I'm still pretty new to posting here, so forgive me if this is posted in the wrong place! I'd like to discuss some mods I've done and ideas I have on modifying my land yacht for better efficiency. I've already done a lot of little things to it, and right now it is getting more MPG than it is rated at in the city, and on the freeway MPG is lower than it should be. That could be due to driving habits more than anything else.
First of all, the old motor overheated and destroyed itself; I pulled it out and got it back in with new everything. I got the block honed and refinished 0.030" overbore, teflon coated popup pistons with valve relief notches, stronger valve springs, thicker pushrods, racing hydraulic roller lifters. I've been rigidly maintaining it since the rebuild with the "severe duty" schedule, aka frequent inspections and services.
The pistons increased compression a little, I am not sure the current value but stock it was 8.9:1. The teflon coating should help reduce friction. The lifters increase lift at high rpm and reduce lift at low rpm because of the stiffer springs, so I now have a primitive form of VVT. I don't know if it makes a difference but it should be better than stock!
The increase in displacement (302 ci to 306 ci) has caused the CPU to stumble a little when idling after the car is warmed up. The lumpy idle could also be because of a vacuum leak… It's a minor issue that could be fixed with a chip tune. I also should install a boost/vacuum gauge to confirm the ancient vacuum lines aren't leaking and messing up my EFI.
I only fill up on top tier fuel. I use 87 octane. My car is designed to run on 10% ethanol, 5% methanol, and oxygenated gasoline. I try to fill up at Chevron or Texaco because they have good additives in their low octane.
I use 10w40 standard oil. My car sees 120F+ conditions in the summer, and I have no temperature gauge, so I like to play it safe. The thicker oil is what Ford specifies for 100 degree driving. I will "upgrade" to a slicker oil viscosity once I install my police gauge cluster (oil press, volts, water temp) and can ensure the motor is not too hot.
Another gauge I need to install is the Tripminder! I got one on eBay because my car didn't come with one. It is a very neat little computer that replaces the standard clock and can calculate times, distances, instant and average mpg. Very useful! Combined with the standard cruise control it should help MPG a bunch.
I also remove my antennas when I'm not using them. The radio antenna simply screws off, and my CB whip is magnetically mounted on the roof. Both I stick on my rear dashboard when I'm not using them… every bit of drag counts!
A few weeks ago I overhauled the front wheel bearings with brembo grease. Originally the wheels would barely turn when spun by hand. After driving them around the block to circulate the new grease, I jacked the front up and spun them by hand… they actually could spin for a dozen or so seconds before stopping! The rear axle however has some residue near the driveshaft u joint. I need to overhaul the rear axle soon. It hasn't been touched in decades.
Another mod I've done, albeit small, was adjusting the rain gutters to be as close to the body as possible. I noticed the wind is quieter on the freeway now, especially near the side mirrors. I have also adjusted the hood to be as flush as possible with the front engine bay edge. The wipers are the "hidden" kind so I will leave those alone.
My car originally came with steelies. I found some aluminum turbine rims in a junkyard and put them on the car. They are lighter and should help mpg a little bit. Once I wear out this set of tires, I am going to upgrade from 215/70r15 to 225/70r15. That might help economy a little bit, and will definitely help traction and ride quality. I fill them up to 32/32 cold. I don't know how much I can fill them without negatively affecting tire wear… how much do you guys recommend?
That's about it for the current state of my car. After I get some gauges installed, I want to fabricate an underbody tray!
I'll post pictures of my progress when I get time to work on it. After that, a windage tray, roller lifters, dual exhaust, K&N air filter, and MAF conversion/chiptune are on the to-do list.
Thanks for reading… do you guys have any comments or suggestions? Any feedback is appreciated