1999 Chevy Metro 1.0L 5spd ecomodding thread

[OG VX]

Looks great, nice save!

Try:

- for the Headlights: Meguires Flex Cut Cleaner + Plasti-X
- for the bumpers:
(easiest): Forever Black
(best): Wipe down with Vinegar/H20 + Duplicolor Adhesion Promoter + Duplicolor Bumper Paint

[redneck]

Originally Posted by Daox

Is that still holding up good?

Yup.

I did have to tighten up a couple of them up though. I just wrapped a little more tape around.
Since it weighs next to nothing, it's nearly unaffected by centrifugal force. Nor does it affect tire balance.

If one does come off, it can be replaced in 5 minutes.

Cheap and easy...



>

[Baltothewolf]

Originally Posted by metrompg

i think we should start a pool on what mpg you're going to get on your first commute.

I'll start!

57 (it's getting cold, and it'll take you a little while to figure it out).

52 .

[Daox]

I worked on the car for just a little bit last night. A few quick things before taking it for a spin.

First off, I got my new air filter put in. 'recent tune up' the ad said... ha.




I took it for a quick spin around the block, found out the tires desperately needed more air. They were between 20 and 25 psi. They're now at 50.

The Metro definitely doesn't coast as far as the Sunfire does. I'm sure thats due to a combination of not stellar aerodynamics and the fact that it weighs about 2/3rds as much.

The 1.0L makes it ridiculously hard to get bad mileage. I mean I accelerate up hills at a higher instant mpg than the Sunfire got when cruising on flat ground! So far I'm really enjoying it.

Still got some things to take care of on the car, and I definitely want to do some simple mods to it. First off will probably be a kill switch. The SG freaks out if you key off, so I can't EOC right now and have good SG readings. I want and will need a grill block for my short commute. Hand in hand will be a block heater. I'll also probably change the trans oil to synchromesh. Beyond that I have no immediate plans.

[Daox]

Ah yes, the first commute in I was quite pleased with. 60.5 mpg the uncalibrated SG showed. Darin says a +6% is about what he runs on his (I plugged in the 6% when I got to work), so taking that into account he was virtually dead on with his 57 mpg guess. All hail the king of the Metro nerds. Nice guess Darin.

[MetroMPG]

Oh, yes - forgot to tell you about that. The OBD protocol in this car doesn't like to be keyed off and on. It takes a long time for it to start talking to the ScanGauge again, so you lose distance calcs.

So, a kill switch will help a lot. That alone will probably get you over 60 mpg (calibrated) on your commute.

And no, it doesn't really coast well. Low weight and relatively high aero drag. It's why high speed pulse & glide doesn't work spectacularly well on this car.

Remind me: which direction do you usually get better numbers?

Anybody fawn over your new wheels in the parking lot this morning?

[Daox]

I get better MPG on the way to work as its primarily downhill. This is offset in part by warmer afternoons and the ability to slow down faster to avoid red lights. I took a test drive to work and back last night and got 55 mpg on the way to work, 52 mpg home.

Yeah, I got a few comments ranging the spectrum from 'is that your new Metro, what kind of MPG does it get?', and 'isn't that a 3 cylinder?' to 'whose piece of **** Metro is that?'.

[Daox]

Also, my shifter has about 1" of sideways play in it before the springs start pushing back. Is this normal?

[jcp123]

You'll get used to it. I'm semi-famous at my work for having the car that I respect a whole lot yet make fun of as the beat up ugly blue car with a primered fender and no exterior trim.

[Daox]

Oh, I'm already used to it. A good buddy at work has been saying for years that if he wins the lottery he is going to have a Prius demo derby just to get a few more off the road. I just laugh.