[Christ]

Originally Posted by bigchelis

Well, I just filled up again yesterday.

338 Miles and 6.5g of Diesel....DARN IT

Stuck at 52 MPG.

The exaust just makes it fun, but definitely no improvement IMHO. Back to the drawing board.

Good thing is I still havent put a front air dam or any aeromods. So, that will be my next move.

I actually have the opportunity to purchase a 1980 VW 1.5L with 4speed.
I hear while the Head Bolt/Gasket issues can be bothersome the smaller 1.5L gets 55MPG and them some with more ease.


bigC

As soon as you get it, remove the head and get a ARP stud kit. There isn't one specifically for that engine with the 11mm head bolts, but they can build a kit for you that will work.

Barring that, you can also get some threaded rod in the grade 8, cut it to size, and use that in the same way.

The problem with the head bolts is that the recess in the block is a blind hole and very close to an oil galley or water jacket or something... it cracks when you overtighten the bolt, which basically everyone does.

Don't trust 'I wont overtighten it'... just replace the bolts with studs. Unless you want to research which hole cracks and trim that bolt down by about 3-4 threads so it doesn't contact the bottom of the blind hole. The other option is lots of machine work to finish drilling that hole all the way through and apply sealant to the threads of that bolt when you install it.