I know driving to close can be hazardous to your health but I've been finding out the benifits of how much more MPG you can save. I first tried drafting a week or so ago behind a big trailer doing 65MPH. I reset my 15 min. average and found that I almost got to 39MPG and did not fall below 37MPG while behind him. It was raining and you could see how the wind was taking the mist behind the truck which cut my wind resistance. The further back from the truck I got, I saw that my MPG drop on the computer. We both were on cruise but he was set between one miles per hour which cause me to bump my SET ACC button and my CST every once in a while.

Now I find myself looking for a big truck as soon as I get on I-95. Has anyone else tried this? You don't have to get right on the tail of a large truck but you can use the computer to find a good safe distance to get better MPG.

I personally would be a bit concerned about doing this on a regular basis. I have a personal bias against being behind anything I can't see over/around/through. In my view, if I can't see far enough ahead, I am placing my life into the hands of the person I'm following. If they are a bit late reacting to a situation ahead, that puts me in jeopardy.

...but, to each his own, I guess

Hopefully xcel will weigh in; I think he is something of an expert on drafting.

I want to commend Gary for trying to get better mileage, but gosh, there must be a better way of doing this
The driver in front having bad reaction is not the only danger here. Imagine if there is slow or stopped traffic ahead and truck in front of you gets out of the way at the last second... You get the drift here.
Just be careful.

I did quite a bit of drafting while driving cross-country, and it definitely helps, especially when bucking a headwind or driving at interstate speeds (70-80). I only did it on the open highway, and didn't follow too terribly close (which is a subjective distance, I admit). I've also actually tried it on uncongested highways in regular metro areas, with great success... it is somewhat addicting watching those MPG numbers climb so fast.

You can really feel it when you get into the right area, the ICE just drops its RPMs and everythign feels relaxed, as it would if you were driving w/o drafting at 20MPH less. On the open road, some trucks don't like it and you'll soon know, because they'll pass another truck and pull back in front if it without allowing you space to squeeze in. Others don't mind at all, and are quite accomodating. I drafted one for a couple hundred miles and he would flash the brake lights to warn me whenever there looked like a slowdown ahead, always gave me room to stay tucked in behind when passing, and when he finally had to pull off at a weigh station, he gave a big wave, smile and blast of the horn as I passed. These are the ones I would look for since we could work as a team and the safety was greatly increased.

The most comfortable though was when we had strong crosswinds and the best spot to draft was not directly behind but halfway or completely in the next left lane. This was a nice calm spot not buffeted by the wind, where I could experience the benefits of drafting and the safety of seeing everything down the road ahead.

Wow...a symbiotic (or, at least cooperative) drafting relationship. Now if I could be assured of that, I'd draft closer (like Xcel...if that DVD is ever released, you'll see just what 'brave' is...

Problem is, unless you're doing a close-in draft, you don't gain that much, IMO. I followed a double-tandem for a good 20mi a few weeks ago - he was driving w/ load at about 62mph from what I remember (?) But when I finished with him, and looked down at my trip FCD, it really wasn't too much / any (?) higher than if I had been breaking the wind resistance myself (had to get 'resistance' or *some* word in there...

So I don't actively search for trucks, but I'll get behind one that looks good, and try my luck. At a somewhat safe distance About the only time I'm close to anyone in front of me these days...

Mark

Sometimes we could all use a little less

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I have heard that close to 40% of loss of MPG can be attributed to the resistance loss of pushing our FEH brick through the dead air. I have found from experiments close to this while driving against a wind, drafting behind trucks to vans, and having a tailwind. It is true. So if you can still be safe, why not?

Mike Maline - Sdctcher
2005 Ford Escape Hybrid Owner
California School Teacher

Hi All:

___Hmmm. I will add some more to this one maybe later tonight or tomorrow.

___It really depends on the type of draft, wind speed and direction, speed of the target, rolling terrain encountered, and load in the vehicle. More on this later but the Ranger receives ~ 1/2 of its kick from close and distant drafts. The Accord about 1/3 and the Insight, well, not much because the close and distant drafts were always moving to **** fast for her … Traffic side drafts? The Insight was an absolute thoroughbred when it came to traffic sides with a little surf thrown in for good measure

___Good Luck

___Wayne R. Gerdes
___Waynegerdes@earthlink.net

Thanks Wayne. Up to now all the hybrids have been specially engineered for the least wind resistance. What the new hybrid SUVs bring is a greater resistance factor because they are all based on the same shape as their gas cousins. I call them heavy bricks, and they are indeed. I really believe that if drafting can be done safely I could gain against 20% better mileage. During my road trip over the next 2-3 weeks when I go to the KC Ford Hybrid plant I plan on trying this out on the open road.

Mike Maline - Sdctcher
2005 Ford Escape Hybrid Owner
California School Teacher

I don't feel being behind a large truck with brake lights is near as bad as being close in front or even along side one. As Battalion Chief and in the fire sevice for 25 years, I've seen alot of accidents. Most of the time the trucks clear the path for a safe stop for those behind them.

Now I would not get near a hazardous truck like a gas tanker, let alone draft it.

The nav. computer has been the best tool for saving gas I've ever seen. It lets me know in all weather conditions, traffic, and speed limits how to get the best MPG posible. It was perfect to determine the safest distance to draft and get a big improvement in MPG. Resetting the 15 min. average at a speed without drafting (29-30 MPG) at 65MPH and resetting it again while drafting at different distances (37-39MPG), I saw a 23-30% improvement (7-9 MPG savings). BTW, the A/C was on, the FEH was loaded and it was raining. Thats better than 36 MPG EPA city!

When Ford puts this package in something other than what Mike calls a heavy brick, watch out Toyota!