Your most effective FE inspired modification

[cfg83]

phantomcow2 -

It's all so jumbled together. I think the following :

HAI - Hot Air Intake, which depends on what kind of car you have.
New LRR Tires, one size up - I did a GPS based test that showed my odometer to be 2% less. Because I use my odometer, I document a 2% increase in my gaslog.

(hopefully near) Future : 5th gear swap in my manual tranny.

CarloSW2

[Telco]

Electric fans, good for 2MPG and a lot more top end power. Reason, reduced engine drag, 90 percent of the time the fan isn't even needed but a mechanical fan will still be beating the air to death.

[VetteOwner]

Originally Posted by Telco

Electric fans, good for 2MPG and a lot more top end power. Reason, reduced engine drag, 90 percent of the time the fan isn't even needed but a mechanical fan will still be beating the air to death.

this si true, you only need a fan when your not moving at all. highway speeds you dont need it.

[basjoos]

Boattail

[Fourthbean]

Originally Posted by Telco

Electric fans, good for 2MPG and a lot more top end power. Reason, reduced engine drag, 90 percent of the time the fan isn't even needed but a mechanical fan will still be beating the air to death.

I would agree with your statement, however I have not realized any gains in my fuel economy after removing my bolted on fan (not even clutch driven).

Could be other factors involved.

On that note I don't know that I can say one thing has increased my economy other than using pulse and glide. I have tried removing my fan, put in a grill block, but the biggest thing seems to be simply how I drive. Maybe I need to spend some more time messing around. Maybe my car has too many variables with it's mechanical ignition and carburetor to accurately see the difference between different mods.

[VetteOwner]

well you wont see much of a mpg gain by taking off, putting on a fan if you have a v8, it already has plenty of power to spare. my truck has a whopping 92 hp 4 banger... every little resistance that the engine has to over come helps and its noticeable.

[ZugyNA]

Originally Posted by Fourthbean

I would agree with your statement, however I have not realized any gains in my fuel economy after removing my bolted on fan (not even clutch driven).

Could be other factors involved.

On that note I don't know that I can say one thing has increased my economy other than using pulse and glide. I have tried removing my fan, put in a grill block, but the biggest thing seems to be simply how I drive. Maybe I need to spend some more time messing around. Maybe my car has too many variables with it's mechanical ignition and carburetor to accurately see the difference between different mods.

I had a '65 Belair with 250 6 & auto that got around 25 mpg...no mods. I drove it pretty easy though.

Things that might work?

http://www.eagle-research.com/fuelsav/ecarb.html

http://fueleconomytips.com/2005/11/0...one-generator/

http://fueleconomytips.com/2007/04/2...thods/#more-72

Vacuum gauge?

PCV jar?

E3 or Halo plugs?

a quote....

"Alright you guys, I realize that I'm and old fart but I experimented with
magnets and carbureted engines 25 years ago. I got fantastic results. I used a
1980 GMC 4X4. It had a 350CI with an auto trans. Obviously not a gas saver. I
hooked up a 1 quart container to the fuel pump. I carefully measured the
distance while trying to conserve fuel. I added 1 cow magnet and increased the
distance by 6 blocks. Added 2 magnets and added more distance. With 3 magnets
all faced the same direction I got an extra mile. I still don't know what
effected the gasoline but it works."

Assuming 15 mpg highway....this works out to 19 mpg ...or a 26% gain.

Cow magnets are a different type than the typical neo magnet...S pole should be placed towards the engine...same as fuel flow direction.

[bobc455]

Originally Posted by Telco

Electric fans, good for 2MPG and a lot more top end power. Reason, reduced engine drag, 90 percent of the time the fan isn't even needed but a mechanical fan will still be beating the air to death.

Maybe around town, but on the highway the fan is trying to pull air at maybe ~50 MPH, but since your car is moving ~65 your fan is not pulling (and might even be resisting airflow a tad).

If you take a fan and put it on a free-spinning bearing, then try to spin it by hand, you'll realize that it doesn't take a whole lotta energy to accelerate the fan when you are going down the dragstrip either. In fact for the dragstrip a mech fan is more efficient because it doesn't tax your electrical system so your alternator doesn't get bogged down. One of the lightweight flex fans is a good compromise.

The fan in my Saturn SL2 has been broken for two months now, and I've driven just fine without it (~98% highway driving) and I can even run the air conditioning on the hottest days. A fan is really only needed in a traffic jam.

-Bob C.

[Fourthbean]

Originally Posted by ZugyNA

I had a '65 Belair with 250 6 & auto that got around 25 mpg...no mods. I drove it pretty easy though.

Was that auto the 2 speed powerglide? Maybe I do have something else wrong with my engine if I could only get 18 "driving it easy".

well you wont see much of a mpg gain by taking off, putting on a fan if you have a v8, it already has plenty of power to spare. my truck has a whopping 92 hp 4 banger... every little resistance that the engine has to over come helps and its noticeable.

I have a 140 horsepower (or their abouts) engine pulling a 2 ton vehicle, so the power to weight ratio is a tad better with mine but I thought I would notice it. Maybe driving mostly highway is the difference like what bobc455 was saying.

Maybe around town, but on the highway the fan is trying to pull air at maybe ~50 MPH, but since your car is moving ~65 your fan is not pulling (and might even be resisting airflow a tad).

BTW, do you have a replacement engine in your s10? I was looking for curb weight of your vehicle and kept seeing 118 horsepower for the 1995 model. Maybe my brain is still dead .

Have a great day all!

[bowtieguy]

traded 6cyl vehicle for 4cyl vehicle.