The starting point is described pretty well in my intro thread.
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...r-31873-2.html
I usually measure my mileage using my commute to and from work. I have about a 45 minute drive, with 30-40 minutes being steady highway with little traffic. I use Torque Pro for Android and reset the Trip Avg. MPG when I pass a certain mile marker on a flat section of road. The overall avg mpg gets reset and checked when I fill up. It has been very accurate without any adjustments.
I'm a dorky engineer so I actually have too much data collected. Anything I post has already been sifted through unless its a direct comparison on something new. Here's my criteria
- Car is warmed up. Thermostat must have opened at least once, trans must be above 90F. Crown Vic runs 185F steady on the hwy
- Normal weather - no rain, snow, or high winds. Temperatures below 45F are noted as such
- Use cruise control - Hwy speed must be set to 50-55 or 65-72, depending on the road.
- Rear defrost off, climate blower set to 2nd notch, radio between 8-14 volume
- Windows closed unless it is summer (no AC
)
I've done a few things since the last update
Added spotlight and folded in passenger side mirror
Results: Hole where spotlight used to be is filled and doesn't let water and air in anymore. Tossup on mileage, -0.25 to 0 MPG
Sealed hood edges . The gap between the front fascia and the hood collects quite a bit of air judging by the amount of road crud spread over the top of the radiator and by the hood latch. I initially would just tape over the gap using vinyl masking tape that could be removed. It was like electrical tape but could be peeled off with no residue as long as it was removed within 14 days. I finally found some self-sticky EDPM weather stripping along the front and side edges of the hood to make it permanent. There are still big .75 to 1" gaps around the headlights. I need some better looking bulb seals or something for these. I had some thick stuff but it ended up crumbling and making a huge gooey mess. It also turns out that I like to remove the headlights frequently for some reason and the foam made it difficult to get them back in place.
Results: cleaner engine compartment! less hood wiggles! Less highway wind noise! Marginal MPG improvement +0.5 MPG
Underdrive pullies from Summit Racing - $25 scratch 'n dent!!
These were the plain Jane cheapie underdrive pulleys. The set came with a bigger alternator and water pump pulley, and a smaller crank pulley that bolts onto the existing harmonic balancer and stock crank pulley. They are anodized blue. I usually prefer to hide this sort of thing with less obnoxious colors like black, gray, or clear anodizing. Oh well. It makes it looks like I "did something" to it
.
The alternator pulley is a bit too big (slower) and my voltage drops down to about 12v at stops if I have more than one large accessory on. The cooling capacity seems unchanged. I am going to swap it out for one of the smaller ones I have scattered across the garage. The underdrive is 60mm, which is the same as the stock 3G large case 1997 alternator I got at the junkyard. The stock 2002 police 6G alternator on the '02 was 54 mm
How to Identify and Select Ford Alternators
Results: Between +0.5 to +1.5 MPG depending on speed and electrical load. It gets in excess of 30 mpg going 35 mph, but I rarely drive at that speed for very long
That leaves me at
24-26 mpg going 55
21-22 mpg going 65