Weekend Weather Trivia for Channel 2 News "Weekend Mornings"
November 2, 2008 9-10am
Your results may vary. Objects in mirror are closer than they appear...
How does the weather affect your gas mileage?
My latest issue of Car and Driver magazine (December 2009 issue) spurred the idea for this question as C/D checked a few commons variables vs mpg. But what about weather changes?
Obviously, harsher weather conditions (wind, rain, snow) provide additional rolling and wind resistance resulting in worse gas mileage, but what's the worst offender? I checked two common weather conditions and also changes caused from adding extra weight and varying the air conditioning.
I performed a series of tests driving a V6 four-door car at freeway speeds. I drove 10 miles of generally flat freeway at 70mph-- five miles north then five miles south and averaged the results. The weather conditions: sunny, light wind and temperature of about 80F. The gas mileage was computed by the on-board electronic trip computer. My "normal" gas mileage was 27mpg.
Next, I then changed or added a variable.
Here's how these factors dropped gas mileage:
VARIABLE MILEAGE CHANGE
1. Driving into 20mph wind (-10%)
2. Cold weather driving (30F) (-8%)
3. Air conditioner (-7%)
4. 200 pounds of dog biscuits in trunk (-5%)
5. AC off, windows down (-4%)
The test that surprised me the most was #4. Bottomline: I'm keeping the AC on, but I need to lose the doggie fritters in the trunk!
Thanks for watching and playing Weekend Weather Trivia on Sunday mornings from 9-10am...GF