Driving to Big Bend @ 55mph

[betteroutside]

You all should move here to New Mexico, as those signs here are not speed limits, but only suggestions!

[homerboy2u]

You all should move here to New Mexico, as those signs here are not speed limits, but only suggestions!

..... , so right !!!

[bdhawk133]

You all should move here to New Mexico, as those signs here are not speed limits, but only suggestions!

Then why do I always end up getting ticketed in New Mexico???..... usually Vaughn, NM!

[betteroutside]

SPEED TRAP!!!!!!!

[dkerr24]

55 mph might be a bit too slow for most of us.  I tried an experiment back in May when I drove out to GUMO from OKC.  I drove a steady 65mph in my '03 Toyota Matrix, logged an amazing 40 mpg.  I only had to stop for gas once, that was in Lubbock, TX.  Took me about 10 hours to get there, which is what MapQuest estimated.

Driving my normal 70-75mph in the Matrix, I do good to get 35mpg.  Slowing down does make a difference, but should it be legislated?  No way.

Slowing down is my personal choice.  If you don't like it, pass me.  I stay in the right lane.  And the time difference is negligible, unless you're comparing driving 85mph vs 55.

[SHANEA]

And the time difference is negligible, unless

Unless you are looking out the window and seeing how slow things go by...

[presidio]

You all should move here to New Mexico, as those signs here are not speed limits, but only suggestions!

Then why do I always end up getting ticketed in New Mexico???..... usually Vaughn, NM!

Heck, everybody in NM knows that Vaughn is speed ticket central. Nothing else there to provide entertainment. Now, this begs the question of why you keep getting tickets since you seem to have multiple experiences with the process there.

That said, the NM State Police usually will give you 10 over, unlike the barely 5 mph TX DPS seems to allow (no direct experience but I was a passenger in a vehicle stopped north of Pecos for doing 5 over. It wasn't a warning either, but a pretty hefty fine). It seemed more a revenue generation exercise than an enforcement action.

[beemerchef]

Hello beemerchef, hope all is well with you.

Tell you what, let's leave it as a personal decision on how fast to drive    If you wish to go 55, then by all means, do it in the right lane.

Hi Shane, Thanks for the good wishes. I just needed to write that I should have really not posted my own opinion on this as we live in our own space not too involved in those matters, I know that in my past Life i would have totally agreed with you...
Best wishes to you also...
Be well... Ara & Spirit

[SHANEA]

Hey, if we really want to save petrol, let's make the speed limit 45mph and let's make the penalty's of speeding HUGE so we can pay for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and reduce the national debt.  I mean, if we are serious about this, then let's do it right.   Then, let's levy HUGE surcharges on gas guzzlin vehicles, like I own - Chevy Z71 Avalanche, and give HUGE rebates to those that drive vehicles that get 45mpg or better.

But, at the same time let's limit the special airfare that the State of Texas exec. officials can do in the state private jet fleet, let's keep Congress from their junkets, and keep Air Force One and it's entourage from all of these boondoggle trips like to China for the Olympics.

Some eye 55-mph limit to save fuel - Second look at raising national speed limit comes amid rising prices

chibo wrote:
we should hear senator warner out...then we should throw him out....put him in an econobox and make him ride from Texarkana to El Paso at 55mph then do it again from Dalhart to Brownsville...55 works just fine if you live in one of those dinky little east coast states that are about the size of a kleenex box, but for those of us who live in big states and have places to go, people to see, things to do, 55 is an exercise in stupidity...which is why it would be perfect for this administration to endorse...sigh

plus 55mph is dangerous: people get bored and fall asleep at the wheel at that snails pace

[presidio]

Then, let's levy HUGE surcharges on gas guzzlin vehicles, like I own - Chevy Z71 Avalanche,

That is an EXCELLENT idea. Thanks for stepping up and volunteering to take the load off the rest of us.  

If the government will simply reprogram that RFID chip you don't know they implanted in your head, then the gas pumps will automatically reset to YOUR special price when you drive up, and the rest of us will get the discount.

My hat is off to you. You da man!

[SHANEA]

If the government will simply reprogram that RFID chip you don't know they implanted in your head, then the gas pumps will automatically reset to YOUR special price when you drive up, and the rest of us will get the discount.

No no no...     I don't want to feed the Standard Oil machine.  Let the government lay a huge surcharge VAT type of tax at registration time each year - then idiots like me that drive an SUV that gets 12-14mpg in the city and 16-18 on the highway w/o R2/D2 9-10 with R2/D2 at 85mph - pay the surcharge.  No reason for everyone to feel the pain by driving 45mph that is doing their part.  There is nothing "magical"  that I know about regarding 55mph.  Some arbitrary number some bozo in Washington at the EPA came up with during the Carter administration if I believe.   It's simple engineering or whatever - the "more energy" you use the faster the burn rate.  Thus, if you drive to Big Bend at 10mph you will use way less petrol than at 55mph. 

The thing is, there is no "oil" or refined products shortage.  It's just the screwed up economics behind it all with the market being manipulated.   

Now, if Iran closes the Straights of Hormuz or if the Israelis decide to open up another can of worms on Iran, then... rationing might be the only alternative.  Standing in line for our ten gallons on even/odd days.  Etc.  When I worked for Randells in high school - I had the coveted job of fueling all of the executives company and personal vehicles on even/odd days.  I could handle about 4 cars in line at a time.  Plus, I knew the gas stations that I could get around the odd/even requirement and the ones that still had gasoline even though the sign said "sold out".   

 

[badknees]

If the government will simply reprogram that RFID chip you don't know they implanted in your head, then the gas pumps will automatically reset to YOUR special price when you drive up, and the rest of us will get the discount.

  It's simple engineering or whatever - the "more energy" you use the faster the burn rate.  Thus, if you drive to Big Bend at 10mph you will use way less petrol than at 55mph. 

Half right.

A slow burn rate can be less efficient than a faster burn rate. The speed at which your vehicle obtains the best possible
mileage will be when the engine is operating in the middle the power. With modern 5 and 6 speed automatic transmissions, the mileage at 65-75 mph can easily exceed that of 55 mph.