Ideal Bite

Better Gas Mileage

The Roof Is on Fire

09.10.2009

Submitted by tmeronek on Wed, 09/09/2009 - 11:00pm.

Transportation

The Bite:

High gas prices make you a little hot under the collar? Simmer down - just take off your roof rack after you're finished with your summer sports and road trips to improve your mileage. No sweat.

The Benefits:

Sizzling savings. Racks weigh around 15 pounds, which makes your car heavier so it burns more gas per mile; taking it off lightens the load and decreases wind resistance.
Warming the planet's heart, not the atmosphere. (Er...) The less gas you burn = the less pollution you create.
Not getting burned. Anything stored outside your car is fair game for wind, rocks, dirt, and other debris to damage.

Personally Speaking:

To our friends and family who ski or surf regularly (and hence would have to take the rack off about every week): Skip this one, but forward it on to friends who don't.

Wanna Try:

When you're not using it, just take it off. (Skiers - if you are just putting yours on now, remember to remove it in the spring.)
Fill up the interior space of your car before using a rack.

Cocktail Fact

The first traffic signal was installed in Cleveland in 1914 and was operated by a policeman sitting in a booth nearby.

Bang For The Bite

It takes as little as 15 minutes, saves you cash, and averts pollution - what's not to love?

6 comments

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Lisa on September 10, 2009 at 06:35 AM 1

I'm no physicist, but it seems to me that removing a roof rack would also increase the aerodynamics of your car, allowing it to move more easily and hence burning less gas. I'm surprised this wasn't mentioned in the tip.

PaddyG on September 10, 2009 at 06:52 AM 2

Just a side note: vehicle mileage is also based on the average weight of one or two people (somehow 150 lbs comes to mind, but maybe it's more)...even though stuff inside a car doesn't cause wind resistence, additional weight inside does effect mileage, especially if it exceeds the wieght of that average person. You guys rock...KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK!!!

Ko Tanaka on September 10, 2009 at 07:24 AM 3

Good point! It never came across my mind until now. I love it when that happens. Keep it up, Biters! Thanks! Ko Tanaka CheapWaterToGo.com P.S. One thing though, Wind was mentioned third in the list on the benefits as if it's comparably damaging as with rocks. However, reducing the wind resistance probably is the bigger saving as far as gas mileage is concerned. (than its weight reduction.)

J B on September 10, 2009 at 07:43 PM 4

A car is made much more useful with a bike rack especially if you have a family and share only one car - talk about huge savings. My daughter and I ride to school, my wife picks her up and racks the bike if she does not ride there. If I meet up with them somewhere by bicycle I can put my bike on the rack and rideshare with them. I would invite folks to think of all the ways they could make more use of their bike racks and drive less! If you are a multicar family try to dump a few cars and consolidate to one, then having a year round bike rack is essential because someone in the family will always be traveling by bike or foot. We've done it for the past 15 years in SoCal autopia so other more pedestrian oriented locations should be a breeze. Ride ON! Also, another thing to try is taking bikes with you on vacation or weekend travls and then commit to not driving once you reach your destination. Park the polluter and use the bikes its a far better way to connect to your destination town and you won't have to sweat parking and congestion.

Can on November 08, 2009 at 12:11 PM 5

samantha on November 12, 2009 at 06:25 AM 6

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