New to the forum, not new to saving fuel
 

Greetings,

My name is Mark but since so many like to use "Ninja" in some form of nickname for me, you can call me the Prudent Ninja (or Mark lol).

I'm cheap. I don't like spending money when I don't have to. This has led me to alter my driving habits to save fuel. This has also led to many other things I do to save money (lol no need to discuss those here I presume, you can check my blog if truly interested). I'm always up for saving more money when I can. I just purchased a 2001 Chevy Metro (that I nicknamed Red Bean). I was planning on getting my 1989 Honda Civic running but due to the high miles and skimpy repair history, I haven't put much into it. Then recently found a great deal on a Metro. It's a great improvement to my "previous vehicle" (a V8 carbureted van I nicknamed the Rolling Turd due to its color, got a whopping 12mpg).

I've known about this forum for a number of years but never got around to registering till today. I'm hoping this forum can be useful to me and hoping I can be useful to it. :)

Welcome to the site Mark. Nice car! :) They certainly can get some great MPGs. What kind of mileage are you getting with yours?

Welcome, from another Metro (Firefly) owner!

How many miles on yours? What are your modding plans to make it even more efficient?

sounds like you will fit in great around here.
welcome ninja

We decline from using the word "cheap" and prefer such words as thrifty, economical and the slogan "doing more with less" :)

Welcome, formally, to Ecomodder Mark!

Quite a difference going from a V8-powered van to a Metro. BTW do you miss any feature of the van?

Oh boy, a lot of questions lol. Well, the odometer reading is right around 132,000 miles. No idea the fuel economy yet. Can't get it on the road till next week since the DMV decided to be closed on Friday despite it NOT being a holiday (Saturday is).

As for cheap, I'll try to keep that in mind. I named my blog using "prudent" as it sounds nicer than "cheap *******" lol.

The biggest two features of the van I miss are being able to haul just about anything in the back and towing. When I moved this last time (to my new place around a year ago) I moved everything I owned in two trips with the van. If I had to do such with the Metro, it could easily take several trips lol. I still technically have the van, but it needs around $2000 in work done to it just to get it back on the road with another $1000 in repairs to keep it on the road. Still debating what to do with it. Could scrap it for a couple hundred dollars. Could just fix it so I can have something to haul things with when needed. Could do something crazy like turn it into an RV (after fixing it of course lol).

Kind greetings from you all and kind greetings to you all as well. :)

Have you ever considered to get an utility trailer to tow with the Metro? Sure it won't pull like a 14 with a Playboy, but it's not useless at all...


What kind of repairs does it need? Eventually, that could be an excuse for some extensive ecomods :D


That would be cool. You could make some modular removable furniture items to convert the van into a camper while retaining the versatility when you need it for hauling.

One "crazy" idea I had for the van was stripping it down to the frame, replacing the engine and transmission with some small engine and manual transmissions, and doing a custom aerodynamic body and seeing what I can do. Another "crazy" idea was to convert it to a battery electric vehicle. The main issue at present is the transmission is shot. It most likely can't be rebuilt either so will have to be replaced. The engine is high mileage and is probably due for a rebuild. Other than that, just some rust here and there.

This sounds like a perfect excuse for a Diesel swap :D

I've considered such, but diesel engines around here are rather pricey (high demand low supply). Of course, I would prefer to find a good old mechanical injection/direct injection diesel (typically great for waste veggie oil). So far in six years of looking in my area, no luck finding that kind of diesel engine. Maybe I need to look more into how I search for things.

Actually, indirect injection engines are reportedly better to operate with vegetable oils. If you weren't so budget-conscious I could eventually suggest you to look for a crate Optimizer 6500, the improved version of the GM 6.5L V8 still made by AM General for marine, stationary/industrial and military applications, and also for road-legal vehicle repowerings.