" tip of the day "

GMJ said:
So you are saying that approx. 100kg of water dropped your mpg from 32 down to 24?

Seems rather extreme.

When touring, we usually carry a full water tank just in case. This then gets refilled after 3 days or so. If we do move about empty or nearly empty, then in the grand scheme of things, it makes sod all difference to the mpg in ours (5t twin axle 2.3litre 2017 Ducato Autotrail Comanche).
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well thats what i thought you start to think if suddenly your mpg drop's have we got an engine problem but no it was the extra weight . after driving hgv's for 40 years & had 7 m/h's i wouldn't put it in a thread if it was pie in the sky . well our tag with the big 3L lump it didn't make any difference with her like our V8 rover only did 18 mpg BUT it did 18 mpg towing a twin axel caravan so a lot of time things dont make sence plus what is your bhp on your tag our swift is a 2.3 L with upgrade to 150bhp at 3850KG .cheyenne

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Oh well each to their own. I have had 3 MH's and it has made no discernable difference to us so I'll carry on carrying water where necessary.
 
cheyenne said:
it looks like my tips & advice are no good to anyone so i will not bother giving any advice for beginners .cheyenne
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Don't think that's the case I think it's just everyone differs on the ways we do things on our vans .I'm sure newbies are interested in all aspects of load and travel info then once tried and played about then they can ascertain what suits them best
p,ease don't stop giving out useful help/advice
 
The laird said:
Don't think that's the case I think it's just everyone differs on the ways we do things on our vans .I'm sure newbies are interested in all aspects of load and travel info then once tried and played about then they can ascertain what suits them best
p,ease don't stop giving out useful help/advice
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Thought that was one of the Major reasons for joining a site like this ie. To help people find answers to their questions 🤔
 
cheyenne said:
no i am done i will leave it to the expert's after all what do i know
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That would be a shame. You stumbled on to a good idea.
Because of your decision, I’ll stop giving betting tips.😬
Although I’m quitting while ahead.
 
I’m not singling out anyone. So no one should take offence.

It might be the time of year, darker longer nights . But I can’t be the only one who’s noticed a sense of humour bypass among contributors lately. Making fun, has always been a feature on both of our forums.
Tbh, it’s one thing I go on here for.

If we only posted, life changing information. This would be a very short, dry, forum
 
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cheyenne said:
if you like fray-bentos pie ( camper pies ) years ago we was running short on lpg & needed to cook a pie so the wife after i opened the tin she took the pastry off the top & put that on a tin next to it . the pie cooked in half the time & the pastry was superb .cheyenne
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I confess to liking their pies but god they skimp on the contents, and the pastry is brilliant, the puddings though are better left in the shop.
 
cheyenne said:
try not to drive with a full tank of water if you can help it as we never do BUT on our last trip in France just before leaving a site i forgot to empty the tank full of fresh water ( i just leave a small amount in ) so driving on the m/way i noticed my mpg had dropped from 32 mpg to 24mpg then remembered the water pull in an sos layby dropped the water in to the rain ditch & back up to 32mpg . cheyenne
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A 100 liters of water weighs 100Kilos so would hardly be noticable in the fuel consumption.
 
cheyenne said:
try not to drive with a full tank of water if you can help it as we never do BUT on our last trip in France just before leaving a site i forgot to empty the tank full of fresh water ( i just leave a small amount in ) so driving on the m/way i noticed my mpg had dropped from 32 mpg to 24mpg then remembered the water pull in an sos layby dropped the water in to the rain ditch & back up to 32mpg . cheyenne
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Did you pump your tyres up at the same time.🤔
 
cheyenne said:
it looks like my tips & advice are no good to anyone so i will not bother giving any advice for beginners .cheyenne
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cheyenne said:
no i am done i will leave it to the expert's after all what do i know
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Don't let it get to you, the tips you have given are good but not everyone will agree with them because that is the nature of forums, I always drive with a full tank so, to be honest, I don't know if my mpg would be better empty but common sense tells me that it would be, I do know that driving with no fresh water (150ltrs) and an empty grey waste tank (100ltrs) the van certainly feels more responsive
 
A good sized passenger could weight the same as a full tank, I'm not saying you don't get reductions in MPG but the difference you quote from 32 down to 24 are staggering in the extreme, so I suspect it's either the calculation is way out or you are using the dash gauge which on mine I've seen 48mpg

Impact on MPG by carrying more stuff.

I know it's a good idea to travel with empty water tank - in our motor home a full tank would add 100kg - but is there any accurate formula to calculate the impact of extra weight? Our Chasson 646 didn't have a spare wheel, so I've invested against the bother of a puncture when away from our home...
forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk
 
Tezza33 said:
Don't let it get to you, the tips you have given are good but not everyone will agree with them because that is the nature of forums, I always drive with a full tank so, to be honest, I don't know if my mpg would be better empty but common sense tells me that it would be, I do know that driving with no fresh water (150ltrs) and an empty grey waste tank (100ltrs) the van certainly feels more responsive
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Indeed as that is .25 of a tonne.

We run with a full fresh tank and it runs down daily with use we fill up when it gets low, but we also carry about 20 liters of bottled water for consumption.
 
Double check the total weight of your van in fully loaded running form................... It is amazing how many owners will then go ooooops!!
 
We carry only about 30 litres water total .... a couple of 5 litre containers and about 20 litres in the tank for toilet flush. And we always run with an empty grey water tank ......

BUT ..... then we have a motorbike ~105Kg and 2 foldup electric bikes #40Kg in the garage. We are rated 3850Kg max and run close to that when we have all our gubbins on board and a full tank of diesel. I have stripped the van of unnecessary heavy stuff eg rear steadies etc and we try to keep all heavy items eg Jack, ramps, etc near the front axle. I made a couple of simple "U" shaped brackets which hang under the van behind the front wheels to house the motorcycle ramp.

Rear axle loading can occur even when the vehicle is nowhere near its max weight, especially if you have a long overhang, so it pays to get as much weight forward as you can. Load it all up then go along to the weighbridge and get 3 weights: Front axle, both axles and rear axle. Then see what it is against your VIN plate. Its a bit of a faff, but it ain't rocket science!

Jeremy
 
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