Cliff, do you use the fuel consumption section of your Volvo 
Our company have been posting each trucks fuel figures at the end of every week and last week I made a determined effort to get the best MPG I could. By watching the ‘Instant’ reading constantly, keeping my speed below 68mph and leaving it untill the last moment to change down, EG: letting the revs get down to about 650 rpm, I actually averaged 1 more mpg more for that week (this is going back to some training I had with ■■■■■■■ years ago).
I was also told that the most forward position for the fith wheel was the most economical because it creates less drog between tractor and trailer, I tried this today and it seems to work, only problem with that is, if I am loaded to top weight it puts too much on the steering axle. What we need here is to have trailers built as in the UK with the king pin further back and we’d be set. 
What do you want Pat? Miracles? You’re worried about the $2 gallon? 
allikat:
What do you want Pat? Miracles? You’re worried about the $2 gallon?
As far as the trucks go, delivery costs are determined by the price of fuel and fuel consumption. So it only makes sense to conserve where possible… even if YOU think its so cheap, its the basis for competitive business. A higher cost of fuel results in a higher cost of delivery, and therefore a higher cost of goods… its that simple! You cannot base the American economic system on that of Britiain. Its just ignorant.
No offense to anyone, but I am SOOO sick of the condescending comments made about prices over here. This isn’t England. What may be considered cheap for you isn’t cheap for us. We aren’t paid in British pounds at the end of the week… we’re paid in American dollars. So as much as you think everything here is a bargain, its a hell of alot different than cashing in your pounds at the airport… buying products at american prices, and then going home. We aren’t on holiday here. I hardly think that the fact that gas and cigarettes are less expensive makes up for the phone bills, electric bills, property taxes, and groceries being 2 or 3 times as expensive. But you don’t have those bills, do you alli? Ya conserve where ya can, and ya make the best of it.
If the exchange rate wasn’t so good for the British, it wouldnt look so good over here. Brits pay 5 quid for a pack of cigarettes, we pay anywhere between $4 and $9… depending on what state your in. If the dollar and pound were of equal value, you’d be paying the same. Same thing for fuel. When we were there, it was 76p a litre, or around 3 quid a gallon. So if the exchange rate were equal, it would only be about $1 more a gallon. Its the exchange that makes the difference for you…
Keep in mind that the average Brit travels 8 miles (from the BBC) to work everyday (and have greater options for public transportation), where the average American travels 17.9 miles (from US DOT)(with public transportation limited to inner city and suburban areas). So even if the fuel is cheaper, we’re buying twice as much and have fewer travel alternatives, and therefore spending more on gas. That doesn’t take into consideration that a vast number of Americans live in a rural area, and have anywhere from a 6-12 mile drive to the nearest grocery store… lets keep it in perspective.
dear kate hope you are well,but lets look at travelling in the uk.
the averge comute is 30 to40 miles each way ,we in england comute the longest in all of europe,avg time 2to2.5 hours each day.
like you most of the population lives in the country/or suberbs,becase its so expensive to live in towns[ avg house price £126,000 eng wales].
trains run when they want are so expensive that only the subsurdised or rich can aford them,even buses are£2.65 each way for 7 miles to leicester.
they run every hour,allso our feul is the most expensive in europe,same as our food bill’s
so as ive lived in tampa and des moines not just for hollidays to work as well,
i would say your much better of before i even start on car prices,house,sales tax,tax in genrall,we pay through the nose for everything we have and they still whant more.
so do you whant to swap■■?.
rgds mark.
If I may intervene here before my beloved wife gets annoyed. I lived in the UK untill 5 years ago and there is no comparison to living in the country here to there. I lived in the country there, Northampton was 7 miles away, here the nearest real townhere is Glens Falls, which is 22 miles away, the nearest City which compares to Northampton or of any real size is Albany, which is 90 miles away, people here think nothing of driving to work each day in Albany.
Kate, in all fairness, looked up these figures on the BBC world service site, so I think they are quite acurate. We don’t live in a very unpopulated area compared to some. I know of some who live 150 miles from the nearest city.
All Kate was pointing out was that gas is very expensive when you live here, just as it is there, cars in Europe do a far greater MPG than they do here. We own a Ford Focus 2,0 Street Edition that does 26 mpg. I launched the Ford Focus at Weatherby Racecourse in Yorkshire in October 1998, a 2.0 Ghia had an average of 36 mpg with exactly the same engine, the gear boxes have different ratio’s which eats fuel, we have to fill our tank 2 or 3 times a week, in the UK I drove an Audi 80 which took 45 quid to fill the tank, but it did 38 mpg or more when I drove conservatively, and I filled the tank probable 2 times a month.
When I used to come her on visits or holiday I was in awe at the cost of things and couldn’t wait to move here, things soon get very expensive when you live here. 
Well sorry Kate I have to disagree I have been here 3 years I earn alot less than I ever did in the UK…and we are much better off…so as for the exchange rate that don’t apply to me so you cant us that one!
It’s all down to the cost of living. Brits are taxed to death!!! I get sick and tired of Americans who moan all the time about gas, food, house prices etc. Americans don’t know how good they got it…My wife (who’s American) lived in the UK for 2 years and it got to a point when she said “that’s it…lets go back to the States” she was tired of paying out the ■■■ for the necessities in life. She realized it and started to appreciate just how much America has to offer…she was just like 95% of American’s, she took it for granted, but after living in another country for 2 years it opened her eyes. Me and my wife earned approx 90,000 pounds a year ($160,000) in the UK and just got by on it. Now we are earning only $80,000 a year, drive 2 cars, have a $100,000 house and have money in the bank and are having the time of our lives and we don’t even own a credit card■■? So why is that Kate■■? That’s got to tell you something…right?
As for what State you live in then thats you choice. They are 48 mainland States to choose from…some more expensive to live in than others…but thats your choice. I pay $3.75 for marlboro cigarettes, in New York state I’m sure they are lot higher than that. I live in a rural area and travel 50 miles to and from work and my wife does the same…big deal!!!
I look at this way Kate…some people live by there means…and others don’t.
Maybe that 's the problem over here■■?
Bully
Thank you Mark, I’m fine, thanks for inquiring. First of all … my point is that you cannot compare the UK to the US. The economics of each country are different. But just for humors sake, lets compare the basic expenses Patrick had in the UK with what I had here in 2000… (keeping in mind that Towester is one of the more expensive areas of England to live it, and Granville, NY is definitely not in the US)
For me: Federal Income tax, State income tax, social security tax, medicare tax, county property tax, school district tax, and village tax… water and sewer usage tax. (and that doesn’t include ANY form of health insurance… which at the time cost me an additional $264 per month)
For Him: Income tax, national insurance, rates.
Groceries… for his family of 3… he spent approximately 50 pounds every
two weeks.
for me and my son… approximately $60 each week.
Electricity: his house in Towcester… an average 40 pounds a month
my house in the US… an average of $175 per month
Phone bill: his basic rate 40 pounds
my basic rate $49
Car Insurance: for him: 220 pounds a year with full comp
for me: $869 per year with full comp
Mortgage: for him 445 pounds per month
for me: $466 per month.
Cable TV: for him… 25 pounds a month
for me… $45 a month
Heat Bill… for him 175 pounds on average per year
for me: just over $500 per year on average
I won’t compare the car prices, as we weren’t driving comparable vehicles at the time. But just to accentuate the car insurance costs… he was driving a top of the range, a few years old Audi… I was driving a basic Buick. So with income and property taxes aside, his basic living expenditures were 685 pounds per month… with an income of over 2500 pounds per month as a truck driver, mine was $1088… plus $264 for health insurance… a total of $1352. With an average income of $1320 a month as a nurse. Good thing I got child support huh?
And Bully, with all due respect… if you earned over 90,000 pounds a year and had a hard time meeting your bills… who’s the one living beyond their means? We have no credit card bills either and live well within our means… but there are people everywhere who overspend and rack up the bills… that isn’t what I"m talking about. I’m talking basic living expenses in comparison to the economies of the respective countries. The same can be said about the UK… if its too expensive for you in northampton, move to hull… if you can’t afford a house in milton keynes, move to newcastle… There are cheaper places in every country, but that doesnt make them the most desirable places to live, and the incomes usually go down with the cost of living.
You have to break it down bill by bill, and average income by average income. Certainly there will be people better off financially in each country. But compare the average median income of one country with the average median income of the other… your $80,000 a year is well beyond the average median income for the US, just as the 90,000 pounds was well beyond the median income for the UK. So where the cost of a 50 mile commute to someone who earns $80,000 a year seems like nothing, to those who earn $30,000 it seems like alot. The average median household income for a family of 4 in the US is $27,100, in the UK its 34,568 pounds. So compare the basic cost of living to the average income. Someone who earns 34,000 pounds in Hull is going to be doing fairly well financially, someone in London will not.
These aren’t just my opinions. I don’t write something here as fact if I haven’t looked it up. I’ve researched it… do your own research and pull up the numbers. I don’t think you’d have much to argue about then. I looked at the US census beaurea and the UK Inland Revenue sites. If you look it up and find something different, by all means, correct me.
Well Kate…I don’t care how many numbers you throw at me… I know what I went through in the UK and I know what I’m going through in the USA…you are quoting stats…I’m quoting reality…and to me thats all that matters…My wife has been there and done it…I have been there and done it. Facts don’t mean nothing…it’s the real world that matters…and I guess me and Laura must be doing something right to make our lives better…something we could not do in the UK. If I was reading this thread for the 1st time I know which one I would go for…reality!!!
Bully
I would also like to add that I pay child support for 3 children in the UK which is based on the UK cost of living which I pay once every 6 months and have 1 step daughter In the USA as well. Like I said Kate…you tell me what I’m doing right and I’ll right a book on it and give you half the profit? Cause I’ll tell you now I aint doing anything different that I would be doing in the UK…and that’s fact!..All I can say is why don’t you and Pat move back to the UK and see how long it takes you to appreciate what you have?
Bully
Kate, the British version gets more miles per gallon because the imperial gallon is larger than the American gallon.
And, as far as deeper kingpin setbacks go, 10 years ago when I worked for JB Hunt, they lost a customer because their 4’6" setback kingpins on their new plateside 53’ trailers was too much for the yard trucks they used. Using a European 6’ setback would mean you’d need a customised tractor, then you’d not be able to have anybody else pull it.
Well, to back Kate on a couple of points, food shopping here seems more expensive than back home. And with the place being so ■■■■ big, you really do need cheap petrol to get anywhere outside your home county.
Average loaf of bread in my local store in Grafton is $2 a loaf, for something that would cost me under 60p back home, even at current rates, that’s cheaper in blighty.
Smokes are cheap tho, which is a bonus. Since I don’t smoke an expensive brand, I can get a carton here for about $25, where 20 quid would just get me a hundred…
It seems a trade off to me. I didn’t start this thread to create a battle over cost, or US vs UK,
I am better off here, although what Kate say’s is right, and I can’t explain that other than back in the UK I went out every night, dined out more often etc.
Where we live here we go out for a meal twice a month, we never visit a bar because of this stupid no smoking ban.
I do work much harder under a very stupid pay structure, eg: Per mile, I work twice the hours I did in the UK, if I worked these hours back there I would have been on well over a grand a week after tax etc
People here seem to be worked to death, in fact we have two drivers over 65 years old, I have met drivers on the road here in their 70’s, we get 1 week holiday per year after 1 year and it doesn’t increase for 3 years. I was stopped by INS on a visit here once and asked why I had been here 10 weeks, when no one gets that holiday per year ? “I do” was my reply.
Clothes etc are far cheeper here, other things such a electrical goods are far cheeper. Food is more expensive, milk is 4 times more here than in the UK.
Alli ---- if you pay $25 for the cheeper smokes, thats expensive, a carton of 200 marlbro in NH is $25.
Please lets not argue anymore
Bully,… my point isn’t that people in the UK have it better, just that it evens out. Some things are less expensive here, others are more expensive. I absolutely believe we’re better off financially here than we would be there. But the fact remains that the standard living expenses here are comparably more expensive in relation to income. The only thing I can possibly attribute the financial differences to is lifestyle… From what I noticed from being there, and from what Patrick and our friends have told me, life here is more relaxed. Most people are more content with what they have. In the UK it seems like people spend more time going out, pub lunches 2 or 3 times a week, shopping, buying the newest versions of cell phones, DVD players… ect…taking holidays, redecorating their homes,… spending where they really don’t need to because its just the way life is there. His friends are shocked when they come here on vacation and see just how laid-back we all are. And they all seem love that about it here… going so far as to contemplate moving here because of the relaxed atmosphere. The pace there is faster and more competitive… you’re more apt to be judged by the model of car that you drive, type of house you live in, and the label on your clothing. That’s just a generalization… of course it doesn’t apply to everyone, and there are also exceptions to that here… but it is a difference to consider. I’m sure if we were to live there, its a trap that Patrick would fall back into easily…
So there ya go… thats my theory Bully… You have a nice house, 2 cars, make comparably the same income in relation to the economies, so take a look at your situation. How do your lifestyle and social activities here differ from what they were there? I’ll bet, just like Patrick, yours has changed significantly as well.
And Alex, I don’t think I mentioned anything about MPG… that was Patrick.
But… lets take a look at it.
The Imperial gallon is 7/10th of a liter larger… which is roughly a pint. The US standard gallon is 3.8 liters, the Imperial gallon is 4.5 liters. I dont think having 15% more fuel per imperial gallon explains more than a 30% increase in milage. As Patrick said… the cars are geared differently. The road structure also plays a part in fuel consumption. As annoying as the roundabouts are, they do assist in fuel conservation. It all still results in better milage for the same amount of fuel in the UK. But since he’s the one with the experience driving in both countries, I’ll leave any dispute about this to him.
The fact the the Imperial gallon is larger also narrows what the cost difference is. Nobody is disputing that the UK has an unreasonable tax system… I think thats something we can all agree on.
The US fuel consumption figures printed are those from the official test, and that test is likely not the same as in other countries. Several years ago, the test was changed to be more realistic, and the posted MPG figures fell sharply.
American cars tend to have larger engines. My Toyota Camry has a 2.2l engine, and that’s the smallest available on that car. Since fuel is cheaper here, a larger engine may be more cost-effective (my Camry has the lowest cost/mile amount of any car sold in the US, and it’s a 3000lb sedan that you’d consider “mid” size over there).
Now, Kate, I can’t imagine how you spend $175/month on electricity, but only $500/year on heat. We live in NY as well, and we pay about $45/month for elecrtricity, but about $120/month for heat (natural gas). You must be using a lot of elecricity for space heaters (and/or A/C). This is the most expensive method of heating.
While we’re on the subject, let’s mention federal income taxes. The top rate is something like 17%, if I remember correctly. Of course, there are other taxes (fuel tax, tire tax, property tax, state income tax, etc…).
Alex, we don’t use space heaters or any form of alternative heating sources… We heat with a basic oil furnace like most people. The implication that I’m lying, exaggerating, or am stupid enough to think that running electric space heaters would somehow conserve heat costs is just a bit annoying, but since you don’t me I suppose I can let it go. Aside from the hot water heater and hair dryer… and maybe using the iron occasionally, we don’t even use anything with a heating element in it. If you want to argue my electric bill, I’ll gladly send you a copy… I can’t explain the high rate either but when I had it audited by NYSEG it only resulted in a larger bill… so I haven’t asked them to do that again.
Some people up here pay approximately the same as you for electricity… others pay as much or more than I do. Just to compare, I asked my family members who live close to me. My mother pays just under $200 per month, my sister pays just over $100…my Dad pays about $40… like you do… and his house is easily 3 times the size of ours. I don’t know how the electric companies figure their bills… and as many times as I’ve asked them to explain it, it never makes sense. But it should seem like a 60 watt light bulb would cost the same to light regardless of what house its in… apparently it doesnt.
Also, those heating figures of $500 were taken from the 1999-2000 year… so that the comparison to Patricks bills in England would be fair and valid. Obviously fuel costs have increased since then, as have our heating bill. This past winter we paid over $700 for heat… which is about $100 per month of the heating season.
And the milage Patrick quoted on a focus’s were based on his experience… not the stamp on the sticker… Our focus compared to the focus he was assigned to demonstrate when he launched it in the UK… I think that gives him reasonable knowledge on the subject.
JEEEEZZZZZUS Christ 
this has got out of hand, I wish I had never mentioned fuel consumption now
do you mind if i make an observation. and i dont want to start an arguement either. 
firstly. may i commend both alex and pat for using what i concider to be sensible motor cars.
secondly. i think most british/europeans get annoyed at the price of gas in the states because they only see films etc of people running around in cars/suv,s etc with massive engines that do only 10mpg. (this is not me however as i seen plenty of small cars overthere.)
thirdly.
i must admit that from my stay overthere i did notice that not a lot of manufactures of smallish saloons dont offer a diesel variant. (is there a reason for this ?)
Dave,
I’m not sure what part of the country you were in when you were here… but one of the reasons diesels aren’t popular where we live is because of the weather. In the northern states, where it gets really cold, the diesel freezes. There are quite a few diesel pick up trucks… my ex has one, and was constantly having to find ways to heat it in the winter in order to get it started… so much so that he bought a different truck. He usually runs the diesel in the warm weather, and the other in the winter… seems like a big expense to have 2 trucks if freezing fuel was his justification. He also has a smaller car that he drives occasionally. But alot of people, like him, need the truck for their work. If I understand correctly, there are many more diesels in the south, where the temperatures don’t get as extreme.
In the winter, Patrick has to keep his truck running 24 hours 7 days a week when we’re having a real cold spell in order to be sure that it’ll start. They put an additive in the tank thats suppose to keep it from freezing, but it freezes anyway. As quick as a 100 gallon tank will freeze on a truck, I’m sure a 12 gallon tank on a car freezes alot quicker.
Alot of people in this area who own SUV’s do so because of the 4WD, and because its a rural area. It can be practical, or even necessary to own one depending where you live. Though most people who own them, own a smaller, more economical version… like the new Durango or a Blazer. I realize television gives a bit of a distorted picture of how things really are here… But people here get annoyed at the big SUVs too…They seem to be more popular with the yuppy crowd… they think its fashionable. I don’t see the point of people who live in the suburbs, work in the city, never travel to the country… or drive offroad, to own those vehicles. They are better in the winter weather… to an extent. But a good front wheel drive can be just as good if ya know what your doing. And if you see a rollover on the highway in the middle of a bad winter storm,… its usually an SUV… they have too much confidence, think they’re invincible, and put other drivers on the road in jeapardy by driving with no regard to the road conditions.
The problem with a a 4 wheel drive vehicle is they may be a “go anywhere” but in ice and snow when you hit the brakes they dont stop any better than a normal vehicle…which is what people forget.
Bully