December 27, 2019
Since I’m often asked what kind of fuel economy I’m getting on my slightly “tweaked” 2010 BMW X5 35d diesel SUV, here’s the yearly update from my log on Fuelly.com. Nothing to write home about, but then there have been far more local trips than the interstate driving a few years ago … besides, my […]
Filed under: Archive, Biodiesel, BMW, Diesel by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: BMW, diesel, driving, economy, fuel efficiency, fuelly, log, tracking, x5 35d
December 18, 2018
Here’s a “near the end of the year” update on my 2010 BMW X5 35d with a few modifications. Quite a bit more power, but probably not much of a fuel economy improvement. Nevertheless, it is a heavy SUV and I do tend to drive a bit above the speed limit. Unfortunately we’re back to […]
Filed under: Automotive, BMW, Diesel by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: BMW, diesel, economy, fuelly, mpg, tracking, x5 35d
October 24, 2010
My daughter recently started tracking her 2001 Volkswagen Jetta TDI fuel economy numbers on Fuelly.com and we have both been impress at the significant improvement since replacing her tires. Although she doesn’t have a lifetime of postings for her car, the regular private calculations haven’t been near the 50 mpg mark. She (we) couldn’t be […]
Filed under: Automotive, Biodiesel, Diesel, Volkswagen by RichC | 6 Comments »
Tags: diesel, fuel efficiency, fuelly, mpg, tdi, volkswagen, vw
February 13, 2009
I’ve been using Fuelly.com to track the fills and gas mileage on my less than economical Honda Pilot. The web interface is a super easy way to track and add information each fill up or the even more convenient mobile interface can make adding the odometer reading (or number of miles), gallons and price a […]
Filed under: Misc by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: diesel, fuelly, gasoline, mpg
September 12, 2020
With a few miles of driving this week (nothing like my years of back and forth to NE Ohio) … I kept an eye out for anomalies in diesel fuel price. prices. It just so happened that Sidney and Wapakoneta prices were a bit lower than either Toledo or home in Cincinnati, so I planned […]
Filed under: Automotive, BMW, Diesel, Travel by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: BMW, covid19, diesel, driving, fillup, fuel, kroger, mpg, station, x5 35d
August 22, 2019
This is not the Throwback Thursday #TBT photo I would recommend using when listing a car for sale, but the 2006 Honda Pilot we said goodbye to this week did have a few minor battle scars (1, 2, 3) and occasionally a little something that needed to be cleaned off (salt above and sometimes LoveBugs). […]
Filed under: Archive, Automotive, Personal, Photos, TBT by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: archive, for sale, honda, pilot, salt, scan, sticker, SUV, TBT, throwback, thursday, window
June 24, 2018
Since I drive a diesel BMW X5 35d as well as an old 1982 Mercedes 300D Turbodiesel, and use diesel fuel in our Kubota and John Deere lawn tractors (not to mention sailboat) … seeing pump prices 20 to 40 cents higher at the pump is starting to cut into my theory of saving money […]
Filed under: Automotive, Diesel, Financial, Marketing, Misc by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: 300d, BMW, diesel, economy, encore, engine, fuel, fuelly, mercedes, milkshakes, udf, udrive, x5 35d
March 18, 2017
We’ve taken a enough longer road trips in the 2010 BMW X5 35d now to officially declare it an outstanding road car … no surprise really. The driving characteristics of this 5000+ pound SUV are enjoyable since the handling is tight, interior space excellent, ride comfort “so-so” and highway power substantial. I don’t really want to […]
Filed under: Automotive, BMW, Diesel, Travel by RichC | 1 Comment »
Tags: BMW, diesel, fuel efficiency, fuelly, highway, minnesota, x5 35d
March 15, 2017
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Filed under: Personal, Photos, Video by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: annalyn, baby, bompa, drew, family, katelyn, minnesota, snow, Travel, video
September 9, 2016
For those following the modifications and upgrades on our 2010 BMW X5 35d for most of 2016, below are the resulting fuel economy improvements, at least so far. This 5225 lb SUV (minus a few pounds) will never be a Volkswagen TDI fuel sipper, but I’ll take a 15% mpg improvement considering it also has […]
Filed under: Automotive, BMW, Diesel by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: BMW, diesel, economy, fuel efficiency, fuelly, update, x5 35d
May 30, 2014
The weather was nice for driving this past week for a Memorial Day trip to Atlanta, so instead of taking the Honda Pilot, we opted to take the 1982 Mercedes Benz 300D Turbodiesel. I’ve been driving it regularly on trips to and from NE Ohio (500 miles rt) and to visit my daughter and her […]
Filed under: Automotive, Diesel, Mercedes by RichC | 1 Comment »
Tags: 300d, atlanta, fuelly, graduation, mercedes, turbodiesel
May 23, 2014
I’m probably not the only one noticing the annual Memorial Day jump in retail gasoline prices kicking off the summer driving season. Yesterday most of the stations locally (north of Cincinnati) bumped prices up to $3.85–plus per gallon for regular grade fuel. Thankfully on the drive home, I fueled up the old Mercedes 300D for […]
Filed under: Automotive, Energy, Financial, Holiday by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: 300d, diesel, driving, fuel, fuelly, gasoline, Memorial Day
May 18, 2014
The last year or so I’ve been renting Ford Focuses (or Foci?) when I’m traveling out of town or trying to keep the miles off my Honda Pilot which is nearing 200,000 miles. Often the fuel economy (high 35+ vs 20mpg) offsets the rental cost, but this time for the fun of it I wanted […]
Filed under: Automotive, Technology by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: hybrid, hyundai, rental cars, sonata
April 18, 2014
Let’s call this a follow up post on tracking fuel economy (or “non-economy”) as I took the opportunity to fill the 1982 Mercedes Benz 300D Turbodiesel with B-20. My station of choice between Mansfield and Columbus Ohio is a Sunoco at the I-71 exit 151 and has carried a variety of domestic renewable fuels including […]
Filed under: Automotive, Biodiesel, Diesel, Mercedes by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: b-20, biodiesel, mercedes, ohio, turbodiesel
April 9, 2014
I’ve hit a milestone on My Desultory Blog – 4000 posts since I started in April 2005. Amazing to have been blogging daily for that many posts; it doesn’t seem possible? Obviously those who regularly check in know there is very little of earthshattering significance (ok, nothing of significance), but since it is purely a […]
Filed under: Archive, Automotive, Blogs, Personal by RichC | 1 Comment »
Tags: blog, fuelly, mydesultoryblog, richc, wordpress
March 29, 2014
Good news … but sad news today. My daughter sold her 2001 Volkswagen Jetta TDI and it left with the new owner in Columbus today; hopefully it will mean as much to him as it did to her. The little diesel TDI is the only car Katelyn has ever known and it took her from […]
Filed under: Automotive, Diesel, Personal, Photos, Volkswagen by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: 2001, diesel, jetta, katelyn, sold, tdi, volkswagen
February 5, 2014
It is about time that I wrapped up the numbers for the recent Florida trip in order to work on the boat. One of the “high level” decisions that I had to make (snicker), was whether to drive my own car down and back with my 300 or so pounds of batteries and gear, or […]
Filed under: Automotive, Personal, Sailing, Travel by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: drew, encore, florida, focus, ford, katelyn, minneapolis
August 19, 2013
I had one of those “knight in shining armor” moments this weekend after a call for help request came in from my wife Brenda. She planned a weekend trip with her mother with a stop to visit our daughter in Columbus then to the farmhouse in New York. The primary goal is to begin taking […]
Filed under: Automotive, Personal by RichC | 1 Comment »
Tags: brenda, columbus, drew, fuse, honda, katelyn, knight, pilot, repair
January 18, 2013
Although retail unleaded gasoline is down 25 cent per gallon since last year at this time in SW Ohio, we remain just above $3.00/gallon in most areas. (I paid $3.09 and $3.07 this week while traveling in north east Ohio) Since I’m thinking about a new diesel car this year, it is be frustrating to […]
Filed under: Automotive, Diesel, Local by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: diesel, fuel, gasoline, ohio, prices
March 31, 2012
For the past couple of years I’ve been taking our cars to a privately owned automotive service business (in West Chester, OH) and have been satisfied with the work. I’ve also enjoyed getting to know the owner, Tim Ellison, who’s Christian walk and straightforward business dealings are one in the same. Besides using Mr. Godwrench […]
Filed under: Advice, Automotive, Business by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: Business, car care, oh, west chester
January 16, 2012
There are only a handful of leaders that come along in one’s lifetime and for my generation, one of them is Martin Luther King, Jr (January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968). Most know the history of Mr. King and the civil rights movement around challenging the laws particularly in the south, but I enjoyed a […]
Filed under: History, Holiday by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: Holiday, martin luther king jr, mlk, Washington DC
January 5, 2011
With decreasing fuel economy, part cold weather perhaps, I’m going to try and get my 2006 Honda Pilot looked at again. Last month I opted for some expensive spark plugs and a reset of the check engine light fault, but this month I think I’ll also do a belated timing belt change. It’s not an […]
Filed under: Automotive by RichC | 4 Comments »
Tags: belt, fuelly, honda, maintenance, pilot, timing
December 4, 2010
My 2006 Honda Pilot has been rock solid for 120,000+ miles, but it looks like all good things come to an end and it might be time for some overdue maintenance. Oh, I’ve done the routine stuff, but I have neglected to replace the plugs at about 100K and haven’t tackled the belts including the […]
Filed under: Automotive, Personal by RichC | 2 Comments »
Tags: honda, maintenance, pilot
November 8, 2010
This past weekend was part chore part automotive fun. My daughter was home and it was time for a little light Volkswagen TDI tinkering … and routine oil and filter changes. All is well with her little 2001 VW Jetta TDI diesel which is now at 135,000 miles. Katelyn does love her little economical car […]
Filed under: Automotive, Cellphone, Video by RichC | No Comments »
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October 4, 2010
I’ve tracked nearly 200 fuel fill-ups while driving a 2006 Honda Pilot 4WD and have been wondering if the new tires have impacted my efficiency. I do know that the new Michelins have significantly better wet traction than the long lasting Goodyear Integrity tires that came on the SUV. In creating a quick chart, after […]
Filed under: Automotive, Personal by RichC | 3 Comments »
Tags: fuel efficiency, fuelly, goodyear, michelin, mpg, tires
September 15, 2010
When I drove my Volkswagen diesel, I regularly filled at this renewable fuel Sunoco station on I-71 in mid-Ohio. I haven’t stopped for a while and opted to fill my Honda Pilot (regular unleaded) there today and checked biodiesel pricing. Although diesel is a few cents more than other stations around the state, biodiesel has […]
Filed under: Automotive, Biodiesel, Volkswagen by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: biodiesel
July 20, 2010
The stock OEM Goodyear Integrity tires on my Honda Pilot have giving me a good 109,000 miles of wear and I replaced them today since an ugly split started to show up. They have always driven well on everything but wet roads, especially heavy rain. Their flaw is that they seem to be unable to […]
Filed under: Automotive, Local, Personal by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: goodyear, michelin, tirediscounter, tires, west chester
June 12, 2010
I’ve been putting a few more miles on the Honda Pilot than usual, for both work and personal travel, which has me thinking about diesel cars and the soon to expire tax incentives on a few models. It would be nice to have a new Volkswagen Jetta TDI or Sportwagen TDI, but with the slowdown […]
Filed under: Automotive, Personal, Photos, Volkswagen by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: davidsons, family, howard, jamestown, new york
October 25, 2009
I’ve been happy with the overall cost of ownership of my 2006 Honda Pilot SUV … including the fuel efficiency. Besides oil and fluid changes, the only other expense of ownership over the past 87,000 miles to date has been a battery and of course gasoline. Click for larger image After posting my latest fill-up […]
Filed under: Automotive, Personal by RichC | No Comments »
Tags: economy, honda, mpg, pilot