What a Drag (air drag)

[Joe Gleason]

I pulled my pop up w/5 bikes on the bike rack up top... (two adults and 3 little kids)... 1,300 miles

I was really surprised on the air drag... doing 70 was getting 12/14 miles per gallon...    

At first I was getting 12/13 doing 60 then ran up the tire pressure on the car form 30 to 44...

Found that when I drafted a semi (200 feet back) it would go to 19/20

Which brings up the question - there must be a better way.... to pull bikes with out the air drag...  

Was thinking of strapping a few of the smaller bikes on top of the storage trunk or above the hitch...

Any Ideas? - THanks

[2manytoyz]

Whenever I'm towing, I always run the TV  and camper tire pressure at maximum.  The tires will be stiffer, which means less bouncing, and will flex less, which will keep them cooler.  The downside is the ride is a little rougher, the upside is the mileage increases.  

My truck has a bad reputation of having mediocre gas mileage.  I get between 17-18 typically in daily driving with the A/C blasting.  The good news is I get 16+ mpg towing, even with our bikes hanging on the back, and the kayak strapped to the roof.

Since you only have 2 adult bikes to haul for now, I'd recommend looking at the Swagman (or similar) drawbar mounted bike rack.  This still allows you to tow, but two or more adult sized bikes hang on the back of the TV.  Pictures of such a setup on my website: http://www.2manytoyz.com/racks.html   Here's the Swagman version: http://www.swagmanbikeracks.com/store/64600.htm

That'll take care of most of your bikes.  Depending on your setup, you might be able to mount them to the front or back of your popup, or lay them flat on a roof rack.  It doesn't take much surface area to build up wind resistance.  Stick your hand out the window at 70 mph!