Greetings
Todays philosophical question ....
Found myself wondering this evening which costs more (in fuel) .....
o Running with air con chillin o Running with windows/sunroof open
Both at once is clearly idiotic so I vote we discount that from the off.
I remove the roof and fold the windscreen down. Not only is it cool, but the reduced drag actually improves my fuel consumption....
Alex
Using the aircon on recirculate uses less fuel than having the windows open.
Steve
Was tested by Mythbusters and IIRC open windows won.
That's entertainment, not science.
Steve
I took the door tops off the p**z yesterday and drove it around like that, it was fairly cool but even then, the air is still hot and humid. I hate wearing sunglasses too but after the flies seemed to become unerringly accurate when aiming for my eyes at speed, I soon dug a pair up.
I will attend a military show at some point and buy some old motorcycle goggles, then put the windscreen down and scare the locals!
So how many teeth have you lost to bumble bees?
I thought it was scientific entertainment... ;-)
I had the windows open on the 101 on the way to Eastnor.... all we got was hot air coming in, hot air coming out through the roof hatch and hot air from the engine / gearbox covers.
Suffice to say it was not at all pleaseant.
To hell with the consumption , GIMME AIRCON!
Next option a safari style roof for the 101 incorporated with the roof rack.
Lee D
I find one of the biggest differences is to open the rear to allow air to flow through the truck quickly, even with warm air coming in it's better than nothing, even with my door tops off, opening the rear of the truck made a big difference. Not sure if you have a partition behind the cab on yours though.
I think it depends a lot on what opening the windows does to the coefficient of drag of the vehicle. As such the result may vary between different types of vehicle.
you cant really drive fast with the rear doors on a 101 ambi open.
It might be worth trying to see if it helps, and if it does, figuring something out. Depends where you live I know, but I can take the doors off and leave them off for a few weeks.
"Ian Rawlings" wrote >> you cant really drive fast with the rear doors on a
101 ambi open.There is a S111 round this way that has grills cut/riveted in the top of the rear above the door, the type of grill you can slide open or closed, which presumably is for the same purpose, to help increase through ventilation.
Can't say i've had too many problems, but then i do wear glasses normally anyway, and so far i've only managed to swallow one fly.
However if you're fair skinned, wear suncream. Because of the cooling air flow you don't feel the heat, which means you get sunburnt without realising it.....
Alex
I bet it would help - opening the bag of the rag on my 2A makes it much cooler, but you just cant do it on a 101 ambi :(.
the rear doors are not removable (unless you fancy removing a 4 foot long hinge pin or drilling lots of rivets), and when you open them they fold back along the side of the truck - so wouldnt stay there for long if you were moving!
As the owner of an expanding bald patch, I've got the measure of sunburn ;-)
I find that if the flapping of the canvas on my landy gets annoying, closing the back rag and opening the windows puffs it up and stops it flapping. Not much good in the winter though!
Not a problem in a GS I'd have thought ;-)
As for removing the hinge pinge, it takes me about 15 mins to remove the rag on my 110 and about 25 to put it back on, I used to take it off and then just leave it off for a few weeks. Never having owned a
101 ambi I have no idea on the practicality of taking the rear doors off for a few weeks in hot times then putting them back on when things cool down. That's why I suggested trying to fix a door open and mulling over whether the benefits were outweighed by the hassle of removing the doors, and of the security problems.
The original piano hinge was there to get even pressure on the gas tight seals I suspect. You COULD use lift off hinges if you wanted to.
Steve
I cant change them now! I might scratch the paintwork! ;). I've already but 2 little scratches in it :(
Lets see how martyn gets on with this air con business!
And Steve too!
I picked up a little tip at Easntor Tom. Usless for us with a deranged puppy in the back, but basically unbolt the door tops... bung them in the back when desired. When parking or rainy (the other 340 days!) just slot them in. Such is the overhang on the cab no one could take them out to get in and if they did want to get in there are simpler ways.
Lee D
I drove my FC101 RB across Africa, stuff aircon, I cut two forward opening hatches above each front seat. About 2" open and you get a steady blast of air. Tested in ambients up to 55 deg.C. Secondary effect is to pressurise the cabin and keep dust out. Taking the hatches off reduces the blast of air, but increases the chance of sun burn. Opening and closing the side windows can fine tune blast of air.
I had a RedTop Rooftop aircon unit mounted in the front roof, as fitted to RB's during the gulf wars, waste of money!
Regards
Neil -
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