American Muscle Challenge!!!

[MetroMPG]

Originally Posted by roflwaffle

Although the difference is very small like I said.

I like how you try to help people keep perspective on these things when they start fretting over the tiny details (*cough* lightweight rims *cough*).

Listen to this guy.

[roflwaffle]

Hey meng, I'm driving around a free VW deesul. Or was until the damn IP started leaking. I'm the king of cheap. Except for maybe the_clencher.

[sonicsqwirl]

Sorry guys... i wasn't aware my links were broken ... this should work now

pre - mod
http://jebadiah.no-ip.com/pics/premod.jpg

mock - up
http://jebadiah.no-ip.com/pics/mockup.jpg

also here's a pic of that side air dam thing i was talking about
http://jebadiah.no-ip.com/pics/vent.jpg

here is a good shot of the hood "nostrel" i described earlier
http://jebadiah.no-ip.com/pics/nostrel.jpg

and a better shot of the Bottom air dam / fog light holes...
http://jebadiah.no-ip.com/pics/bottom.jpg

[sonicsqwirl]

i am ashamed to say that my weeks average fuel economy was..... 18mpg

[Widetracker]

Sonic, I'm a muscle car guy too. I looked into your motor for my wife's 65 Mustang so that I could gain efi and overdrive, but never made the jump. I could be a smart alec and tell you to get an ls1, but I won't. In all seriousness though my 99 Trans Am gets upper high 20s in mpg and still can turn 13 flat in the quarter. Just food for thought if you get a newer muscle car in the future. The new Mustang sadly is only pulling low 20s in any form. A shame for such a nice looking car.

Anyway here our some things to try for small gains:

full roller rockers- the late 5.0s have roller tips, but not full rollers
headers
harder compound tires (you'll lose a little in the quarter)
aluminum driveshaft- inland empire has them
look into some of the Cobra body components- some may increase the aero package
fiberglass or carbon fiber hood- also trunklid
drop the car an inch or two

You don't mention if it is a stick or an auto. I'm guessing auto with 18mpg. Obviously that package is holding you back. I've read claims of 28mpg with the stick version of your package.

Don't forget weight. Especially rotational mass. Lowering weight where it makes sense can improve both your performance and economy. Gearing is the most important piece though.

[SVOboy]

Welcome to the site widetracker! And thanks for sharing your knowledge.

[sonicsqwirl]

not a smart alec reply at all... i'm a chevy guy at heart... but the stang was a good deal
for the record it is a 5spd.... but some of the issues with the 18mpg is the 120-ish lbs of sand in the back (its slick winter in missouri)

[Big Dave]

The guys have you onto some good and inexpensive ideas, but I'm afraid that sooner or later you will have to change your axle ratio.

Vehicles that don't seem to be sensitive to other things are often way over-geared. A guy I know with a Chevy dualley with a 454 and 4.56 gears got 8 MPG whether he was pulling his 32 foot RV or running light. That's a heckuva difference to not feel. The closer you get to being geared right the more sensitive (in both positive and negative ways) your car will get.

Figure out what axle you have and hit Randy's Ring & Pinion to see what gears you can get.

[sonicsqwirl]

pretty sure it has stock gears... thats 3:73 for 5.0 5spd 94 mustang isn't it... i know i have some 4:10s in the garage that were never put on (came with the car when i bought it)

for the record... i had 3x 60lbs bags... so i had 180lbs of sand in the back... probly made a damn big difference... i'll check my mileage again this week (wife won't let me buy a scangauge yet... so its the old fashioned way for me...)

[roflwaffle]

A T56 is in order IMO. Although I imagine there are cheaper alternatives, it's definitely the least hassle for the most gain if ya have a grand or two lying around.