I'm discouraged
 

I'm discouraged. I have done a lot of mods to my car without much increase in mpg. Only an increase of 2 mpg. What am I missing? My car is a 93 tercel and here is a list of mods;
New o2 sensor
Warm air intake
Full grill block
Pizza pans
Lightened 200lbs
Tune up
Headlight covers
Kill switch
Vacume guage
Wheels at 50lbs
Side mirror delete
No ac or power steering
Cat detete
Please somebody help

Have you adjusted the nut behind the wheel? That is where the greatest gains can be found.

I have to question the Cat delete. I believe that part of the ECO in ecomodder is reducing pollution, both through reducing fuel use and emissions.

automatic or manual?

I agree with FXSTI on both counts,1. removing your cat might make your sensors read lean, and your computor will richen your fuel ratio, killing your mpg. 2. you haven't mentioned any changes in driving habits, which is where your biggest gains will be. I would recommend replacing your cat, and then read up on some of the hypermiling tips found on the home page. don't give up though, 2 mpg is better than nothing.

I've found I can improve my mileage as much as 33% with engine-on-coast pulse and glide, and awareness of light timing.

it gets tough after 35 mpg for any car.

are you driving city or highway? average mph?

no ammount of mods can help if you dont adjust the loose nut behind the wheel like these guys said.. if you do mostly city driving then i would say your not doing too bad.

when it comes to your cat delete, there is no 2nd o2 sensor on a 93 so that shouldnt cause a problem but the lack of back pressure might be hurting you a little bit.

if you are or have adjusted the loose nut already then i would look more into possible sensor issues that may not be setting off your check engine light but may be hurting your economy. on that pre-obd2 system you could have an air temp sensor off causing it to richen the fuel mix by giving the comp a faulse reading..but dont go throwing parts at it untill you are sure, the best way is to get a scan tool or find someone who has one to plug in and read the data stream and check things like temp sensors to actual temp and if one is reading way off then i would say its a safe bet then to throw 10 or 20 bucks into it. also i had a 88 tercel and mine had bad rings and burned a lot of oil so make sure you have good compression and that kind of thing...

good luck and dont give up. keep workin on driving habbits and keep puttering with the mechanical stuff untill you get it right

First of all, the difference between your first and third (last) tanks is 5.46mpg, not 2. Even if it's only 2 above EPA, you're improving. Second, you only have three tanks with very different FE numbers so no one knows what it'll top out at. Maybe your next tank will follow the trend and be better!

What driving techniques do you use, and how often? How fast do you drive on the freeway?

Hi,

Just applying the warm air intake will not necessarily improve your mileage.

For example, if you typically drive on the freeway/highway, then you need more power from the motor, and getting this means higher density air.

If on the other hand, you puttz along on the backroads, then the thinner air will yield higher gas mileage, but only if your going let's say less than 40 mph or so.

Jim.

My slightly ecomodded car averages 37.5mpg in another driver's hands (slightly above factory rating of 37mpg). When I drive it, I get 47.7 mpg (at least the last tank I had on it was that.)

I think Ecomods more or less compliment the hypermiler. It's like installing a super-charger. Technically, the supercharger will increase MPG under the hyper-miler's gentle touch, but will kill MPG with a heavy foot.

Aerodynamics and lighter weight allow you to accelerate faster, so maybe you were adjusting to these changes more like a racer would, than a hypermiler?

Ps. Also, yeah, any tweaking to the exhaust (like removing the cat) is kind of funky. Street-racers and wannabes always target the exhaust and I think some of them simply slap on a wider opening muffler without much regard to back pressure and such.

The only exhaust mod I'd feel comfortable with is extending the muffler slightly out and tilting it for streamlining purposes, and replacing the muffler with an exact replica made of lighter materials (like aluminum or oven-cured Carbon Fiber).

SGC, I can see why you're disappointed. That's a lot of work for 2 mpg. Let me ask you: Are your trips really short? Like, 5-7 mile little ventures around town? If so, it might be harder for you to detect your gains.

You need to change your mpg ratings in your garage. You are using the old EPA ratings. You are doing better % over EPA than you thought. This is from the fueleconomy.gov website:

Compare Old and New MPG Estimates

[QUOTE=FXSTi;295966]Have you adjusted the nut behind the wheel? That is where the greatest gains can be found.

Could you tell what is "The nut behind the wheel". what kind of nut? or what does it means?. I know i'm not smart enough.
Thank you much

the nut behind the wheel is the person driving the car. it is not meant to be an insult, just a way of saying we are our own worst enemies when it comes to driving. most accidents are operator error, and most fuel economy mistakes are made by the driver. all the mods in the world will not make as much difference as learning good driving practices.

I think kincurd about nailed it on the head. We think alike, your just much better at explaining your thoughts than I am. Lol

Nah. I tend to be way too long-winded and not straight to the point. :thumbup: It carries over into my speech too sometimes, and a big tirade is met with "You mean... "no"?" and the like. :D

Thax for all the tips... My driving changes depending on time. My exaust is completely rotted out(trying to fix it my self). I don't drive on the freeway or in the city. I have to up date my fuel log. It still is frustrating. I never know what will help or not. Like before I got my vacume gauge, I was shifting too soon because I was told to shift as soon as I could, but my car likes a little more gas before shifting....it's a four speed. That reminds me. Where car I find a taller front diff for a 93 tercel?

You should update the fuel log so we can help you :)

An MPGuino supposedly helps a lot because of the instant MPG readout (I don't have one... yet). It allows you to drive for a certain MPG, and the thing's only $40. It will help you figure out what you may be doing wrong.

Do you pulse and glide? EOC?