1989 Plymouth Voyager MANvan - Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum

3n3rgystar · 11-21-2010, 06:27 PM

Ecomods made
Here are the mods that I have done. Best MPG I got was 54.3 MPG. Four month average is 29.7 not too bad for a 3,000 lbs wedge shaped vehicle.

1.Roof rack (OEM as well as aftermarket) (deletion)

2.Side mirror/s (delete)

3.Radio antenna (relocation/deletion)

4.Shave badges, door handles, rain gutters, etc

5.Mud flaps (deletion)

6.Windshield wiper (deletion)

7.Semi Smooth wheel covers

8.Advanced ignition timing

9.Power steering reduction

10.Mechanical to electric radiator fan swap (not applicable)

11.Increase tire pressure to max sidewall

12.Weight reduction 305 lbs 4%

13.Replace tires with skinniest tires recommended by OEM

14.General maintenance

15.Hot / warm air intake

16.Upgraded thermostat from 192^ to 195^

17.Fixed oil leak on valve cover

18.Fixed pcv leak

19.Alligned wheel

20.remove intake elbow

21.reduce idle

22.remove carpet and reat bumper

23.Regap plugs with wider plug gap

24.Use lowest viscosity engine oil recommended by OEM

25.Synthetic oil

26.Tire spats

27.Full Grill Block(overheated) so went with a 3/4 block

28.Synthetic transmission/differential oil

29.Use thinnest transmission / differential oil recommended by OEM

check feasibility of removing beam axle(checked can not remove might could replace with lighter part.
remove heated air flap in airbox inlet
- play with cam timing via offset keys
- K&N drop in filter
hotter coil
- cooler thermostat, remove coolant lines to TB
- bore out TB
- modify butterfly (shave shaft, shorten screws, knife edge leading side)
ported head
- shave head to raise compression

Electric coolant / water pump
Synthetic transmission/differential oil
Use thinnest transmission / differential oil recommended by OEM
Lightweight wheels
Replace tires with low rolling resistance tires
Increased compression ratio

CHECK- missing or defective thermostat, causing low operating temperature

CHECK - clogged intake manifold exhaust crossover passage (for heating intake manifold)

CHECK- engine misfire caused by bad spark plug, ignition wire, coil, dist. cap or rotor

CHECK- late ignition timing

CHECK- bad vacuum advance unit (common in old cars)

CHECK- stuck centrifugal advance mechanism in distributor (needs oil occasionally)

CHECK- bad tension adjustment of centrifugal advance springs

CHECK- defective oxygen sensor (causes rich mixture)

CHECK- defective coolant temp. sensor for engine computer (causes rich mixture)

CHECK- worn timing belt (may cause rich fuel mixture in fuel injected cars with a MAP sensor)

CHECK- incorrect timing belt installation (timing marks should line up)

CHECK- sticking or poorly adjusted carburetor choke (causes rich mixture)

CHECK- dirty air filter on an engine with a carburetor (causes rich mixture at high power)

CHECK- clogged or defective PCV valve

- incorrect valve clearance (especially if too tight)

- high performance camshaft installed (not efficient at low power)

CHECK- worn valve guides (makes fuel mixture too lean at low power)

CHECK- vacuum leak from bad vacuum hoses or intake system gaskets (causes lean mixture)

CHECK- dirty fuel injectors

CHECK- bad fuel pressure regulator

CHECK- bad MAP sensor for fuel injection

CHECK- leaking intake duct between air flow sensor and throttle body

CHECK- too much alcohol in gasoline with old car (requires carb. modification for correct mixture)

CHECK- rusted or missing exhaust heat stove or pipe for heated air intake

CHECK- loss of compression pressure due to worn rings or leaking valves

CHECK- sticking EGR valve (causes rough idling and rich mixture on some engines)

CHECK- exhaust backpressure caused by clogged catalytic converter, muffler or crushed pipe

CHECK- stuck exhaust manifold valve for some V type engines. Intended for fast warm up.

CHECK- high idle speed

CHECK- high fast idle speed when cold

CHECK- incorrect idle mixture adjustment (carburetor or fuel injection)

CHECK- leaking fuel line or carburetor (dangerous too)

CHECK- clogged jets (calibrated holes) inside carburetor

CHECK- defective power valve in carburetor

CHECK- worn camshaft lobes

CHECK- high alternator voltage (should be about 14 volts when warm)

CHECK- high oil level (interferes with crankshaft movement)

CHECK- high oil pressure (relief valve stuck or has wrong spring)

CHECK- stuck cooling fan clutch (runs fan when not needed)

Problems that increase rolling resistance:

CHECK- sticking disk brake calipers

CHECK- tight drum brake adjustment

CHECK- warped brake rotor or drum

CHECK- sticking parking brake cable

CHECK- incorrect wheel alignment, front or rear (check tire wear)

CHECK- worn suspension joints (ball joints, steering joints)

CHECK- worn control arm bushings (changes wheel alignment)

CHECK- worn or incorrectly adjusted wheel bearings

CHECK- leaking grease seals for wheel bearings

CHECK- use of snow tires when not needed

CHECK- leaking tires, causing loss of pressure

CHECK- warped tires

CHCEK- bent rims, causing car to shake

CHECK- poor wheel balance, causing shaking at high speeds

CHECK- worn shocks or springs (forces driver to brake more)

Automatic transmission problems:

CHECK- wrong fluid level

CHECK- incorrect throttle valve cable adjustment

CHECK- bad vacuum modulator or vacuum hose to modulator

CHECK- sticking valves in valve body, causing delayed shifts; changing transmission fluid may help

CHECK- failure of torque converter to lock up (if equipped with lock-up torque converter); it should engage at 30-55 MPH, reducing engine speed about 10%

CHECK- stuck stator clutch in torque converter

Differential problems:

CHECK- wrong fluid level

CHECK- excessive oil viscosity

CHECK- bad bearings

CHECK- high ratio ring and pinion gear set installed for racing

remove heated air flap in airbox inlet
- play with cam timing via offset keys
- K&N drop in filter
hotter coil
- cooler thermostat, remove coolant lines to TB
- bore out TB

Well, the cheap tricks are:

- Index your spark plugs so the gap faces the intake manifold
- Insulate your fuel lines
- If your head gasket is made up of a few pices overlapped, you can remove usually 2 of the 3 metal gasket pieces that overlap and gain engine compression.
- If it's a honda, do a Mini me (vtec head on non vtec car)
- Strip all excess weight from the car (this incldes interior), lighten your bumpers, delete the rear wiper, sunroof, any electric motors not needed, AC system
- Get better suspension. This does make a difference (tokico is good, perhaps new energy susp. bushings
- Cool your fuel before a race
- Get lighter rims
- Direct airflow to intake manifold (get rid of the airbox)
- use synthetic oil (if applicable)
- relocate your intake air temp sensor (FI cars)
- lighten the flywheel

Just notes i had from the mods. See the ugly pics of the man van.

Weather Spotter · 11-21-2010, 09:34 PM

Nice job on the van. Nice write up too.

3n3rgystar · 11-21-2010, 09:34 PM

Ohh should have put my starting point was 18.2 mpg average. 27.8mpg best before I started doing all the mods.

3n3rgystar · 11-21-2010, 09:40 PM

Thanks, seems to need editing some but was handy when I dug in and started doing all the mods on my day off work. Seems side advantages are the van is much faster when needed, has a higher cargo capacity, handles better due to reduced weight on suspension, and doesn't look so girly anymore...lol

Frank Lee · 11-21-2010, 11:35 PM

Post up a fuel log, and tell me about that mechanical fan.

3n3rgystar · 11-22-2010, 08:27 AM

thats one of the things that needs to be edited as it did not have a mechanical fan so that one does not apply. would have to find some time to do the fuel log upload as i did it on paper.