I'd trade it for a hybrid in a heartbeat! I think it's a gas guzzler. I live to far out in the boonies to ride a bike. I would if I lived in a city!!
Posts: 3771 | Registered: Sep 2002
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A black '98 Jetta TDI with 156k miles. Just got it in June, back when diesel was cheaper than gas. Too bad I don't have the time to make my own biodiesel.
Want to know approximately how good your fuel economy is without going to the trouble of doing the math? Try fueleconomy.gov.
Posts: 1810 | Registered: Jan 1999
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I believe it's a '96 Ford contour. Not sure about the year. The color is this very very dark purple, almost black.
Posts: 2489 | Registered: Jan 2002
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quote: Size Class Sport Utility Vehicle - 4WD Engine Size (liters) 4.6 Cylinders 8 Transmission Automatic (5 speed) Drive 4WD or AWD Gas Guzzler no Turbocharger no Supercharger no Passenger Volume NA Luggage Volume NA Additional Engine Characteristics NA
Thanks for the link. I still think it's a gas guzzler. Posts: 3771 | Registered: Sep 2002
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So was I. You think that I think that it would be possible to always drive at that rate without there ever being an acceleration from not driving.
Posts: 2489 | Registered: Jan 2002
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My first car was a 92 Volkswagon GTI (manual), but it broke down rather quickly. Probably because it had over 200k miles on it. Now I drive a 89 Plymouth Voyager w/ wood paneling. My mom drives a 99 Toyota Rav 4 and my Dad drives a 86 Crown Victoria. I think he just keeps it around because it was his mom's
Posts: 1015 | Registered: Aug 2004
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Wood panelling? Ouch. I advise you to listen to Bill Engvall's diatribe against the minivan for my views on them (sorry AJ!).
Posts: 5422 | Registered: Dec 2001
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Yes, Imapalas are popular cop cars, particularly among the highway patrol around here. That similarity has its pros and cons as far as I can tell. The down side is some people panic until they figure out you aren't a cop, which means swerving and breaks. The up side is few things will get people to move out of your lane faster than pulling up behind them in a black Impala.
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99 Honda Civic, and 99 Dodge Caravan. I prefer the Civic, especially since it's manual, but we need the van.
Posts: 1021 | Registered: Sep 2004
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Hey, I figure if I have to obey the speed limit religiously, I'm going to bring people with me.
Posts: 14745 | Registered: Dec 1999
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Ludosti will back me up on this, I'm sure...
Going the speed limit here gets you into accidents. Well, come to think of it, just driving is going to get you into accidents here, but not going the speed of traffic even more so. Phoenix drivers seem to be a bit more aggressive than most, and 20+ mph over the speed limit is an accepted norm on the freeways (when they aren't stop and go traffic anyways) and 10+ for the surface streets.
The cities are trying, half-heartedly, to solve this problem.
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Mack, yeah, that's why they lowered the speed limit to 55 back during the energy crisis, I believe. That was my understanding of why they did it at the time, anyway, but I was just a kid.
Kat, I take it that your car hasn't had a repeat of the whole "high RPMs, low speed" thing that it suffered from some time ago? That's good news!
I drive a silver 2002 Mitsubishi Lancer with about 45,000 miles on it at the moment. I've also got an 87 Chevy Nova, but it's been so long since I've driven it that not too long ago I noticed thick spiderwebs going between its hubcaps and the curb. Oh, and I noticed the other day that one of its tires has gone flat. I should really drive it a little more--isn't good for a vehicle to just sit like that.
Posts: 16059 | Registered: Aug 2000
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mack, I've known that; it's one of the reasons there was the mandated 55 MPH law until the 90s.
I _especially_ know it now in my hybrid. At 75ish (my normal highway speed), it's hard to stay at 40 MPGs. When I drop it to 55, I can get closer to 60 MPG.
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2005 Scion tC (manual), with way more miles that it should rightfully have at this point.
It's been a great car thus far. Drives like I spent $10k more than I did, is very comfortable to boot, and has two sunroofs. Posts: 753 | Registered: Mar 2001
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quote:Did anyone else realize this about speeding?
Yeah, they drummed it into us during the gas shortage - that's, as was suggested, why they lowered the speed limit to 55.
Posts: 5771 | Registered: Nov 2000
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quote: Did anyone else realize this about speeding?
Why is going 35 worse than going 30? That confuses me...
Anyway, I drive a 1991 Buick Centuary wagon, with the nice fake wood on the sides. It's name is Clunker, and the liscence plates say that too. The back is also completely covered in bumperstickers.
It looks to me like that curve is based on a composite of data from various cars and driving conditions. I suspect the ups and downs in the curve depend on gear shift points, and speed limits.
I drive a 2001 Toyota Prius, we also have a 1997 Chevy Lumina, a 1990 Toyota Corolla, and the antichrist: A 1983 chevy 3/4 ton pickup. (since I only drive it about 300 miles a year, we actually probably pay over a dollar a mile in insurance)
Question for Bokonon: Do you use a readout to tell you your gas mileage? Or do you actually do the calculation?
I find that the Prius does a lousy job of telling me what kind of mileage I'm getting. It's been off by ~3 mpg in either direction.
Posts: 3735 | Registered: Mar 2002
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Hey Cashew, what engine do you have in your Silvia, the SR20DET? I love the Silvias and 180s.
About the speeding thing, a mechanical engineer friend of mine told me that it had to do with aerodynamics and wind resistance. When driving above 60mph, the engine starts fighting wind resistance. If you look at an acceleration graph, you'll notice that it climbs in the lower gears and then plateaus when you reach the higher gears. Basically the lighter and more aerodynamic the vehicle, the better it is at handling the 60+mph speeds. Think Toyota MR2 versus a school bus.
Along similar lines, having a wing on the back of your car is nothing but dead weight, because unless you're constantly drive above 60mph, it won't give you any downforce. That's why it makes sense on race cars and just looks stupid on street cars. You'll notice cars like the Porsche Carerra and other exotics that have wings that automatically deploy and adjust, don't begin to do so until around 55mph.
Posts: 298 | Registered: Sep 2004
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I used to drive a 1984 Cadillac Cameron, It was white, with red leather interior, but it was totaled in a wreck (not my fault) so now I'm driving a Blue 1988 Mazda 323. but i put the hood ornament from the Cadillac on it, so i still have the spirit of Ghetti in my car, she just changed bodies...
Posts: 1094 | Registered: Mar 2004
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It's name is Clunker, and the liscence plates say that too. ![[Razz]](tongue.gif)
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