FE just keeps droping no matter how much I hypermile

[txe5502]

Originally Posted by JanGeo

Yup when sitting still there is not much air flowing past the CAT to cool it so it gets extra hot - not recommended to even idle the car in traffic for too long either or drive over grass. My BMW R100S pipes get glowing RED hot in a minute if there is no breeze cooling them and you just throw a few revs - more noticeable at night in the dark.

Yeah it sounds like the cat is fouled up and not reacting with the fuel properly but it could also be the engine. Another way to tell is to measure the voltage on the O2 sensor and see what it is. That will tell you what the engine and ECU is doing to the fuel mixture.

My exhaust stings a little when warming up but after driving and checking it - smells like clean fresh air.

One other thing people forget sometimes is how is your oil consumption - is it using a lot of oil and is the oil clean and full.

OOOOOOOOOOOO if what you said is true then you ARE right about me being a very dangerous person!!! I have actually let my car idle for over 48 hours parked a few times (electronics inside, dont even ask its complicated and some may even say ridiculous what I have in my car and the electrical demand i have in there, 165 amp alternator nearly maxed out sometimes!)


Oil consumption
Brand new engine, remember? I change the oil every 5000 miles and it is such a new, clean running engine, that the oil that comes out looks like NEW oil still, golden brown! So it isnt using any (or if it is at all, its not even a noticable amount)

[aych]

i'd run a bottle of seafoam through the engine. hypermilling , i find does alot of gunk to the engine. the constant low rpm.. high load etc etc.. creates alot of carbon deposits. give it a good cleaning and see how it goes

[txe5502]

Originally Posted by aych

i'd run a bottle of seafoam through the engine. hypermilling , i find does alot of gunk to the engine. the constant low rpm.. high load etc etc.. creates alot of carbon deposits. give it a good cleaning and see how it goes

In the process of running 70% isopropyl alcohol through it

[JanGeo]

If you are near an outlet then plug it into the grid instead of running the engine. Low rpm for extended period of time could cause some really low lubrication issues with the upper valve train and cylinders. Some things get splash lubricated at higher RPM but not much at idle.

Seafoam is a good idea but like I said earlier a sparkplug check will tell you plenty about what is going on in the engine . . . recently.

[txe5502]

Originally Posted by JanGeo

If you are near an outlet then plug it into the grid instead of running the engine. Low rpm for extended period of time could cause some really low lubrication issues with the upper valve train and cylinders. Some things get splash lubricated at higher RPM but not much at idle.

Seafoam is a good idea but like I said earlier a sparkplug check will tell you plenty about what is going on in the engine . . . recently.

I know this my dad tells me all the time but the problem is i dont have a way of plugging it in! Cars dont generally have power cords, and generally outlet plugs are 120 volts and not 12. Anyway i will also try seafoam and I will check my spark plugs the next time I am at my dad's garage (no tools for that here(deepwell socket and extension), so I have to do that there). And BTW that thing you told me about the CAT, that just makes me think about all the cable guys from our cable company who leave their cable vans running the whole time they are at our house working on the cable box, etc. That makes me wonder if any of those things have ever caught on fire! I know thats off topic kind of but its just something that comes to mind when this is brought up.

I will check my spark plugs soon definately. But I still wonder whats with that arcing I am seeing, it cant be all the way down at the plug, what I am seeing is somewhere near the surface, my engine is a DOHC and the plugs are way down inside! Also I am wondering about the brakes. Someone mentioned brakes earlier, and there is something funny about mine. I have replaced ALL rotors, callipers, and pads several times, but they still make this "moaning" noise (but only the back ones) and my pedal seems to leak down. I dont know if this could cause it to drag or not, but I just figured I would bring that up also. Another thing is that my car is wrecked, the front end is bent upward. The engine/transmission mounts are all broken/in a bind, and the radiator core support is bent all up. severe frame damage. I dont know how this could affect gas mileage but I think maybe someone might.

[theholycow]

Originally Posted by txe5502

think about all the cable guys from our cable company who leave their cable vans running the whole time they are at our house working on the cable box, etc. That makes me wonder if any of those things have ever caught on fire!

They are idling...not turning on A/C, headlights, and a 2400 watt inverter with a brick on the gas pedal.

I have replaced ALL rotors, callipers, and pads several times, but they still make this "moaning" noise (but only the back ones) and my pedal seems to leak down. I dont know if this could cause it to drag

Jack the car up and see if the wheels turn freely.

Another thing is that my car is wrecked, the front end is bent upward. The engine/transmission mounts are all broken/in a bind, and the radiator core support is bent all up. severe frame damage. I dont know how this could affect gas mileage but I think maybe someone might.

Can I laugh yet? This keeps getting more and more crazy. Your car has had the engine replaced, diesel put in, been overvolted, never had the fuel filter replaced, had a kid cram sticks in the exhaust, is arcing somewhere on the engine, has brakes that don't work right, has had pressurized water shoved up the exhaust, makes a terrible stench, idled for 48 hours at a time maxing out a 165amp alternator, has been wrecked and now has severe frame damage/engine and transmission mounts broken/radiator core support out of whack....it's like a cartoon!

I wouldn't worry too much about fuel economy. Just be glad that it still goes and that you haven't gotten arrested for reckless endangerment by driving that heap.

Okay, I've gotten that out my system. Seriously, though, you really can't expect that car to run properly, nor does it sound worth repairing. Can you post pictures?

[txe5502]

Well you asked for pictures of it, here they are. Actually this isn't so recent, this is pictures of it from December, but since then I have tinkered with the hood alignment and fender alignment. Also since then I have fixed the parking/cornering light on the driver side, that is there again, you can barely tell its been wrecked now. You have to look at the bottom of the frame near the front right wheel to be able to tell. But I have got it to the point so it can pass NC safety inspection. Maybe I will post more recent pictures later. Anyway I don't have a job right now so I cant afford to fix it (and I know this sounds crazy, but even if its cheaper, a new car is not an option for me (again, don't even ask, its complicated!)) As soon as I get a source of income I will save up some money and then I will take it to my buddy Steve (the owner of the local body shop) and he can fix it up, but that will be a while before that can happen as the job market around here isn't so promising. But in the meantime I want to do everything I can to try to fix this horrible gas mileage I am getting, I'm going broke!

[txe5502]

Also I think possibly the problem with the brakes it to be "paranoid" and "over attentive" to some things, and I mean to the extreme! So possiblly there is nothing wrong with that and I am just a "hypochondriac". My dad CONSTANTLY tells me this! But my dad (as I said he used to be a mechanic years ago who worked on everyones cars) is ALWAYS saying this car runs perfect and there is nothing wrong with it. But I know that cant be true for MPG to suddenly half its self! (By the way these problems began BEFORE the wreck!)

[theholycow]

That situation sucks. I know how it is. You're gridlocked...you can't afford to fix it properly or replace it, but driving it like that costs too much too.

It doesn't look too bad for a car that's been through all that.

I think you really need to scrape up the money for some mechanical repairs. You really need to fix some of the problems, like the ignition arcing.

You can at least take it to a local Auto Zone or similar store to have the codes scanned, since there may be trouble codes that can help you diagnose what's going on.

Your dad is trying to steer you away from throwing good money after bad. He doesn't want you to bother fixing it when it seems like it will still get you to your destination. His mindset is stuck in the days of gas prices measured in cents per gallon, unfortunately...though he could conceivably still be right.

[txe5502]

Originally Posted by theholycow

That situation sucks. I know how it is. You're gridlocked...you can't afford to fix it properly or replace it, but driving it like that costs too much too.

It doesn't look too bad for a car that's been through all that.

I think you really need to scrape up the money for some mechanical repairs. You really need to fix some of the problems, like the ignition arcing.

You can at least take it to a local Auto Zone or similar store to have the codes scanned, since there may be trouble codes that can help you diagnose what's going on.

Your dad is trying to steer you away from throwing good money after bad. He doesn't want you to bother fixing it when it seems like it will still get you to your destination. His mindset is stuck in the days of gas prices measured in cents per gallon, unfortunately...though he could conceivably still be right.

Situation
Yes you are right about the situation. With the exception of just one thing. I would like to repair it and not replace it, thats my car and (I hope) it always will be, just like my grandfather (who I never met) who drove his first 1941 Ford until 1978 when he died. But you are right about this. I cant afford the stupid ga$oline prices and i cant afford to buy parts either! The whole source of this financial problem is the poor job market in the Piedmont Triad area of NC where Lexington Furniture Company, Thomasville Furniture Company, Henry Link Furniture company, RJR Tobacco Company, etc. are laying off SO MANY people and everyone is jobless, so the supply for employees is high and the demand for work is low.

Auto Zone
Well actually I dont even need to do this because I can get the codes myself, one thing I DO have (luckily) is this gadget my uncle gave me called a "Scan Tool" that plugs into the OBD-II port and gets the codes. Also I have a whole book on this car a "Haynes Repair Manual" so I have all the resources I need to figure stuff out. But the problem is the cost of the parts.

My Dad
Yes my dad was around when Gasoline was only $0.29 per gallon and when there were gas price wars it would drop sometimes to even $0.15 per gallon, he was born in 1953. However he does not have this mindset you say you think he has. He is CONSTANTLY complaining about gasoline prices. He makes very good income, but yet wont spend a dime of it! A real penny pincher! He wont even help me to pay for a new starter! (mine is currently about to fail from all the restarting (EOC) I have been doing!

What my dad says about arcing
For some reason he is led to believe that the arcing I see is "inside the wire and the insulation is thin enough that I can see through it at night". Frankly that sounds ridiculous to me! But I still want to hear this from more than one person if its true of not because I dont want to be misinformed.

What my dad says about IPA/Acetone
My father fusses at me and tells me that I will RUIN my engine putting Acetone/IPA in it because either of those will eat up O rings. However, he SWEARS by that CRC stuff. Should I try that? Is it worth it?

well once again, I just want to remind anyone reading this that my spark plugs are basically brand new.

However, the air intake is damaged a little from the wreck I had. The J pipe for a resonator is missing, I stopped it up so it dont just suck in air where air is not supposed to go in, but that still didnt fix my bad FE. Also the other end of that front scoop is not really held onto the air filter box so swell. The front scoop is crooked because the radiator core support is bent. But the hood has a bit of a gap so it can still breathe.

Tires are inflated to the MAX rated PSI of 45psi

Some things I wonder about:

The alternator has been replaced after a wreck I had that destroyed the original. The original was about 35 amps. The one I have now is about 165 amps. Would a more powerful alternator use more gasoline EVEN when its NOT under load?

I have wondered this for a while:
I try to accelerate as slow as possible to save gasoline, but i have heard that the Torque Converter is not efficient at these low acceleration rates until the lockup mechanism engages. Should I be accelerating rapidly until it locks and then slow afterwards instead? My TC locks in 3rd gear without overdrive at about 28 MPH and then it shifts into O/D WITHOUT unlocking the TC at about 35 MPH. So Should I accelerate more moderately from 0 to 28 then slow after that?

I do everything I can to fake the transmission to NOT downshift by toying with the gas pedal while going up hills and accelerating, for example, slowly easing on the gas to prevent downshifting on a hill, also letting off the pedal to force it to shift up early while accelerating. But is it possible that maybe lower RPM under heavier load might actually use more gasoline instead?


Thanks,
Tyler G.