The Faster You Go, the Less MPG You Get

 

How much does your fuel economy fall -- and how much does your fuel cost rise? -- if you drive at 60 m.p.h. rather than 50? How about 70 m.p.h.? 80?

Would you believe a 41% decrease in fuel economy from 50 m.p.h. to 80? That's like paying $1.38 more per gallon of gasoline, according to the U.S. Department of Energy's website Fueleconomy.gov.
Until last week, nobody had quantified the effect real-world speeds have on fuel economy, despite the fact that most people hit those speeds on the highway every day. New research by the DOE --which works with the EPA to generate window-sticker mileage figures -- should help create models to help drivers figure out the effect higher speeds have on their specific vehicle.

The differences from one vehicle to another are surprising, according to Brian West, a development engineer who worked on the study at DOE's Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee.

The smallest drop in fuel efficiency was 6.9% from 50 to 60 m.p.h., while one vehicle lost a surprising 26% between 70 and 80 m.p.h. Other vehicles saw their fuel economy decrease as much as 18.3% at 60 and as little as 10.8% at 80.

There wasn't much correlation between decreasing fuel economy and the vehicles' frontal area and aerodynamic drag. That's one of the surprises the DOE team is still trying to figure out, because it seems to violate a law of physics.

The study compares 74 vehicles' fuel economy at 50, 60, 70 and 80 m.p.h. All the vehicles were tested on chassis dynamometers using Society of Automotive Engineers standards. DOE tested 24 of the vehicles in Oak Ridge while Chrysler provided data from 50 vehicles it tested at its labs in Michigan. Vehicles of all body styles, drivetrains and major manufacturers were represented.

While the figures will vary from one vehicle to the next, West said you can use the average decreases for rule-of-thumb estimates of speed vs. fuel economy. You can assume a 12.4% decrease at 60 vs. 50 m.p.h., 14% at 70 vs. 60 m.p.h. and 15.4% more at 80 m.p.h. Thus, 41.8% lower at 80 vs. 50.

Then you can figure out exactly how much more it will cost you to drive to Chicago at 75 m.p.h. than 50, and whether the money you save at the slower speed is worth nearly two hours longer on the road.

BMW borrows from Volt

BMW will use a range-extending gasoline engine to help its upcoming i3 electric car appeal to more buyers, Automotive News reports.

That's the same approach GM took with the Chevrolet Volt. A range-extending engine that generates more electricity can help electric cars overcome their biggest disadvantages: short range and long charging time.

Car dealer hopes everyone will get the (ball)point

Is one Waldorf business' latest marketing campaign a stroke of genius or maybe … er, just a stroke of the pen?

Within the last year the county has been seeing green with pens advertising Ken Dixon Automotive. Sign a credit card receipt at a local restaurant or video store or ask to borrow something to write with, and then take a look at the pen in one's hand. Chances are it's a green Ken Dixon pen.

"Anywhere you go in Waldorf, they are there," Scot Taylor, manager of Chili's Grill & Bar in Waldorf, said about the pens. All of the Chili's employees are using the bright green pens basically because Ken Dixon employees provided the pens for free, and they provided a lot, Taylor said.
Boxes of pens have been dropped off at businesses throughout the county.

Alex Dixon, grandson of Ken Dixon and an employee at the Waldorf car dealership, along with his cousin, Tyler Manuel, who also works at the dealership, were the two who came up with the marketing strategy and were responsible for ordering and passing out the pens.

Ken Dixon Automotive sells new and used Honda, Chevrolet and Cadillac vehicles.

It's been about a year since the first shipment of pens came in and, Manuel said, it took about six weeks before the pens started getting attention.

"It's the most positive response to an advertisement we have ever had," he said.
He and Dixon said they get compliments on the pens often, and some people come to the dealership on U.S. 301 just to grab a handful of them.

Dixon said the dealership wanted to advertise with pens and "if we were going to get 100, we might as well get thousands," he said of making the decision to saturate the area with the pens.

Part of the campaign includes a billboard on the southbound side of U.S. 301 in Brandywine with Ken Dixon Automotive written in bright green letters with, what else, a picture of one of the green pens displayed underneath.

Unlike with coupons, Dixon said it is hard to determine whether the pens are bringing in more business. Employees can count the number of sales brought in with the coupon, he said, but there is no way to determine how many sales relate back to the pen.

Alex Dixon said the point was to get people to think of the dealership whenever they need their car serviced or are in the market to buy one.

He said the number of pens purchased is in the tens of thousands, but he would not disclose how much money went into the pen campaign or say specifically how many pens they purchased and distributed.

Bobby Jones, president of BJ Promotions in La Plata, sells promotional items in the area and across the United States.

Many of the pens advertised on his company's website range from 30 cents to 50 cents apiece when ordered in bulk.

Prices could be higher or lower depending on the type of pen.

Jones said, while his business did not supply the Ken Dixon pens, he has seen them in several restaurants and said the pen campaign was good since it brings a lot of exposure to the business.
He said a good portion of pen sales with his company go to banks, which traditionally are known to hand out pens.

What is good about a campaign using promotional items, Jones said, is that over time a person might no longer have the item, but he remembers the name of the company after being exposed to the item. Promotional items give off a subliminal message in that way, he said.

Also, with many ads on television, print or radio, a person might not have means to write down a phone number. With a promotional item, the number is right there in a purse or magnetized on a refrigerator. Manuel said customers have come to the dealership saying they have spotted the pens in other places as far away as Florida and Texas. He attributed that to the many people who travel through Waldorf on business and happen to grab a pen and pass it along.

In Charles County, though, Chili's Taylor said the pens are working and do keep the company on people's minds.

When he thinks of a car dealership, "the first one that comes to mind is Ken Dixon," Taylor said.

Courtesy of somdnews.com

2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Ready to Strike

The name is legendary. And the car doesn't look half bad, either.

Chevrolet has unveiled the 2014 Corvette Stingray, resurrecting a model designation last used in 1976.

The seventh generation of the front-engine coupe retains the Corvette's familiar two-door hatchback shape, but with an all-new aluminum chassis and and dramatically designed bodywork made of composites and carbon fiber reinforced plastic. Vents in the hood and fenders allow air to pass through the body to reduce aerodynamic lift, while a combination of polygonal taillights and rear quarter windows are a new look for the car. Although not yet available as a convertible, a removable roof panel is standard.

Under the hood is Chevy's latest 6.2-liter small block V8 featuring direct injection and variable valve timing that make it the most powerful base engine ever offered in a Corvette. With at least 450 hp and 450 lb-ft of torque, Chevrolet promises a zero to 60 time of under four seconds.

Cylinder deactivation technology that allows the engine to operate as a V4 under light loads, and a seven-speed manual transmission should also improve fuel economy beyond the current Corvette's 26 mpg highway. The gearbox is fitted with a clever rev-matching feature that automatically blips the throttle during during gear changes for smoother shifts, and a six-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters will be optional.

Special attention was paid to the interior, long the Corvette's major shortcoming. The new one is trimmed in upgraded materials, including Napa leather, aluminum, and carbon fiber, and is fitted with configurable 8-inch displays in both the instrument cluster and center console. Two different seat designs are on offer, one for comfort and one for the track, both heavily bolstered and constructed on lightweight magnesium frames.

In an effort to make the Corvette an all-purpose sports car, it has a selector with five settings for wet weather, eco, tour, sport, and track that modify throttle response, stability control, steering and a host of other systems to better fit conditions or the driver's needs.

The Corvette retains its unique transverse composite spring suspension design, and a special Z51 performance package is available with or without GM's renowned Magnetic Ride Control active damper system. The track-focused package also comes with modified aerodynamics, bigger brakes with improved cooling, differential and transmission coolers, an electronic limited slip differential and a dry sump oiling system engineered to keep up with the 1G cornering loads the car is said to be capable of.

Pricing for the new Corvette has not been announced, but it is set to go on sale in the third quarter of 2013.

Courtesy of Fox News

Precision Never Rests

The 7th Generation Corvette will be unveiled this Sunday 1/13/13. Tune in to one13thirteen.com at 7pm EST to view the event live.

GM Is First to Sell One Million +30MPG Cars

 

As we continue to put together all the data for the year-end edition of By The Numbers, General Motors has announced that it sold more than a million vehicles in the US last year that achieved at least 30 miles per gallon on the highway. More impressively, GM managed this feat using multiple strategies including small vehicle size, turbocharged engines and hybrid or plug-in technologies across four brands (Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and GMC) accounting for 13 separate models. This number will grow even more in 2013 thanks to cars like the all-electric Spark, the diesel Cruze, the range-extended Cadillac ELR and the Buick Encore compact CUV.

GM's small car sales were up 39 percent last year helping to attain this million-sales mark for 30-mpg models, and almost 40 percent of all GM sales consisted of cars with fuel-efficient I4 engines. In regards to more advanced means of improving fuel economy, GM says that it plans on having 500,000 vehicles with "some form of electrification" on the road by 2017.

The list of GM's million 30+ mpg cars is composed of:

• Buick LaCrosse
• Buick Regal
• Buick Verano
• Cadillac ATS
• Chevrolet Camaro
• Chevrolet Cruze
• Chevrolet Equinox
• Chevrolet Impala
• Chevrolet Malibu
• Chevrolet Sonic
• Chevrolet Spark
• Chevrolet Volt
• GMC Terrain

Mod-Monday

When it comes to modified Chevy trucks, do you prefer them low or high? This one is about as low as it gets. Comment and tell us what you think!

Is it Friday yet?

 

Who's ready for the week to be over?

2012 Chevy Camaro ZL1 vs. Mark Stielow's Red Devil '69 Camaro

Pro Touring legend Mark Stielow pits the 2012 Chevy Camaro ZL1 against his infamous 'Red Devil'.