NEW Official Thread for posting daily FE updates

[Bill in Houston]

The raising of the boiling point can be important in order to avoid spots on the head where the coolant boils off and makes steam pockets. Or so I heard. I doubt many of us drive hard enough for that to be a real issue, but on a looooong hill climb I guess it could matter...

[MnFocus]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kinda happy with myself !
From the home parking spot to the work parking spot



Gotta long ways to go for a fill



Finally done with work and at home



inlet air temps at 68* a.m. and 85* p.m
avg speed 42 mph
pulse LOD 55-60
neutral coast TPS 17 /LOD 22
40-53 mph range a.m. (light traffic)
45-55 mph range p.m. (meanie traffic) - could've broke a 60 for the day with cooperation , but I know the potential is there .
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Wanted to say Thanks to all here that have gotten me started and on the road with my new addiction

[landspeed]

Commute to work today : 58.94MPG (US). This is a personal record - my previos personal best was 50.0MPG (US). Driving conditions today were also less than optimal, so more improvements were in store!. This change is due to a new driving technique, having looked in detail at the readings from my wideband lambda sensor

Edit : this is 268% of EPA!

[brucepick]

FE was off today from expected, was 30.2. I was pulling 31-32 pretty consistently till end of June, maybe I finally found out why.

Cooling system isn't holding pressure as normal - unscrewing the reservoir cap doesn't give the usual "pfffft" that these cars produce. I found a leak in lower rad hose. Not enough to lose any real volume of coolant but the pressure release lets the temp come down a few degrees. Don't know if I'll have time to fix it tonight; tomorrow should be possible.

[MnFocus]

Morning drive ended with 47.8 which is 'Ok' . Fairly cool and very humid so I wasn't expecting much over 45 . The afternoon ended in the garage with 57.7 ! Hot and humid conditions with a very slight tailwind though (must've been a 'good' wind ! ) .Todays tank ended with a 49.8 ... Still not satisfied

[CO ZX2]

Originally Posted by MnFocus

Morning drive ended with 47.8 which is 'Ok' . Fairly cool and very humid so I wasn't expecting much over 45 . The afternoon ended in the garage with 57.7 ! Hot and humid conditions with a very slight tailwind though (must've been a 'good' wind ! ) .Todays tank ended with a 49.8 ... Still not satisfied

Don't ever be satisfied. You are doing very well with your Focus.

Do you know if your engine has variable valve timing (VVT) on both intake and exhaust? I have the Zetec 2.0 that has VVT on the exhaust. I have tried to research the Focus(I remember mention of added VVT on intake) but can't seem to find any info. Tell clencher where those hills are that you coast down in Minnesoteo He says he can't find any.

[CO ZX2]

Originally Posted by landspeed

Commute to work today : 58.94MPG (US). This is a personal record - my previos personal best was 50.0MPG (US). Driving conditions today were also less than optimal, so more improvements were in store!. This change is due to a new driving technique, having looked in detail at the readings from my wideband lambda sensor

Edit : this is 268% of EPA!

My man....I told you the kilt would do it.

[MnFocus]

Originally Posted by CO ZX2

Don't ever be satisfied. You are doing very well with your Focus.

Do you know if your engine has variable valve timing (VVT) on both intake and exhaust? I have the Zetec 2.0 that has VVT on the exhaust. I have tried to research the Focus(I remember mention of added VVT on intake) but can't seem to find any info. Tell clencher where those hills are that you coast down in Minnesoteo He says he can't find any.

Thanks CO ZX2 - Inspiration needed ...and recieved !
Clencher -Ha ! its a secret!! .... I35 dood. North from Albert Lea to Owatonna and back daily . Not Colorado style"Hills" by any measure , but enough to get the job done . If only I still lived in Montrose, Co. I might be able to compete with CO ZX2 !
I'm not going to be satisfied because I *know* there are 60+ mpg tanks to come from this car .Today on a 6.6 mile segment I saw an honest 72.8 ! Then the wind ...well there is always tomorrow, right ?

As far as VVT ? No it does not . At least not in a Ford iirc the Mazda versions Do .

Not that it is an end all for info but Wikipedia has a pretty good timeline on the Duratec series :
Duratec 20
The 993 is a 2.0 L (1988 cc) version built in Chihuahua, Chihuahua, Mexico. Bore is 87.5 mm and stroke is 83.1 mm. It is used in the US model Focus, the Brazilian Ford EcoSport,the Argentine Ford Focus and in Europe in the Fiesta ST, Focus and Focus C-Max, Mondeo, S-Max, Transit and Galaxy. On the Focus, output is 136 hp at 6000 RPM with 136 ft?lbf of torque at 4250 rpm. The Focus sold in the states of CA, NY, MA, VT and ME comes with the required PZEV emissions 20E version which produces 130 hp at 6000 RPM with 129 ft?lbf of torque at 4000 rpm. The PZEV is available as an option in border states. The compression ratio for both versions is 10:1. It has an aluminum engine block and aluminum DOHC cylinder heads. The cylinders are lined with cast iron. It uses SFI fuel injection, has 4 valves per cylinder and features fracture-split forged powder metal connecting rods, a one-piece cast camshaft, and a cast aluminum or reinforced plastic intake manifold. It does not have VVT. The power output is less than the Mazda version which does have VVT. The European 2.0 is rated at 145PS due to higher compression ratio (10.8:1 versus US 10.0:1) and reduced exhaust back pressure.

[MetroMPG]

Rolled into the driveway this evening with the SG1 showing an even 100 mpg (US) for the tank (just under 100 mi., currently). This is with the SG1 offset somewhat pessimistically, I believe.

I've got a couple of short rural trips coming up with ideal P&G routes in the next 10 days or so. I'll probably have less than 200 mi on the odo for this tank, but I'm going to fill it before a highway trip planned for a week Friday.

Being under 3 gallons, it won't be a "competition valid" fill, but it will be a consistent fill, done in the manner & at the same pump I usually do. I'm hoping to crack 100, just for the fun of it. Then I will speed up some

To put this in perspective: it's almost all city driving, with a little exurban thrown in; average speed: 17 mph.

[MetroMPG]

Another 50 miles or so today on some ideal P&G roads. 112 mpg (US) round trip; dragged the SG1 indicated tank value up to 104 mpg over approx 150 miles.

Got another trip coming tomorrow on similarly FE friendly roads...

EDIT: today's avg speed was 23 mph