Quote:
Originally Posted by Daox
But, it all depends on how you drive
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You're right Daox, driving style DOES matter.
About 3 weeks ago it was -24 deg.C here and my Dad-in-law muttered something about blocking his radiator because his engine was taking its sweet time to reach operating temperature. So that evening I put cardboard on two of his three grill openings. When the temperature outside rose to -10, his fan started turning on by the time he would get to work. So I reduced one of the grill blocks. Today it was warmer still (around freezing) and his fan was on and off as soon as his speed dropped below 80kph. I'll have to totally unblock the grill this evening.
Now, when I put cardboard on his grill, I blocked mine with plastic (from old windshield fluid containers - there's something for Christ's recycling thread). I also clogged the holes in the front of my engine tray. With these mods, my temp. needle starts budging after only 4-5km. My car sleeps outside and has a diesel engine and I read somewhere that diesels take longer to warm up. This may be because gassers are less efficient and waste more energy as heat, I dunno.
Compare: My Dad-in-law's car has no undertray, no blanket under its hood, open grills and weights under 1 ton. And his temp. gets into the red zone whenever he slows down. My car has an undertray under the engine, a blanky under the hood, almost totally blocked grill and weights 1.5t and I've never heard the fan, even standing in a gigantic traffic jam when it was still warm.
Driving style: Dad's right foot is pretty heavy. Not only on the gas pedal, but also on the brakes. He accelerates all the way until he has to start braking hard. Even when he sees the red light in front, and knows he'll have to stop anyway. He doesn't coast. He hardly does any engine braking. His hearing isn't perfect anymore, so he doesn't mind the engine wailing way above 3000rpm. He doesn't see a reason to throw in fifth gear at 90kph or even fourth at 70kph. The best reaction to me talking about ecomodding and driving style at dinner is that "it's not worth it", "it doesn't work", etc. On the other hand, I do my homework, read about new techniques and try them myself. Sure, I floor it or drive fast sometimes, but not when I'm zeroing in on a red light. The best time to see the differences in our driving styles is when he borrows my car. I reset the FE-ometer before giving him the keys, and check it when he gets back. It's about 20% higher than when I do a similar trip. He can see the readout. But it doesn't register as bad, since my diesel will always use less fuel than his gasser. His car gets 8-9 l/100km (26-29mpg), while my car gives him 6-6.5 l/100km (35-39mpg). I get 4.5-5.5 (43-52mpg). When I drive his car, I hardly hear the fan, and somehow do 600km on one tank instead of 450km.
Going easy on your engine will keep its temp. below the red zone. But, of course, your gril block has to be sized just right.
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