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Old 01-27-2011, 03:17 AM   #1 (permalink)
Enthusiastic EcoModder
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: San Diego
Posts: 90

Gnatmobile - '96 Geo Metro LSI
90 day: 44.68 mpg (US)

theRAV - '01 Toyota RAV4 NV
90 day: 21.07 mpg (US)

ACCELICA - '95 Toyota Celica GT Convertible
Last 3: 23.46 mpg (US)

The Van - '05 Chevrolet Uplander LS LWB
90 day: 21.04 mpg (US)
Thanks: 4
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Smile Ecomodding on a boat

Hi everyone,
My name is Matt and I just bought a manual 96 3cyl Metro on Craiglist with 99k mi for $1100 . Even though I'm 30 years old I had never had the opportunity to learn how to drive a MT. Thankfully like many in my generation and no doubt nearly everyone on this site, I have found that one can learn anything on the internet . I literally youtubed how to drive a stick shift - watched a video then went out and played for a couple hours. Now I know what all the fuss is about.
I had heard about metros winning mpg contests by altering their driving (something I now know as hipermiling) and googled this shortly after buying the car. This quickly led me to metroMPG where my entire world changed. I spent two days locked up on the boat (I live on a boat in San Diego) during a crazy winter rainstorm and was completely fascinated as I read about hipermiling, mechanical mods, and what I found most fascinating: aeromods. As soon as the rain quit I began my aero mods .
went to San Diego Plastics where I bought a sheet of 1/8in ABS (in green to match the paint) and the scrap metal place where I picked up an old aluminum roadsign that I cut into long aluminum strips and tabs that I bent into small brackets. My first mod was rear skirts almost exactly like the blackfly only I went ahead and drilled self tapping screws rather than make copper clips. Then I made a complete lower grill block, leaving the upper hood gap as my functioning grill. My latest creation was completely smooth hubcaps (I simply cut 14" discs out of the plastic and ziptied them to the rim spokes).
You can see my tank to tank progress in the fuel log which represents every tank since I got the car. My best so far is 44mpg but I hope to significantly improve this. A buddy is going to help me put in an ignition kill switch and I just ordered a scanguage II. For my first equipment mods. My next aero mods will be: some sort of miror(s) deletion and I really really want to do a full bellypan. I'm also dreaming of a cambak extention.
Sorry I don't have good pics of the mods up. I took pics but then deleted them off my phone not realizing they were still being sent via email at the time. The result was emails void of attachments. I'll try to take some pics asap.
edit: I just realized I don't have the ability to post pics until I participate in forums more. Alright, good thing my lurking days are over. Pics to come soon

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Old 01-27-2011, 09:51 AM   #2 (permalink)
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Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: 1000 Islands, Ontario, Canada
Posts: 22,515

Blackfly - '98 Geo Metro
Team Metro
Last 3: 70.09 mpg (US)

MPGiata - '90 Mazda Miata
90 day: 52.71 mpg (US)

Even Fancier Metro - '14 Mitsubishi Mirage top spec
90 day: 70.75 mpg (US)

Appliance car - '14 Mitsubishi Mirage ES (base)
90 day: 52.48 mpg (US)
Thanks: 4,062
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Welcome to the addiction! I mean, to the forum!
__________________
Project MPGiata! Mods for getting 50+ MPG from a 1990 Miata
Honda mods: Ecomodding my $800 Honda Fit 5-speed beater
Mitsu mods: 70 MPG in my ecomodded, dirt cheap, 3-cylinder Mirage.
Ecodriving test: Manual vs. automatic transmission MPG showdown



EcoModder
has launched a forum for the efficient new Mitsubishi Mirage
www.MetroMPG.com - fuel efficiency info for Geo Metro owners
www.ForkenSwift.com - electric car conversion on a beer budget
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Old 01-27-2011, 05:00 PM   #3 (permalink)
Enthusiastic EcoModder
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: San Diego
Posts: 90

Gnatmobile - '96 Geo Metro LSI
90 day: 44.68 mpg (US)

theRAV - '01 Toyota RAV4 NV
90 day: 21.07 mpg (US)

ACCELICA - '95 Toyota Celica GT Convertible
Last 3: 23.46 mpg (US)

The Van - '05 Chevrolet Uplander LS LWB
90 day: 21.04 mpg (US)
Thanks: 4
Thanked 31 Times in 12 Posts
Here's a pic of the mods so far:
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Old 01-28-2011, 11:48 AM   #4 (permalink)
Batman Junior
 
MetroMPG's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: 1000 Islands, Ontario, Canada
Posts: 22,515

Blackfly - '98 Geo Metro
Team Metro
Last 3: 70.09 mpg (US)

MPGiata - '90 Mazda Miata
90 day: 52.71 mpg (US)

Even Fancier Metro - '14 Mitsubishi Mirage top spec
90 day: 70.75 mpg (US)

Appliance car - '14 Mitsubishi Mirage ES (base)
90 day: 52.48 mpg (US)
Thanks: 4,062
Thanked 6,959 Times in 3,603 Posts
Cool. Looks familiar.

How'd you attach the rear skirts? Did you drill the wheel arch for brackets?
__________________
Project MPGiata! Mods for getting 50+ MPG from a 1990 Miata
Honda mods: Ecomodding my $800 Honda Fit 5-speed beater
Mitsu mods: 70 MPG in my ecomodded, dirt cheap, 3-cylinder Mirage.
Ecodriving test: Manual vs. automatic transmission MPG showdown



EcoModder
has launched a forum for the efficient new Mitsubishi Mirage
www.MetroMPG.com - fuel efficiency info for Geo Metro owners
www.ForkenSwift.com - electric car conversion on a beer budget
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Old 01-28-2011, 01:20 PM   #5 (permalink)
Enthusiastic EcoModder
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: San Diego
Posts: 90

Gnatmobile - '96 Geo Metro LSI
90 day: 44.68 mpg (US)

theRAV - '01 Toyota RAV4 NV
90 day: 21.07 mpg (US)

ACCELICA - '95 Toyota Celica GT Convertible
Last 3: 23.46 mpg (US)

The Van - '05 Chevrolet Uplander LS LWB
90 day: 21.04 mpg (US)
Thanks: 4
Thanked 31 Times in 12 Posts
Yep, I took pics but i can't find them. You can see where the top three screws are. Each of those represent an L bracket with a screw securing it to the inner lip of the fender. I used aluminum bar just like you did and it is secured to the fender lip via 2 screws and to the bumper lip via 2 screws.

I am basically planning on building a green version of the blackfly . I want to do a camback that will be almost identical to yours accept the plastics place near the marina has clear corplast so I'll probably do a portion of it in clear. Also a belly pan is something I'd like to do soon but I hope to do a kill switch and miror delete prior to both those.

fun fun fun

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