The hunt for better MPG

[adsm08]

http://www.eatonsprings.com/cuttingcoilsprings.html

 

[bobbywalter]

been cutting springs for 25 years, some of the things i was taught may have been from the guy that wrote that page.

you can raise a spring too. but thats a different story.

 

[1994_4x4]

I love TRS members advice on this forum. Half the time people just recommend buying something else.

 

[Mikel89us]

Don't cut springs. The heat generated by cutting springs makes them not springy.

Not if you use a cut off wheel, cutting springs efficiently is a good way to drop her down.

Also as noted a plasma cutter.

 

[one1]

I'm pretty sure the window sticker on my 97 2.3L was 23 mpg (hard to remember 15 yrs back) so I don't see how you are going to get that much better than the engine went brand new, and that's with my year model having more emissions than yours.

 

[zekew64]

Here's a thought, but let your truck idle until it warms up (goes through one cooling cycle). I say this because motor oils will actually lessen friction if they are warmed up, and on top of that, you'll eliminate any water in the oil (due to condensation). I've driven my '92 on several long-distance (longer than 300 mi) trips, and the longer I drove, the better on gas she got.

Also, at idle, while the truck is warming up, you'll burn less gas due to the lower RPMs. Lastly, look at your tire pressures. You can get a slight increase if you inflate your tires a little bit harder than what spec calls for. For instance, if you have a 30 psi spec, you can air it up to 35 to decrease rolling resistance; it'll net you a little gain, but little gains are better than none at all.

Secondly, you can take out the baffles in your stock intake to increase your air flow. What this will do is, once you disconnect the battery to reset the ECU, and drive it for 30 miles to relearn your driving style, is that the computer will lean out the A/F ratio enough to not cause siginificant driveability problems, but still cut back on fuel usage. I've done this on my own truck, and to be completely honest, I do drive further on less fuel, even though I rev the hell out of the engine from a dead stop (I've got a stick).

The only other thing I can think of is that if you have an automatic transmission, you can see if there is a way you can get a 5-speed auto (not sure on what you'd have to wire together, tho).