Gas mileage tricks or myths ?

[ngzcaz]

I've been doing quite a bit of reading and seem to have formed to following conclusions..

Cold air intake can slightly increase Hp and decrease mileage
Warm air can lessen hp slightly and increase mileage.
colder than stock thermostats can hurt hp and mileage but be good for heads
( as in 2.9 heads )
Platinum plugs and the like do squat for mileage but are long lasting
best plugs may be NGK v tips which require less amps to fire
Amps fire spark plugs, not voltage
Ethanol decreases mileage but we are putting more in our gas than ever
Most additives dont work ( tornado, slick 50 ) but a few might work a bit
Driving habits work the best and are a no cost item. Slightly overinflated tires work a little but can be dangerous if to excess on bumpy roads ( NE Pa. )
Synthetic lubricants in everything including axle grease and the like might be a worthwhile investment.


Now in the interest of better mileage for everyone please feel free to add or delete from this. The price of crude is going to send us in a recession ( if we arent already there. Lets make the most of every gallon. What worked ( or didnt ) for you ??

 

[JohnnyO]

Mythbusters just did a show on that. They found that almost everything did not improve mileage and some things hurt it.
I'm on a lot of automotive forums. Here's what works:
CAI, sometimes.
Synthetic lubes everywhere.
Lower restriction exhaust.
Tuner like an XCal2.
Proper air in the tires.

 

[PARKINGLOT]

not to mention:

A - driving less
or
B - buying something cheap on gas

That's why my DD is a focus...(that and it's fun to drive...)

 

[ozzy85]

Don't try the egg taped to the gas pedal thing. Doesn't work. It just makes a mess and begins to smell if you don't clean it up.

 

[Captain Ledd]

Mythbusters just did a show on that. They found that almost everything did not improve mileage and some things hurt it.
I'm on a lot of automotive forums. Here's what works:
CAI, sometimes.
Synthetic lubes everywhere.
Lower restriction exhaust.
Tuner like an XCal2.
Proper air in the tires.

Interesting about the lower restriction exhaust, I just had a connector rust off my exhaust and it's loud as hell. And I did actually notice that it seemed to be getting better mileage.

 

[martin]

A vacuum cauge will help you to drive with the motor in it's most fuel efficient range.

 

[ngzcaz]

MANY years ago, they sold with with a nice dial that read " Power " on one side and Economy on the other. Fancy looking but it worked. Problem was gas was $.45 a gallon.
Nobody cared..

 

[compleckz]

for me personally, a loud exhaust or a CAI harms my MPG, due to the fact i rev the motor up far enough to hear the cool sound every shift... i had the stock airbox on my corrado, but a loud TT catback exhaust, and i always seemed to have it in a gear lower than neccassary to hear the exhaust, or shift later to hear it longer..

same thing with my truck and the gibson catback...

my DD impreza has stock exhaust, but i modified the intake a bit (removed the 2nd 'airbox' in favor of an subie setup, which is just a tube, and also removed the "snorkus" a big silencer thing..) so its loud at WOT, and i constantly find myself revving too high for no reason, but to hear the intake noise...

im just a 22 y/o kid, so your results may vary..

but the most useful mpg tip i can give, is just take it easy.. coast in a higher gear than needed (coasting in neutral uses more gas i think).. anticipate stops, and slow by letting off the gas, then hopefully traffic will be moving again before u have to stop... also on the highway keep it around 65 on cruise.. i use cruise as much as possible, and try real hard not to go 90...

 

[Will]

Vacuum gauge DOES WORK!

It really improves your driving style.

 

[samsonitesamsonite]

amen to that.

 

[AllanD]

It can TEACH drivers to get best mileage.

It acts as a "Tell tale" to remind a driver when he's being a an ass.

The thing with a colder thermostat is that on modern electronic controlled engines
if you make one change it isn't an "isolated" change.

You change the t-stat and the ECT sensor feeds a signal to the computer which interprets the signal as indicating the engine is running cold so it runs a ricker strategy until the engine warms up which of course with the cooler t-stat never happens...

People who THINK one thing will work are using the same sort of logic that would indicate that the "cure" for high blood pressure is to slit your own throat.

If you spend any time correcting those misimpressions and false beliefs
you almost wish some people would try cutting their own throat


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[RangerMan9389]

cruise contol all the way. i found that works the best for me. i have a 95 granprix with 230K on her and i was driving 75 miles round trip 5 days a week to school. i'd drive bout ten miles all day around town then once i hit the expressway i got up to 70 and put it on cruise the whole way there and back, the original window sticker said 19 city and 29 highway, well it came out to 27.5 after each tank for 5 weeks straight of that same driving.


jeremy

 

[nate12346]

Wait.... How does coasting in neutral use more gas than coasting in gear? I always assumed that lower RPM with no stress uses the least amount of gas. I always throw my truck into neutral down hills because 800 RPM with no stress compared to 2500 RPM useing engine brakeing just seems logical that it would use less gas.

Some one fill me in lol?

 

[Trollbait]

Don't forget leaving the tailgate up. Better yet, use a tonneau cover. The cover only needs the back 20 inches to half of the bed to improve the trucks aerodynamics.

A vacuum cauge will help you to drive with the motor in it's most fuel efficient range.

If you have an OBD2 vehicle, you can get a ScangaugeII. It's a trip computer that can display your instant fuel economy along with other engine parameters. Plus, it can pull codes.

Wait.... How does coasting in neutral use more gas than coasting in gear?

Well, the rpm's on my automatic actually jump slightly in neutral from idle in drive. I understand some manuals will turn off injection while coasting in gear. The fuel will still flow in neutral.

Technique is the biggest way improving fuel economy.

If you have time, poke around at www.cleanmpg.com and www.gassavers.org. They are forums dedicated to getting the most miles per gallon in any vehicle. Even if you pass on the extreme stuff(aero mods, coasting in neutral with engine off...) there are plenty of tips there for improving fuel economy.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Don't forget leaving the tailgate up. Better yet, use a tonneau cover. The cover only needs the back 20 inches to half of the bed to improve the trucks aerodynamics.

This depends on how long your bed is too, if it is a Sport Track or a 7' bed the aerodynamics will vary. I have heard that it is better for the long bed trucks to run with the gate down than up. I haven't tried but I can see where it would make a difference. One other thing to keep in mind is if you hit a bump hard at speed with the gate open with nothing on it the gate can come off. It will take awhile to recoup that loss.