Rolling junkyard SOS

[ZupaChuffin]

Soo, I know everyone around these parts hates suv owners, well I got stuck with one and a free car is cheaper than buying another hands down.

Basically what I am trying to figure out is what other people have done with their suvs to make them not use so much gas. I see a ton of threads with full documentation of how people doubled the epa on a civic. If anyone has made custom air dams and skirts it would be nice to see. That is what I am planning on doing.

Any help would be much appreciated.

[Johnny Mullet]

We have several truck members here and all truck owners are welcome here unlike most places! I'm sure some of them will chime in!

My truck got a hard bed cover, inflated tires to max, and some weight reduction which really helped.

[justpassntime]

ewwww....an SLT (SavesLessThan? a Hummer maybe) with something like that what I have seen other people do is park it. Just kidding.

Seriously...

Lighten the load. Pull out anything you don't need.

Get rid of the heavy bumpers if its got them.

Belly pan, yours would be easy to get under.

Air damn! (cuz it gonna be big) and wheel skirts.

Get rid of the big friggin mirrors if installed (the outside ones, put a bigger one inside so you can see everything).

Narrower tires if it got the super swampers.

Vortex generators maybe

How big is the gas tank? Only fill it half full (Like we can afford a full tank) unless your going on a trip. Half weighs a lot less than a full tank. I have an Astro van with a 27 gal. tank, need a loan to go fill it up!

[whokilledthejams]

Specific things about the S10/Blazer/Sonoma/Jimmy:

The grille opening is huge. You could cover a fair chunk of it safely. You should have a useful temperature gauge, too, so that helps.

Take off the engine-fan, and replace it with an electric one. Tiny FE gain, but it makes the truck run quieter and smoother, as well as slightly cooler.

It's relatively easy to find bolt-on aftermarket side mirrors that are a good bit smaller than the stock ones.

You can also find fiberglass bumpers/roll pans, too, if you want to cut the weight of the bumpers without making the truck uglier.

Finally-- Drive smarter! That's where you'll get the biggest gains.

[bikin' Ed]

I have a Dodge Dakota. For grille blocking, I blocked the entire grille--everything above the bumper. There is almost no difference in how hot my truck runs. It has also given me short hiway runs of 24-27 mpg.

One other thing I haven't yet seen mentioned is a light weight synthetic oil.

[rsx2002]

Welcome Zupa! Personally I love seeing SUV/Truck owners on here. You guys need the FE gains alot more than most of us.

[Tony Raine]

fellow suv owner here. just changing my driving habits got me from below epa, to 11.2% above.

[taco]

habit is the biggest step , and if any check engine lights are on especially the o2 one.

yor roof rack is drag also.

[ZupaChuffin]

Thanks for the help I'm going to post a pictures of the beast later on today so i can do some concept sketching.
i was wondering where i should go to but the plastic. Because im not sure if Lowes or Home Depot would have it with a worth while price.

[ZupaChuffin]

Oh one other question i was wondering how you get your car and mileage to show up underneath your posts. i just found the site last night have not yeat had time to figure it out