Quote:
Originally Posted by Blacktree
OK, we have the 3rd fillup with the pizza pan wheel covers (highway trip notwithstanding). And the average for those 3 fillups is 59.4 mpg. The average before installing the pizza pan wheel covers was 56.6 mpg. That's not a big difference, but an improvement nonetheless.
Also, I noticed something interesting. The ecomods seem to have offset the fuel economy penalty for running the A/C. Back before I started the ecomods, I wasn't running the A/C because the weather was cooler. Now it's summer, and I'm running the A/C all the time. But the fuel economy now vs then seems to be about the same. So I'm basically getting A/C for free.
Now I'm going to take a break from the ecomods to work on the BMW. I've hinted at that before. But I finally have all the parts for that project. So we're hitting the pause button on the Prius Experiment. When we come back to the Prius, I want to remake the existing ecomods (grille block, mini-mirrors, and wheel covers) using something more permanent... and more aesthetically pleasing.
But I'll keep logging fuel economy. That info is readily available. Just click on my signature.
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When AeroStealth got his 2014 F-150 EcoBoost and was conducting baseline mpg testing, he noticed that at certain speeds, the truck got 'better' fuel economy WITH the AC 'ON.'
A friend with a Tundra experienced the same.
All we can figure is that, under some conditions the engine is 'unloaded', and by engaging the compressor, it moves the engine into a more efficient BSFC island of operation.
Wolf H. Hucho got into this in his 2nd Edition, with respect to aero mods and gear-matching.