getting better mileage out of a 450hp car :)

[CoyoteX]

went ahead and filled up tonight instead of waiting till morning and I managed to get 22 mpg I am suprised I am so close to my stock mileage. I guess the tire pressure helps even though it makes it wander real bad on the road, no front sway bar on the car so that doesn't help either. I am thinking some of the gain from today was from getting used to driving it carefully and keeping the torque converter locked and the engine over 2000rpm all the time.

Tomorrow is my last day to test something so I figured I would go for plugging the tail pipes halfway to add some restriction and maybe eliminate the scavenging the exhaust does. I don't know if it will really change much with the long tube headers on the car but I probably won't drive it much again till spring or when spring is supposed to start anyway so this will be my last test on it. It was fun while it lasted but after tomorrow I will have spent $100 in gas just to drive to work for one week so this car is a bit hard on my wallet to do much testing with.

[CO ZX2]

How about some results on plugging the exhaust. Rotten results are just as informative as good ones.

[CoyoteX]

I made some caps out of roofing tin to go over the square tips on the exhaust for that last day with a 1 inch hole so it was pretty restricted. I put them in place with duct tape. I figured it would be good enough to get me there but they were both gone when I got to work and I did not find them on the way home so I have no idea where they came off at. The last day I got the same mileage I just forgot to put it in my gas log.

My metro is running again so now it is time put the Camaro back up on jack stands for the rest of the winter

[red91sit]

Originally Posted by Coyote X

I made some caps out of roofing tin to go over the square tips on the exhaust for that last day with a 1 inch hole so it was pretty restricted. I put them in place with duct tape. I figured it would be good enough to get me there but they were both gone when I got to work and I did not find them on the way home so I have no idea where they came off at. The last day I got the same mileage I just forgot to put it in my gas log.

My metro is running again so now it is time put the Camaro back up on jack stands for the rest of the winter

Hmm, i used popcans on my V-8 Monster (but it only generates about 150 hp, on a GREAT day) I also bolted mine in so they coudln't blow out. and they're still surviving fine.

I find the difference between an 11 second pure drag car, and a (high) 12 second street car to be amazing. We share the high overlap race camshaft, however mine only kicks in above 4500 rpm where it generates more power than the polite, gas sipping, little cam. I'm also open exhaust, unless you count the turbo which does a great job of quieting the car down, quieter than the Lincoln with it's small exhuast leaks.

Ever consider turbo'ing the Camaro? I bet you could get it right back up to 30 mpg highway, get the same drag times, and have a MUCH more useable power band. I can't imagine street driving something like yours to you for doing it though!

[CoyoteX]

I could turbo or supercharge it and get it much faster than it is now. The main reason I run it all motor is reliability and consistency. I know the car will last with its current setup easily 100k miles with no trouble other than the stock 4l60e trans not living much longer, it will be beefed up to handle the power this spring so that is not really a problem. The car is also very consistent at the track. When it was stock its times varied by .2-.5 seconds from one pass to another so it made dialing it in not much more than a wild guess. Now I can dial it in close since it is usually within .01-.03 between runs. I don't run a box so I think that is pretty good for a car that I drive to the track.

I don't drive the car much other than for cruising and racing so I don't mind a bad idle and the car dying at every other stop light if I don't watch the rpms. If I had to drive it more often I would have probably left it stock. I have it set up as a very fun to drive car now. It sounds real mean and has enough power to go faster than most street cars and since I only put at most 1000 miles a year on it will never wear out I don't think the car is that bad to drive though it is much smoother than my kit car. That one is a 2100lb car with a 500ci motor sitting on the back tires. That car is a handful to drive, it can pull a wheelie up to 120mph and I have not been able to get a good 0-60 number but it is realistically under 2 seconds. It handles ok and brakes ok but it has 800lb springs on the back and 400lb on the front so you can feel every crack in the road. I thought about getting a kidney belt when driving that car.

[DRW]

" and the car dying at every other stop light if I don't watch the rpms."

You have an 'auto-stall feature'!
It's great for eoc.
Your car sounds badass. Reminds me of my other car. It has somewhere over 450hp, hard to drive, sucks up the gas, stiff as a brick. When it's time for some real fun I wouldn't have it any other way. It scares me a little sometimes, which is just how I like it!

[bobc455]

I'd be curious to see how it runs if you can drive 55 MPH for a tankful, then switch to 70 MPH for a tankful.

[The Toecutter]

I don't think the car is that bad to drive though it is much smoother than my kit car. That one is a 2100lb car with a 500ci motor sitting on the back tires. That car is a handful to drive, it can pull a wheelie up to 120mph and I have not been able to get a good 0-60 number but it is realistically under 2 seconds. It handles ok and brakes ok but it has 800lb springs on the back and 400lb on the front so you can feel every crack in the road. I thought about getting a kidney belt when driving that car.

What kind of kit car? Sounds like something I'd like to build!

[CoyoteX]

Before I modified the car I have drove it cruise control constant speed for long periods of time and under 80mph doesn't really change the mileage much. I figure since th engine was turning 1900rpm at 70mph and the car is pretty aerodynamic there is not much difference between 55 and 70. Maybe one day I will get a scangauge and find out but I really don't think it is as big of a change as a smaller engine car.

As far as the kit car check out http://mantaproject.com to see everything I ever did to the car



Tons more pictures and stuff on the website.

[The Toecutter]

Manta Montage!


Dude, I love that body. I wanted one to convert to an EV long before I found the Triumph, but I just could not find any, let alone find one for an affordable price! Must be a joy to drive with that Cadillac 500 engine...