First big test!

[kitcar]

Nope. Got mOByDic and Digimoto. The latest update puts the information into a spread sheet for me.

So anyways, on the way to the shack this time the wind was blowing up to 45 mph on Friday. Can you say sucking gas mileage? Sure you can. Down to 23.5 average. I drove the entire distance with the laptop pulling the vehicle information.

I now have information about engine load: at 65, I typically have a 20% engine load with the injectors running +3 short and -2 to -5 long term. Before the aero mods, engine load was in the 30s.

I was interested in seeing that the intake temp. was 195 degrees with the coolant running at 201.3 to 201.7 for the entire 45 mile an hour wind trip. Air temp. was about 90 degrees and had dropped a whopping 40 degrees during the trip. The engine temps. stayed the same.

The way back today was much more informational. Air temp. was 75 degrees. The intake temp. was 194 degrees, coolant at 201.3 to 201.7. Mileage: 24.9. Engine load hovered around 17%.

The clear tape over the driving lights is a keeper. I'm going to make Lexan covers tomorrow. I lost at least .1 without them covered.

I also drove the 240 some miles today with the passenger side mirror folded in; didn't notice any difference in mileage but with the driving light thing, you never know.

Also did a trip into town with a fresh tank of gas and no Acetone. 24.2 mpg; entire distance at 55 mph, cruise on. Hit every green light through town.

Put in my usual 8 oz at Lowes. Oddly, I had to stop at every single darn traffic light. Great. Did the same drive back to the shack, 55 mph, cruise on. 25.7 mpg.

My next trick will be to pull the data with no Acetone and then with it. That should give me some pretty clear data.

[omgwtfbyobbq]

Originally Posted by kitcar

I now have information about engine load: at 65, I typically have a 20% engine load with the injectors running +3 short and -2 to -5 long term. Before the aero mods, engine load was in the 30s.

Bump that up to ~40-60% w/ a taller od gear and you'll just about double your mileage at that speed.

[kitcar]

Originally Posted by omgwtfbyobbq

Bump that up to ~40-60% w/ a taller od gear and you'll just about double your mileage at that speed.

Cost per gallon versus cost of mod plus time to payoff. It's an old solar energy argument - how much does it cost versus the payoff time? Yeah, I could get another OD and drop from 1,200 @ 65 to 800 and lug my butt off until I get to 90 mph. I could get a taller ring and pinion and do the same.

Seriously, I drive at 65 mph, maybe to 70. My rpms are less than 2,000 @ 65. Remember this thing has the towing package with some very wide gearing as is. 1st gear is useless unless I'm towing over 6k pounds. I always start in 2nd. My usual shifting is 2nd, 3rd, 5th. Everything else is too short.

Putting another OD on Stinkerbutt is useless; I'd have to drive too fast to make up the aero modifications. Now if we could put a Corvette body on it......well that might work out.

[kitcar]

BMac wanted to see photos of the air dam.

Keep in mind this a working truck; I'm past the wax job every weekend phase. Besides the bugs add a nice "after the Le Mans" look. The whole deal is very much a work in progress. I'm pretty happy with it so far so I need to add a bead of black silicone to the mating surface where it meets the valance.

Design notes:

The dam is not angled out to prevent dumping of air into the grill. The side pieces are the same material. The original design had a "step" or another 90 degree angle that pointed into the air stream that worked a lot better last year however that additional inch scraped on the ground. A lot.

This is deck edging material; a very thick vinyl that I can't find at Lowes or Home Depot any more and I really want more of the stuff.

[GasSavers_BMac]

Originally Posted by kitcar

BMac wanted to see photos of the air dam.

This is deck edging material; a very thick vinyl that I can't find at Lowes or Home Depot any more and I really want more of the stuff.

Now I know why I have water coming in my basement from under the deck. The contractor couldn't find the flashing either!

That LeMans look will be accented on my truck when I bolt down through New Brunswick along the Saint John River area this summer. And that little baby moose who was playing in the traffic a couple years ago will now be bigger so I know he won't fit under my truck!
When I was leaving one year, a motorcyclist hit a moose and they were airlifting him out. Not sure how the cyclist was doing!

[kitcar]

Originally Posted by BMac

That LeMans look will be accented on my truck when I bolt down through New Brunswick along the Saint John River area this summer. And that little baby moose who was playing in the traffic a couple years ago will now be bigger so I know he won't fit under my truck!

Oddly, I was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey which explains a lot about me.

The reasoning behind the unwashed look is to then wash and wax the truck several times and test the mileage. Will waxing increase the mileage? Not so fast, grasshopper, I haven't told you what brand of wax yet.

I finally dug out my plexi scraps and found one that is about the right size to re-do the grill blocks so they extend to the driving lights. Problem is that it's about an inch and a half too wide. So, I might just bend it so it will push air towards the air dam. I hate cutting plexiglas.

[omgwtfbyobbq]

Originally Posted by kitcar

Putting another OD on Stinkerbutt is useless; I'd have to drive too fast to make up the aero modifications. Now if we could put a Corvette body on it......well that might work out.

Why would you drive faster with a lower OD? Unless of course you would have trouble w/ oil pressure, and in that case, there's no point in doing it at all. Neway, if you drove at the same speeds, but engine load was closer to 50%, you would likely see a rough doubling of fuel economy, at least according to every *BSFC map I've seen. For acceleration and towing, fourth gear will take you where it took you before, and getting near 50mpg in OD would be very impressive in a larger pickup. If you had the ability and could locate another transmission for not too much $$$, I really suggest doing something like this, by way of CO ZX2. If you're thrifty and can drop/raise/disassemble yourself it shouldn't cost more than $500, and in my case, I'm hoping to do it for under a couple hundred or so. Otoh, if you're happy with mid twenties then I see no reason to bother with it. From my POV it's a win-win situation for my truck and the speeds I see, since I'll have the exact same setup as now plus an ultra-tall fifth. So hauling up to 1500lbs or towing up to 3500lbs would be the same as before, but if I were running with little to no load, just drop it in fifth and get ~40-50mpg.

*As always, you should find (or create) the BSFC map for your engine, just to make sure.

edit- CO ZX2 was nearly done with this mod when I asked about it a few months ago, and if his gaslog is any indication, it's in and working as it should.

[GasSavers_BMac]

I made a cold air box for my Dak and bought one of those cheap "cold air intakes" off of ebay. It's actually a hot air intake til you build a cold air box.

I did some measuring where the air dam is going, just have to find some material. Maybe it will be 14 gauge aluminum.

[ma4t]

Kitcar,

No, you don't need to see a therapist. I'm doing similar things with my Tribute.

I actually removed the external XM radio today. It only weighs a few ounces, but I had two good reasons.
1. Take out extra weight (however slight).
2. I only have educational CDs in the stereo now.

It's good to see somebody hypermiling a truck.

M

I should be studying

[kitcar]

Originally Posted by ma4t

It's good to see somebody hypermiling a truck.

You know that's right.

It's all good in the world of hypermile. It's sort of like warp drive only it's on a planet and you don't go faster than the speed of light nor are you in a space ship. Other than that, it's the same thing.

Well, okay then. Road around for 75 miles with plain old gas in the tank, 22.7 mpg. Now once again we'll add the Acetone with results in a week ago. Expect the same results, +1 mpg.