With the high price of gas these days,
it’s hard for the “Festival Nomad” to travel inexpensively. Unfortunately,
unlike my desert namesakes, I don’t ride (drive) a camel that can go forever on
a tank of “water”! Although my vehicle (so the manufacturer says) is fairly gas efficient,
it’s not perfect and neither is my driving. I’m like many people, I want to get
there yesterday! I usually push the envelop by driving 20 km above the highway
speed limit. That is, I did this until a while weeks ago. Judi and I had
scheduled a visit to Morrisburg and U pper Canada Village .
Taking the 401 Highway, it’s about a 6 hour trip. For this trip I decided to experiment with my speed. As
soon as we got in to the highway, I set the cruise control for 103 kms. It was
weird being passed by so many people, especially the big 18 wheelers! Yes, it
did take us a little longer, but our gas mileage was terrific! I couldn’t
believe we had gone so far on so little gas! We did the same on the way back,
only this time I opened the windows and turned off the air conditioning. I
continue driving at the lower speeds until my gas tank was almost empty. I had
increased my mileage per tank by about 40% or in my case by 250 kms. I couldn’t
believe the final results! I mentioned my experiment to a car expert friend and
he said he wasn’t surprised by the results, although he didn’t think turning
off the air conditioner and opening the windows was that helpful. He felt that the
air drag caused by open window would offset any cost savings. I continued the
experiment on all subsequent travels with similar results! My experiment has
now turned into a way of life (driving that is)! So if you are still driving
fast, “honk” as you pass me!
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