Drag racing raised mileage!? - Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum

Domman56 · 09-01-2010, 02:04 AM

haha so back in April before i left for boot camp i decided i wanted to take Tank out to the strip So i changed the oil and filled him half way up with the only gas i ever use Shell V power and i took him out to the strip. First run of the night was a horrible 17.6

that was with no launch and just step on it in D I got in about 13 runs that night and i slowly got quicker and quicker with almost each run and started manually shifting it so i could get the most out of the old 3 speed and finally i broke a 15.09!!!!! amazing time for a 4500 pound El camino that's for the most part stock I thought.

But anyway ECONOMY after i left the track the car was running smoother than it ever had before and for the whole week before i left for boot no matter where i went or how i drove it jumped in average from about 19MPG mixed freeway and city to about 21 MPG in mixed driving

Haha moral of the story Take your car out to a run whatcha brung/ test and tune day with new oil and blow some of that old carbon outta there every now and then to improve mileage

NOTICE: Results may vary No garuntees but hey if worse comes to worse you had fun for a day

SvdM · 09-01-2010, 07:13 AM

I've noticed that as well... all this nannying around made my car slow too and I struggle to keep fuel consumption down, BUT I drive an '87 Mk2 Jetta 1.6 Carburettor an I have a hard time getting your mileage figures. Well done!

comptiger5000 · 09-01-2010, 09:28 AM

I make a point to stand on it in the beast any time I get on the highway for that exact reason. Long highway runs can help as well, particularly if you hold it down a gear and accelerate hard up a hill once in a while.

RobertSmalls · 09-01-2010, 10:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by comptiger5000

I make a point to stand on it in the beast any time I get on the highway for that exact reason. Long highway runs can help as well, particularly if you hold it down a gear and accelerate hard up a hill once in a while.

Aha, so that's the secret behind your 1.6% over EPA. I wondered how you managed that mileage.

Seriously, full throttle acceleration will put even a Metro into single-digit FE, and fuel injected vehicles can go for tens of thousands of miles with no significant carbon buildup. Save it for those rare occasions when you need to merge from a stop in a construction zone.

ShadeTreeMech · 09-01-2010, 10:23 AM

with a carburetor running some gumout through it every now and again will keep things running tip top. My 83 Sentra would start dropping off on the mileage when it was time for a can of carb cleaner, then I'd be back to my steady 35-37 mpg, sometimes 40 if I was easy on it for once.

Domman56 · 09-02-2010, 02:49 AM

yeah back when i seafoamed it last year it picked some up too but i mean i was amazed at the difference after drag racing

bestclimb · 09-02-2010, 02:59 AM

sounds like you could jet a little leaner or turn your idle mixture leaner.

AeroModder · 09-02-2010, 03:00 AM

I was surprised how smooth my Tempo was running and that my mileage didn't suffer much after two passes at a strip. Would have done more, but I was hearing a strange sound and decided to err on the side of safety.

comptiger5000 · 09-02-2010, 07:46 AM

Robertsmalls - I don't drive a whole heck of a lot of highway, and when I do, it's usually a minimum of 10 miles, typically longer. I'm not too hard on it on the shorter runs. On the longer ones, a single WOT pass up to 60 is a drop in the bucket over say, 350 miles (such as the run to college on Tuesday). Part of the reason for me being so low compared to EPA is that until now, 90% of my driving was city driving, where the beast is only rated for 11 mpg. In that perspective, pulling 12+ out of it doesn't look as bad, especially with a lot of short trips, and some not-so-efficient routes, where the only more efficient alternative is much longer. Plus, this is just an inefficient vehicle. A Jeep with a 360 in it was never built to get good gas mileage, although it's still better than some large vehicles, or a full size truck.

ShadeTreeMech · 09-04-2010, 02:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Domman56

yeah back when i seafoamed it last year it picked some up too but i mean i was amazed at the difference after drag racing

I wonder if you didn't blow some carbon build up off the valves and out of the exhaust.

BTW that is one cool car. I always have had a soft spot for the car/truck combo!