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by The Chief on July 7th, 2008
Not necessarily: you will likely burn more gas, if only slightly, at highway speeds. City speeds, you may save some.
This is because most people like to breath and not roast in their vehicle while derving down the road in hot weather. This means they will roll down one or more windows to stay somewhat cool.
Your A/C draws about 6 to 8 HP on your engine. This is regardless of speed. That means at highway speeds, where you're using more horsepower to maintain higher speeds, the draw of your A/C is a proportionally smaller (i.e. less significant load) on the engine.
However, while turning your A/C off reduces the load on your engine, rolling your windows down INCREASES your drag, which is directly proportional to the square of your speed. However, FUEL consumption is proportional to the CUBE of your speed. So, at highway speeds, the extra drag on you car requires your engine to work harder to maintain its speed than it would have with the windows up and the A/C on.
It's a trade off of some sorts: In city driving, turning off your A/C increases fuel economy measurably while rolling down your windows has negligible effect. At highway speeds, the reverse happens: The savings in HP is negligible while the drag with the windows down becomes significant.
See this like at Popular Mechanics:
http://www.popularmechanics.com/automotive/how_to/4264939.html
Why are you eating and/or drinking in my car?
by XT on November 11th, 2010
| 2 people like this
When riding in the car do you hold the handle above the door, on the dashboard, or on the door frame across from the mirror outside?
by clarson17 on November 9th, 2010
| 1 person likes this
When was the last time you had a car accidents?
by XT on November 24th, 2010
| 1 person likes this
When riding in the car as a passenger do you hold the handle above the door, on the dashboard, or on the door frame across from the mirror?
by clarson17 on November 13th, 2010
| 1 person likes this
As a passenger in the car do you hold the handle above the door, on the dashboard, or on the door frame across from the mirror on the inside
by clarson17 on November 13th, 2010
| 1 person likes this
You're reading If i don't use the A/C in my vehicle, will this cut back on carbon emission?
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