I've heard plenty of MPG boosting products on the market, I have a long commute every day and spend around 80 bucks a week on gas. [and i still am getting way better gas milage than my girlfriends new "economy" car.]

I've already put in a new high performance air filter, and i'm getting a high performance exhaust soon too.

I've heard that if you replace your flywheel with an aluminum one you save MPGs, and Y-Pipes help too. What else?

 

There's not much else you can do, except for maintenance. Well, you could go extreme and start swapping gears in your transmission, but that money saved v. money spent ratio wouldn't be in your favor.

 

Im assuming all your maintenance is up to date first ?

good, proper heat range plugs
all calipers are in good condition and not dragging
weight reduction? junk in your trunk
KS is good and you are using 91?
Think of getting a fuel system service by cleaning injectors, NOT fuel injector bottles

it really depends how extreme you wanna get, and dont forget that money spent/money saved ratio is always in play

 

I don't think my Y did anything for gas efficiency. For some reason I also doubt how much a free flowing exhaust will do for you either.

Come hither my son, let me share with thee the secret of gas consumption. Lend me your ear, let me whisper to thee what the good old sage once said.....

1) Drive slow
2) Proper maintanence

 

Very true.
I've heard that intake systems, a certain chip, oil coolers- etc.

My goal is to get a good 40mpg when im done with the car. And the money spent to money earned ratio isnt that bad due to the fact that its almost 160 a month on gas. If I spend 100 bucks on something that cuts back my mpg so I only spend 140 a month on gas, it would pay for itsself in less than 6 months.

 

Weight reduction.

 

As far as weight reduction is concerned, what should I have replaced?

 

I was thinking...Krismax or Broaner style. That'll net you some good gains, although at the expense of a tad bit more road noise...

 

I feel like a total n00b, but whats that?

 

Doesn't save gas.

Also doesn't save gas.

Possibly a little bit. It's similar to general weight reduction. But how long would it take to pay off a few hundred dollar flywheel at pennies per week?

Also doesn't save gas.

Any flow mods (exhaust, intake, etc) will increase flow, but the car has a MAF that will correspondingly increase fuel injection.

The best way to save gas is to drive slower and take it much easier on the gas pedal when accelerating.

Dave

 

yeah man I know Im a noob but a cold air and more flow, plus maybe even a grounding kit will make the engine run better but wont really get you much if any better milage. sorry.

 

40MPG is a bit steep for a Max unless your thinking of driving around with no seats, no dash, no door panels, no ac compressor riding around in 4 spare tires etc etc.

 

So basically, the best way to save gas is definitely weight reduction?

In which case, the best ways to take care of that would be to replace what?

I can't really put an intake in down here with all the puddles and such.

 

If you want to take it to the extreme I guess massive weight reduction will make a difference, but the best thing I would do is just watch the way you drive. Don't floor it, drive conservative.

 

Why is it that certain things like air filters and the exhaust systems advertise mpg boosts?

I know alot of things can increase 1 to 2 mpgs but I dont know what they are!

 

?

 

Switching your 16" wheels to 15" wheels and going with narrower tires(going with 205s rather than 225s) that cut thru the wind better is the best thing I can think of.

 

?

 

Knock sensor is good and you use 91 octane

 

Not happening. Sell and buy a civic.

I'll bet you a month of gas you won't get better than 30mpg over an extended period of time, ever. 30mpg is pretty much the maximum.

Dave

 

91 Octane is the lowest i'll go.
There's a place by my house that actually takes 5 cents off premium gas on tuesdays and fridays, so thats why.

And the knock sensor is fine.

 

Yeah, even some Civics don't get 40 mpg.

 

Won't lightweight rims help also?... Lately I've found that driving with the cruise control on helps big time. Along with smooth acceleration and avoid constant braking, idling, and driving with your windows up.... And as far as weight reduction: get rid of anything you don't really need. Take off the A/C compressor, the unused seats, and no subwoofer on the trunk.... but it still won't get you to 40 MPG.

 

how do u know the KS is fine ? have you checked for codes ? the KS is a ghost code on these cars.

Thiner tires dont cut through air better HAHA, lol sorry but thats funny, they provide less resistance to the pavement because there has less surface area touching the ground. less area=less friction=easier to for the tranny to turn the wheels=less load on the engine

his tires are 215, not 225 if he kept with the stock sizes, and going another centimetre down to 205 he will not see any affects. especially since you are suggesting he put on smaller sized 15" wheels, i am assuming steelies ? bad idea, steelies are around 42-45 pounds depending on the rubber weight, compared to the 35-40 pounds for the 16" rims

Oh and the biggest factor affecting your MPG is maintenance and your foot (as well as your own weight, compare a 130 pound driver to a 300 pound driver)

So Skip you next lunch and dinner, loose some fat (lol kidding) and stop trying to mutilate your very limited SE-L, its very rare so dont touch it

PS. ive been looking for those 5 spokes in gun metal for the longest time and gave up getting regular ones of an SE

Does that make sense?

 

I've kept my trunk empty, and i'm keeping the stock rims on.
I live in the city so constant breaking is unavoidable, but driving with the windows up is a no-no?

Never knew that one.

I always drive with the sunroof on [except when its raining] and try and keep my A/C off as much as possible.


And I had a mechanic check the knock sensor, but i'll look at it myself too!

 

Dude, I live here in Fla. too and I have a Place Racing CAI - you don't have to worry about puddles. The filter is stuck up behind there so well, I don't even think it could get wet(ok if you drive ur car into a pond over the hood, then maybe...). I have had one on every Max that Iv'e owned since 05 and never had a problem.

But it's not gonna save you any fuel

 

With pure, flat highway driving (Indiana/Illinois) 29-30mpg was routine for me in my 99 SE. Best I ever saw was a hair over 32mpg at averaging about 72mph.

 

use cruise control, if you are on the highway a/c saves more gas than windows down cause of the air resistance. if you are at slower speeds windows down>a/c. but windows up a/c off is best if its not hot.

but ya, honestly driving conservatively is the best bet unless you really want to gut your car out to save weight and make it look like garbage. no little mods are gonna save you any gas worth mentioning.

if you do every little mod thats possible youll be spending atleast a couple grand and if you are lucky youll be at 33-35 mpg highway. (if you are lucky!)

oh ya, i havent seen this said yet either, make sure your tires are inflated

 

That's about what I have seen, and I have an automatic. I saw about 32 MPG on pure highway driving, a gym bag full of clothes (and nothing more), windows down, cruise control between 70 and 80 (depended on the stretch of highway), no passengers. I ended up with well over 500 miles on one tank. Drove all the way to where I was going, drove around for a week, and drove back all on one tank So truly I didn't even get 32 MPG on that tank, more like 29 or 30, but that's considering I did city driving for a few days on the same tank!

 

thats all pretty phenominal, i have been able to squeeze just over 27 mpg on the hwy, keeping it under 80. good luck getting it to 40mpg, 4 cylinders that are very efficient with low drag ratios can hardly pull that off. i do recall reading on a ranger/explorer forum once of a guy who tuned his truck to get well over 30 MPG. so i guess with the right mods and alterations it is possible.

 

found that explorer in case anyone was bored and wanted to check it out, seems pretty legit to me.. http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/...d.php?t=137531

 

His thread is 67 pages! I'd better get something to eat first.

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/...ighlight=quest

 

I've gotten 37mpg on my I30

Synthetic oil.
Dont use AC...ever...
Windows cracked is better than fan on.
dont use headlights until necessary
No rear defroster
Good air pressure in tires is key
Good tires
SLOW DOWN
Keep up on maitenence, O2 sensors, Knock sensor, Bottle of chevron techron every so often (the big, good one, not the cheaper version)


And watch these
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7AKJAu3D30
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67JGU...elated&search=

And have a look around here. Let us know how it goes
http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/index.php?

 

K&N drop-in will supposedly increase mileage by 1 or 2.. but it's 50 bucks, so it'll be a while before you save that much in gas..

 

Last year I ran a little experiment to see how much I could increase the MPG on my 99 SE-L M/T simply
by changing my driving style (which is normally pretty hard charging). This is in a mix of freeway
and surface, and at least one sortie a day from the "mountain" I live on (about an
800 ft elevation change). Bottom line: I got 34 on two consecutive tankfuls, compared to my normal 26. But it was just too nervewracking to continue.

Here's what all I did:

1 Avoid stop&go traffic
2 Keep tires pumped up to the maximum sidewall rating
3 Remove excess weight from car
4 Never use the A/C
5 Minimize headlight use
6 Stay in as high a gear as possible
7 Accelerate as slowly as possible, and as infrequently as possible
8 Apply throttle as little and as steadily as possible (pretend there's an egg between your foot and the gas pedal).
9 Don’t go any faster than necessary, so as to minimize air drag and rolling resistance
10 Don’t slow down any more than necessary, so as to avoid having to accelerate again afterwards. This means carrying maximum possible speed thru corners
11 Turn off engine whenever possible, certainly at all traffic lights
12 Put the trans in neutral and coast down hills

Some of these are easy (2,3,4), but others really require a lot of concentration. For instance, #9. With the average speed of freeway traffic around here being 80, you really have to watch your mirrors, especially when changing lanes. #10: It amounts to racing, in contrast to #9. Alternating between the two requires a cool head. #11: Whereas sitting at a light is normally downtime, here it's more like sitting on the line at the dragstrip. Unless you don't mind being honked at, you have to sit there with the car in gear, the clutch depressed, and your hand on the key (if you're on pole). It goes without saying that some of these are pretty unnerving for passengers, and you have to be able to tune out their comments. Or just apply rule #3.

Kartiste
"Carry On, & Dread Nought"

 

so i bought my car a month ago. i drive all stop and go, and push it off the light very often. i drive hard and i was pissing through gas - getting like 250 to 280 miles a tank. i knew my KS was done, and i was running 87 (as was the previous owner for 10 years). i assumed it was one of those problems or possibly the intake (filter was clean). so i bought the 10 dollar bottle of chevron techron cuz i was too lazy and broke to order FP60 and LC20 gallon jugs and poured it in there. ran two tanks WITH PREMIUM.......no difference. .

so ive had these platiunum NGK plugs sittin in my room for over a month. i been waiting to get a mechanics set from sears before i tacked them. well two weekends ago i won a poker tourney on friday so i had some cash to throw around. i decided it was time to do the plugs.

i pulled them out and this is the difference between the two (they are both identical plugs, OEM double platinum tipped NGK)



so its been two weeks almost since i did it and MAN have i noticed a difference. like i said i was getting 250-280 miles per tank. now im getting upwards of 350, one time coming close to 400 !! unbelievable difference that cost 67 dollars in materials and a half hour of time.

 

I was with you until I read #11. Thats pretty ****!

 

hahahah i didnt even get that far