Okay, well I cannot tell a lie. When I read about your 85 mph top speed experiment, I laughed for about a minute straight. Because you and I may be the only knuckleheads dumb enough to a) be curious about such a thing, and b) dumb enough to give it a try to find out. I wouldn't try it with my utility trailer empty because even though it tows straight as an arrow, I would be concerned that empty, it could hit something on the road hard enough to make a tire hop off the ground. And if it didn't land straight, it might start to get squirrely. And I don't think the HB has enough beef and wheelbase to handle getting yanked around especially in a high speed experiment. 70 mph it handled everything just fine. It did hit bumps and jiggle around some. But was no problem. With my liftgate folded down, it would probably get close to the car's normal top speed. Just take a lot longer to get there, and be a whole lot scarier. And doing 100+ mph towing a trailer with a Mirage is on the gray edge of just how dumb I may be. I don't even think I'd try that experiment with my 3/4 ton pickup.
. . . . I know. My style is to get up to a set cruise speed very quickly like an airplane pilot climbing to cruise altitude and then to move along at that set speed and doing what is necessary to maintain that speed if possible.
All your analysis of headwinds, tailwinds, with speed and mpg is very interesting to me. And as much as I prefer to drive a manual transmission, I think I would have had to found a way around all the shifting. Like instead of ever trying to get into 5th (in certain conditions), I'd probably just have tried 4th, higher rpm and a lower speed, just to roll more steady (lower) speed. But I wasn't there, so I just *think* that's what I would have done. One time when I was towing my 9,500 pound 5th wheel camper, going west in South Dakota with a tremendous headwind, I slowed down to maybe 60 mph and ran in 5th (of a 6-speed). At maybe 2,400 rpm. No more shifting when the winds varied. It turned, from what I remember, about 2,400 rpm (which is on the verge of screaming with an Cummins ISB). But at 2,400 rpm, it had immediate boost and torque with the winds gusted even harder and pulled through that wind with no problems.
I left my cats with a friend in Reedsburg. I only had them along for the final trip after I dropped the trailer back off in Baraboo. They were a hand full for the first couple of hours. They let me know that they did not want to do this. I opened the pass through between the rear seats into the trunk. I had a cat box set up in the trunk. I had food and water setup on the floor behind my seat. There was one time that Stripes, the younger cat, wanted to get down under the pedals. Big no, no! For the first month after I got here both cats spent most of time in bed next to me. They now spend about 50-50 with me and away from me! They are fine. I appreciate that you asked.
GOD Bless and Thanks,\
rich!
Did your cats make that trip back and forth twice? Or did you just leave them behind until the last leg? And how did they behave in the car? I've seen a few cats that do good in a car. But the cats I have had in my life were definitely not down with a car ride.