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sdwolfe gave some good pointers.
I'll add some notes:
Put auto tranny in neutral at stop lights and other long stops. Maintaining idle speed requires less fuel when in N.
Remember that warming up the block and driving a cold engine both suck down lots of fuel. Do what you can to combine trips to minimize warmup cycles.
Skinny tires will give better fuel economy. I like to keep overall diameter at stock dimension, to keep the speedometer/odometer accurate. All your distance information for mpg calculations comes from that odometer unless you are using a GPS system.
I like high tire pressure. I ran my 35 psi tires at 38-40.
I replaced them with 44 psi tires that I'm running at 50. Had them a year now, driving a 600 miles/week commute.
You may not want to run that much pressure but you don't have to be a slave to the 32/35 psi tradition. Higher pressure = less flexing of the rubber as the flat spot moves around the tire. So less rolling resistance and also less heat buildup, the tires will actually last longer and wear more evenly.
I replaced my mechanical clutch fan with an electric one, specifically for fuel economy. However for a turbo you might want to keep the ever-spinning clutch fan.
Check out these three excellent fuel economy sites.
cleanmpg.com
- especially check out the "articles" section
- article: Beating the EPA - The Why’s and how to Hypermile
- http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1510
ecomodder.com
- see the forums section
- very strong on mods information but plenty of general fuel economy knowledge
gassavers.org
- again, see the forums section. Excellent site.
There's a good bit of knowledge out there now on improving fuel economy and those sites have it.
I suggest reading these sites for tips on optimizing your foot action for the conditions ahead of you. You could call it driving as if you don't have brakes. Every time you brake you're killing off momentum you've built up.
See a red light ahead? Put it in neutral to let it coast down. With luck you arrive as the stopped car ahead of you has just pulled away and you don't need to brake. Sometimes I brake when I see the red light, deliberately to kill speed so I can hopefully coast through the new green light. That's much better than stopping and then accelerating. When moving, the car ahead slows down? Consider changing lanes if that will let you continue without braking.
Long downhill with a stop sign at the bottom? Consider another route. You 'pay' fuel to climb the hill, you want to harvest that stored energy by getting as much free ride out of the downhill as you can.
Speed? Speed kills your fuel economy. Power needed to overcome air resistance goes up with the CUBE of the speed change. For 60 mph vs. 40 mph: 40 squared = 1600, 60 squared = 3600. 3600/1600 = 2.25. That means you need 2.25 times the power to move that car through the air at 60 mph as you do at 40. OK, you won't want to do 40 on the freeway but you can drive 55 instead of 75 and save fuel seriously.
Speed is especially a problem in these brick-shaped cars. I believe the 240's c/d (drag coefficient) is about .42. Typical modern econocars are roughly .32 - .38. Prius I believe is .26. Aero tricks that create downforce are helpful on the track and for autocross but usually add drag, which hurts fuel economy. You need different aero tricks and mods for a FE car. Read on those sites I mentioned further up, especially ecomodder and gassavers.
I'm not sure what airbox mod you did. If you're letting it pull more air faster, that's nice for power but doesn't help fuel economy. Same would be true for fat exhaust pipes. It's long been proven that at least for non-turbo 240s, the oem airbox is perfectly sufficient. Not sure about the turbos but I doubt they undersized it unless you go well beyond oem boost range.
Maintain a 2-3 second following distance behind whatever's in front of you. That way if they slow down or change their pattern you have some room to maneuver, possibly without killing off your speed.
Good luck with it! There are plenty techniques out there. The more you learn and use, the more you can raise your own fuel economy.
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Sven: '89 245 NA, 951 ECU, expanded air dam, forward belly pan reaches oem belly pan, airbox heater upgraded, E-fan, 205/65-15 at 50 psi, IPD sways, no a/c-p/s belt, E-Codes, amber front corner reflectors, aero front face, quad horns, tach, small clock.
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