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05-11-2008, 11:46 AM
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#141
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Losing my whump
Posts: 22,697
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Me neither. No offense but its not much fun to continue hitting the pinata once you figure out that theres no candy in it.
__________________
Be fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful. Just another form of "buy low, sell high" for those who have trouble with things. This rule is not universal. Do not buy a 1973 Pinto because everyone else is afraid of it.
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05-22-2008, 06:34 AM
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#142
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Jul 2005
Posts: 2,375
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Yes - I'm a journeyman hypermiling son of a gun - busy pissing off the local drivers here! I'm not extreme enough to start putting acetone in the tank, but I do what I can - obeying the speed limit (I had an ah ha moment a while back when I realized that the speed limit signs means that that's the max speed not the minimum speed!) easing up to speed keeping the rpms under 2000 and really easing into stops and actually trying to avoid stopping - just keep on rolling rolling rolling - keep that doggie rolling rawhide, yeah!
Here's an hypermiling site
and who wouldn't want to have one of these t-shirts to proudly wear...
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05-22-2008, 06:45 AM
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#143
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: minnesota
Posts: 13,228
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Last time I drove to Minneapolis, 150 miles away, I drove 60 all the way there and back, and was super gentle with my accelerator. Got 60 miles a gallon with my diesel, manual transmission jetta. Drove me a little nuts.
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No more lawyer stuff, no more political stuff, so no more CYA
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05-22-2008, 07:15 AM
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#144
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Oklahoma City
Posts: 292
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Years ago I bought a used Plymouth Horizon for 200 bucks --- It had the worst ride ever -- really sounded and felt terrible over the slightest bump --
One day i checked my tire pressure and (hard to believe) but instead of 35psi it WAS 135 PSI !!
I was riding on ROCK TIRES
I still don't know how they did not blow off the rim but as soon as I let the pressure out life was much better in that car!
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05-22-2008, 10:30 AM
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#145
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: San Diego
Posts: 5,248
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The volvo's computer now says I'm up to 29 mpg average, with no extreme measures, just driving slower, higher tire pressure, gentler stops, etc. Considering gas/oil prices are driven by the margin, and I've been able to decrease consumption by close to 10%, imagine what would happen if everyone did?
You may say that I'm a dreamer....
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05-22-2008, 10:36 AM
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#146
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Moderator
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: North Oregon Coast
Posts: 16,475
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Quote:
Originally Posted by laurencewill
Considering gas/oil prices are driven by the margin, and I've been able to decrease consumption by close to 10%, imagine what would happen if everyone did?
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In a rational market, prices are driven by the margins. In *this* market, prices are just driven ever higher by the Greater Fool Theory in the commodities markets. Fundamentals are becoming less and less important in the current frenzy.
__________________
"Hey, for every ten dollars, that's another hour that I have to be in the work place. That's an hour of my life. And my life is a very finite thing. I have only 'x' number of hours left before I'm dead. So how do I want to use these hours of my life? Do I want to use them just spending it on more crap and more stuff, or do I want to start getting a handle on it and using my life more intelligently?" -- Joe Dominguez (1938 - 1997)
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05-22-2008, 10:40 AM
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#147
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: San Diego
Posts: 5,248
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Yeah, if we start conserving that only hastens the day oil companies come to congress with hat in hand saying, "We need help! We are too big to fail!". Barf.
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05-22-2008, 12:47 PM
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#148
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Jul 2005
Posts: 2,375
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Quote:
Originally Posted by laurencewill
The volvo's computer now says I'm up to 29 mpg average, with no extreme measures, just driving slower, higher tire pressure, gentler stops, etc. Considering gas/oil prices are driven by the margin, and I've been able to decrease consumption by close to 10%, imagine what would happen if everyone did?
You may say that I'm a dreamer.... 
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..but you're not the only one...
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05-22-2008, 01:57 PM
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#149
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Central MS/Orange Beach, AL
Posts: 8,654
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Well I decided it was time to do my part in fuel preservation by driving smarter today. I slowed way down, coasted to red lights/stop signs, and even turned off the a/c and let a window down. Just read where that one has no measurable impact on fuel economy so I will abandon the last one. Thank god.  The below link may have already been posted but I'm too lazy to read the whole thread.
We Test the Tips
__________________
Retired 3/31/2007@52
Investing style: Full time wuss.
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05-22-2008, 02:19 PM
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#150
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Jul 2005
Posts: 2,375
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Martha
Last time I drove to Minneapolis, 150 miles away, I drove 60 all the way there and back, and was super gentle with my accelerator. Got 60 miles a gallon with my diesel, manual transmission jetta. Drove me a little nuts.
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Wow Martha!
Only one thing wrong and that's the price of diesel around here - $4.46 - what the heck ?
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05-22-2008, 07:27 PM
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#151
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Full time employment: Posting here.
Join Date: May 2007
Posts: 543
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05-22-2008, 11:09 PM
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#152
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Northern IL
Posts: 22,818
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Martha
Got 60 miles a gallon with my diesel, manual transmission jetta.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by homestead
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I'm not too worried about $15 gas. Before that, solar panels and electric cars make sense.
Maybe it was another 'gas prices!' thread, but the poster was putting down mini-vans. Heck, we just got 150mpg in ours (automatic, no high-polluting diesel) on a recent road trip. Drove somewhat conservatively (how else  ), but nothing crazy. We probably would have done worse with a Prius.
Explanation: Six people plus luggage comfortably in the mini-van (room for seven plus luggage). Average mpg >25. So, >150 mpg/person. It would take two Priuses (Priusi?) to make the trip. If each Prius got 50mpg, that would equal 150mpg/person. But 2x the wear and tear, 2x the danger of an accident, etc.
That is why I'm against 'gas guzzler' taxes, and CAFE standards. It warps reality. The bottom line on conservation is how much gas we use, not the tools that we use.
-ERD50
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05-23-2008, 09:49 AM
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#153
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Sep 2007
Posts: 17,742
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I tried the hypermiling trick last night on the Interstate, following a semi for about ten miles. I was so intent on maintaining my safe interval that I missed my exit. Stupid! That took care of any gas-saving the drafting might have provided.
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05-31-2008, 01:57 PM
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#154
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jun 2006
Posts: 12,880
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Quote:
...freewheeling down a hill get can hairy. Also, on a steep hill you likely would have to ride your brakes to stay anywhere near the speed limit. In any case, you are not saving much gas, as the engine is running on a closed throttle anyway.
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I'm curious about this.
First, there's nothing dangerous about freewheeling, as long as you don't let your speed get too high, right?
Second, I've done some experimenting on a freeway hill near here. If I just leave the the car in fifth gear, I don't speed up. For example, if I'm going 60 MPH, I'm pretty much going 60 MPH at the bottom of the hill.
However, if I shift into neutral, I gain speed. I can be going 50 at the top of the hill, and I'll be going 70 at the bottom. Thus, I can go another half mile before my speed has returned to 55 MPH.
Seems like it might be worth a little to do this. Around here there aren't so many other cars, so changing speed like that isn't a safety issue.
__________________
Al
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05-31-2008, 02:07 PM
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#155
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Northern IL
Posts: 22,818
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TromboneAl
I'm curious about this.
First, there's nothing dangerous about freewheeling, as long as you don't let your speed get too high, right?
....
However, if I shift into neutral, I gain speed. ...
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Yes, a little bit of a safety issue. If you suddenly had to accelerate to avoid someone, you need to take a fraction of a second to shift into the proper gear. Worse, in the excitement, it might not click that you were in neutral, so you might floor the accelerator and do nothing more than blow your engine.
I'm pretty sure that driving safety people frown on it for that reason. Yes, it is rare, but it has happened to me. About a year ago I was at a stop light and I glance in the rear-view mirror and see a car approaching me WAY too fast. I looked left-right, got on the horn and accelerated through the intersection. The horn and maybe my motion got the guy's attention - he hit the brakes but blew through the intersection before he could stop. It would have been a mess if I didn't get out of the way in time.
-ERD50
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05-31-2008, 08:37 PM
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#156
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Aug 2007
Posts: 433
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Nords
We also ran (at least one) oxygen generator that hydrolized pure water (distilled from seawater).
Hint: the Navy still makes oxygen the old-fashioned way (by splitting oxygen & hydrogen) and propulsion still comes from splitting atoms.
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I know what you guys did with the O2 nords. Added it to carbon.
What did you do with the hydrogen?
Not propulsion surely.
Little Hindenbergs to fly around in the submarine to have some fun?
__________________
Consult with only myself as your adviser or representative. My thoughts should be construed as investment advice of the highest caliber. Past performance is but a pale shadow and guarantee of even greater results in the future.
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05-31-2008, 09:25 PM
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#157
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Administrator
Join Date: Apr 2006
Posts: 15,736
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Quote:
Originally Posted by barbarus
I know what you guys did with the O2 nords. Added it to carbon.
What did you do with the hydrogen?
Not propulsion surely.
Little Hindenbergs to fly around in the submarine to have some fun?
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We discharged it overboard on my boat.
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Living an analog life in the Digital Age.
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06-01-2008, 04:14 PM
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#158
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Oahu
Posts: 26,767
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Gumby
We discharged it overboard on my boat.
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Yep, everyone did. Probably still does.
We used to get excited about the Soviets being able to track dissolved H2 in the water, along with dissolved CO2 and floating trash. That used to make life particularly nasty when you were on station or "in the vicinity of" a reported datum conducting extended at-sea training evolutions in international waters...
Hey, Gumby, speaking of excitement, I read a short article in Scientific American the other day gushing about a newly-discovered chemical that absorbs CO2 from industrial smokestack discharges: monoethanolamine. Hopefully it's not hazardous!
__________________
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Co-author (with my daughter) of “Raising Your Money-Savvy Family For Next Generation Financial Independence.”
Author of the book written on E-R.org: "The Military Guide to Financial Independence and Retirement."
I don't spend much time here— please send a PM.
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06-01-2008, 05:05 PM
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#159
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Administrator
Join Date: Apr 2006
Posts: 15,736
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Nords
Yep, everyone did. Probably still does.
We used to get excited about the Soviets being able to track dissolved H2 in the water, along with dissolved CO2 and floating trash. That used to make life particularly nasty when you were on station or "in the vicinity of" a reported datum conducting extended at-sea training evolutions in international waters...
Hey, Gumby, speaking of excitement, I read a short article in Scientific American the other day gushing about a newly-discovered chemical that absorbs CO2 from industrial smokestack discharges: monoethanolamine. Hopefully it's not hazardous!
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What will they think of next?! I bet it smells like a spring morning too.
(For those who have not had the pleasure -- monoethanolamine , or MEA for short, has been used to scrub the CO2 from submarine atmospheres for at least the last 50 years. It smells to high heaven and has been reported to be carcinogenic)
__________________
Living an analog life in the Digital Age.
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06-01-2008, 06:08 PM
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#160
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Kansas City
Posts: 7,797
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Well now pushing 50 yrs ago or a tad more - they had CO2 scrubbers called trees.
They would get these dumb, niave Boy Scouts(volunteered by adults) to plant trees for a day.
I only fell for 'that' con job once.
heh heh heh -
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