All ways to get better gas mileage

[FB71]

my co-workers this morning were talking about the ongoing oil issue and were mentioning about somehow heating the fuel before it enters the engine and this would increase efficiency (summertime not as much of an issue). Putting heat tape or something else on the fuel line and somehow being able to regulate the fuel temperature with a gauge and so on...
also, they said about HEATING the intake air (for effieciency not performance)...
has anyone else heard of this?
the thing is, would you really see the increased results or like 0.25 mpg increase.

go to www.fordsix.com, and search for a thread on 'water injection'.

also search for writings by David Vizzard.

by heating the intake air and heating the fuel to near vapor, the fuel/air charge is better homogenized, and will more completely combust. There's guys on the fordsix boards running 300ci straight sixes in E and F trucks, claiming fuel economy near the 30's.

If you look at gas turbine shaft engines, they use a regenerator device to capture exhaust heat and transfer it to the compressed air entering the combustion chamber.

[ejp2fast]

another note: hypermiling. check it out: http://www.hypermiling.com/index.html

[blkfordsedan]

FB71 is correct...........I remember reading an article 20 years ago about Smokey Yunik (remember him?) and a Pontiac Fiero (remember those?). Smokey perfected that very technique of routing the fuel by the exhaust manifold to preheat it to near vapor. (I don't recommend trying this at home without knowing the full details!). The homogenized fuel burns more completely. I don't remember the exact fuel mileage he got from the Fiero, but it was well beyond what we currently get from any modern V6. There may be an inherent danger in this technique that kept the auto industry from producing such a system? As for the other ideas:

A K&N filter should increase MPG. They are available to fit both carbed and EFI models.
A full factory exhaust promotes low-end torque in the rpm range we need for max MPG. A free flowing after market exhaust will USUALLY sacrifice low rpm torque for high rpm HP, but there are exceptions. Engines use exhaust gas pulses to help draw new air/fuel into the cylinder. This is how tuned-length and "180 degree" headers work. The primary tube length and/or collector is designed to correlate the wave of exhaust gas pulses with intake timing events. At low rpm, too much flow can actually suck unburnt mixture right out the exhaust.
Kinda like when you let off the gas and get a series of backfires or "pops" out the exhaust.
I know my 93L FELT a lot peppier down low and got better MPG when I replaced the rusted out exhaust with new factory stuff. The Harbor Freight store across the street from where I work used to sell the fuel line magnets. They are based on the same fuel atomization/homogenization principal as the preheat idea. They were like $20. I can check if they still have them. If someone drives a lot of miles and wants to do a controlled mileage test, documenting and reporting the results, I would gladly donate one in the name of fun and Festiva Progress!

[blkfordsedan]

I just thought of a couple more ideas to increase MPG, if someone really wants to try;

*Increase compression by having head milled (more power from same mixture volume)
*Advance ignition timing (within reason)
*Increase spark intensity (more complete burn) via ignition upgrade (i.e. MSD, good coil, plugs and wires, etc)
*swap in Aspire roller cam and synthetic fluids (reduced internal friction)
*advance cam timing for enhanced low rpm (requires adj or modded cam pulley)
*eliminate any unnecessary power-robbers (a/c, wife, kids, etc.)
*decrease weight. I always wanted to replace the bumpers w/aluminum channel behind the factory covers, but it's not very safe.
*decrease rolling resistance (no brakes dragging, tall skinny tires, light wheels)
*decrease aerodynamic drag via lowering springs and front chin spoiler. May be able to cover the grill opening except for in front of radiator. I suspect we get a lot of air trapped under the hood. In theory, a rear hatch wing should reduce air turbulence/swirl behind the car.
I also wonder if creating "dimples" with a ball-peen hammer all over the car's surface would create a boundary layer of air around the car, thus reducing drag. It worked for the golf ball! A good hail storm would also accomplish this. I think I'll let someone else try it first...........

[FB71]

how about we just walk?

[FestYboy]

^
and it's good for you too!!!

i'm debating on putting an under tray/belly pan on scrappy to reduce the worse area of drag on our cars other than the hatch.

[lessersivad]

A LOT of reading on increasing MPG's.

http://www.brightgreen.us/smartgas/

I just got back from a 728 mile road trip kinda trying a little of the "hypermiling" technique. The first 364 miles were at 50-55 mph and NOT trying to keep up to speed going up long grades and letting off the throttle going down hill to keep the speed between 50-55. Results, 50.27 MPG. Return trip 364 miles 55-60 mph and not really doing the hypermiling. Results, 45.5 MPG. This trip was for a visit to see my son and for me to set a baseline so I can try different ideas to see what or if any improvements can be obtained. I did change the oil and used Delvac 1300 super 15w40 as per the recommendation of the above link. I also checked and set the tire pressure and changed the fuel filter. Oh, BTW, during the interview with the hypermiler on CBS one thing he said that stuck with me during this trip was he gets in the right lane and owns it. Yes, my trip was done on the freeway.

[amandacarterisobese]

Heating up the intake charge? Isn't that what the EGR valve does?

[worfdog]

egr recirculates exhaust gases to cool combustan gases, i think to cut down on oxides of nitrogen.

[freshtiva]

I heard this a while back about putting magnets (i don't know size) on either side of the fuel rail to help align the hydro-carbons before they enter the chamber for better efficiency on combustion ratio.

caveat emptor !

[BigSexy181971]

Hahaha

I also wonder if creating "dimples" with a ball-peen hammer all over the car's surface would create a boundary layer of air around the car, thus reducing drag. It worked for the golf ball! A good hail storm would also accomplish this. I think I'll let someone else try it first...........[/QUOTE]


I like your thought process, hey it works for a golf ball and these things aren't far off in shape.

[bugbor]

As for heating fuel lines, old flathead Fords were notorious for vapor lock. Engine compartment would get too hot, gas in lines and fuel pump would vaporize. The pump wouldn't move vapor so your car would just die.
The sediment bowl at the bottom of the pump was glass so the trick in hot weather was to carry a grapefuit or two, which when sliced in half was shoved up around the glass bowl and absorbed the heat. This allowed the vapor to re-condense and you were on your way.

Rob J

[ejp2fast]

hey i hit 36.6 mpg in my auto!!!!

[lessersivad]

That's good to hear. I just picked up an '89 auto for my daughter to drive. Needs some brake work and other misc. She's driving an S10 4x4 with a 4.3 V6 right now and buying gas is about kicking the snot out of her check so I got the '89. She should see at least double what the S10 gets.

[sam.1956]

I did a little reading on the Intaar-Web & the opinions usually disagree as to the benefits of surface texturing a car. What a surprise. There's some published works that indicate small axially-aligned grooves or channels work better for reducing drag on commercial aircraft, than do dimples of any shape. And a maker of competitve body-suit swimwear claims that positively textured skin (like on a basketball) has drag reducing properties. Then again, the viscosity of water is what they're dealing witih.

With all that in mind, I may cover the car with small-dimension bubble wrap & see what happens... I may have to change from "Festiva Madness" to "Aero Madness" in that case.

Anyway, all the high-brow nay-saying aside, it'd be cool to see someone do a controlled experiment on a textured surface car & publish the results.