Quote:
Originally Posted by diesel_john
robbie, sounds like you doing very well for 17. I couldn't think of a better car for a young driver. The open exhaust will not help mileage unless the cat is or muffler is plugged. Your are not putting much HP thur and it's made for 150. Your radiator is you primary concern. Check places like Advance Auto for a rad. around $200 is good. Sooner the better if the anti-freeze hasn't been changed. It doesn't sound like the transmission is working properly. Check if the kick down cable or rod is adjusted correctly. Some have this method and some do it electronically. Should not stall in automatic. However in slow traffic, you are correct in shifting into direct drive so that the converter can stay locked at the lower speed. Also check that the converter is unlocking when its suppose to. To save money learn all you can. Read my previous post carefully between every comma is different idea. Your car is capable of 20+ MPG. And we haven't even got to aero mods, but no need if your driving city. I wish I had your rear axle. Keep good records. Let us know how much each idea helps.
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Radiator isn't leaking a ton right now, perhaps a quart a month. Since it's buried under a mound of stuff in my car, including electrical equipment and other things, and since I don't have a whole lot of experience with cooling systems, I'm going to have the local mechanic put it in. I know him pretty well, and he'll give me a good deal installing stuff that I already have.
I change my oil every 2,500 to 3,000 miles. At the moment using whatever the cheapest stuff Walmart has...after 15 years of non-synthetic, I'm not sure synthetics would do much good for the cost involved with filling it with them. It takes a LOT of coolant
Rear axle causes some issues in the rain--live axle, no limited-slip diff, and massive torque mean I drive sideways when it's wet! At least I'm getting good experience if I ever want to go dirt-track racing
Kick down cable is adjusted properly. I've gone over this car, replaced quite a few things that went bad or were just toast(two alternators, wiring harness(mechanic), brakes, tires, HVAC controls, patched rust in rear fender, various gaskets, hoses, belts). It may need head gaskets in a year or two due to coolant leakage, but it's low enough now that from the experienced people I've contacted, it's good for a while. Holds compression nicely. Only problem is that it hates St. Louis' summer "oxygenated gas"...runs extremely poorly due to lack of oxygen in the fuel. If I go out of town in the summer, I get 20mpg...on St. Louis gas, 15mpg
It'll get close to 20 around town in fall and spring, if the temperature is above 40 and below 80. Unfortunately, that's about 5% of the year here