Project 100mpg

[TOOSTUBBORN2FAIL]

ya, im thinking slightly bent valves causing oil leaking down the valve guides, as theres not much else i can really think of, the compression still checks out fine, and like you i cant see the rings going bad all at once even if compression was down

Any of the dohc manifolds for the 95-01? (i believe) have the same bolt pattern and will bolt right up. The dohc manifold has a different bolt pattern from the sohc if i remember right, and it also has much wider ports, which would be about 2 mm wider then the ports on a sohc head, per side

thanks random, is your stick or auto? that could make a huge difference, especially on the highway.

[TOOSTUBBORN2FAIL]

well, valves are definately bent, probably only on one cylinder, but still burns oil. Currently looking for a head to rebuild and bolt up

Got the eco tranny in today. 3.55 FD with a .72 5th, vs the stock 3.94 FD with a .81 5TH. Threw in the aluminum flywheel i had while i was at it, saves 6.25 pounds of rotating weight. No results yet, but look for them on saturday. Hoping this will help me break the 50mpg mark. Drops my freeway rpm from 2500 to 2000, and 105 miles of my 110 mile commute are freeway

[TOOSTUBBORN2FAIL]

Got 45.2 mpg so far after the tranny swap. After the tranny swap and rear wheel well gap fillers, ive gotten as high as 46.2 mpg. Tomorrow ill be testing and getting pics with both front and rear wheel well gap fillers.


Im going to be pulling a 2.4 stratus head to replace my 2.0 neon head with. The cams are milder, and supposed to have more low end. Maybe a month or so and it'll be in, and i can start testing that.


One more note. Drove over the grape vine on thanksgiving. On the way back home, with myself and my wife in the car, i was able to coast 15 miles, without going below 55mpg. From Tejon pass to Laval road for anyone familiar with the area. Only aero mods were both side mirrors removed, grill block (pics tomorrow), rear wheel gap fillers (pics tomorrow), and wiper/antenae delete.

In feb ill be going back over it again, this time with my dad and i, (80 more pounds than my wife), with full rear wheel skirts, and a extensively aeromoded front bumper. Im hoping for 17 miles of coasting. When i stopped coasting, i was still going downhill, just not enough to maintain 55 mph.

[FunkSkunk]

very interesting thread, keep it up!

[cosmic_kid]

Any news? Did the Neon die?

[TOOSTUBBORN2FAIL]

Nope, didnt die, just moved and havent been driving nearly as much.


So the plans for this car have extensively changed. The goal is 50+mpg at 70mph. The car however is going to weigh a lot. Stock weight with me in it is 2790. This car is going to weigh probably 3350 with me in it, and I'll be losing a significant amount of weight myself. Being that there are no weight reductions planned, everything will be done with aeromods, and making the engine more efficient when it needs a rebuild.

That said, the aeromods are going to serve a second purpose, and that is to reduce in car noise. Most of them will be done in fiberglass, with the undertray's final version probably being carbon fiber. Cost is not a concern for this project, so whatever it takes to get to or surpass the goal will be done.

[TOOSTUBBORN2FAIL]

So this is where the car stands now. The car is currently being funded with OT money, so its going pretty slow, but I'm ok with that, dont drive it that much right now, and with the times I drive to work at back, I can P&G without affecting other people. I can routinely get 35mpg+ on the way to work, and 30 back, 5 miles each way, in town. Working on getting my fat butt in shape so I can ride the bike to work, and trying to figure out a way to take lunch to work, so I can stop eating out at work. That will increase the "payload" capacity of the car, and add money to the project from the savings.

As of now, the car has a little bit of engine work done. The power steering pump was gutted and is used as an idler pulley for the A/C. A/C will not be removed, its only may and its already 90+ degrees here every day. There is an aluminum flywheel and 4 puck kevlar sprung clutch. Had the stuff from back in my performance days, but the lighter weight will help with mileage, even if its non-measurable. The exhaust is stock, and the intake, but it does have a set of Crane 12 grind cams in the car, which will be coming out as soon as I get a chance. Eventually the car will need a rebuild, when it does it will be a stock-ish rebuild, with the only additional money going towards getting it super balanced, thermal and friction reducing coatings, and lighter weight rotating and reciprocating parts.

Here is the stock body work.


Here is the cars current condition.





I have also since removed the stock airdam, to see how much it affects cooling. Its know that without this airdam, marginal cooling systems with issues will overheat on the freeway without this piece intact. I'm betting that its creating a vacuum behind it to evacuate air through the radiator, and pressure in front of it. I will be closing off the section between the front bumper and the lower radiator support this weekend, and taking a freeway run to see how it behaves. As long as it stays around 205, I'm ok with that. Stock thermostat is at 195, fans come on at 215. Picture also gives a look at the rough underbody that will need to be taken care of.