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Old 03-20-2011, 04:09 AM   #1 (permalink)
JMac
Musician w/ Light Wallet
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Midwest
Posts: 47

SeaBiscuit - '98 Honda Civic DX Hatch
Team Honda
90 day: 39.99 mpg (US)
Thanks: 7
Thanked 8 Times in 8 Posts
Planning a Few EcoMods '98 Civic DX Hatch

Hello everyone. I'm new here, but I've been reading the forums for a couple weeks. You all are very creative and have some great ideas, so I'd like to bounce some ideas off y'all if you don't mind. Here's my ride:

1998 Honda Civic DX Hatchback MT

Current Mods:

*Accidental Antenna Delete - (previous owner did it, but I'll take credit for it ) The housing is still there, along with a nub.

*Slight Tire Overinflation - Front tires rated at 44psi, running at 48psi. Rear tires rated at 36psi running at 39psi.

*Removal of Trunk Area Cover - ~8-10lbs weight reduction (I know it's almost nothing, but hey, it doesn't rattle anymore)

Future Mods:

*UltraGauge - I have it on order, maybe a couple weeks 'till it gets here. My understanding is that it's on par with a ScanGauge II, not quite as accurate as a good MPGuino, right?

*0W20 Mobil 1 Synthetic Oil - It's time to change the oil, and I found a decent deal on this stuff. The Civic Owners Manual calls for 5W30 regular or synthetic (not sure what's the previous owner put in there, but I know it's regular [non-synthetic] oil), and after doing some reading, the 0W20 seems like a popular and safe oil. The engine doesn't leak any oil, and as far as I can tell, it's not burning any either (or almost none). It does have 163k miles on it, and I'll keep an eye on it. I know there's not a whole lot of FE to be gained here, but it's an easy mod, and I'm curious.

*Pennzoil Synchromesh Transmission Fluid - Picked up two quarts of this after reading MetroMPG's post about the stuff. Again, I know there's not much FE to be gained here, but I'm changing the fluid anyways, so I thought I'd go with the good stuff.

*Aftermarket Cruise Control - I'm looking at a Rostra unit. I know the foot+brain can do better, but I'll be making a few 1k mile trips in the next year, and the foot+brain can only take so much. Any recommendations?

POSSIBLE Future Mods: (This is where I REALLY, REALLY need your input)

*Mudflap Delete - The mudflaps on this civic are more like solid air scoops. Not sure how much they effect FE, but they look like four little airbrakes sitting behind my tires. I'll post pics / maybe start a thread in the near future.

*Insight Wheels - I understand these are light (10.5lbs vs my 18lbs stock) and also fairly aerodynamic (almost as good as mooncaps). I'd really like to get my hands on a nice set of four of these, and I'm willing to spend around $300 (Hopefully much less). Some junkyards in the area have them, but I want to be careful. Any thoughts on where to get a set at a good price? How about making sure they're true? Etc.

*Bridgestone B381 Tires - If / when I get the Insight wheels, I'd like to get some LRR tires, and my understanding is that these are as good as it gets with 185/65 R14 sized tires. Are there any better at this size for LRR? Also, having trouble finding these for less than $100 a pop shipped via a Google Shopping search, $120 per at the local Firestone shop. Anybody know a good tire place which gives discounts, or an online etailer that would ship them at less than $100 each?

Note - The above wheels + tires would save me about 10.5 pounds rotational weight per wheel (7.5 on the wheel, 3 on the tire), plus give me slightly better aerodynamics. I know that rotational weight is factored in a bit differently than regular weight, and if I could shave 42 lbs of rotational weight in a car that usually weighs about 2,474lbs loaded along with the aero improvement, I think that'd make for some measurable gains. Thoughts on this?

So the last two mods are pretty costly. Any cheaper recommendations that I should look into first?

You guys rock!
JMac

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