help ecomodding a saturn ion

[cfg83]

2007 ion2 -

When I've been car hunting, I've been thinking about an Ion. I've always been fond of the functional-cool spoilers on the Bonneville racers :



When I apply the teardrop shape, it looks like it fits pretty well :


* - In the above picture, the fins of the spoiler are larger than the flat spoiler, so the tear-drop shape appears to "cut into" the spoiler.

With that in mind I looked at your Ion :



And made a spoiler :


* - The horizontal white line in the spoiler is where the flat spoiler would be.

But this is just one example. From what I (think I) have learned here, the idea is to make a spoiler that "meets the tear-drop shape". Now, a Kamm-spoiler is better, but this is a compromise that can look "normal" to non-Ecomodders.

CarloSW2

[Varn]

So you are getting 40 mpg or about 6.5c/mile. You drive 10,000 miles a year or 650 dollars a year. If you get to 45 mpg avg you will save 65 dollars per year. Keep that number in mind before you consider your modifications.

[2007 ion2]

If I get 50 mpg, I will save 125 dollars, and if it only costs 30 to 100 dollars, I see no reason not to.

[2007 ion2]

also, wouldn't the air dam null the effect of any belly pan placed within a couple feet of it?

[Ecobalt]

Originally Posted by 2007 ion2

0w30 improves cold weather starts, but I don't live in the cold anymore. I do run full synthetic oil and transmission fluid, though

No, the original 5w-30 crankcase oil is fine for cold weather "starts". Mobil 0W-30 is specified for low friction and high efficiency.

Mobil 1 0W-30 Advanced Fuel Economy is engineered to deliver outstanding engine protection and to offer improved fuel economy in vehicles where SAE 0W-30, 5W-30 or 10W-30 oil is recommended. This low friction, fully synthetic formulation increases engine efficiency and offers outstanding fuel economy. Over the life of your vehicle, Mobil 1 Advanced Fuel Economy can save over $400 in fuel costs.

Mobil 1 0W-30 Advanced Fuel Economy

$25/5 quarts at Sprawl*Mart. That is as cheap as any other synthetic oil, so there is no reason not to use it. (Except if you don't want to change the oil yourself. Good luck finding a shop that will provide 0W-30 for your car.)

Check your owner's manual to see if this is the oil specification: GM 6094M

[euromodder]

Originally Posted by 2007 ion2

0w30 improves cold weather starts, but I don't live in the cold anymore.

0w30 reduces internal friction within the engine as well, and so it slightly improves your mileage.

[2007 ion2]

0 (cold "weight")W 30 (hot "weight"), the 0 is only under certain conditions, and when it warms up, 0W30, 5W30, 10W30, and straight 30 weight oil, all have the same properties (all other variables eliminated). I am a mechanic, went to a university for it and everything, most of the car driving public would believe as you do, but you are mistaken.

to quote "how stuff works" HowStuffWorks "Measuring Motor Oil Viscosity"

"At cold temperatures, the polymers are coiled up and allow the oil to flow as their low numbers indicate. As the oil warms up, the polymers begin to unwind into long chains that prevent the oil from thinning as much as it normally would. The result is that at 100 degrees C, the oil has thinned only as much as the higher viscosity number indicates. Another way of looking at multi-vis oils is to think of a 20W-50 as a 20 weight oil that will not thin more than a 50 weight would when hot. "

once again, this is fact, not something I came up with out of the blue. now I'm going to really upset everyone and tell them to stop running their tires at max sidewall pressure (or even above manufacturer's recommended), because it actually leads to improper tire wear and handling characteristics, on EVERY CAR. once again, this is FACT, not a guess. on aircraft (and cars), the same tire is used for multiple vehicles with different weights and sidewall loads depending on the width tire and vehicle it's on. how can anyone figure that the same tire pressure can be used on a 4000LB car as it can be on a 2000LB car. the 4000LB car will squish the tire more, making the tire's tread want to go concave, requiring more pressure. a 2000LB car, under the same pressure, will force the tread convex, wearing the middle of the tread every time. if you want to make a difference in this department, run nitrogen in your tires, and run them about 5PSI over recommended (if you want to be most accurate, run them at the pressure air is when the tires are hot, as in right after a drive). nitrogen has the science to back it up. in street cars, it is dimensionally stable to the point where it does not expand (it does on aircraft, but the temperature difference is a hundred degrees plus), and leads to more consistent pressures, and should be reduced temperatures, and thus friction.

[Ecobalt]

Originally Posted by 2007 ion2

0 (cold "weight")W 30 (hot "weight"), the 0 is only under certain conditions, and when it warms up, 0W30, 5W30, 10W30, and straight 30 weight oil, all have the same properties (all other variables eliminated). I am a mechanic, went to a university for it and everything, most of the car driving public would believe as you do, but you are mistaken.

0W-30 means that the oil still has the viscosity of 30W oil, even when it has reached operating temperature.

Which 30 Weight Oil Do I Use, 0W-30, 5W-30 or 10W-30?
We get asked this question so often that we have included this special page dedicated exclusively to answering the question.

AMSOIL 0W-30, 5W-30 and 10W-30 synthetic motor oils are ALL 30 weight oils. The answer is that ANY one can be used regardless if your vehicle owners manual says to use, for example, a 5W-30. "W" means winter. In winter weather the 0W oil will flow like a 0W oil, and the 5W will flow like a 5W oil and a 10W will flow like a 10W oil just until the engine warms up. In order to understand the differences one has to first understand that the numerical values given to these various weight oils are strictly empirical numbers. For example, 0W does not mean that the oil has no weight. That is one of the reasons why we say it is strictly an empirical number.

In order to determine the differences between the three oils one has to look at the kinematic viscosity of each lubricant. The kinematic viscosity is essentially the amount of time, in centistokes, that it takes for a specified volume

of the lubricant to flow through a fixed diameter orifice at a given temperature.

Let's compare the kinematic viscosity of the three AMSOIL lubricants

AMSOIL 0W-30 is 57.3 cST @ 40 °C, & 11.3 cST @ 100 °C

AMSOIL 5W-30 is 59.5 cST @ 40 °C, & 11.7 cST @ 100 °C

AMSOIL 10W-30 is 66.1 cST @ 40 °C, & 11.7 cST @ 100 °C

As you can see from the data above the kinematic viscosities are extremely close. Therefore, whether you use the 0W-30, 5W-30 or the 10W-30 is strictly a matter of choice. With the small differences in kinematic viscosity you would be hard-pressed to detect these differences on initial engine start-up without specialized engine test equipment.
...more...
Which Oil Do I Use? 0W30? 5W30? 10W30?

[euromodder]

Originally Posted by 2007 ion2

0 (cold "weight")W 30 (hot "weight"), the 0 is only under certain conditions, and when it warms up, 0W30, 5W30, 10W30, and straight 30 weight oil, all have the same properties (all other variables eliminated). I am a mechanic, went to a university for it and everything, most of the car driving public would believe as you do, but you are mistaken.

0w30 was developed as a low(er) friction oil to reduce fuel consumption and for quicker lubing on engines built to ever tighter tolerances - especially when starting from cold.

I don't really qualify as general public, I used to work for an oil (lube) company

now I'm going to really upset everyone and tell them to stop running their tires at max sidewall pressure (or even above manufacturer's recommended), because it actually leads to improper tire wear and handling characteristics, on EVERY CAR.

Running my tires at higher than (car) manufacturer's recommended pressure, has actually helped to even out the tyre wear.
The Volvo S40-V50 range is notorious for eating its tyres unevenly.

how can anyone figure that the same tire pressure can be used on a 4000LB car as it can be on a 2000LB car.

They won't even use the same tyres.

nitrogen has the science to back it up.

There's little point in keeping oxygen and moisture out of a tyre, as they are immerged in a bath of oxygen and moisture on the outside - combined with UV and whatever the road throws at them.
The inside of a tyre is hardly a problem aera for wear & tear - physical nor chemical. Tyres wear and chemically age on the outside.

Too little pressure however, will ruin your tyres.
Regardless of what they were filled with.

Temperature reduction and pressure variation is neglectable in a tyre used normally on the road. If you go racing, it may well become a factor.

Not all tyre fitting places get the air out of the tyres before inflating them with nitrogen - introducing 30-40 % regular air into the tyre.


It's mainly a cheap revenue-booster for tyre fitting places, compressed N2 being as cheap as it is. Well, until they pump it in your tyres that is.

[2007 ion2]

like I said, 0W30 is for better cold starts, I do not need to worry about that anymore. the only time you see a boost in efficiency is when the engine is cold, and I mean really cold, my 5W30 stopped being effective around -10 to -20 Fahrenheit, that's where 0W30 would have been necessary. I can actually tell when my car has trouble with an oil, because of other mods I have done to it. it starts to shake at idle when it doesn't like the oil situation (like 5W30 at -20F, or older oil). it hardly ever gets below zero, here, so I do not foresee needing 0W30.

if your car is known for uneven tire wear, then by all means run the tires at a higher pressure, but most car manufacturers go to great lengths to come up with a tire pressure that is ideal for wear and efficiency, especially on cars like my saturn, where it is obvious they care about efficiency. my question is why didn't volvo release a change to the recommended tire pressure for that vehicle?

yes, nitrogen is stable enough to make a difference. I drove my saturn (with a proper nitrogen fill in all 4 tires, from the factory), from -40F weather down to tennessee (I think it was 30F), and didn't see a difference in tire pressure, no need to stop and bleed off built up pressure, or on the way up pump up my tires, just drive. nitrogen also stays filled longer, leading to less need to check the pressures (mine went about a year at a time without needing more). it does this because it has physically larger molecules. it will also help protect TMS equipment and alloy rims commonly found on modern cars because of the lack of contaminates.

and yes, tires are used on a wide variety of vehicles weight wise. maybe not to the extreme I said, it was an example, but they are.