"Adam" wrote in message
...
More trailer-talk....

I have a Minden-Fab / Scheder-style trailer and tow with a 200hp V6
station wagon. The front "barndoor" of the trailer is about 1.5 to 2
feet higher than the roofline of the car. The whole setup feels draggy
on the road. 65 mph is about the limit before I feel like I am abusing
things. I get about 17 mpg with the trailer, 26mpg without. I plan on
a 3000 mile round trip this summer and with gas where it is, a few
more mpg would be nice.

I was wondering if it would be worth fitting a deflector to my luggage
rails near the back of the wagon to reduce the drag and increase my
mpg a few points (and my L/D would also go up too!).

I will can fabricate something from stainless sheetmetal that would
mount to my Thule rack. Any tips or guidelines on the form of such a
deflector are appreciated. Or is this a bad idea?

Thanks,
Adam

Every time the price of gas gets high this subject comes up - and it's a
good timely subject with today's average price at $3.37 in the US and $3.75
on the west coast. Most expect over $4 by summer although you can find $4
gas now.

The power requirement, and therefore fuel comsumption, to overcome drag
varies with the cube of speed. Simply slowing down can accomplish more than
any aerodynamic aids.

Aerodynamics is important but so is weight. If you do any amount of towing
in mountains or stop and go traffic, weight becomes the dominant factor.
I'd suggest digging through everything you carry to see if it's absolutely
neccessary. Another important factor is tire pressure. I run my tires at
the highest pressure the tires allow.

Clubs might want to consider owning a "community retrieve vehicle" available
to retrieve any club member that lands out. This strategy means that
members don't have to each own a daily driver that's also a trailer towing
vehicle. I've always thought that the really big fuel cost isn't what you
spend while towing the trailer but what you spend driving that big vehicle
around on a daily basis. If this is too socialist for you, big used SUV's
are dirt cheap right now. Buy one and park it at the gliderport so it's
available for a retrieve. Big SUV's have excellent fuel economy while
they're parked.

Bill D