First Gas Saver: '94 Civic VX
 

Hello everyone,

New to the forum and am pleased to have recently purchased my first true gas sipper. I've owned many vehicles over the past 15 years of driving including a civic and some other Hondas, but none of them were that great on gas considering their small engine size and relatively light weight. So I have high hopes for this one. Last Friday I drove 50 miles to our neighboring city and purchased a 100% stock '94 teal Civic VX hatchback from the original owner. I don't mind the no frills car but the only downside for me is it does not have A/C and the summers do get hot here; I guess that is a good thing for mpg though! It was a smooth, quick transaction with a no haggle, very fair price and soon I was on my way home.

The car is rust free (love the southwest for that) and has 155k miles. The thing was, and still is, dirty but that is being addressed. The exterior is in fair condition with a slightly crunched fender and faded paint but it is straight. The interior is pretty well worn and, at the moment, all I can do is scrub away and throw on some seat covers. The car runs very well however the original suspension is completely shot so I have all new bushings and struts/shocks on the way. So, there are some minor things to address but all in all I think it was a solid purchase. :thumbup:

I am getting used to no power and tall gearing. Here in Albuquerque we are at least 5,200 ft. above sea level so the thin air really kills the already anemic 92hp engine. I've read threads where people can shift below 2k RPM and still manage reasonable acceleration but up here I have to shift over 2k in order to not get honked at from the person behind me. I'm also fighting with the balance of lugging the engine and pushing to much throttle vs. too high RPMs for ideal mpg. Never the less I think I'm getting the hang of a happy medium and am anxious to see what my first mpg report is on the next fill up. Put 8 gallons (86 BTW!! Awesome!) in it last Friday, turned 150 miles so far and the gauge (though not sure how accurate) is still about 3/4 full so I'm hopeful.

I don't have any pics at the moment but will post some soon and also report my first tank mpg. Great site and look forward to being here.

Gabe

Have you never considered to get a swamp-cooler? Some truckers still use it to get comfortable temperatures without having to keep the engine idling just for the A/C compressor.

I have not really considered a swamp cooler. While it would probably do the trick I am leaning towards sourcing a complete factory setup to install. I know it will hurt mpg but when it's 100+ degrees out here in the summer A/C is almost mandatory unless you don't mind getting out of the car with sweat stains all over your shirt lol.

In my country, automotive swamp-coolers are more popular in commercial vehicles and it does the trick decently.
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-o-o0PZCHG3.../Photo6517.jpg
Since it doesn't require the engine to be kept idling like a regular A/C does due to the compressor, truckers can enjoy it in sleeper-cabs.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-q0261H0YrQ...00/Foto056.jpg
In a Brazilian Chevy truck from the 80s, cheaper and easier to install than retrofitting a regular A/C with all that hardware. Well, it's often easier to install even in a compact car without a factory-fitted roof hatch where the swamp-cooler could be mounted, altough would have to do some drills in the roof panel...
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oeDAdFtfh8...ma+de+teto.jpg

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-M9g7-8wGj4.../Photo6895.jpg
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NME3kHkYfh.../Photo6893.jpg

Congrats on the VX!

A no-AC car must be pretty rare in your neck of the woods. I can't comment on swamp coolers, but for the 3 weeks of the year it gets "hot" here, I throw one of these in my car:

http://www.ecomodder.com/blog/wp-con.../seatbeads.jpg

Makes a surprising difference, as long as you keep moving!

Welcome to the forum!

In my country those seat beads are not so popular anymore, but I remember it in an old Fiat Uno that my parents had. Back here it was more usual in the driver seat only, and currently it's easier to find it in taxis and big rigs.

I'd like to find one in black (or generally "dark") only.

Even with the AC on, it's still not comfy sitting on a car seat when it's hot as the seats don't allow enough ventilation.

Too bad nowadays it's harder to find cheap cars with light-colored interiors. I'd rather get a tan interior than a black one...

Same here. I bought a clean 94 civic vx teal from original owner super clean. No a/c but with higher miles at 188000