Journey of a 1000 mods lol

[Kyleyadon]

Well, there's a lot I want to do with my car, but I've finally taken the first step and done a partial grille block. I still need to fine tune the timing, but if I'm gonna be out in the cold working on it I may as well do a few other projects too. I'm working on reshaping a couple of clear plastic punch bowls I bought at the dollar store for headlight covers. Hope to be able to install them tomorrow. Will post pics as soon as I can.

[redneck]

What engine and trans does your buick have?

Do you know the rearend ratio?

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[Kyleyadon]

it's a 250 cid 4.1 l I6 with a 3spd auto. Don't know what the rear end ratio is off hand, but I'm sure i can find it easily enough.

[Frank Lee]

I made headlight covers for my '74 Nova. Picked up at least 5 mpg.

[redneck]

1st off. Did you read...?

65+ Vehicle modifications for better fuel economy - EcoModder.com

And

100+ Hypermiling / ecodriving tips & tactics for better mpg - EcoModder.com

Most of these tips cost nothing, and should be tried first.


2nd. Are you mechanically inclined?

If so, I would recommend two things, a cam swap and transmission swap.

The chevy 250cid 6cyl. is a good engine. With a cam change it is a great engine. The cam you want is a torque mileage cam. (some call it a rv or towing cam)

These are two examples;

61-113-4 - High Energy

H- 192/2668- 2S- 12 camshaft - Ch. 194- 250 I6 62- 84

Both of these cams give the engine alot of torque in the lower rpm range.
(what you need for good fuel economy)

The transmission you want is a 200-4r.

Turbo-Hydramatic - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It is a overdrive transmission (30%) with a lock up clutch. It should be a direct replacement for your 3 speed.
The only thing that will be required is a switch to manually engage the lock up clutch since your car lacks a computer to control it.
(if you get one, make sure you get the torque converter with it)

Another choice would be a 700-r4. Although it would require a drive shaft modification.

Both of these mods can be done for less than $500 if you can do the labor yourself and should yield very good results.


Squeezing fuel ecomony out of older cars can be a challenge, but is worth the trouble if you enjoy them.

Hope this helps you.

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[Kyleyadon]

I have read the hypermiling tips, and with the exception of eoc and drafting, they are pretty much all identical to the safe driving tips I was taught when I worked as a bus driver. I am mechanically inclined, and I have been thinking about doing a tranny swap, but I was thinking about swapping in a 4spd manual from a chevy nova, and adding a gear splitter/overdrive from gear vendors. Your suggestion though seems like it may be easier and probably cheaper. Frank, glad to hear that about your nova, since my apollo is about 90-95% identical to a nova I should see similar results. Unfortunately my idea for the dollar store punch bowls didn't work, they just crack and shattered when I tried to cut them.

[Frank Lee]

Sorry Kyle, I was kidding about the fe. I did make nice covers but they were for pimping the ride (along with sidepipes and hood pins) and did 0 for mpgs and I'll tell you right now yours would do 0 too.

Mine had a 283 V8/TH350 a/t and IIRC I usually got between 20 and 24mpg, and that was back when I drove faster, usually 70 mph.

[Kyleyadon]

I appreciate your frankness, frank. But if your nova was getting 20-24mpg then there's hope for my apollo. I need to get a good timing light so I can fine tune the timing. I like redneck's suggestion of a cam swap and the transmission change. I love classic cars because they are so much easier to work on than modern computerized cars, and in my experience, more reliable. There are many times when I wish I still had my grandmother's '83 chevy impala. I'm not sure what it's mileage was, but it was a tank and rode like a caddy.

[WE3ZS]

Kyle, I think we all agree that a trans swap is a good idea for your ride. Going the auto 200R4 or 700R4 route as redneck suggested will give you the much needed OD but will require the addition of the TC switch he mentioned as well as setting up the throttle valve cable to the 700R4 (I'm not familar with the 200R4) to allow it to function and shift correctly. All do-able but added complexity to a very basic car like yours (I really like basic cars, I'm a first gen GM F-Body guy at heart, Camaro/Firebird). You mentioned thinking about swapping in a 4 speed from a Nova and a GV gear splitter / OD unit. That would be a very expensive route to take, the Gear Vendors splitter/OD goes for about 3 grand! A much cheaper and simpler alternative would be to swap in a Borg Warner World Class (WC) 5 speed found in '89 and up Camaros. Of course you would need to add a clutch pedal and attached linkage, cut a shifter hole in your floor and find the correct length driveshaft or have one made or shortened. These boxes offer the same OD radios as the OD slushboxes mentioned earlier, .70/.73. Plus with a stick you can EOffC to push your MPGs even higher. Its not a difficult swap, I put a WC T5 in a '79 El Camino, everything needed was collected on 2 trips to the salvage yard. Also check out your rear gear ratio and look for something numerically lower at the parts yards, those I6's have nice low end torque (even better with the earlier mentioned cam!) and coupled with the low 1st gear on a 5 speed you can pull a pretty tall rear gear.
Good luck!

[Kyleyadon]

I was mainly thinking about sticking with classic car parts due to their proven durability, I'm hoping that this car will be the last one I have to own so I want to keep it running as long as possible. According to my web research, Classic Car Specifications, Engine, Wheelbase, production numbers, VIN numbers for Antique Cars, Classic Cars, Vintage Cars and Muscle Cars , the rear end ratio should be 3.08:1. I do like the idea of a 5spd manual, I'm not particularly familiar with the borg warner brand though. As for salvage yards, I live relatively close to Harry's U Pull it. Which is reputed to be one of the largest and oldest salvage yards in the country. So if anyone has a 70's era nova, omega, ventura, or apollo for me to strip, it's likely to be them, with the nova being the most likely.