Lightning spotted in Colorado doing cold weather towing tests

[pstansel]

Thought this was pretty cool:

https://tfltruck.com/2022/02/spied-...-large-trailer-at-13f-wind-chill-in-colorado/

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[Lime Green]

Why is TFL getting so sloppy lately? I know it's little things, but their Powerboost home backup video was pure cringe and lots of little technical details / facts are weird.... Like this claim of it being the coldest February day in 123 years.. WTF? Where did they even come up with that? Coldest February day we've had in Boulder this year, up through today, has been a low of -2°F. Wind chill down to -13°F as shown in their graphic. Lots of days get that cold or colder in February every year, many much colder. The lowest temp on record for February in Boulder, CO is -28°F, recorded in 1936 and these are not windchill numbers. https://psl.noaa.gov/boulder/dailyrecords/#February

TFL, I like you guys and try to read/watch your stuff because you're local. But try a little harder, please. Maybe hire an editor that can internally fact check your own BS, or cut out portions of videos that make you look silly. Before things gets published.

Sorry if it seems like I'm picking nits, but I guess I'm in a mood.

 

[pstansel]

No, I hear you. Too many of these are getting hype-y. I just thought it was good they were testing like that.

 

[Lime Green]

No, I hear you. Too many of these are getting hype-y. I just thought it was good they were testing like that.

Yep. It is good they're out testing.

 

[Bill from King Ranch]

Like this claim of it being the coldest February day in 123 years.. WTF? Where did they even come up with that?

Maybe from the local paper?
https://www.denverpost.com/2022/02/23/denver-coldest-high-temperature-feb-22/

 

[RickLightning]

The only thing affected by windchill is your skin. Windchill doesn't affect the truck's range, or charging.

 

[Chado]

Lol those guys are kinda awkward sometimes...one is ESL other guy has a locked door in his house that no one is allowed to open, main OG guy is the only seemingly normal one

 

[sotek2345]

The only thing affected by windchill is your skin. Windchill doesn't affect the truck's range, or charging.

Depends if you are driving in to or with the wind.

 

[RickLightning]

Depends if you are driving in to or with the wind.

Not really.

Windchill is irrelevant. Windchill says nothing about windspeed. The windspeed noted was 7 mph, which is almost nothing. The windchill is what this crappy, clickbait publication focused on, showing how lousy it is.

 

[Fordskeptic]

Even 7 mph head wind could make a significant difference when towing. That said, as TFL has grown, it has lost some its initial appeal.

 

[ExCivilian]

Windchill is irrelevant. Windchill says nothing about windspeed.

I suppose one position is that "windchill" is a colloquial expression of the feeling one has contingent upon the environmental factors and that seems to be what you're focusing on.

However, "windchill" is an expression of what one feels because of temperature and wind speed, which are both relevant factors when discussing range.

 

[greenne]

Why is TFL getting so sloppy lately? I know it's little things, but their Powerboost home backup video was pure cringe and lots of little technical details / facts are weird.... Like this claim of it being the coldest February day in 123 years.. WTF? Where did they even come up with that? Coldest February day we've had in Boulder this year, up through today, has been a low of -2°F. Wind chill down to -13°F as shown in their graphic. Lots of days get that cold or colder in February every year, many much colder. The lowest temp on record for February in Boulder, CO is -28°F, recorded in 1936 and these are not windchill numbers. https://psl.noaa.gov/boulder/dailyrecords/#February

TFL, I like you guys and try to read/watch your stuff because you're local. But try a little harder, please. Maybe hire an editor that can internally fact check your own BS, or cut out portions of videos that make you look silly. Before things gets published.

Sorry if it seems like I'm picking nits, but I guess I'm in a mood.

Journalism is a dying art. For example--Jalopnik used to be decent, but they went downhill quick not only in content but delivery. I'm no English major, but FFS if your profession is writing, you shouldn't have glaring typos and grammatical errors. Its been looking like an 8th graders book report lately.

Also-- everyone seems to think all they need to be a good auto reviewer is a camera and a youtube account. There's a lot of cringe worthy car "review" videos out there...

 

[greenne]

I suppose one position is that "windchill" is a colloquial expression of the feeling one has contingent upon the environmental factors and that seems to be what you're focusing on.

However, "windchill" is an expression of what one feels because of temperature and wind speed, which are both relevant factors when discussing range.

As a meteorologist by trade, overall wind chill is relevant(as a value) and can be measured mathematically by taking wind speed and actual air temperature. Its described as how it "feels" but is an actual calculated value. It also depend on a whole slew of values held "constant", including motion.

Wind chill = 35.74 + 0.6215T – 35.75 (V^0.16) + 0.4275T (V^0.16)

Where T= Temperature and V= wind speed

• Calculates wind speed at an average height of 5 feet, the typical height of an adult human face, based on readings from the national standard height of 33 feet, which is the typical height of an anemometer
• Is based on a human face model
• Incorporates heat transfer theory based on heat loss from the body to its surroundings, during cold and breezy/windy days
• Lowers the calm wind threshold to 3 mph
• Uses a consistent standard for skin tissue resistance
• Assumes no impact from the sun, i.e., clear night sky.

With respect to range, it can be argued that since temperature could affect range differently than the factor of wind speed, wind chill it is not a good factor to calculate (or explain) range.

For example, on two separate days the wind chill may be 15 degrees-- the effect on a human would be the same-- if "feels like" 15 degrees. However on day 1 the temperature is 25 degrees and the wind is 10mph Day 2 the temperature is 30deg and blowing 30mph. The effects would not be the same on range, especially if one was direct headwind vs a tailwind.

Also, wind chill effect would vary with speed. If driving at low speed a wind chill due to high wind doesn't matter as much as temperature, at highway speeds that wind would matter a whole lot more.

https://www.weather.gov/safety/cold-wind-chill-chart

Sorry to go all geeky with math.

 

[RickLightning]

This ^^^

The mention of windchill, and the lack of mention of temperature, combined with a bunch of other stuff, explains the poor quality of this "article".

 

[ExCivilian]

Fair points.

Thanks for taking the time to explain the math behind it and clarifying why windchill X on day 1 might not be the same as windchill X on day 2.

I was thinking of it along those terms of wind speed, air density, and pressure, all of which impact range, but missed the fact windchill 15F could be comprised from different variables on different days.

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