digitaldissent -
Thank you for doing this. I will quote your message
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aerohead -
Quote:
Originally Posted by digitaldissent
Some members are getting discouraged with mods and I've been thinking of foibles that could be associated with the "magic" of the Scan-Gauge.
The "up-shot" of the electronics is that they give instantaneous readings, without burning allot of fuel for results. One concern is that "scanners" may be seduced into taking readings before their vehicle is in a position to provide useful data.
Here's the rub.
-A vehicle requires 22-miles (35.5 km) of continuous driving before it reaches equilibrium temperature.
-Tires will come up to temp in about 5-miles (8 km ),however coolant, engine oil, transmission and differential require a full 22-miles before their viscosity reaches it's final status.
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I'm not into anybody wasting any additional fuel during testing, but there's a reason for the warm-up, and I'm afraid many modders will suffer needless disappointment if they inadvertently stray from the rule-book.
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To me, this 22 mile warm-up is a big incentive to get an engine block-heater for use in *any* climate. If I were to do this, I would want to figure out the "virtual gasoline hit" for my fuel log. To do this, I think I would need to :
1 - Use a Kill-A-Watt to figure out my outlet energy usage
2 - Assume worst-case-scenario power plant efficiency for calculating energy usage. For example, if the power plant were a gasoline power plant (verrrrrry unlikely), how much gas would be burned to power my engine block heater for X minutes?
CarloSW2