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Old 07-09-2017, 08:50 PM   #1 (permalink)
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2001 Saturn - '01 Saturn SL1
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New member from Ontario, Canada

Hi EcoModders:

I live near Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, and drive there most weekdays (44km each way) for work. I'd estimate my driving at about 80% highway and 20% city.

I recently became interested in improving the fuel economy of my 2001 Saturn SL1 after researching a more ambitious project, converting a Triumph TR-7 to a viable electric car, and discovering it would be far more costly than I first thought.

I've had the car since 2009, and have been tracking fuel economy since the day I got it, but I no longer have records prior to 2014. Since 2014, my FE has steadily gotten worse:

2014 - 5.85L/100km, 40.0mpg (US)
2015 - 6.24L/100km, 37.5mpg
2016 - 6.46L/100km, 36.2mpg
2017 - about 6.2L/100km, 38mpg until recently

The improvement in 2017 was probably due a tune-up late last year.

However, the last two tanks, I've been driving more carefully. The first tank I just did it by the seat of my pants, and achieved 5.55L/100km, 42.1mpg, which was the best single-tank fuel economy I'd ever recorded.

After that, I bought a Bluetooth OBDII adapter and the Torque app. I only managed 5.73L/100km, 40.8mpg on the next tank, but I was stuck in a few traffic jams on that tank. But that's still way better than my average this year.

When I get interested in something, I go all out, so I plan to start doing some mods:
  • smooth wheel covers (probably fibreglass)
  • rear wheel fairings
  • grill block
  • gap filling
  • full width air dam
  • delete power steering
  • build a comprehensive carputer to replace the Torque app, and provide:
    • DWL cruise control (limited to highway use since it can't shift gears)
    • load-sensitive A/C
    • DFCO at lower RPMs

I've mostly been reading the non-mod hypermiling threads for now in order to improve my driving habits. I look forward to reading more of your exploits, and will share mine here too.

I went through all my photos, and discovered that the only good photos I have of my car are at the dealer's the day I picked it up:



The red SW1 in the background was my old Saturn, which had 340,000km on it the day I left it there.


Last edited by stefanv; 07-10-2017 at 10:37 AM.. Reason: Added a photo.
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Old 07-10-2017, 10:00 AM   #2 (permalink)
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Welcome to the site. The SL1 is a great care for FE. It sounds like you're off to a great start.
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Old 07-10-2017, 10:27 AM   #3 (permalink)
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Welcome to Ecomodder, we are happy that you have joined the fuel sipping team!

I use the Dash Command app myself and skins for it can be found at dashxl.net, I personally prefer it myself.

Here are two of the many skins available:






Here are some links that help:

65+ Vehicle modifications for better fuel economy - EcoModder.com

100+ Hypermiling / ecodriving tips & tactics for better mpg - EcoModder.com
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Old 07-10-2017, 10:54 AM   #4 (permalink)
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Welcome.
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Old 07-10-2017, 11:33 AM   #5 (permalink)
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Welcome, stefanv!

The SL1 is a great platform for modifications. There are lots of threads here about them.

Consider also a 5th gear swap, depending on which ratios you have. It's not a difficult job, from what I recall. (Doesn't even require removing the transaxle - the gear set is under the stamped steel cover on the end.)
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Old 07-10-2017, 11:40 AM   #6 (permalink)
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The 5th gear swap sounds intriguing. I'll look into it. I guess I can tell what ratio I have by my speed vs. rpm in 5th gear.

EDIT: Did some quick research, and it might not be a good idea. Right now, there are a lot of place on my drive to work where I can stay in 5th gear right down to 60km/h. With the gear swap, I think I'd have to downshift. Since most of my driving is on paved country roads (speed limit 80km/h, 50mph), the gear swap probably wouldn't be such a good idea.
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Last edited by stefanv; 07-10-2017 at 11:46 AM..
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Old 07-10-2017, 11:43 AM   #7 (permalink)
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FYI: http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...swap-2779.html
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Honda mods: Ecomodding my $800 Honda Fit 5-speed beater
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Ecodriving test: Manual vs. automatic transmission MPG showdown



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Old 07-10-2017, 11:57 AM   #8 (permalink)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MetroMPG View Post
From reading that thread, it seems I already have that 5th gear in my tranny:

Quote:
Originally Posted by cfg83 View Post
I think the most economical way to get these is to go to a junkyard, find an S?1 with a manual tranny, and remove the 5th gear yourself.
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Old 07-20-2017, 09:15 AM   #9 (permalink)
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Just had my first 700km tank, the furthest I've ever gone, and way too close for comfort just a few months ago. There was still 10L (2.6 USgal) left in the tank, and my fuel economy was 5.19L/100km (45.3 USmpg).

So far, I haven't done any mods to my car except I temporarily put some pipe insulation into the front grill (mostly to see if the car would overheat or not; I don't expect it helps the aerodynamics as much as a full smooth grill cover would).
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Old 07-20-2017, 01:15 PM   #10 (permalink)
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How many years are you expecting to keep this car? Have you ever considered any engine mod?

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