I guess now is a good time...
to introduce myself.
i'm not certain what parts of this will be interesting and what won't but take it for what you will. by trade, i'm a machinist, though i've pretty much been out of that field of work since ~2009 or so due to the massive economic slowdown that occurred. since then, i've been studying a lot of different areas that interest me, usually funding my projects and efforts with automotive mechanic work that occasionally comes around. anyways, sometime in 2010, i got interested in two somewhat similar fields: electrical engineering and programming. now, when i say electrical engineering, i basically mean reverse engineering what i have to learn how it works and to make it better. and by programming, i mean disassembling automotive calibrations to see what makes them tick and how to improve them as well. i'd like to think i'm well known in the GM OBD1 tuning community, i'm starting to transition into the OBD2 game as well if only to speed up the development of open source/free/cheaper tuning tools like the OBD1 community has. with OBD1, i haven't done just simple calibration like most people ever get into, i tend to patch in sections of code to add in neat things that the factory never intended on being possible, like additional rev limiters based on clutch/brake status, additional spark advance added when the engine enters highway fuel(you guys seem to call it lean burn) mode to account for the slower combustion speed of AFRs leaner than stoich, etc... i'm VERY fluent with stuff like the Motorola 68HC11 and am working on the Motorola 68000 series currently, though the Arduino language looks like it will be a very friendly environment to work with when i get to needing to use it. anyways, i'm here for two reasons, to share my knowledge and experience where i can, and to learn from others where i have not to improve my own vehicles further. that being said.... there's only so much i'm willing to compromise in search for fuel efficiency. i can't make my vehicles into purpose-built economy machines that don't have room for the cargo/passengers i need to carry. stuff like that. so i essentially look for vehicles that have a solid base upon which to improve. i also can't modify certain driving habits either.... driving under the speed limit CANNOT happen, i seem to be the ~5% around here that actually obey the speed limit and still almost have been run down by the idiot drivers around here. i don't mind modifying how i accelerate or decelerate since most people seem to notice when those events are happening(though there have been exceptions :mad: ). i'd like to think i do well with driving route already, though until recently i accelerated at a slower pace than what a lot of members here have implied to be optimal(something like ~80% load, which BTW, what is "load" based off of, vacuum?). according to my fuelly logs, with my 1995 monte carlo, i've averaged 29.5MPG over the past 4,400 miles. my wife tends to do at least bit worse(~27MPG average) for some reason or another(either route or driving style), which brings me to another requirement: if my wife isn't willing to accept a change, then i don't really see it being an effective modification, since she drives this particular vehicle nearly as much as i do. anyways, i think that's long enough for a general intro. i guess i'd like to hear some suggestions, should anybody feel there is something i'm missing. i've checked out the vehicle modifications and behavior pages, when it comes to driving style, there is very little i do not already do, and the ones that are left are ones i'm not willing to deal with(pulse/glide and EOC). the vehicle modifications.... that's where i think i'll find my largest gains, since they are things will constantly be in effect and not require much if any driver interaction. so, does anybody have any suggestions on where to start? |
Hi - welcome to the forum!
Sounds like you've got a lot of knowledge. For instance... :) Quote:
The lean burn you see talked about typically here is the Honda stuff, where ratios go quite far away from stoichiometric - e.g. the 1st generation Insight goes as far as 23 to 1 aided by swirl in the cylinder induced by leaving one intake valve closed under light load. (Not sure on the ratios available in the Civic HX & VX models). When lean burn kicks in on the Insight, MPG goes up ~25 mpg. Quote:
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Aside from that, given where you live (Michigan), and the time of year we're sliding towards, I'd start looking into mods that address winter conditions like a partial grille block (also helps reduce aero drag); block heater. If you spend most of your time above 40 mph, focus on the aero mods for sure. |
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i can see why it's not always the answer to briskly accelerate, especially with short and potentially short distances before needing to slow down, it's certainly something you learn to anticipate driving around here. Quote:
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http://www.theautochannel.com/media/...e_carlo_ls.jpg not the greatest picture, but it should show enough to get a decent idea. if i had the money to do so, i would likely look into something to actuate a grill block to full open and full closed based on coolant temps, similar to how certain new cars are doing so, and then it could be left on year-round without worry. i live in nearly the middle of nowhere(on the edge of a population ~500 village), so my trips are about ~5% speeding up and slowing down from 55MPH, ~5% traveling at in-town speeds, and 90% just maintaining that 55MPH speed throughout the hills around here. |
Interesting about that lean burn mode! Probably factory disabled for emissions reasons (raised NOX). The 1st gen Insight handles the emissions question with an additional (read: expensive) catalytic converter for handling NOX. At cruise, the car drops out of lean burn every few minutes to purge the stored NOX and catalyzes it with a richer mixture for a few seconds.
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And definitely get yourself that resettable MPG gauge. Makes this much more fun than messing with a laptop (unless it lives in the car, permanently mounted!). As for over-riding the OEM torque converter logic, I'm SURE there are people here who would love to know more about this! We've got one thread here (maybe more) about hacking an auto transmission to electrically take control of the torque converter ( http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...tch-10028.html ), but if it's not hard to do it electronically, that would be another great option. |
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http://www.theautochannel.com/media/...e_carlo_ls.jpg Do you happen to know the car's drag coefficient / frontal area? |
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according to that, .36 and 22.6, though i could have sworn the LS was a little less aggressive, like .33. the Z34 model got a front bumper with the air dam extending down a little further to catch more air. i'm not running a spoiler either. |
that lean burn mode has my attention, how would i tune my 2006 matrix to get this mode turned on?
I want to hit 100 MPG and emissions can suffer if needed (heck I am using 1/3 of the fuel per mile so i think the ends get a better result). |
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if it's GM OBD1, ~99% chance i could tell you how to do it, but anything else and i've never messed with it. i'm just now getting into GM OBD2 stuff, so toyota OBD2 is currently way out of my league. |
it should be the same as the Pontiac vibe.
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true, but it's also 11 years newer than the newest stuff that i have experience with.
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