LETTERS FROM THE ROAD
PAPER WEIGHT FUEL ECONOMY
Thanks to Bruce and Marg Gow for their
informative article about travelling tips (GoRV
#35). I can particularly relate to their advice
about leaving behind all those books and
switching to an e-reader instead. Regarding the comments about fuel economy
in pop-tops versus full-height vans (GoRV
#34), I have a 2004 Jayco Freedom with a
Tare of 1509kg and ATM 1909kg.
I like reading magazines and have always
carried a few with me on our travels; however,
out of curiosity, I recently weighed the various
magazines in our van and discovered that we
were carrying close to 6kg in paper!
So I’ll be switching to digital subscriptions and
downloading my books to an e-reader in the
near future. That’s one of the reasons I like
GoRV – it’s so light to carry!
Ed Hargreaves
Via email
My tow car is a 2011 Kia Sorento 2.2 diesel.
From Brisbane via Borroloola to Darwin, then
to Wyndham and return to Brisbane, the
average for the trip was 12.4L/100km. Another
trip from Brisbane to Innamincka and return
averaged 12.2L/100km, while a third trip from
Brisbane to Darwin averaged 11.7L/100km.
My travel speed is between 90 and 95km/h,
generally. The most recent trip had a strong
tailwind for part of the way and the computer
showed 10.2L/100km but, on the return, I had
a strong headwind and the fuel meter showed
16L/100km.
The ball weight is 130kg so this all fits within
the towing capacity of the vehicle, which has
racked up 220,000km without any trouble at all.
The photo is of the rig at Victoria River, WA,
on the return from Wyndham.
John Beasley
Via email
Thanks John. It’s amazing how much a strong
headwind can increase that fuel economy!
– Ed
If you have an opinion or thought about the RV lifestyle, or about this digital
magazine, we’d like to hear it! Email your feedback to [email protected]