The REAL reason your fuel economy collapses in the winter

This is true, but it's also my understanding that most engine's overall efficiency increases as you lower the temperature of the air being used for combustion. At least this was the case with pre-emmisions engines and why many tried to invent ways to bring cooler air into the supercharger.

The same argument can be made for driving in the thinner air above 4k-5k foot MSL range average most of the time, Vs. driving mostly near sea level or under 1,000 feet MSL

 

Cool air does help to a point as far as the whole molecule theory thing works. (air more dense). But there is a temperature point where the cold fuel doesn't want to get along very well with those cold molecules of air.

 

i get the same crappy economy in texas that i do in the dakotas.

besides all the other factors, i think it's mostly the fuel blend. and thicker vs. thinner.

i've had fuel ups where i literally get .75 better. and any area in between best to worst.

one time i had a very small very light load picked up in illinois. i fueled up before load. and got really bad economy. my next stop was in cheyenne. where the rest of the trip would be mountains going to sacramento. i got better economy after cheyenne then i did after illinois.

 

So, cut your speed by 5%, and you eliminate the adverse effects of increased wintertime aerodynamic drag.

I honestly don't think that increased drag is the answer.

 

colder air is thicker then warmer air. thicker air would be more drag.

airplanes can fly higher in the winter then summer. because of the thicker air. they have to hit a higher altitude to get the same thin air in the summer at lower altitudes.

 

snowwy, you have no idea what you're talking about. As usual.

 

actually wind, it's you who have no idea.

at one point and time, i actually had a pilots license.

think, airplane crashes in the summertime. from stalls. in the summer thinner air. around these parts, it's a common occurance in the summer months.

 

I'm not going to argue with you about this. It's obvious that you're not knowledgeable about this subject matter. You don't know my education level or background.

 

Uh.. we don't have superchargers in trucks. They are turbos, and work by the pushing whatever temp air in driven by the turbine, the ATA (air to air cooler) cools off the compression.
fuel adjusts given the volume of air in the intake measured by little sensors in it.

We actually have many factors at the equation.
Tires temp, air intake temp, wind direction, fuel blend, and even engine temp adding to the regulars (weight, oil kind, clutch adjustment, tire pressure, etc, etc, etc..)