Which Is More Fuel Efficient, Driving With A Pickup's Tailgate Up Or Down?

Myth Busters did a show on this. The answer was square tires.

I remember that one... pretty entertaining!

I seem to recall that the apparent comfort of the ride diminished a little bit with square wheels.

Triangular tires are worse! We're getting into differential calculus here, but it can be shown that, as the number of sides on the tires increases, the ride improves. Tires with an infinite number of sides will produce the "best" ride.

Eual Gibons will eat the tailgate off of that mans pickup if it is made of wood. Then he does not have to worry. Cesare

So, if leaving the tailgate down on certain trucks (like mine) allows access to the spare tire lowering mechanism and the theft of the spare tire. What effect would this have in fuel economy?

What effect do smoke wands have on fuel efficiency?

If one uses the "smoke wands" (I've never heard them called THAT before!) correctly, their effect upon fuel efficiency becomes moot because no one really cares anymore...

...Dude...

You need a smoke wand and a mirror to any serious research...

Ane fuke kno that!

Del

Clearly, the pickup is much larger than it needs to be. As the tailgate is to be lowered, there cannot be much in the way of load in the vehicle to justify using such a large one. A bicycle could therefore be a better option as regards the efficacy, measured in kWh-per-ton-mile, and the general overall fitness of the individual using it.

Would a large front basket have any effect? What offers more efficacy? Wicker or steel mesh? With sandwiches, a wheel of cheese or a piglet?

Foul !! I want to see them do the same thing with a real pickup truck. One with an 8 ft bed and a single cab.

If you want to try an experiment with your particular make and model of truck, here is one idea that doesn't require a wind tunnel and a substantial flow blocker holding a smoke wand. Pick a nice flat, straight section of roadway with a speed that corresponds to most of your driving. Hook up an OBD-II reader to your truck and set it to monitor the Mass Airflow Sensor. While holding a constant speed, have an assistant monitor the MAF readings and write down a series of readings over a set interval. Repeat with gate up/down a couple of times and take the averages. The MAF sensor reading directly corresponds to fuel consumption hence you can easily determine which configuration makes the most cents to you.

If you really want to go crazy, you can do this for different speeds. The answer may change depending on your speed because the momentum of the air has an impact on the flow envelope.

So to repeat a previous sage answer, "It depends".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3aqHbD-O9Edefinitive

I have heard that the difference is negligible. It's when the truck exceeds a certain speed that aerodynamics enters the picture. Pickup trucks are designed to minimize air turbulence at some highway speed. I don't know what that speed is, but it's probably around 70-75 mph. After market accessorisers made cargo nets to replace the tailgate. It probably didn't do much good, but made the makers happy.

The video I saw was a OEM-ish verbal description of a... smoke flow shape in a wind tunnel that involved a... charming fat lady(!). I saw no drag-force/speed charts, not that I'd expect the manufacturer to suggest keeping his truck's tailgate down of course, I wouldn't either, even if fuel efficiency difference was significant, so I exercize my right to declare it another example of cr*ppy scienceless... science. Don't tell me I'm alone again? S.M.

I'm good calling it a demonstration of the relative turbulence created to the two different conditions.

Which is more fuel efficient, the Oscar Meyer wiener wagon with a wiener or without?