time when I wasn't hurrying or pulling a load.

Don't know about Chevy, but friends say they are good with the Isuzu diesel...

All Hyper-milers need to DIAF  >:(

OK, someone trying to get as much out of the high cost of fuel needs to die in a fire?
 ???

I usually don't tag them as hyper-milers.

Usually dumbass drivers.  You'd be surprised how many Tulsa has.

They do when they're making the roads dangerous to everybody else. It's one thing to drive incredibly slow when they're out on a rural highway, but in town people will be weaving around them and they'll be making it harder to merge safely.

See my response above.  Hypermilers are those people who try and do this without creating a road-hazard.  Otherwise, they're essentially dumbasses.

So people weaving in and out of traffic, going much faster than the average around them are the dumbasses??

Interesting definition.  Read 1984 lately...as in doublespeak?

No, the larger contingent of the traffic flow wants to drive faster than the hypothetical hypermiler. That requires they change lanes to get around said hypermiler. The safety problem is not with those who are driving with the normal flow of traffic for that road, but with those who choose to depart from that speed, whether up or down.

Most people choose a speed within 5-10 mph that most other drivers do when faced with particular road conditions. There are outliers, but they are just that, outliers.

In a word?

YES.  Dumbasses.

Next.

Yes, because they create a hazard to me.

That and they're the biggest smug mofos on the planet.

A) Wanna save a buck? Telecommute, pack your lunch, eat in, don't have that last smoke, don't order that last drink, etc etc etc.  Tons faster ways of saving a a few bucks w/o endangering your life and those around you.

B) Wanna save the environment? Carpool, mass transit, telecommute, switch to a solar heater, buy some solar panels, buy more efficient windows, insulation, smaller house, compost, blah blah blah.

Like I said earlier, I don't consider those hypermilers who create hazards hypermilers.  There are those that actually know how and when to do it.

The whole 'die in a fire' mantra is a bit much.

And I can't believe you referenced 'mass transit' on a Tulsa forum.  Maybe SF or PDX, but not here.  Mass transit is a big oxymoron here.

I just hate Tulsa drivers :)

A-hole truckers that tail you
Idiots that don't use turn signals
Idiots that run up on you and wait till the last millisecond to switch lanes to pass you like they're trying to catch that extra draft in NASCAR
Idiots that hang in the pass lane
Idiots who don't know how to merge on/off a highway

Ya know, the usual :)

We do NOT need hyper-milers thrown in that mix.

As fuel pushs up toward $4.00 a gallon and Obama shuts down domestic oil drilling we can expect alot of high fuel prices- My old 1990 F-150 is very poor on fuel mileaga (302 V-8), as for bumpers I put a steel bumper on the front of my F-150 heap and it is very strong I made it out of thick channel steel.

So now when you hit something you will damage the whole frame rather than dent a bumper.  Sounds great!

Maybe 4.00 a gallon in Omaha, won't be here, so don't worry about us.
 ;D

It would be a riot to find out Sauerkraut has been George Kaiser playing us all along.

It's Jim Fowler

That would be one of the more epic trolls in Internet history.

Yes but that would be a very hard impact so you'd be damaged anyhow no matter what, plus I did reinforce the frame where the steel blots to the trucks frame.