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Car Fuel Economy and the 55 MPH speed limit
With traffic deaths at an all time low it seems that lowering the speed limit to save lives is a total red herring. If you want to save lives then eat your veggies, quit the red meat, exercise, and stay off the roads. No doubt soon the government will use coercion to socially engineer exactly that behavior by taxing the crap out of anyone who wants a burger.
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Car Fuel Economy and the 55 MPH speed limit
power tripps all of them gays libs. blacks whites demo. rep. 55 mph . bs! money saver or not there probly doing 90 somewhere on the phone telling someone if we can get everybody doing 55 mph the world whould b a better place crap. my big ol but hell lets go back 2 horse and buggy i got mine o ya carbon taxes my horse broke wind thats 200.00  o man i got it how bout walk. no that would take to long. thus the automobile 65 to 75 sounds good to me. EDP3. ps I live in a state thats 55 mph it suckes dont save a dern thing not even time go figger. and as far as saving lives pass grave yards all the time people r dyeing to get there...just a difrent outlook
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Car Fuel Economy and the 55 MPH speed limit
KW;
Please don't take my outlooks as being anything personal, they are just my view on things, if I'm wrong, then so be it. You may like red tractors, I like green tractors.
By the way we already have a tax on burgers in Iowa caled an "Eat in Tax". If you "Eat In" at a burger joint you pay the tax, if you take the burger with you you don't pay the tax. never did understand that one. Frank.
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Car Fuel Economy and the 55 MPH speed limit
KW; OK, I stuck my foot in my mouth again.
I should have remembered but didn't, so after rereading your profile you already like green tractors. So lets say you like strawberry, I like vanilla.
Again I'm sorry to have upset you or anyone else here, but to me one life saved by slower driving may have been the life a loved one of yours or mine.
We frequently make a trip from NE Iowa to north west of the twin cities to our daughter and her family. There is no way around the twin cities unless you drive an extra 50-75 miles which I usually do to avoid bumper to bumper 80+ mph freeway driving. Yes, I'm an old man and am very uncomfortable in those situations, and yes I understand by the one finger waves that I am in their way, so I just go the long way on the two lane roads where most traffic is slower and lots more room between me and the other guy. Am I saving fuel by going the long way around instead of driving 80, no I'm sure I'm not, but that's my cost of feeling safe on the road.
In my early driving years, mid 50's - early 60's the only speed limit signs in Iowa read "Reasonable and Proper", I'm not sure that people drove any faster then than they do now.
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Car Fuel Economy and the 55 MPH speed limit
Frank, as a wise old man taught me years ago, don't sweat the little stuff, there's enough big problems in life to keep you busy worrying already.
I think the point really isn't the speed, but the skill. People today love the world "entitlement", be it a cheque every month, a guaranteed pension, or the "right" to drive whatever they please, however they please.
I have sort of extended family in Scandinavia, in those countries you physically show up for a road test with an inspector every 2 - 5 years depending on your age, more often when you're younger or older when your license comes up for renewal. If you don't pass the test, too bad, you're a pedestrian until you pass it. Driving slow in the left lane, you get pulled over and warned, and the warning goes on your record, get too many warnings, you get asked in for a chat about why should be allowed to keep driving. Speeding tickets are a set amount, they're a % of your income.
In 2002 the President of Nokia (huge multinational corp. based in Finland) was caught speeding, he was doing 47 mph in a 31 mph zone (converted from Metric) but because he makes a big salary, the fine was US$103,600. Ouch!
Anyway, my point way up there was that if they took a little of the money they spend on policing, cleaning up after, treating the injured, etc., etc., and poured it into a national drivers education program, there would be less accidents.
Take for example the highways in Europe, the famous Autobahns in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The speed advisory (there is no legal limit) for most of it is 80 mph, although there is (at certain times of the day mostly) a speed limit around construction sights or areas of congestion. According to a 1995 study, the average speed of people on that highway was 83 mph.
According to a 'gentleman's agreement' amongst the car makers though, most cars are electronically limited to 150 mph, but they are easily removed, and to actually see cars traveling at speeds of 180 mph are not uncommon.
Despite all of that, they have an accident, injury, and death rate far below that of North America.
Education, not legislation, is the answer.
Best of luck.
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Car Fuel Economy and the 55 MPH speed limit
Murf;
Education, yes the more the better. I'm not sure of their status at the present time, but some form of laws have recently been passed here in Iowa prohibiting drivers younger than 21, (I think) from texting or talking on a cell phone while driving. They are probably much more capable of doing that than older people.
Our farm is on a heavily traveled two lane road used by a lot of people driving to the city and back to work daily. It's interesting that when the 4-H kids pick up the trash in the ditches about twice a year the get about ten times as many beer cans on the coming home from work side.
So do texting laws and drunk driving laws educate anyone, I don't know probably not. Will a 55/65 speed limit with mean it type fines get people to obey them, likely not.
As I said a while back, if I'm wrong them I'm wrong, but these are just my opinions.
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Car Fuel Economy and the 55 MPH speed limit
Frank, no offense taken. I worded my response poorly and didn't mean to address it to you personally, just the collective "you" as in "anyone".
My frustration comes from the government looking for any reason to raise taxes and socially reengineer society rather than to leave people the heck alone. As Ben Franklin said, "Those who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety".
And next time I hear "it's for the children" I'm gonna puke. There is nothing more shameful than wielding children as a weapon to bludgeon people into giving up money, freedom, and a way of life that has proven to work.
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Car Fuel Economy and the 55 MPH speed limit
[QUOTE=kwschumm;171119] As Ben Franklin said, "Those who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety".
And next time I hear "it's for the children" I'm gonna puke. There is nothing more shameful than wielding children as a weapon to bludgeon people into giving up money, freedom, and a way of life that has proven to work. [/QUOTE]
If that's the case then maybe turn the tables, tell the politicians if it's really for the children then pass a law like we did up here.
It's now illegal to smoke in any vehicle if there is any occupant 16 or younger in the vehicle, even if it's a convertible with the roof down.
That should either shut the politicians up, or get them lynched. 
Mind you the whole speed control BS is just that to me, my car and both SUV's are designed for optimum mileage at 70-85 mph and my plane gets it's best economy at 160 mph. 
Best of luck.
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Car Fuel Economy and the 55 MPH speed limit
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I my car and both SUV's are designed for optimum mileage at 70-85 mph and my plane gets it's best economy at 160 mph.
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My point exactly !! My 85 Mercedes does in fact get better mileage at 55 mph than at 75, cuz it was engineered from the git-go to drive under the then-current 55 mph restrictions. But my 2006 Mercedes is the other way around. What these short sighted politicians miss, is that cars made since 1995 would start delivering poorer performance and economy, if forced to be driven outside their design parameters.
And I doubt the pols would write a provision into the bill to pay ECM reprogramming costs to optimize post-1995 vehicles performance and economy at 55 mph.
//greg//
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Car Fuel Economy and the 55 MPH speed limit
Frank I think it safe to say we all believe the slower you are traveling in an accident the better your chance is. I know when someone pulls out in front of me I hit the brakes and not the gas. (not being smart there)
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05-25-2010, 22:35 
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