yet another WAI experiment
 

my results:

+2.7475%

the experiment: 6 tanks of no less than 400 miles each alternating from stock to WAI. I couldn't go completely back to stock. I have two opening in my airbox that I can chose from. close off one and it is WAI, close off the other and it is close to stock. my stock IAT readings were about 5 degrees above ambient. my "simulated stock" readings were 17ish degrees above ambient. keep that in mind.

I do not have a data logger so all of this had to be taken by hand. the weather data came from www.wunderground.com (thanks to theholycow for the web site).

this big blue number means nothing without backup so here that is as well:

https://i41.tinypic.com/2ng4ldx.jpg

and pretty graph

https://i41.tinypic.com/2zybypl.jpg

all of this data can be seen in my gas log.

explinations and theories:

the first two tanks (I think) were during winter gas and thus the lower numbers. the entire run was over 2500 miles using over 70 gallons of fuel and took approximately 2 mos and 10 days. the IAT numbers were recorded at the end of each run (runs were between 20 and 30 miles on average).

so why was the net gain not better? part of it has to do with the temperature delta. at only 50 degrees (maybe 55) it isn't as large as most and the fact that my IAT only saw an average high in the mid 140s vs others that constantly run 180s.

is it worth doing? my driving was not different for this experiment and the power difference was only really noticeable on hard takeoffs from stoplights (if you question this, search GUNNING IT FOR FE). the actual cost of the setup was around $10 so the expense was minimal.

am I happy with the results? no and yes at the same time. I wish the percentage was higher but at the same time, it is a consistant increase as evident by my numbers and cheesy graph.

hopefully this isn't too much information at one time. and I am in no way saying that the WAI is a success or a dud as it depends on the vehicle and the drivers application along with other factors. I think it has been a success for my application and hopefully this will encourage others to experiment.

if anyone wants more data, I have each run in a rather lengthy excel spread sheet.

thanks for reading

The effect's too small to be definitive given the sample size, alas. That must've been a lot of work! How did you choose to report the IAT readings? Mine vary a bunch when I'm driving.

I took the IAT reading after I parked at the end of each run. what you see in the post is the average for each run. I had about 19 data points for each tank. these data points included date, time, and IAT at the runs end. after a fill, I went back and added the weather data from the above mentioned site.

one thing that I forgot to add is that I got gas from the same station, same pump, and always on the slowest automatic setting. I let it stop automatically and that was it.

I don't always do that because I run between 2 or 3 different towns during the course of the week (and sometimes day). that may have been a factor in my favor. (now I really am making excuses)

Beef, do you have data for winter time temperatures when the difference may be greater?

regards
Gary

no, I don't

it was suggested to me but this experiment took ~2.5 months to take the data. these are just the averages of the data I took. I could fill this thread with the data I took but there would be little point in that.

I have thought about redoing it in the winter months. the problem becomes that I like to warm my car in the winter (old habbits die hard) and any bad weather like snow and sleet tend to skew results as well.

also, since my daughter came along, I rarely have time to even update my gaslog. (been keeping up so far)

your comments about it having more of an affect under 70 degrees F make me think that I could get better in the winter though. at least it is showing a positive affect regardless of how small.

for anyone interested, here is the raw data that I have for the 6 tanks. red is obviously during the HAI and the blue is normal(ish).

apologies beforehand for the HUGE amount of data below

https://i49.tinypic.com/2eg5suf.jpg
https://i48.tinypic.com/2ezi41w.jpg
https://i47.tinypic.com/280ijif.jpg
https://i49.tinypic.com/2nki7g4.jpg
https://i48.tinypic.com/34ngoi1.jpg
https://i50.tinypic.com/2lc8w8o.jpg

I think the effect is obvious. Almost 3% better is a lot.

his point was that my tank to tank deviation was around 1.5-2% before that so it is hard to say how much of that isn't just standard deviation.

one thing I did for this experiment (which I normally don't do) is fill up at the same station, same pump, on the lowest setting on the tank. I usually just fill up wherever and whenever I need gas. I feel like this step actually increases my accuracy that much more to further validate these numbers.

Unfortunately, this was not ABA testing. Testing full tanks just opens too much variability in road and traffic, temperature, and other conditions. And since the benefits are so small, and within standard deviation, I don't think the WAI proponents can score this in their win column.

so what you're telling me is that my test isn't good enough for you.

I'm not sure what more someone would want. this is the most accurate A-B-A test that you could do. I actually talked with several people about this test before starting it.

you could argue that several small runs would be better to take out variables but then you have such a small sample that you really can't say how much gas was used (at least down to the 0.000X of a gallon). your road conditions and other variables may be more controlled but at the above mentioned sacrifice.

you will never...NEVER get rid of all the variables. there will always be variables. also, I am not a big fan of burning gas just to be burning it (or to prove a point)

some have said that short runs aren't conclusive because of the short run, others say that doing it tank by tank isn't conclusive because of the variables.

here is the deal. people asked for test results...here they are. take it, leave it, at this point I don't care.

In the end, I actually got of my tail and did some testing (more than most can say)

Beef, you are so right in what you're saying here ! I agree 100%.

well your are at somewhat of a loss with your 2600+ pound car and an Automatic tranny, a 2200 lb car needs less hp to keep it at a steady speed, therefor your 3% vs my 15-20% gains might be explainable

But I think the thing that you once again missed is caulking around your headlights, I don't know about chevy but saturn(both gm) has alot of space around the headlights that lets cool air in considering its gm and they use the same front bumper pieces on sl's and cavaliers, I must also consider that their spacing around headlights might have a wide gap too...

Basically, whats the point of a triple paned window, if you don't caulk it into place, air is still going to leak around it, esp when it's windy out(highway)

yes, this is a relevant analogy, because all that a WAI is doing, is insulting your air intake

So if you dont mind me asking...

how did you measure IAT?

when the car was stopped?

or while it was moving? which is impossible...

how could you possibly know what the IAT is at all because it's going to change when the car starts to move guaranteed..

the only way I can think of is have a digital readout connected to a thermometer in your intake tube...

spot,

a big reason for my lack of gains is that I don't have a saturn. I know that the cars are very similar but I was blessed with the 2.2 liter (very large displacement for a 4 cyl). I have actually gotten my 90 day average close to 50% over EPA (45ish percent if memory serves me well). I also don't do a lot of the things I used to do such as high-G turns and rolling stops. I have also been told that you get better results under 70 degrees F. I haven't tested this as time has become scarce in my house (I have a 1 year old running around) and most of my car time is spent fixing it (deer damage).

though the idea of caulk around the headlights sounds good. it is a mess and the tops of my headlights are exposed every time I pop the hood. I instead used weather stripping for a cleaner look and a tight seal. I once had it in the space between the hood and the bumper so that I had no grill opening (except one small area so that I could open the hood, just big enough for my hand). I changed that when I put on the new bumper. I just haven't gotten around to it putting it back.

as far as the IAT temps, the reading was taken at the end of each run when I reached my destination. they do fluxuate at stoplights and when you first start the car, they actually read ambient (pretty much)

the scangauge will display this and is conveniently named IAT. I can monitor it the entire trip if I want. it is currently set as one of my 4 displays. the good thing about using that reading and not the remote thermometer is that is the actual sensor reading so that is the figure that the car is using in its ECU.

personally my good results are on days ranging from 50-90 because thats when I had time to do my testing(warm enough outside to want to do work on my car) I dont think it would matter much between those temps if you caulk around the headlights because no air is being let in, use clear caulk btw, or you can get seal and peal(removable caulk) that's clear, Seal and peal will probably fall out eventually though, it's hard to caulk headlights too, because there's nothing behind the gap usually, so you have to use a real thick bead, plus since you have to wait for the real thick bead to dry for so long because its so thick, you have to plan it out when it's warm and not going to rain for 36 hrs+/ avoid morning dew then refill it when it dries to function aerodynamically as well and fill any holes..

best bet.. take off the headlight and put tape behind it first to create a backing for the caulk..

I do professional weatherproofing sometimes so I have used a good 100+ tubes of caulk in the last few years, so I'm practically an expert at sealing

caulk is water soluble so you can use a wet rag to put it into place and mold it once you apply it. But for a small things like headlights where you want to aerodynamically shape it, your finger will work best..

weather stripping goes on in seconds and there is no drying time. also, caulk sticks to both sides of the gap where as weather stripping does not. if I were to caulk my head lights in, I would have to redo the caulk every time I popped my hood. it isn't a case of know-how but more a case of won't work on my car.

I popped my hood, placed the weather stripping on the headlights, and closed the hood. the hood actually pushes down on the weather stripping for a good seal. I also have it around the bottom of the headlight and the area around the turn signals (the lower ones in the bumper). I have honestly invested a lot of time and thought into sealing the front of my car.

https://www.gassavers.org/garage_imag...nzmualc74a.jpg

here is an old picture of my car before the new bumper went on. you can see the weather stripping over the headlights (and below). you can also see the weather stripping in the grill area (if you want to call it that) and the small gap where the hood latch is.

also, the aerodynamic gains from smoothed out caulc vs weather stripping are probably very small and since most of my driving doesn't really exceed 50-55 MPH, it really doesn't concern me that much.

They're good data. You've documented a 2.7% increase in FE from your WAI. Good job!

well what got me started on the caulking the headlights thing was the fact that one of my headlights was broken and would wabble around on the highway, it was so annoying haha..

not ragging you or anything but I would have bought a new headlight.

do you have inspections in your state? I know some don't (south carolina is one of them, get away with just about anything)

Florida doesn't have safety inspections. I remember giving my grandfather a lecture on his bald tires. His excuse was that there wasn't inspections, and he only drove 10 miles a week. I made him drive down to Wal-Mart and put 4 new tires on his car.

No need to replace a headlight if it's just wobbly. Find a way to secure it and you've saved plenty of money. Well, unless headlights for your car are cheap, but the last time I bought a headlight from a junkyard it was over $120.

Usually its just the clip that holds the adjusting screw that breaks. These can be had at most auto parts stores relatively cheaply.

now gonna try a winter set up since theres no ice anywhere im gonna add my regular psi 34 front 38 back

i tried something new, covering up behind my headlights, over the radiator, with duct tape and also created weather stripping on top of the engine bay to keep air from coming in when driving on the top part of the metal that holds the radiator up ect, by pinching ductape enough to make it still stick on top yet shield the upper engine from outside heat to an extent.

I've been using this method to create weatherstripping for the old doors in my house (1890's) and it works alot better than regular weather stripping because its very customizeable and a hell of a lot cheaper(1$ for a roll at the dollar store as opposed to 10$ for a package of weatherstripping that won't work, or maybe just a little that will be enough for maybe 2 doors if that also), and works very well, I am using plastic tape on the doors though, not duct tape(leaves no residue)

WAI: 2.7%
grill block: 4%
air dam extension: 1%
removed mud flaps: 2%
disabled DRLs: .5%

10.2% increase @ $12.50 investment...in addition to driving techniques. yup FANTASTIC job!!!

disclaimer: these results are specific to this driver and this vehicle, your results will vary.

No actual percentages claimed for any individual mod.

Lower grille completely blocked.
40% radiator block.
Warm air intake from top of radiator.
44 PSI sidewall max air in tires.

My best mileage on this route was 78 MPG last summer. Today there has been snow on the ground for a week. Temps just above freezing. I did make two stops so that cost me about 3 extra MPG with the extra warm up (the additional stop and the much colder warm up cycle compared to 92 degrees ambient).

All of these mods are trying to mitigate the effects of cold temperatures. On the actual route without considering the higher fuel cost of the warm up times and colder enrichment, I would make an educated guess that the actual on the road mileage difference was about 5 MPG compared to 92 degrees ambient. In both instances I never used any accessories. No heat at 34 ambient, and no AC at 92 ambient, not other accessories of any kind.
regards
Gary

oh no, the light was perfect, would have been a waste of money, the thing that screws and adjusts the direction of the beam snapped, it was cheap small piece of plastic, this was such an easy fix and it worked out well for me.. Cause now my car is more efficient

on a test run or two the car warms up alot more quickly, it's running like it would on a warmer day even on the highway in 29 degree weather, steadier and smoother:thumbup:

I've split this thread, moving the controversial portion to a separate thread. This thread should be about BEEF's WAI and closely related posts.

HC,
thanks

snagged from ecomodder.com

Hot / warm air intake - permalink

Higher intake charge temperature has been found to increase the flame speed, the combustion reaction rate, the uniformity of the fuel-air mixture and reduce the heat transfer rate though the cylinder walls. This all adds up to the engine using more heat for physical movement and less being wasted.

The downside to this is that hotter air also tends to retard ignition timing and cause engine pinging. Different engines will react differently to warm air intakes and testing will need to be done to see if it will work for your specific vehicle. Saturns are known to react well to warm air intakes.

i think any gain to your individual mpg charts should be considered a success. if you did something and you see any decent gain thats repeatable youve done what you set out to do.

I highly agree.

BEEF - I know you mentioned little gain, but do you still have the HAI in place?

oh yea, even the small bit has paid for itself in just a short time. I also get faster warmups in the winter.

I actually plan to take it off in a few weeks (inspection time) but then it is going right back on (that is if I pass inspection).