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Long ago, I posted about my old fave, a Chrysler M-body, an F-41 Fifth Avenue with the 318 "P" code roller cam 2 bbl V8. I had been bemoaning the fact that I feared that ethanol-laced fuel would rob me of much of my economy. I ran a whole battery of tests, plus went through the Holley 6280 caburetor and added a new mixture control solenoid. The final report? The car gets as good a mileage on 10% ethanole as it did on MBTE-laced gasoline, BUT...there is a LOT of fuel loss on hot days to the evaporative emissions cannister. This happened the last time they started using ethanol in gasoline in California, back in the late '70s, and the low vapor pressure of the ethanol would cause rich running, surging and other problems with hot engines. They've made some improvements into the ethanol additive's driveability issues, but you DO lost a considerable amount of ethanol from the fuel when the vehicle is parked in temperatures over 90°F. Not counting that, however, my fuel economy is thus: 16 MPH around town with A/C on, 23 MPH highway with A/C on. Knocking off the A/C in lower temperatures should give me an extra MPG, per prior experience, which means this Chrysler's getting about the same mileage it did in 1986, when it was new, perhaps a little better. Oh yes, I just passed CA's Smog Check II dyno test, and the CO and HC readings were cleaner than they've been in 12 years. Actual results available upon request. "Neutral coasting" with the A-904 Torqflite adds a little more economy if you've got some serious downgrades, but you must leave the engine idling to keep the bearings and rear clutch pack oiled. Best this car's ever gotten matching that Maxima guy's 28 MPG...28.3 MPG going 60 MPH on cruise control, A/C mostly off, from Laughlin, NV to Mojave, CA, shifting to neutral to descend what grades there were. Not bad for a V8 powered US car!
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