Is it bad to keep something really heavy in your car all the time?

[MWink]

My father has always used our cars for long term storage. For the last few months he has had an HP Color LaserJet sitting in my trunk. I didn't really mind because I don't use my car much. Now I'm planning to use it more often. Yesterday I was cleaning it out and I remembered the printer in the trunk.

It's taking up pretty much all the usable space in my trunk so I'm going to try and find another home for it. Yesterday when I looked at it I tried picking it up for the first time. It is HEAVY. I barely picked up the side. When I put it back down I heard the car creak and watched it sink a little.

For the first time I got to thinking that all that weight might not be good for my car. I would think that at best it would make my gas mileage worse, if not also causing other problems? Should I be worried? This printer is REALLY heavy. I've lifted a few old HP LaserJet 3's before and I think this one is much heavier.

 

[PsychoAndy]

You're gonna use more gas because you're moving a heavier object around.

However, keeping heavy objects in the trunk may prove useful on RWD cars in the snow when traction is needed.

-PAB

 

[Sluggo]

Cant be much worse than having an overweight friend. Maybe costing you a fraction of a mile per gallon, probably nothing to even worry about.

Until you get rear-ended on the hiway, and that old printer comes flying through the back seat, and shreds your hole body to pieces on its way out the windshield. 😛

 

[frizzlefry]

you're gonna lose gas mileage as others have mentioned. if it's that heavy, i could see it might affect the suspension on the car. maybe more wear on tires.... over a really long term though, but probably not that noticeable. i have excess weight in my car, like a spare tire that's covered by my sound system. i'll be removing the spare tire this week and remounting my amps to lose the weight. 🙂

 

[Mani]

well I keep dead hookers in my trunk all the time so it should be ok

 

[Pastore]

Originally posted by: Sluggo
Cant be much worse than having an overweight friend. Maybe costing you a fraction of a mile per gallon, probably nothing to even worry about.

Until you get rear-ended on the hiway, and that old printer comes flying through the back seat, and shreds your hole body to pieces on its way out the windshield. 😛

You mean if he rearended someone else... If someone rear ended him it would hit the back of the trunk...

 

[Viper GTS]

The original Color Laserjets are heavy, around 105 lbs.

Viper GTS

 

[Thegonagle]

Unnecessary ballast in the trunk makes your car slower, worse handling, worse braking, less fuel-efficient, and it screws up the aim of your headlights in a way that other drivers don't appreciate. In extreme cases, it will make the high-beams useless, because instead of pointing straight, they point at the trees.

 

[MaxDSP]

Originally posted by: Beast1284

Originally posted by: Sluggo
Cant be much worse than having an overweight friend. Maybe costing you a fraction of a mile per gallon, probably nothing to even worry about.

Until you get rear-ended on the hiway, and that old printer comes flying through the back seat, and shreds your hole body to pieces on its way out the windshield. 😛

You mean if he rearended someone else... If someone rear ended him it would hit the back of the trunk...

0wn3d 😀

 

[MajesticMoose]

If that thing is coming in here, I am not carrying it!😛

 

[Sluggo]

Originally posted by: Beast1284

Originally posted by: Sluggo
Cant be much worse than having an overweight friend. Maybe costing you a fraction of a mile per gallon, probably nothing to even worry about.

Until you get rear-ended on the hiway, and that old printer comes flying through the back seat, and shreds your hole body to pieces on its way out the windshield. 😛

You mean if he rearended someone else... If someone rear ended him it would hit the back of the trunk...

It would seem that the force of an object that had been struck and propelled by a larger heavier object, would have more force than an object that was propelled purely by its own momentum.

Of course there is every probability that I am incorrect, it has been a long time since physics class.

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

The main reason I would not keep a Color JaserJet in my trunk would be out of fear of theft.