Ideas for a '95 Honda del Sol

[bravozero]

I just purchased a used '95 Civic del Sol a couple of weeks ago do drive everyday and I'm looking for ways to help increase my fuel economy. I've never looked into ways on being more FE in any of my previous vehicles, so I'm really a noob at this stuff.

Specs on the car... D15B7 engine, automatic (ugh, only because I got a great deal on the car), 140k miles.

The overall condition of the car is good, runs great mechanically after a nice tuneup by changing the plugs and wires, oil change with a can of BG MOA for the current oil, alignment done and tire pressure adjusted 1 psi over recommended, new radiator and upper/lower hoses with new coolant fluid, and replaced the air filter with a K&N filter.

I still need to change the brake and power steering fluids, and I do need to do a transmission fluid drain and fill, not a flush since I have no idea if it's ever been done before, that's a disaster waiting to happen. Oh, I also ran a bottle of BG 44K through my last tank.

The car came with an OEM bra on the front end and standard 13 inch steel wheels with the hub caps. I'm still trying to get the throttle linkage and throttle valve cables perfectly synced, the car still shifts between 2500 and 3300 RPMs depending on throttle application, but does engage into the next gear no problems, no slippage.

With these specs, I would like to know any ideas or projects that could help with fuel efficiency? Thanks!

[cbaber]

I owned a 1993 Del Sol S since 2008. Actually my step-dad owns it now so its still around. It was manual, but pretty much the same car as yours. I did not hypermile it and was able to get up to 41 MPG a tank depending on highway speeds (80% highway driving). With an automatic you might be a little less but following some techniques you could very well top 40 MPG.

First, the Del Sol is very lightweight. I think your still under 2400 lbs even with the auto tranny. You still have room to move, though. Swap those heavy steel wheels with some 14" Honda Civic HX wheels (11 lbs) or other lightweight wheels for starters. Get some LRR tires. Secondly, 92-96 Del Sols had the AUX lights that were next to the headlamps. They were pretty much useless. I would devise a way to cover them for increased aero performance. You could even upgrade to the 97 bumper that got rid of them if your budget allows. Maybe even do a lower grille block. Finally, if you are really serious about MPG performance out of this car and you have the mechanical ability, swap the auto for a 5sp. Information on this swap is readily available on the internet and has been done tons of times. A 5spd will really open up possibilities with this car.

PS: Dont forget your scangauge so you can measure your performance!

[bravozero]

I wish I could do the manual swap, but I simply just cannot afford to do so, and with my lower back starting to have issues, I'll be lucky if I can drive a manual in the future. Although, if I had found this car in manual I would have jumped on it easily.

Basically, if I can get 35 mpg+ out of this car, I will be happy. I would say 50% of my commute is constant highway speed, the other is a mix between city and low speed zones, with a few traffic lights. It also doesn't help that it's winter time and it's hard not to let the car warm up for a few minutes, especially with it's age, I don't want to risk something failing.

The aux light thing is an interesting point, and I'm sure doing that and even removing the front bra would help aerodynamics out tremendously. I just hope that the paint hasn't fused to the bra when I go to remove it.

With a lower grille block, would there still be a small hole to allow some air to get to the radiator, especially during the summer time? I've also thought about removing the AC from the car since it has a targa top, why not let natural cooling do it's job? lol

The Scangauge won't work with this car I believe since it's an OBDI ECU, and I'm not very electronically inclined when it comes to building modules like the homemade device I saw on the 65+ mod list.

The HX wheel thing isn't a bad idea, might look into that. I need to find out how much the stock steel wheels weigh. I do need to get new tires at some point so I'll look into low rolling resistance tires.