Spare gas vs. "drop tanks."

[dzzz]

Wow.. that's a long way of asking, "Do you use your spare fuel first?" :elkgrin:

He did say he is know as Zaph Branagin.

HE really only said "I went on a trip and took a spare can of gas".

If he had been slowly refilling his truck tank as he drove, and then flung the gas can away at the first sign of the Highway Patrol, I would have been impressed.

 

[ntsqd]

There is no change in weight, so early or late in the trip has no effect there, but there is a change in weight distribution. Where you've had to put the fuel cans on the rig vs. where the fuel tank is could make for a significant change in CG.

Personally I'd rather carry all needed fuel in a permanently mounted fuel tank or two. They don't always have to be full when driving around town. In doing a weight/range analysis for a previous vehicle I found that 35 gallons is about the outer limit. Capacity beyond that did not increase the range as much as the added capacity up to that point. I'm finding that this number seems to hold true for all of my light trucks although the Suburban's 40 isn't always quite enough.

snippage.....
I use strictly nato cans these days because they are leak proof even if they are illegal to use in CA (stupid law BTW).

A clarification, those fuel cans are not illegal to use in CA. As of some particular date (Jan 1 '09?) they are illegal to sell retail to a CA resident. Those cans that were already in the hands of the general public are legal to use.
And I agree, it is a stupid law. Stupid in that the new nozzles mandated by the law spill more fuel than the illegal design, resulting in an increase in hydrocarbon emissions. So what have we really gained here?
Well, for one we've gained yet another case of CARB's autocracy in action.

 

[off-roader]

A clarification, those fuel cans are not illegal to use in CA. As of some particular date (Jan 1 '09?) they are illegal to sell retail to a CA resident. Those cans that were already in the hands of the general public are legal to use.

So can I bring a Nato can made pre '09 here from say NV?

And I agree, it is a stupid law. Stupid in that the new nozzles mandated by the law spill more fuel than the illegal design, resulting in an increase in hydrocarbon emissions. So what have we really gained here?

Probably so some sac-o-tomatoes politician can say, look what legislation I created and put into place. Stupid politicians & their sheep constituants.

 

[michaelgroves]

Stupid politicians & their sheep constituants.

Ha ha ha! Yes, I discovered the origin of the word "politics". Apparently it is made up of the word "poly" meaning "many", and "ticks", meaning "blood sucking parasites"! :ylsmoke:

 

[ntsqd]

[drift]

So can I bring a Nato can made pre '09 here from say NV?

I suppose that technically it would be illegal for a CA resident to purchase such a can, but it would not be illegal for the seller to sell such a can unless they were delivering to CA.

Probably so some sac-o-tomatoes politician can say, look what legislation I created and put into place. Stupid politicians & their sheep constituants.

CARB is who put this atrocity in place, not the legislature. They are an autocratic bureaucracy. That is far worse than a politician who enacts feel-good legislation for the purpose of getting re-elected. Bureaucrats only answer to the politicians, if then.[/drift]

 

[dlbrunner]

This is a tough call. My first rule of Desert travel is to top off the tank at any available gas station and keep the 2 x 5 gal tanks in reserve. During our trans NV trip we filled up everywhere we could and ended up carrying 20 gals of fuel the whole trip. It did come in handy on the way back from Reno to Phoenix though, we drove almost straight through.

On the cruiser it was easy because they were mounted outside, the pickup was the same way, they were mounted in the bed.

With the 4-runner though it is a little different, I carry a 5gal plastic inside. I hate the idea of it though. In reality I don't do long trips in the runner....yet.

I am almost done with my little trailer, so on long trips I will keep extra gas in there. I have toyed with the idea of the 11 gal Auxillary tank though, but that comes with it's downsides, like relocating the spare.

A 400+ mile cruising range is optimal in the lower 48, barring an extreme emergency of forgetting to top off somewhere, you would rarely need more than that.