Minimize Vehicle Weight

Well, if you are going that far, just buy a motorcycle.

Obviously, safety doesn't matter, so why stop at the list you have? You could also buy a car exactly as you describe in Kentucky if you are not mechanically inclined.

However, if you really want to save money, buy a $500 car instead of a new one. Given a $15,000 cost for a new car you get $14,500 for gas by buying a clunker and you could probably buy two of those Kentucky clunkers for that price.

Or, if money isn't important (about $20,000 after federal rebates), but you just want to rub high gas prices in everyone's face, buy the new Honda that runs on natural gas. Natural gas in Florida costs the equivalent of 65 cents per gallon of gas. You can even buy a home refilling station for about $3,000 that hooks into you home's natural gas supply.

At 65 cents per gallon who cares about weight?

Hey Annony...

Just out of idle curiosity, do you happen to know the range of that Honda?

Yes, I could look it up myself. But then I wouldn't be wasting time on CR4. So you can see the problem there.

Thanks AH

I like each of your ideas, BUT each has that terrible word "BUY".

Okay, well how about the word sell. If you sell your car now you will get more for it than after ripping everything out of it like it was a left over from a wrecking yard.

Seriously, if you are in such dire straits as you imply, I would rethink what I drive or maybe get a bicycle, public transportation, car pool, or all of the above.

Removing items that you suggested will do two things. First, it will significantly reduce the safety of the car. Second, it will have a negative effect on gas consumption unless your driving is almost totally city driving due to aerodynamics.

Last, the amount of time (hours) you put into a project like this will probably pay off better if you worked those same hours at a part-time job and used that for gas. The part time job will probably be cleaner and easier work, too. And you won't look like a hillbilly driving down the road.

BS alert here, natural gasoline is NOT $.65/gallon. Natural gas is sold to you at your house on a $/therm basis. Natural prices vary daily. On the average you are paying $16/ MMBTU for your natural gas. 8 gallons of gasoline is 1 MMBTU, so for $16 you get 8 gallons of gasoline equivalent. That is $2.00/gallon. Gasoline sells for $3.5/gallon before taxes.

The correct price is $2.00/gallon on natural gas. The $3,000 compressor PLUS THE ADDED $20/month to run it will buy a lot of gasoline!!!

The cost for my friends natural gas piped to his residential home here in Florida is 1.8 cents per cubic foot of gas.

1 cubic foot of NG yields about 1 kw/hr (1.018 to be exact). One gallon of gas optimistically generates 36 kw/hr of energy.

Assuming that both engines are about the same efficiency, then the cost for 36 kw/hr of NG is about 65 cents.

your units ar wrong. Gas is sold on a therm basis. 1 therm is 100,000 BTU's we are in America and by law we use BTU's google the FERC web site on that). Gas has 1000 BTU/cf (per NIST and GPA 2145 of which I am on the board of directors of). as it turns out thats also 100 cubic feet of gas, so on your bill you will see $1.8/CCF CCF = 100 cubic feet or CCF = century cubic feet.

The $1.80 your friend is paying is per 100,000 BTU's again, in the US, interstate commerce requires bulk pricing on a $/ 1,000,000 BTU's. This means that you friend is paying $18/MMBTU and in my previous post I assumed about $16/MMBTU. When you buy a gallon of gasoline, you get 125,000 BTU's in that gallon (google that or again from GPA 2145). so 8 gallons of gasoline is 1,000,000 BTU's and at todays posted price thats $30 per MMBTU.

The cost of methane is 18/30 or 60% of the $3.70 or $2.22 per equivalent gallon.

Now converting NG to kw-hr (heres you unit mistake energy is BTU or Kw-hr, not kW/hr) 1 CF NG = 1000 BTU = .29307102 kW-hr. Gasoline has 125,000 BTU/gallon so 1 gallon = 125000 BTU = 36.63387741 kW-hr. to get 36.6 kW-hr of natural gas you need 125 cubic feet. so 125 * 1.8 = $2.25 per gallon.

I'll let my friend defend that and post his reply, but have a look at Utah's prices "at the pump":

Utah CNG Pump Prices

That's equivalent to 74 cents per gallon, which is still 1/3 the price you stated, so they claim.

The link is a year old, Questar is selling at near pipeline price because they are not delivering to your house and finally, Utah has $.50 / gallon tax deduction from the price., net effect is today. go here and look across the US

http://www.cngprices.com/

Utah is $.85 + $.5 = $1.35, Denver $2.89, rest of the US oh about $2.20

I rest my case

A good case it is!

I showed my friend your numbers and he found his error in his ways and now agrees with your numbers.

Well done, thanks!

Hmmm, you seem to have stumbled on the design of a dune buggy .

I'm not sure if I would be allowed to drive such a thing on the highway but, if the cops will allow it, I'll probably have one built (just put in a real good set of roll cages).

'Course, I'll have to drive to work in a raincoat or slowly under an umbrella if it rains.

If my wife wants to go to the supermarket, I'll just have to give her money for public transportation since there's only room on the buggy for me and the groceries.

If you don't want to "buy", consider trading your car for a scooter.

Just sell the whole car as is and walk save all kinds of fuel like that.

you are already saving as much weight by driving your car at or near empty all the time.

When you give driving directions, do you reference 'Old Country buffet' as a local landmark?

I would recommend you start your project by removing the headliner and insulation.

get smaller friends

If increasing the fuel consumption was as easy as reducing the weight, why not fit a large helium balloon to the car and make the car neutral bouyancy......?

It will be light but I bet it won't drive very far and give good miles per gallon

Here's my high mileage vehicle:

I'm getting almost 13 MPG with it so I must be doing something right!

You're missing one of the most obvious source of weight - the driver and passengers. With obesity epidemic in the US, maybe we should keep the high gas prices so people actually walk somewhere (hopefully not to McDonalds). Shaving off everything heavy isnt worth it if you pack an 800+ lb family in the car (at that point, you'd have to get rid of the engine and tranny to offset them). My opinion - if you want to save at the pump, dont buy a hybrid, buy a stairmaster. Consider the other savings you get:

Quadruple bypass: About $60k in the US

2008 Toyota Prius: About $21500

No brainer?

Avery Montembeault

Sorry, I can't help myself,...but why not scrap the worry and just use a unicycle? No weight problems except for what's in the hip pocket adjoining the seat,..unless that's excessive weight and been removed for "streamlining' purposes".

Then the doors, hood, trunk lid, bumpers, front fenders, roof. The rear fenders look stupid now might as well get the torch out and cut them off. If you dump the rear seat you can shorten the car by 2 feet. The exhaust pipe will be too long now, just toss that.

Yea now your cooking.