Hmm, to gamble on it or nah maybe not?

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You should customize it and have two pieces of toast popping out of the top.
Lol

I’m gonna put a ladder rack and my Thule box up top. Could always paint/sticker he side of the box to look like toast. :p

Probably gonna get a plumber friend to make a large pvc tube container over 12’ long for me. If there’s a cone type end cap available I’ll make it look like a missile. :p

^ Great way to eliminate the thin economy margin that you've been clinging on to.

That would be common sense anyway, but this whole thread is all about the lack of it.

common sense is overrated IMHO. sometimes ya just gotta say "let's do something different now."

I'd say the drop in fuel economy on my car was around 10% adding the rack & box. That's still peanuts for fuel efficient vehicles.

Even driving it pretty normally, hitting 120-130kmh more than once, idling for 1/2 an hour etc I still think I'm on pace to do a bit over 30mpg for the tank. I'll be filling up sometime tmw and will check. Not seeing how it doesn't make sense to you to multiply my cargo space by several X while barely increasing fuel cost.

You barely drive at all. Fuel efficiency shouldn't even be much of a consideration for you. My regular commute is ~110km or so/day. Having this much cargo space and a payload capacity of 800kg/1793lbs (iirc) in a vehicle that doesn't suck back 15-18mpg - or worse - is $ in the bank.

Why do you think you need that cargo space every day?

I fit a twin mattress in the Highlander by doing nothing but folding rear seats and pushing the front passenger seat forward. When I was moving I fit a lot of boxes and disassembled furniture in there. To have useful cargo space you really don't have to sacrifice everyday comfort and performance.

It might not be 10% and you have to get 23.5mpg just to break even with the lowest posted mpg for a Sienna. (Before you factor in the value of everything else you sacrificed.) You don't really have the margin to give up 3-something mpg.

With your topping off it's impossible to get a reliable number, but considering nobody else got anywhere close to 30 I find your expectation unfounded. So with real numbers once you add the roof box you're in Sienna territory, in terms of economy, with nothing but negatives in every other category of comparison beyond that.

Because my car's trunk and Thule box were jammed with tools - can't fit any more or any material. Have to fold the seat down to load material and run 10' material from the trunk to onto my dash. Can't put 4x8' sheet material in my car. Starting training into a bit of a different construction trade and will need more tools and a larger rolling toolbox - which don't fit in my car at all or I'd have bought one already, but they simply don't fit through the trunk or door.

+ it enables me to take on different jobs that require larger/bulkier materials I could never jam into my car. etc

Not sure why you don't think I'm able to assess my own needs for cargo space in a vehicle?

Moving a couple boxes and some disassembled furniture is apples to oranges. Highlander (hybrid) gets way worse fuel economy than this van - and costs twice as much for the cheapest one while not having nearly as much cargo space. Not sure why you keep recommending it.

I'll get better than your guesstimate of 23.5mpg. I'll fill up today and find out. Note: I've been driving it like normal and there's a ~250 lbs of clay drain tiles in the back end for weight over the drive wheels for Winter traction.

How is it impossible to get an accurate number topping off? I fill it to the exact same point where I Can see the fuel at the very top of the filler neck = I filled the exact same volume it was filled to before. Volume is displayed on the pump/receipt. Easy calculation from the tripometer and the fuel volume. Not sure why this is so complicated for you. (Whereas not topping off, who knows if the pump stops at the exact same volume or not when you can't visually see the fuel level?? Way less accuracy that way.)

Mmhmm, nothing but negatives.. because you don't like the look (subjective) and can't get it through your head that it's far more fuel efficient than you think it is. This was a calculated vehicle purchase at the right price for the space, resale value, cargo space, fuel economy etc etc or I wouldn't have wanted to pay the $1200 sales tax on it. I'll save $$$ over driving another vehicle of it's capabilities, and then possibly not lose a penny if I ever resell it. Much wiser than buying a Highlander for twice the price and losing >50% of it's value over time.

23.5mpg is not a guesstimate, it's a proportional translation of a gasoline Sienna to diesel mpg by cost per mile based on the fuel prices you posted earlier in the thread. Okay, fine, I'll type out the math. (18.5/1.689)*2.139=~23.5
23.5 is the number to beat if you're trying to save (some) money.

I wouldn't dream to recommend something to you considering you buy things nobody else wants. That Dart sat on the lot for years because nobody else considered it a good deal. It competed against a used Corolla and lost every time. Well, until you came and bought it.

As for the Highlander I only recommend it to people who want to roll around with their dignity intact. I would recommend the hybrid not for the economy but for the performance, as it is the most powerful selection for that model (220hp V6 + 70hp electric). 0-60mph in 6.6 seconds is pretty good for an otherwise pedestrian SUV. I wasn't expecting to buy one, but my butt dyno told me to.

Are you a contractor or something? Why do you carry all that junk?

Last edited by r00tb33r on 08 Dec 2022, 11:26 am, edited 1 time in total.

Ever since gas has ~10% ethanol content in it water/moisture is no longer a concern because it does not accumulate, as it's absorbed by alcohol and passes through your engine in small amounts and leaves as steam out of your tail pipe. Steam actually removes some carbon deposits from the cylinders.
Likewise the problem with stuff at the bottom of the tank is much less of a problem as it used to be just a pool of pure water that was overwhelming the fuel filters. As it no longer accumulates thanks to alcohol it's not a significant concern anymore.

I see you still haven't accepted my $5 wager of approximately one fine quality r00tb33r that I'll get 30mpg.

The Dodge Dart didn't sell because it's a manual transmission, mainly, and almost no one knows how to drive one anymore - very few people, so that eliminates ~98% of potential buyers. 2 people attempted to buy it but couldn't qualify for financing. Others may not have wanted it at the sticker price of $18k, but it was sufficient for me and a great deal at $12k with full 100k 5 year warranty.

I don't need to pay to hall around all that extra weight of a family hauler for just myself and tools/materials, while also ruining the interior with work stuff. Complete waste of money. My dignity can stay in my bank account in the form of dollars instead of being wasted on a Highlander for no added value reasons. Further, these JDM vans are considered kinda cool here on the Best Coast, maybe not so much inland where you are and you don't have nearly the same Asian influence.

I've never bought a vehicle for butt dyno performance ever, because fuel is very expensive, and the bigger the truck/suv, so are parts/maintenance for brakes, tires etc and I'd rather not flush money down the toilet. (I did waste tons of money on old junker vw's years ago tho.) Further, as mentioned pages ago, I have a nice penis and don't have to compensate for anything. Small peen men can go drop their paycheques at the gas station all they want for all I care.

Yes, a contractor or something. Because I can't ply my trade and make money without the tools of my trade nor the materials I work with. Reeeeeallly simple stuff, my friend!!

If all I needed to transport was a laptop and a fart I'd keep my car and ride my motorcycle on nice days. But I need more space than that.

2nd fill, fell short of the goal but still beat a sienna even with doing 120-130kmh w/ weight in the back.

Actual figures:

54.808L 639.2km = 8.574468 L/100km = 27.431974039

If I drive the speed limit and don’t idle for half an hour to keep the heater on I’ll beat 30mpg.

I’m gonna try. Check back in a week.

Also, where I filled up diesel was 1.849!! Cheapest I’ve seen it anywhere. Drive into Vancouver and the lowest price I’ve seen on a sign is 2.099 right now.

Maybe that station is always cheaper? Might have to find out.

Drove 100-110kmh on the way home last night, ticked up to 120 or so for less than a minute. Speed limit is only 90kmh on the highways here close to the city, they only get up to 100kmh or so farther from town. I can't recall the highest speed limit on a highway in BC, but I remember one highway they recently raised the legal speed limit - it might be 110kmh (around 65mph).

That bit of a quicker than the speed limit drive probably cost me a bit of extra fuel consumption vs. holding steady at 90kmh, but not nearly as much as bombing around at 120. Time will tell if I exceed last tank's 27.4xmpg. Pretty sure I will as I've been driving slower and making sure not to idle - although every time I shut it off it idles for 30 seconds as I leave the turbo timer on vs. toggle it off depending on driving style, so that'll burn a Little extra fuel over the course of a tank - but overall it's healthier for the turbo's longevity. Just kinda dumb not to toggle it off when all I do is move it a bit in a parking spot or something.. but if I toggle it off and forget to turn it back on later, it might just shut off and cool down too quickly if I was just driving hard soooo.. hmm - maybe for the sake of not wasting money I'll see if I can remember to toggle it on/off as needed. Maybe if I make it a routine check to turn it on at start up and turn it off when parking when it's not needed I'll save a bit of fuel and not spew extra soot into the air for no reason.

i remember riding back of the taxi in west edmonton a few decades back, i noticed the taxi speedo said over 140 kph, which a back of the envelope calculation translated to over 90 miles per hour!

That's pretty damned fast for a taxi. Usually they don't speed like that - usually they hover just over the speed limit like most other cars. Like everywhere, they want to provide quick service and make their money, but they don't want to endanger anyone or get speeding tickets.

Drove to West Vancouver and back for some Christmas shopping this eve. Mostly highway with a passenger. Mostly hovered just a bit above the speed limit - so should be pretty fuel efficient. Removed ~250lbs of ice melting salt I bought the other day when I got home tonight, still have about the weight in clay tiles in the back.

Really should inspect the headlights and see if there's an easy way to adjust the beam height - I've never done that on any car before. The bit of weight at the tail end makes the headlights point up enough to bother peoples' eyes.. and they're bright, sooo... I should aim them lower.