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Old 07-16-2012, 08:30 AM   #1 (permalink)
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California98Civic's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Coastal Southern California
Posts: 6,299

Black and Green - '98 Honda Civic DX Coupe
Team Honda
90 day: 66.42 mpg (US)

Black and Red - '00 Nashbar Custom built eBike
90 day: 3671.43 mpg (US)
Thanks: 2,373
Thanked 2,172 Times in 1,469 Posts
Mods: What Saved, What Spent?

Below is my list of costs and savings. What do you think? What would your estimates for your car look like? ($$ are rounded to nearest whole dollar)

COSTS AND SAVINGS

Currently, I have a net savings of $391. I don't worry whether each mod pays for itself. I look at them all as interacting mods that assist hypermiling techniques. So I'm happy to break even over all. My 13" VX wheels I count as free because I got them with badly needed and nearly-new Michelin Harmonys. I now do all maintenance and have completed: a tune-up, three oil changes, and rotating the tires once as well as replacing MT fluid, distributor, cap and rotor, sparkplugs, coolant, tires, and muffler.

Savings:
Gasoline $1367
By extending oil change schedule: $30/6K mi. x 3 = 90
Royal Purple instead of Honda MT fluid: $8
By extending muffler life: $2/mo. x 11 (- patch cost) = $22
By extending use of former tires: $100/15K mi. x 1 = 100
-----------------------------
Savings ~ $1587 Feb 2011 - July 2012

Costs of ecomods:
PC1200 deep cycle battery $222
Ultra Gauge 69
VX 3.25 final drive and countershaft 58
Thrush muffler & weld (cost over OEM): 30
Coroplast 30
PVC Plumbing pipe 10
Dryer hose 5
Convex mirrors 13
Lawn edging 10
Freon draining 50
Tape 35
Velcro 5
Zip ties 10
Goo Gone 5
Great Stuff 7
OEM AT selector knob (new) 39
Inline ATO fuseholder 3
16 gauge wire 5
Terminals and splicers 2
Switch for injector kill-switch 8
Switch for alt cut-off 4
Misc hardware 37
Gasoline for testing 35
7 LEDs (brake, run, other) 114
First deep-cycl batt (-Interstate batt price) 28
25 amp battery charger 160
6 amp on-board charger 70
1.5amp on-board maintainer 30
On-board digital volt meter 29
HID headlight adapter kit 70
Subtotal 1173
Costs of comforts and fun
Ecomodder and other stickers 17
Top grade, metalized tint 200
Sheepskin seat covers 116
Dashtex dash cover 30
MP3 aux line equip 49
Accessory charger (iPod & phone) 10
Subtotal 442
Costs of tools:
Actron scan tool 130
MityVac vacuum pump 32
Voltage meter 8
Wrenches 25
Sockets 30
Timing light 30
Tin snips 15
Hacksaw 8
Oil filter wrench 5
Subtotal 283
--------------------------
Total ecomodding costs = $1193
(with comfort costs added = $1615)
(with tools and comforts costs added = $1898)

$1587 (saving) - $1193 (cost) = +$394
(-$28 if including comfort stuff and -$311 if including both tools and comfort stuff)

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See my car's mod & maintenance thread and my electric bicycle's thread for ongoing projects. I will rebuild Black and Green over decades as parts die, until it becomes a different car of roughly the same shape and color. My minimum fuel economy goal is 55 mpg while averaging posted speed limits. I generally top 60 mpg. See also my Honda manual transmission specs thread.




Last edited by California98Civic; 07-23-2012 at 02:15 PM..
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Old 07-16-2012, 09:16 AM   #2 (permalink)
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I guess I would be the opposite extreme. My 2011 Fiesta serves the purpose of providing myself and my wife's transportation unless she is dirving her 2012 Sorento. When I am alone, weather permitting, I ride one of my bikes which can average between 60-75 MPG. I don't really have any mods that cost me money. I keep tire pressures at 40-44 on our 4 wheeled vehicles and around 35 PSI on the bikes.
My approach is more overall family fuel expense than myself individually.

It's kind of funny but my 2008 Altima that I sold to my son in law was hit in the rear and totaled a little over a week ago. I put 12k into the Altima drove it 12 k miles and sold it to him. The car had just over 40k miles when it was totalled. He basically paid me 10K for the car and the insurance company paid him 17k for the car.

Not bad if you consider the car provided us with transportation for 22k total miles and we collected 5k more than it cost me to put it on the road at 20k miles. I think he replaced the tires jsut before it was totalled the second time.

I also got an email from the woman who bought my 1994 VX almost 2 years ago. The mileage had dropped off and her tech though it was the O2 sensor. They tried a Denso and it did not help the mileage. She wanted my advice. I told her to go OEM but to shop the internet for the best price. The car now has 98 k miles and she loves it, still getting mid 40's MPG. I rebuilt the VX in early 2008, drove it almost 40k miles and sold it for 4k, two years ago. Since then I have messed with bikes and in most cases made money or broke even after over 15k miles riding.

regards
Mech
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Old 07-17-2012, 11:48 AM   #3 (permalink)
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Join Date: May 2011
Location: Route 16
Posts: 4,150

Al the Third, year four - '13 Honda Fit Base
Team Honda
90 day: 42.9 mpg (US)
Thanks: 1,784
Thanked 1,922 Times in 1,246 Posts
My fuel log shows I've saved $1679.98. That's not entirely accurate because it's based on EPA combined of 19, not the 21 combined that I was seeing. Using 21 as a comparison I've saved $1255.44. Expenses? I spent $5 for Torque, somewhere around $50 for a bluetooth OBD reader and $80 or so for an Ultragauge. I bought tires, but I had to get tires anyway. I paid $142 each, hardly a premium over the $135 each I had spent on my previous "regular" tires.

My mods are minimal and long since paid off.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sheepdog44 View Post
Transmission type Efficiency
Manual neutral engine off.100% @MPG <----- Fun Fact.
Manual 1:1 gear ratio .......98%
CVT belt ............................88%
Automatic .........................86%

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Old 07-17-2012, 03:23 PM   #4 (permalink)
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Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Illinois
Posts: 27

92Integra - '92 Acura Integra LS
Team Honda
90 day: 44.18 mpg (US)
Thanks: 0
Thanked 4 Times in 4 Posts
My only mod so far than cost me anything was my Mpguino. I paid $44.00 shipped, plus $3.00 for the project box, and about $6.00 for the Add a Circuit I used for power source. My fuel log says I have saved $157, but I was also getting better than the epa estimated, so it has probably saved me about $120 over the last six tanks.

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