View Single Post
Old 01-27-2008, 03:29 PM   This thread is in the EcoModder Project Library | #1 (permalink)
MetroMPG
Batman Junior
 
MetroMPG's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: 1000 Islands, Ontario, Canada
Posts: 22,513

Blackfly - '98 Geo Metro
Team Metro
Last 3: 70.09 mpg (US)

MPGiata - '90 Mazda Miata
90 day: 52.71 mpg (US)

Even Fancier Metro - '14 Mitsubishi Mirage top spec
90 day: 70.75 mpg (US)

Appliance car - '14 Mitsubishi Mirage ES (base)
90 day: 60.16 mpg (US)
Thanks: 4,058
Thanked 6,957 Times in 3,602 Posts
Mini experiments: 300w vs. 800w block heater warm up time

I thought I had done this already with my 300w external bolt-on block heater, but I couldn't find the data anywhere on my computer.

Moot point. I've since added an 800w inline coolant heater, and haven't collected any info from it yet.

So, what I'm going to do is plug the car in & check the temperature every 15 minutes for an hour or so.

The results will be skewed somewhat by the fact that the coolant is not heated uniformly, and I need to run the engine briefly to get an accurate temperature reading.

I know the coolant temp isn't uniform because when I read the temp on the ScanGauge before I start the engine, it gives me a value that's significantly lower than the value I see within a few seconds of starting the engine.

So the water pump has to circulate things briefly to mix it up and get an accurate (or "average") reading from the coolant temp sensor.

I can say with some confidence it's not the heat of combustion responsible for the temp jump, because it's quite large (say 50 degrees F) and shows up on the SG within 10 seconds.

The best way to run the test might be to take off the belt & spin the water pump manually/electrically, but I can't think of anything offhand that I can use to do that easily.

Anyway, I'll report back later with some DATA! ...

__________________
Project MPGiata! Mods for getting 50+ MPG from a 1990 Miata
Honda mods: Ecomodding my $800 Honda Fit 5-speed beater
Mitsu mods: 70 MPG in my ecomodded, dirt cheap, 3-cylinder Mirage.
Ecodriving test: Manual vs. automatic transmission MPG showdown



EcoModder
has launched a forum for the efficient new Mitsubishi Mirage
www.MetroMPG.com - fuel efficiency info for Geo Metro owners
www.ForkenSwift.com - electric car conversion on a beer budget
  Reply With Quote
The Following User Says Thank You to MetroMPG For This Useful Post:
101Volts (09-15-2016)