Hello from Portland

[Oelmensch]

Thanks all! He (baby) is giving mom hell starting to kick/wiggle constantly, and isn't due until right around xmas.

I'd read numerous tips/threads, etc before my first fill up and IF the gauge continues to move in a semi-linear rate, I'm killing my previous mpg. Just cleared 80 miles on the trip meter and the needle finally fell below the full mark today. When I bought the car it was at the half mark and 220 miles, I'll be shocked if I can't beat that just by disciplined driving.
I'm shifting at roughly 15/20/25/30mph whenever possible. When I went on the test drive I had the previous owner drive the first leg to get an idea of his driving habits, and he was routinely winding it out into the 3-4k range in 1st/2nd, a bit in third and straight into 5th at freeway speeds. I've been doing my best to keep the rpms below 2k, typically below 1700 whenever possible.

Staying in what 'feels like' lean burn is reasonably easy through about 55-60mph (limiting speed to 55mph by just not speeding is also helping I'm sure), and I've noticed a slight pickup with minor increases in pedal that I assume is the engine coming out of lean burn while still being well below the vtec threshold where it should kick over to 16v operation. I can't really feel a significant change going into lean burn, but I suspect the MPGuino addition will make that abundantly clear with the shift in mpg.

I'm having a blast with the project so far and am looking forward to testing future mods. Thank you all for the warm welcome to the forums and community.

[MetroMPG]

Originally Posted by Oelmensch

I've noticed a slight pickup with minor increases in pedal that I assume is the engine coming out of lean burn while still being well below the vtec threshold

Sounds about right.

In the Insight, forcing it out of lean burn with a minor pedal movement (or when it does an automatic NOX purge) does feel like the turbo kicked in (no VTEC or assist, either). OK, that would be a very, very tiny turbo... compared to how utterly gutless and mushy the pedal normally feels when in L.B.

I can't really feel a significant change going into lean burn, but I suspect the MPGuino addition will make that abundantly clear with the shift in mpg.

Absolutely. Instant MPG jumps significantly higher.

I think there's also a way to monitor L.B. with a digital multimeter on the oxygen sensor, if you're interested. Not familiar with the details - a well crafted search query might shed more light on that. Tom O, one of our (formerly more active) moderators was also working on a "lean burn indicator" for his VX (dashboard LED), but I don't remember the outcome of that one either.

[Oelmensch]

Originally Posted by MetroMPG

...I think there's also a way to monitor L.B. with a digital multimeter on the oxygen sensor, if you're interested. Not familiar with the details - a well crafted search query might shed more light on that. Tom O, one of our (formerly more active) moderators was also working on a "lean burn indicator" for his VX (dashboard LED), but I don't remember the outcome of that one either.

I had read some older posts previously that referenced what you're talking about (and Tom O), and had considered something similar. Depending on the logic family used, one could tailor the high/low threshold to activate an LED or bulb. I'd actually considered building a small series of LED indicators for lean burn, vtec (16v operation), radiator fan on, etc. Figured it would be something worth doing down the road, but short term the MPGuino would serve as a reasonable indicator of FE. Once I put in the grill block offs I'll want a fan indicator to fine tune the opening size/location to avoid excessive running or cycling during normal operation.