Long Time HOT RODDER and Eco-Modder

[undeRGRound]

But more Hot Rodding

I noticed many of my folks buying my head/intake/cam setups were getting better MPG at part throttle! At least the older ones, who had other bills and responsibilities. Part Throttle Economy was usually enhanced, even with a bigger cam! Most had a custom chip installed.

I am now hoping to apply that experience to my a 2004 Chevy Tahoe 2WD with the 4.8 V8 I got 23 MPG once and a lot of 21-22 backup runs, but now it is due for a tune up. I am seeking advice on plugs and wires, but it seems to me (so far) that the OEM parts are best due to the inflexibility of the ECU. I may look into a tuner, so I can work around the limitations. My son used a laptop programmer on his 2012 WRX and with bolt-ons ONLY, he achieved 300 AWHP when stock is 265 BHP. Something like +80 AWHP over stock! Also at NO MPG Penalty. He actually gets better mileage, since he leaned out the part throttle fuel maps. It's not hyper-miler MPG, but he gets over 30 on the highway.

I'd be tickled to death if I could get consistently well over the 22 MPG mark, and I have read the 65 tips and the 100 tips sections at least once through, so I have a pretty good idea.

I did the acetone thing back "in the day" and I was a big fan of
Louis LaPointe, (RIP, afaik) but lost my data to a hard drive failure.
I find that most of his efforts live on here

[Daox]

Welcome to the site underground.

[gone-ot]

undeRGRound -- how far *back* does your hotrodding (HOT ROD Magazine) go? All the way back to August and November 1973 and March 1974?

Welcome aboard.

[undeRGRound]

Originally Posted by Daox

Welcome to the site underground.

Thanks! Great to be here, awesome looking website! I hope to make an impact in a positive way

Originally Posted by Old Tele man

undeRGRound -- how far *back* does your hotrodding (HOT ROD Magazine) go? All the way back to August and November 1973 and March 1974?

Welcome aboard.

I was still riding bikes then but dreaming of Driving!
Are you a telephone man? Do you recognize my avatar?


Most of my hot rodding experiences are with EFI, but I have done some carbed stuff as well. Tuned a 400 Tri-Power for my "Little Cousin" (6'5", 285#) and we got it running very nicely for him
Built a custom 4 barrel manifold for a 1980's 3.8l V6 Mustang
Swapped back and forth between a 350 CFM 2V Autolite carb and a Holley 600, is 10 HP worth 6 MPG???

No!!!

...and the best example, had a bad 2.2l Dodge Omni carb, Holley progressive 2 barrel, go bad on me. A new one was well over $400 so I adapted an old Pinto Carb to the Dodge Better MPG, More HP, More Torque, better driveability, EVERYTHING!!! Holley 5220 (yuk) vs. Holley 5200 This is an example of the OEM arrangement not being exactly "optimized" for anything but COST and some brain-dead "engineer's" idea of who-knows-what...

I love the smiley line-up here, can't you tell?

[gone-ot]

Originally Posted by undeRGRound

...Are you a telephone man?

No, but I am well versed in analog & digital communications between humans and machines (wink,wink).

Originally Posted by undeRGRound

...Do you recognize my avatar?

No, but I recognized its similarity to the *old* Reddy Kilowatt character and guessed telecomm:

[darcane]

Welcome!

Your Tahoe is nearly the same as my wife's (2005 4.8 2WD 3.42 gears). She has gotten as high as 25 mpg hwy, typically more like 22-23 mpg hwy. With the right configuration, these Tahoes can be pretty reasonable on gas for their size.

Iirc, 2004 doesn't have the e-fans or the chin spoiler, right?

I've heard good things about Blackbear tunes, but haven't spent the cash for one myself. Black Bear Performance :: Custom Tuning Solutions for 96 and newer GM Vehicles I doubt you will see any difference due to plugs and wires over good OEM parts.

Good luck! And I'm curios to see what you come up with.

[Frank Lee]

Lapointe- Bwahahaha.

[undeRGRound]

It has a small insert below the front bumper, & not sure what an e-fan is!

25 would be great, but I would like a solid every day 25 as well. I don't believe that is asking too much, and all without getting into the engine itself. If I have to build a long block, I would certainly "throw the kitchen sink" at it. D. Vizard has a build procedure for prepping the cylinder walls, using scotch brite pads to gain almost 10 HP through reduced friction. he freshly built, fully assembled long block can be cranked over with 2 fingers on a breaker bar, whereas a normally assembled short block (no heads) takes in excess of 100 ft-lbs to turn!

[undeRGRound]

Originally Posted by Frank Lee

Lapointe- Bwahahaha.

'Splain, Bubba

Everything of his that I tried worked, and he was a lubrication engineer. He was on the ScanGauge train almost immediately. IDK why anyone would run down his work...

[Frank Lee]

Only one lonely piece of advice of his was worthy: Drive smooth and steady. The rest is

D. Vizard has a build procedure for prepping the cylinder walls, using scotch brite pads to gain almost 10 HP through reduced friction. he freshly built, fully assembled long block can be cranked over with 2 fingers on a breaker bar, whereas a normally assembled short block (no heads) takes in excess of 100 ft-lbs to turn!

Oh, we're gonna have a goooooood time!