How to get better fuel economy?

[Sailor Bob]

Just made a post in another thread about fuel economy and didn't want to highjack it, so I thought it was a valid discussion to ask what others may be doing or thinking (Z wise) of to overcome the gas price issue.

I can't stop driving my Z so I'm looking at controling the cost of using it. To date I have started using fourth gear , but seriously - I bought an 83 5 spd tranny last year which I am thinking I'll install on my next hitch off the ship.

Has anyone got anything else?

[TomoHawk]

You can start with all the usual stuff:

Proper tire pressure

Good spark, plugs & properly working ignition system

for L28e: make sure the sensors are good, & good connections

Correct coolant mix& condition

Overall car conition (engine & driveline)

Most importantly: DRIVE EFFICIENTLY! .

Each car probably has one area that needs more attention than another, of course.

[hls30.com]

Sedate your right foot!

Fine tune the car and switch to a thin oil, seal the hood to the front bumper(lowers drag considerably), get rid of the front license plate if you have one, drive/park where you do not have to backup. Keep the windows up when the car is moving at more than 20 MPH. Don't use the A/C, Swap out to light, thin wheels(norrower lowers aerodynamic drag), Get rid of Tomohawks emergency toolkit-it is heavy! Lose the extra pounds you picked up in the last several years! Put the car on the ship and count that mileage in your computations!

Will

[Sailor Bob]

The inefficient right foot - a Z related disorder. :nervous:

[ggarrard]

Bob - The City of Ottawa tried to bring in a "no idle" by-law this spring...where anybody letting their car idle for more than 10 seconds could be ticketed... Of course it didn't pass - but how long do you sit at a traffic light waiting for it to turn green?? I bet I spend at least 5 minutes of my short (40 minute) commute sitting at traffic lights...

GWGarrard

[Sailor Bob]

Gord

I think my worst offence in that relm is starting warmup. Being a thirty year old car I usually give it some time befor it even moves - probably three or four minutes.

I work on a ship so I don't do the daily commute, but I can certainly see that it is a problem for the daily driver.

[Darrel]

coast downhill a lot. ;-)

[ggarrard]

Bob - I'm in no way a reformed driver - In the winter I will let my car idle for a couple of minutes before driving off, and I certainly don't shut down at a traffic light...but the proposed by-law did make me take notice of my commute more. (I get the best gas mileage with my Z when I leave it at home and drive the commuter... )

GWGarrard

[xray]

No personal offense intended....

Lose weight! If you need to lose that extra 15-20 lbs here's another excuse!

By extension, lighten the car. Don't haul around unnecessary stuff in the hatch. Consider lighter seats (cost benefit analysis first, though!)

Stick with a slightly narrower tire. Stock is 175 or so, and lots of people run wider tracks than that, which creates more friction and could decrease your fuel economy. Of course, if you've got a beefy engine, that idea would probably be bad---but by default you wouldn't care about fuel economy either!

Depending on the math, your financial situation and garage space, consider a different DD. Civic HX, Golf TDI, etc. Again, do the accounting first!

Steve

[Mike]

Buy a hybrid ...

[Mat M]

I have found that if I upshift before 3000 RPM (around 2500) there is a noticable gain in efficency.

But, like anything in life, there is a comprimise - it's not as fun driving that way compared to winding her up to 6K!

[Darrel]

You could try this too.

http://www.cybersalt.org/cl_images/1zzzzya/cars/carbackfire.jpg

but watch out for the backfire.