Mythbusters - anybody watch the show????

[hammersley]

This is a great show... ...

http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/mythbusters/mythbusters.html



NOW what they did yesterday was very interesting regarding using the AC on a car VS having the windows down. They had two identical Ford vehicles (explorers) and had the exact same weight in them (weighed everybody and added accordingly) and ran them at 55 mph around a closed circuit track. They had a computer hooked up to see the instant mileage. It showed about a 5% increase by using the AC with windows up. HOWEVER they then emptied the fuel tanks - put 5 gallons of fuel in and ran the two cars till they ran out of fuel---GUESS WHAT - the car that had the windows down got 15% better mileage in that it went an additional 30 laps before it ran out of fuel! They mentioned that the computer pogram didn't measure the exact amount of fuel being used but had a mathmatical model based on air flow that obviously was flawed. Two lessons - 1. Windows down are better and 2 - Maybe this explains some of the errors you guys are having with the overhead PC in the trucks - mine doesn't have one.....

 

[msperos]

I agree great show I liked the one where they put the . 22 shell in the fuse panel

 

[ndurbin]

It's a pretty cool show mosta the time.

 

[Forrest Nearing]

15% better at what speed?

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

In town I'm sure windows down is less fuel demanding than running AC, since you're not dealing with much wind drag and the AC system works hard due to lack of airflow. Also your engine has less efficiency with the additional heat load, especially our CTDs with reduced intercooler efficiency.



At 70mph it's probably the opposite. Once interior temps are brought down and you're cruising along my bet is you're using less fuel than running with the windows down.



Vaughn

 

[jrobinson2]

15% better at what speed?

The first test, the one with the computer, was at 55mph. The second test, driving until they ran out of fuel, was run at 45mph for "safety reasons"

Jared

 

[McCRam]

I wish that they would have used they same vehicle. Two identical vehicles can have different mpg. i. e. one transmission is looser then the other. I think that could have scewed the results.



The show they had, where they tried to flip a taxi over with a single jet engine was a little off as well. They only used one motor off of a 737 (I think). The myth had to do with a plane flipping it over and they usually have at least two. I do Like the show. Its fun to watch.

 

[JLEONARD]

I've watched a few times... those guys are pretty nuts. I liked the one where they built a huge pump to bust the myth about the diver being sucked up by a firefighting plane/chopper and getting dumped on the fire.

 

[SS]

Sounds like this show creates more myths than they bust. Completely unscientific testing creates unreliable results - that is, you can't change more than one thing at a time (different vehicle, different speed, different drivers, etc. ) so there is no way they can conclude that the mathmatical model was flawed. That being said, their result *could* be correct since the horsepower due to aerodynamic drag is a function of the speed cubed. It takes 8 times the horsepower to double the speed (2 x 2 x 2) and almost twice the power to go from 45 to 55.



Interesting topic anyway...

 

[klenger]

When it's 110* in AZ in the summer, you really don't care how much fuel the A/C uses. I agree that you cannot draw any conclusions if you are using two different cars. The milage difference between two cars is much greater than what the A/C will use.

 

[LightmanE300]

That show has some cool stuff. I watched one on quicksand the other day. I can't stand watching the show though because the hosts are such dorks. Kinda like having to watch bob sagget(sp?) host anything.

 

[Tcolesanti]

When they put the . 22 shell in the fuse box, did it go off????

 

[ndurbin]

Yeah, I forget how much juice they had to put to it for it to go off tho.



Nathan

 

[FATCAT]

Excellent show ... especially now with the two new babes they have ... hubba hubba!

 

[nickleinonen]

Yeah, I forget how much juice they had to put to it for it to go off tho.



Nathan

i saw that one too. . they did a dead short with some 12g wire to make it go off. smaller wire than that and the wire burned...



there are a couple of good lookin women on that show too... can't remember their names, but they make it much more interesting to watch [one is their mechanic and the other is their builder iirc]

 

[johnrv4]

I agree the show is fun to watch(especially now with the two babes), but I have to agree that their mileage test was a waste of time. I agree with the posts above. They should have used the same vehicle for both tests. Also, it should have been done at 55 like the first test they did. It also looked like they sucked the fuel out of the tanks to empty them. Then they added 5 gallons to each. I just wonder if they ran them until they quite after they sucked the fuel out, or just added 5 gallons after they couldn't get any more fuel out. There could have been some residual fuel left in one of the vehicles. The way they trashed the boom lift was entertaining to watch though