2005 Civic LX Sedan - 46.97 MPG!!!

[sarguy01]

Here are the pics.

Shifter cover undergoing surgery.


Kill switch installed.


Yel/Blk wires soldered to the relay.


Finished! Kill switch "safety" switch, up next to fog lamp switch. Kill switch slightly left of shifter boot. You can also see the OBD Bluetooth adapter up in the driver's foot well.

[sarguy01]

Last two tanks were not as good...two fills ago I only got 34 mpg, but then again that tank was almost entirely driving on snow and ice covered roads, so I didn't glide so well. Last night's fill was 39 mpg, which is excellent, but lower than I had hoped for. The interstate driving is making it hard to reach higher mpg. There is a lot of traffic and I can't P&G or EOC since people like to follow closely. All lanes are usually pretty congested.

I need to figure out a way to hook my ancient charger up to the battery without popping the hood every night. I am working full time and going to back to school for a masters, so I am kind of lazy when I get home. I don't want to pop the hood at 10:30 at night to hook up a charger, just to unhook it again at 6:30 the next morning. I know Amazon has some kits, but I need to weigh the cost vs benefit. I want to charge the battery every night so I can feel comfortable sitting at red lights with the engine off. I am not sure how old the battery is and what life it has left.

I also need to look into LED headlights to put into the fog lights. The voltage drops quickly on my Torque app, usually from 12.5 to 12.0 when EOCing with the headlights on. The roads I EOC on are empty at night, but they are in the woods and there are no street lights. I need some light to see and the running lights only won't light up the road enough. I am hoping the LED lights will use up the battery less.

[user removed]

There is a code on the battery that will tell you when it was made, look online for code interpretation.

Not sure of your routes but I am familiar with VaBeach traffic which can be in the top 10% of terrible in the US.

When coasting won't work and in heavy traffic, drafting is your best choice, and in Va Beach traffic, especially rush hour, drafting is unavoidable.

I use a method I call-pulse drafting. Get setup behind your draft creator and use the downslopes from overpasses. You can coast a good bit without great speed changes with pulse-drafting, but give yourself enough room to dodge the pot craters (potholes the size of craters) that can wreck your suspension and alignment.

I normally do not recommend it, but for anyone here who knows how dense the traffic is here at times, you will understand that if you tried to maintain decent separation you would just become a slow moving doormat.

regards
Mech

[sarguy01]

Amazon.com: Battery Tender 021-0123 Battery Tender Junior 12V Battery Charger: Automotive

What I was thinking for a battery tender. Either this or just grab the cables and use the ancient one I already have.

Amazon.com: 2 Pieces 21W High Power CREE LED Car Fog Light H8 Bulb: Car Electronics

Something like this for the fog lights.

[sarguy01]

Originally Posted by Old Mechanic

There is a code on the battery that will tell you when it was made, look online for code interpretation.

Not sure of your routes but I am familiar with VaBeach traffic which can be in the top 10% of terrible in the US.

When coasting won't work and in heavy traffic, drafting is your best choice, and in Va Beach traffic, especially rush hour, drafting is unavoidable.

I use a method I call-pulse drafting. Get setup behind your draft creator and use the downslopes from overpasses. You can coast a good bit without great speed changes with pulse-drafting, but give yourself enough room to dodge the pot craters (potholes the size of craters) that can wreck your suspension and alignment.

I normally do not recommend it, but for anyone here who knows how dense the traffic is here at times, you will understand that if you tried to maintain decent separation you would just become a slow moving doormat.

regards
Mech

I take Indian River to 64 to ODU. Indian River is 45 mph and during the day it moves right at 45, but there are usually cars in front and behind me on the way to school. At night, it is perfect for EOC and where I employ EOC the most. I just can't see when I turn the headlights off...

64 is almost nightmare going to school. Left lane is 65-70 (speed limit of 55), middle lane is 55-65 and the right lane is 0-55, depending on what exit is coming up. All lanes have random slow downs at times. How effective is drafting other cars? I don't mind getting close to a semi, but there aren't any during the time I drive 64. I don't know if I want to get that close to another car. There are plenty of 1/2 ton pick ups to follow...How close do I need to be? I guess I can experiment.

I'll try pulse-drafting if I can. Tonight I will see if there are any large vehicles I can get behind. I won't put myself or them in danger, but lets see if I can make it work.

By the way, I'd love to come see your trike build sometime. Your only about an hour away from me.

[sarguy01]

My last tank was 40 mpg. Not bad, but lower than what I wanted.

Highway speeds are dropping the mileage. In traffic on the way to school, I have to do the speed limit since the traffic is so dense. Even at 5 mph over, there is usually someone following closely waiting to pass. At 60 mph, the Civic is getting around 35/36 mpg. I haven't got a solid number since my speed is constant, there are hills, etc.

There are no semis on the road when I am on it. I can't draft. There are pick up trucks, but they usually are going faster than I want and their speeds aren't steady. It's more of a safety issue to follow that closely.

I really need to look into some aero mods. Grill block and air dam are on the list, but I need to find time to get in the garage.

This morning on the way to work I had some A***H*** tailgating me for about a mile straight. I was in the left lane since I needed to turn left. He shot around on the right and threw up his hands, obviously pissed off at me. By the way, I was doing 55 in a 55... He then hit his brakes and came right up to the car in front of him since the light was red and had been red for about 30 seconds.

[digital rules]

Originally Posted by sarguy01

... He then hit his brakes and came right up to the car in front of him since the light was red and had been red for about 30 seconds.

Hmm, sounds like he may be suffering from Penis envy, or just needs to get laid!! And I thought Virginia was for lovers????

Where do all these idiots come from???

[sarguy01]

Originally Posted by digital rules

Hmm, sounds like he may be suffering from Penis envy, or just needs to get laid!! And I thought Virginia was for lovers????

Where do all these idiots come from???

He was in an early 2000's Camry. He must have hated my mostly shiny blue and door dinged Civic with an Ecomodder sticker!

There are two bases on the road I take. My base is to the left and the other is straight ahead. I get cut off, followed closely, etc and these people end up in line in front or behind me waiting to get on base. We are all going the same place, so it boggles my mind why they think it's okay to drive badly knowing they could do something rude to someone they work for??

Why can't those types of drivers have a little more respect for other drivers?? (Karma? I wasn't the best driver when I was younger...)

[8307c4]

I am curious, with the cost of new car batteries running north of $100...
I don't see EOC'ing as being a cost-effective way to save money.
Fuel it saves, but does it save money?

Certainly P&G, so long it involves wide open acceleration does not save money in the long run.
Automobiles wear 5 to 10 times faster when pushed to their limits.
Granted it takes tens of thousands of miles to understand this process, but one day the P&G'er is going to be facing some repair bills in the thousands.
You will wear your car OUT p&g'ing.

That having been said there exists a procedure, it comes not without risk, known as desulfating a battery... It looks to me as if it is something the average backyard mechanic (taking proper precautions) could do to a dead battery, but I can't guarantee for myself whether it really works but next time one of my vehicles needs a new battery I'm going to try it.

[sarguy01]

Originally Posted by 8307c4

I am curious, with the cost of new car batteries running north of $100...
I don't see EOC'ing as being a cost-effective way to save money.
Fuel it saves, but does it save money?

Certainly P&G, so long it involves wide open acceleration does not save money in the long run.
Automobiles wear 5 to 10 times faster when pushed to their limits.
Granted it takes tens of thousands of miles to understand this process, but one day the P&G'er is going to be facing some repair bills in the thousands.
You will wear your car OUT p&g'ing.

That having been said there exists a procedure, it comes not without risk, known as desulfating a battery... It looks to me as if it is something the average backyard mechanic (taking proper precautions) could do to a dead battery, but I can't guarantee for myself whether it really works but next time one of my vehicles needs a new battery I'm going to try it.

Are you suggesting that the increased drain and charge cycles will kill the battery quicker? I thought that by trickle charging it, it would help extend the life of it.

I haven't been EOCing much since the traffic usually keeps me from it.