Lurker becoming more active

[Luddite Lodge]

Hi everyone,
I have been doing this sort of thing since before it had a name. At least I was not aware of a name for this stuff in the 70s except saving money on gas.
My first mod was a Chevy citation that we did after reading an article in popular mechanics and I have done at least minor mods to virtually all my vehicles since.

I have been running a basically stock 87 CRX, I had narrower taller tires and I drove in my stocking feet to maximize my mileage, for several years before I moved back to NY with my partner, Tanya. That car is now being parted out due to excessive regulation in NY.

I have a new project. A 1991 civic LX Sedan and is is loaded. Super plush compared to what I am used to driving. We already did the work needed to get it up to snuff. New timing belt, water pump, cap, rotor, wires and plugs, rear brakes.
I am just finishing up puting in a new fuel tank so I do not have very good data for my mpg calculations but I am confident that I am already exceeding the EPA ratings for this car.
Tanya, who is also one of the mechanics on this project, is not open to stripping out all the heavy goodies so we are going to see what we can do with it and keep the power everything, as well as the AC. I will not be using the AC much if at all. I am pretty sure that will go eventually.

Planned mods:
Manual Torque converter lock up control.
Larger full front air dam.
Skirts- I have 4 plastic rocker panels from a newer civic and an accord for material
Rear wheel enclosure
Partial rear pan

I am working on design for a kammback to smooth the flow over the trunk.

I am toying wtht an idea for mounting an AC clutch to the Power Steerring pump so I can shut it off manually when I am on the hiway but that one is a ways out there.

[MetroMPG]

Belated welcome to the forum, Luddite. Glad to have an "old-timer modder" here.

That's a decent list of modifications. Don't forget MPG instrumentation too - you'll need an MPGuino in a pre-ODB-II car.

[mcrews]

Welccome.....your already to receive ur "econmodder diploma"!!
Have you upped the psi to 40+?
I'm not a big fan of removing ac.
God put it in the car for a reason

Are you running a scangauge type if instrument ?

You can check out the first link in my signature

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

The most loaded it is, the most dead weight you have to haul around. Working around an AC clutch to disable the power-steering at highway seems to be a good way to save some fuel when you're driving while your partner won't feel so bothered about a full power-steering delete. Light-colored cloth interior trims are also a good option since they tend to absorb less heat from sunlight exposure, so it would allow you to use the AC less. Regarding aerodynamics, a cheap and easy source of slight improvements would be replacing the external mirrors with smaller ones used in sports motorcycles.

[Luddite Lodge]

Yeah..I know about the weight. This thing has power mirrors and I am not a fan of reducing my visability expecially because this is supposed to be an over the road car for hiway trips.

I forgot to include the MPGuino in my list. I am just saving up a little more money before I get one.

[Luddite Lodge]

So I just did my first fill up with the new project. I only ran it down to half a tank because I want to get a calibrated eyeball on the guage after putting the new fuel tank in a car that is also new to me.

Came up with 35 MPG. I am very pleased with that. I hope it holds up.
That was careful driving with a little coasting, nothing to aggressive or extreme. I even had a few full power accelerations in there.

Should I start a thread in a different forum to post updates and stuff on this project?

I can use some bragging space these days.

[mcrews]

Yes start a new mod thread on you car!