My MPG experiment, was a success

I don’t mind if other than 40 drives me nuts. Lol. I did notice this week that there’s a lot less people running 75-80 across there.

 

I noticed I was being passed by a lot of long hoods doing 80 still

 

Less stress and less fatigue. No hard braking when that 60MPH car cuts in front of you. Lets time on the foot, and more cruise time.

 

I noticed most major brokers book the loads using at most a 50MPH average speed. I ended up doing less 12 hour nights and more 10 hour nights.

 

another good reason for speed. Get there sooner with more off time to enjoy..

I can't stand it when I get behind a cluster doing less then the speed limit. 5 can be worked around. 15 under and everyone is flying around you leaving you no space to get around.

 

I know you don’t pay for fuel, but if you did how much would you be willing to pay for a few extra hours? This round is taking me about 6 hours longer and the 1 mpg or so difference would be at least $500 or more. Doing it to make a pick or drop is one thing, I would have a hard time leaving that money on the table just to have extra time off.

 

If you got all the time in the world. I guess knock yourself out.

But over and over. What does that equate to at the end of the year. Loss or gain.

To me. 5 mph slower most times add 45 minutes to my day. And I don't see any gain in economy.

 

At the end of the year on this run it would mean the exact same thing. My appointments are still the same. I’m agreeing with you that sometimes it makes sense to run fast and get stuff done. All I’m saying is that running fast just to have more time off, as you put it, would be foolish given what it would cost in fuel. And you can’t really compare yourself running local to others who would see a benefit by slowing down and rolling easy for a few days.

 

So here is a thought experiment I did a while back to help one of my brother's friends understand mpg and profit. I used round numbers to keep it easy. Fuel price is obviously old. Lol plug in your own numbers and it'll show you where you're at.

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2000 mi @ $2 per mi

$4000 in revenue.

Fuel efficiency
6.4 mpg @ 55 mph
5 mpg @ 65 mph

Fuel costs
312.5 gallons @ $3 per gallon = $937.5 (55)
400 gallons @ $3 per gallon = $1200 (65)

Time
36.36 hours drive time (55)
30.77 hours drive time (65)

Profit
$3,062.5 (55)
$2,800 (65)

Hourly rate
$3,062.5 in 36.36 hours = $84.23 per hour
$2,800 in 30.77 hours = $91 per hour

This is assuming a perfect run, with no time wasted. It also doesn't take into account down time in between loads. You may want to maximize the profit for the load you have in hand (that has extra time on it), rather than burn it and sit for a day.

What I think it really shows is that you can drive different styles and still make money, it all just depends on the given situation.

 

I think it depends on the load and what else you have planned. This round for me worked out perfect to run slow and still make all my appointments. But I’ve also had rounds where I’ve needed to run 75-80 when the limits allowed just to get my drops off in LA, make my pick, and be back to Minneapolis before running my 70 out. Lots of different ways to accomplish what needs done.