Season Cost Calculator: 07-08

[riverc0il]

A season of obsessing over the numbers has reached its conclusion: Season Cost Calculator: 07-08

 

[AdironRider]

What kind of car do you drive? Thats some rediculously good gas milage for a season average in mtn terrain.

 

[riverc0il]

99 Saturn SC2. Interestingly enough, it would have been a lot higher if it wasn't for my season pass at Jay which is one of the few skiing destinations that lowered my MPG below 35. I did a lot of non-Interstate driving where my speed was held in the 55-60 range in which I got 38-42 MPG consistently (with winter tires and sometimes snowy road conditions). There are some variations on there for similar mountains due to various reasons and they are correct.

 

[AdironRider]

Not bad, but man only driving 55 to and from the mtn must be tough. People must fly by you.

If I hold my Jeep Grand Cherokee (4.0l 6) to 65 I can get 22-23 which is pretty good for an SUV if you ask me. I actually use it for what its intended for though between winters in Jackson and summers in the Whites. My pops hunting camp requires a 4x4 to get to, I like the ground clearance. Plus living in Jackson they have the start bus so I never really take it skiing unless its up the pass.

 

[riverc0il]

Not bad, but man only driving 55 to and from the mtn must be tough. People must fly by you.

Actually, I am usually flying by them when there is a passing lane. 55-60 on non-interstate roads with a posted limit of 40-50 isn't too shabby. Its when I get stuck behind folks doing 40 in a 50 when I could teach a sailor some new words. Snow plows on back roads following a snow storm makes me get really creative with my curses. On highways I keep it around 70 unless I am only going a few exits.

 

[Trekchick]

I'm not sure what my 07-08 Ski Season Budget was, but I know I saved a lot of $$$ with all the bargains I bought.

 

[Greg]

If I hold my Jeep Grand Cherokee (4.0l 6) to 65 I can get 22-23 which is pretty good for an SUV if you ask me.

I've got a 2000 Cherokee and a 2004 Grand Cherokee (both 4 liter straight sixes) and no way in hell am I getting 22 MPG going 65 MPH in either. A bit of an exaggeration there, me thinks...

 

[AdironRider]

Nope. At first I thought the OBC was lying to me, but I calculated it out and its true. Its all in proper maintenance and driving technique. I accelerate very very slowly. I give the rig regular tune ups and oil changes. I fill the tires with nitrogen instead of air. Regularly clean the air filter. The whole nine. Just looking ahead and anticipating situations where I can drive more frugal has saved me loads at the pump. The car was rated at 21 highway on the window sticker for highway milage, so I dont think Im out of bounds.

I do get flipped off sometimes for driving slow, but in an SUV its no fun to try and go fast. I save that for my race prep e30 BMW.

 

[Trekchick]

I've got a 2000 Cherokee and a 2004 Grand Cherokee (both 4 liter straight sixes) and no way in hell am I getting 22 MPG going 65 MPH in either. A bit of an exaggeration there, me thinks...

Recently I did a complete tune up on my Jeep Gd Cherokee(plugs, wires, etc), rotated the tires and checked for proper pressure. I was amazed to pic up as much fuel milege as I did. 17 ish around town, which translates into, a bit over 20 highway.
One tire had a slow leak, when it went down a bit, so did my mileage.
When I aired it back up, the mileage went back up with it.

I'm sure I'd get better if I didn't have the V8HO, but I love that power!

 

[hiroto]

A season of obsessing over the numbers has reached its conclusion: Season Cost Calculator: 07-08

No lodging cost? Do you always have free place to stay? That's a major chunk of skiing expenditure for us.

 

[Greg]

Nope. At first I thought the OBC was lying to me, but I calculated it out and its true. Its all in proper maintenance and driving technique. I accelerate very very slowly. I give the rig regular tune ups and oil changes. I fill the tires with nitrogen instead of air. Regularly clean the air filter. The whole nine. Just looking ahead and anticipating situations where I can drive more frugal has saved me loads at the pump. The car was rated at 21 highway on the window sticker for highway milage, so I dont think Im out of bounds.

Maybe you got a special one. I've got over 240,000 miles between the two Jeeps and I've been pretty good about maintenance, but I have to admit, I haven't gone as far as putting nitrogen in the tires. :blink: What the hell is the benefit of that? Air is almost 80% nitrogen anyway. I do inflate to the side-wall pressure though.

I'm still calling shenanigans on this one. Maybe you can get 22 MPG on a downhill, but not for any significant stretch. Also, you're going to average out much lower unless you drive 80% highway at 60 MPH. I usually average out between 17-18 MPG. I have gotten close to 19 MPG in the lighter Cherokee Sport though.

 

[riverc0il]

No lodging cost? Do you always have free place to stay? That's a major chunk of skiing expenditure for us.

Correct, no lodging cost at all. Day trip only for all 52 days. Most locations I skied are within 2 hours drive so it was not worth the money to stay the night, even if I skied the same location back to back two days on a weekend. That may change this coming season, especially if I can hook up with other like minded skiers interested in crashing the night together near the hill on the cheap. I would only do lodging if it saved money versus gas expense. But at $20-25 per day on the 2 hour drives, it wasn't worth it. With a 25% increase in gas prices and someone to crash with, it would be cheaper than the gas and would save money.

 

[hiroto]

Day trip only for all 52 days.

That is pretty impressive!

 

[AdironRider]

Maybe you got a special one. I've got over 240,000 miles between the two Jeeps and I've been pretty good about maintenance, but I have to admit, I haven't gone as far as putting nitrogen in the tires. :blink: What the hell is the benefit of that? Air is almost 80% nitrogen anyway. I do inflate to the side-wall pressure though.

I'm still calling shenanigans on this one. Maybe you can get 22 MPG on a downhill, but not for any significant stretch. Also, you're going to average out much lower unless you drive 80% highway at 60 MPH. I usually average out between 17-18 MPG. I have gotten close to 19 MPG in the lighter Cherokee Sport though.

Dont know what to tell you but Ive been getting it consistently in the year and half Ive owned the Jeep. Dropped to 20 highway when I was in Jackson driving at 6-8000 feet. Complete nitro in the tires creates less rolling resistance than air, resulting in better milage. Its not much, but I did notice about .5 extra mpg or ten miles per tank once I made the switch.

I dont think you realize how slow I drive and accelerate in the Jeep. When I accelerate it never goes above 2 grand. My buddies make fun of me its that bad. If I drive it normally I get the milage your talking about. Plus Im talking just highway here. My commute to work is 95% highway driving, so it really helps the milage. Around town it drops to about 16-17 and hurts the overall totals.

 

[deadheadskier]

I can see AdironRider achieving the mileage that he does. It takes a helluva lot of patience to do so driving that way, but it sounds like he's adopted some of the techniques of a hyper miler.

With slowed accelerations and lots of coasting some people can achieve upwards of 30% better gas mileage than their cars are rated at.

 

[Moe Ghoul]

I do mostly city miles off season, the few miles that I drive, and coasting, less braking and a steady pedal will save on gas and brakes. But when it comes to driving long distance highway, like a trip to Whiteface, I'd rather skip a lunch or 2 to cover the extra gas just to get there at record speed. Last year we made it in 6 hours flat from Philly to Lake Placid town limits, and I think that record will stand for us.

 

[AdironRider]

I can see AdironRider achieving the mileage that he does. It takes a helluva lot of patience to do so driving that way, but it sounds like he's adopted some of the techniques of a hyper miler.

With slowed accelerations and lots of coasting some people can achieve upwards of 30% better gas mileage than their cars are rated at.

It does take patience, that I can tell you. I do sometimes wish that I could just put the pedal to the metal and get there sooner. But in a Jeep getting to the mtn 20 minutes faster can often cost you 20 bucks more round trip, thats just not worth it to me. Besides, I like sitting behind the wheel, being the captain of my ship. I get to think and listen to some good tunes, and theres no real stress. I like those times.

Speaking of which, Ive been listening to alot of Little Feat in the car recently. With music like that to listen to, I dont mind the extra 5 to 10 minutes in the car. I must say the Jeep has a solid sound system. Haha.

That being said, unless Im driving cross country I dont go to the extent that alot of hypermilers go to including riding up on a big rigs ass or rolling through stop signs. That could end up costing me way more than a couple extra bucks in gas.

 

[deadheadskier]

Speaking of which, Ive been listening to alot of Little Feat in the car recently. With music like that to listen to, I dont mind the extra 5 to 10 minutes in the car. I must say the Jeep has a solid sound system. Haha.

LOVE Little Feat

I was going to recommend you pick this up

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/6305841446/ref=dp_olp_2/002-2771638-5053609

but DAYUM out of print and now $167 for a new copy. I think I paid $15 about five years ago for mine. The video quality is grainy and piss poor, but the sound quality is excellent as is the performance. I rank Lowell George (RIP) way up there on artists who died too young. Helluva singer song writer

 

[riverc0il]

I do a lot of driving techniques to increase MPG such as slow/gradual acceleration and coasting towards stop signs and lights in hopes I can get a green before coming to a complete stop (that drives most other drivers nuts!!!!! LOLOLOL).. My car is rated for 35 and I can get up to 42 without being too obsessive about it.

 

[Moe Ghoul]

LOVE Little Feat

I was going to recommend you pick this up

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/6305841446/ref=dp_olp_2/002-2771638-5053609

but DAYUM out of print and now $167 for a new copy. I think I paid $15 about five years ago for mine. The video quality is grainy and piss poor, but the sound quality is excellent as is the performance. I rank Lowell George (RIP) way up there on artists who died too young. Helluva singer song writer

Waiting for Columbus is one of my faves. I never had the chance to see the original band, I saw the reconstituted version at Dickinson College circa 79-83. That's about as close as I can pin the date