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What Are Some Good Ways to Get Better MPG

Joined
April 14, 2010
Messages
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City, State
Lost Angels,California
Year, Model & Trim Level
94 Sport
I know many of you here are trying to add more horsepower to your trucks but I'm trying to decide which route to go with my truck and i finally decided I'd like to keep it as a daily driver and get a Cobra on the side and it'll help if i got better MPG as it is approximately 50 miles from my school to my home to work and getting the 13 MPG highway that I'm getting right now isn't really getting me anywhere. With that said I'd like to ask any of you in the forum what are some good mod's to increase my MPG.
The truck is a 1994 Ford Explorer Sport mostly stock and if you call a 5.0 MAF and a gutted cat mod's well thats what it has. Oh and its a 2WD and 5 Speed. Any help would be greatly appreciated, Thanks.
 



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most cost effective routes are lightening the weight and change your driving habits. search "hypermiling" on the search bar. ive gotten as much as 27.5 mpg on my 03 trac using hypermiling techniques. goodluck!
 






I have been meaning to build a hydrogen generator for some time now. I haven't gotten around to it yet. I understand it is great for fuel economy. The reason I haven't done it yet is because of the PWM. I want to run one with the cell for higher output, but don't want to pay for one and don't have time to build one either. Check it out. the more cells you have the more your mileage goes up. Each cell draws about 10 amps, so be sure your charging system can handle your loads.
http://2hho.com/hho_plans

But a good tune up and free flowing exhaust helps too. Also, if you can find gas without ethanol in it, you will see your mileage go up.
It's expensive to do, but you might consider converting to CNG.
 






A gutted CAT actually reduced my mileage. I believe the large empty chamber causes conflicting air fronts in the pipe flow, which reduces flow.

I made an adapter for plain 2.5" pipe to connect to the Y-pipe, so I can run a magnaflow CAT or anything else that takes a 2.5" pipe connection. I got the idea from a 2wd that I had, with strait pipe. That's illegal however, so it was good to put a CAT back on it, even though it got about 20mpg.

A regular header adapter stub, formed to the old flange from a CAT and welded in place works great.
 






the only reason your mileage increased when you gutted your cat is because it was clogged. With today's cats, even the generic ones, flow is much better. My cat was clogged too. I replaced it with a cheap Catco converter from Summit. Mileage and performance improved noticeably.

It is irresponsible to gut a catalytic converter.
 






hmm.....How are your driving habits? They will be they biggest factor. It's a old 94 explorer. It's not designed to be good on gas. I'd replace the CAT with an OEM replacement. The 4.0 likes backpressure. You mess with it your MPG will decrease.
You could consider a gear swap to 3.73. That should yield you some better performance at HW speed & increase your mileage in theory.
 






Some ideas

getting the 13 MPG highway that I'm getting right now....The truck is a 1994 Ford Explorer Sport mostly stock and if you call a 5.0 MAF and a gutted cat mod's well thats what it has. Oh and its a 2WD and 5 Speed. Any help would be greatly appreciated, Thanks.

13 MPG highway? X-Sport, 2WD and 5 speed? Wow, that's low. Seems like driving habits might be a place to start. Has it been tuned up recently? On the highway, it seems that I get better mileage with the AC on vs opening the windows (I'm running a 4dr 4x4 4.0L Auto and get about 20-22 on the highway). If you have speed control, use it for flat surfaces. If you have a lot of hills, use the pedal and let the speed rise and fall. Are you carrying a lot of stuff in the car? If so, do what you can to lighten the load. Find a speed that gives you better mileage. For me, once I hit 67 or so, the mileage drops dramatically. So I usually hit the cruise at 62-65 and keep it there. Don't rev it to get up to speed (since your driving will be different with a stick vs my auto). Don't think that drafting will give you huge gains in mileage. Look at racing - drafting is being almost bumper to bumper.

What kind of traffic do you have in your area during your commute? Is it busy? Do you have commuter lanes / diamond lanes? Do you carpool? Anyone at school you can share the ride with? Just by moving at a constant speed you can keep the mileage reasonable. Clean air filter. Good wires and plugs.

Lots of stuff you can do, but be careful of those ideas where you shut down your car and coast, etc. In some areas it's illegal, and most of the time it's dangerous. Got a 2000 lb car, maybe. But a heavier car, power brakes and steering, ... well, hopefully you get the idea on that one.

There's probably lots more ideas out there, but hopefully these are a start.
 






go ahead and replace your o2 sensor too if it's that low. Mine is a 93 4x4 5 speed and i get 20. I should have mentioned that earlier.
I was getting better highway mileage (22) when i had 30s and stock gearing, city driving mileage was the same @ 16.

Since I've regeared to 4.56 with 32s my city mileage has gone up slightly, but highway mileage has gone down to 19.
 






I know many of you here are trying to add more horsepower to your trucks but I'm trying to decide which route to go with my truck and i finally decided I'd like to keep it as a daily driver and get a Cobra on the side and it'll help if i got better MPG as it is approximately 50 miles from my school to my home to work and getting the 13 MPG highway that I'm getting right now isn't really getting me anywhere. With that said I'd like to ask any of you in the forum what are some good mod's to increase my MPG.
The truck is a 1994 Ford Explorer Sport mostly stock and if you call a 5.0 MAF and a gutted cat mod's well thats what it has. Oh and its a 2WD and 5 Speed. Any help would be greatly appreciated, Thanks.


I have a 92 with almost the same "mods", and it got 14 mpg when I first got it. Here was my solution... change the plugs and wires, (I replaced them with motorcraft plugs and wires, from advance auto parts), and a fuel treatment. You prob could benefit from a new fuel filter (I have yet to replace mine).

If you sit in traffic and idle/ stop and go, there is not a damn thing you can do to increase MPG other than carpool, walk, or ride a bike. Not being an ass but just stating the truth.
 






most cost effective routes are lightening the weight and change your driving habits. search "hypermiling" on the search bar. ive gotten as much as 27.5 mpg on my 03 trac using hypermiling techniques. goodluck!

Ok will do,Thank You.
 






I have been meaning to build a hydrogen generator for some time now. I haven't gotten around to it yet. I understand it is great for fuel economy. The reason I haven't done it yet is because of the PWM. I want to run one with the cell for higher output, but don't want to pay for one and don't have time to build one either. Check it out. the more cells you have the more your mileage goes up. Each cell draws about 10 amps, so be sure your charging system can handle your loads.
http://2hho.com/hho_plans

But a good tune up and free flowing exhaust helps too. Also, if you can find gas without ethanol in it, you will see your mileage go up.
It's expensive to do, but you might consider converting to CNG.

Yea ill look into that, most defiately, ill add a better exhaust and ill look into the generator. Thanks for your help.
 






A gutted CAT actually reduced my mileage. I believe the large empty chamber causes conflicting air fronts in the pipe flow, which reduces flow.

I made an adapter for plain 2.5" pipe to connect to the Y-pipe, so I can run a magnaflow CAT or anything else that takes a 2.5" pipe connection. I got the idea from a 2wd that I had, with strait pipe. That's illegal however, so it was good to put a CAT back on it, even though it got about 20mpg.

A regular header adapter stub, formed to the old flange from a CAT and welded in place works great.
Ok thanks, Next Pay Check Definitely Getting the Exhaust done, Any suggestions for a exhaust system thats quiet like the OEM one?
Thanks for your help.
 






the only reason your mileage increased when you gutted your cat is because it was clogged. With today's cats, even the generic ones, flow is much better. My cat was clogged too. I replaced it with a cheap Catco converter from Summit. Mileage and performance improved noticeably.

It is irresponsible to gut a catalytic converter.

Yea the only reason i gutted it was because it was clogged so bad that it would rattle when accelerating. Thanks for your input
 






hmm.....How are your driving habits? They will be they biggest factor. It's a old 94 explorer. It's not designed to be good on gas. I'd replace the CAT with an OEM replacement. The 4.0 likes backpressure. You mess with it your MPG will decrease.
You could consider a gear swap to 3.73. That should yield you some better performance at HW speed & increase your mileage in theory.

It seems the CAT is the center of my problems so that'll be the first thing i replace. Thanks
 






13 MPG highway? X-Sport, 2WD and 5 speed? Wow, that's low. Seems like driving habits might be a place to start. Has it been tuned up recently? On the highway, it seems that I get better mileage with the AC on vs opening the windows (I'm running a 4dr 4x4 4.0L Auto and get about 20-22 on the highway). If you have speed control, use it for flat surfaces. If you have a lot of hills, use the pedal and let the speed rise and fall. Are you carrying a lot of stuff in the car? If so, do what you can to lighten the load. Find a speed that gives you better mileage. For me, once I hit 67 or so, the mileage drops dramatically. So I usually hit the cruise at 62-65 and keep it there. Don't rev it to get up to speed (since your driving will be different with a stick vs my auto). Don't think that drafting will give you huge gains in mileage. Look at racing - drafting is being almost bumper to bumper.

What kind of traffic do you have in your area during your commute? Is it busy? Do you have commuter lanes / diamond lanes? Do you carpool? Anyone at school you can share the ride with? Just by moving at a constant speed you can keep the mileage reasonable. Clean air filter. Good wires and plugs.

Lots of stuff you can do, but be careful of those ideas where you shut down your car and coast, etc. In some areas it's illegal, and most of the time it's dangerous. Got a 2000 lb car, maybe. But a heavier car, power brakes and steering, ... well, hopefully you get the idea on that one.

There's probably lots more ideas out there, but hopefully these are a start.

I will admit i will reach redline at times to pass people going slow in the fast lane. And about the motor it has recently been rebuilt and has approximately 30k on the motor with new everything (old block cracked). I don't have cruise control, the mechanic that rebuilt my motor never put it back on so its all pedal. From my school home i take the street because the freeway is always bumper to bumper and its quicker on the street going 40. On the way to work i take the freeway which only has one hill, usually going 65-70 MPH. And never had the thought of turning off my truck seems like a terrible idea. Thanks for the Help.
 






I have a 92 with almost the same "mods", and it got 14 mpg when I first got it. Here was my solution... change the plugs and wires, (I replaced them with motorcraft plugs and wires, from advance auto parts), and a fuel treatment. You prob could benefit from a new fuel filter (I have yet to replace mine).

If you sit in traffic and idle/ stop and go, there is not a damn thing you can do to increase MPG other than carpool, walk, or ride a bike. Not being an ass but just stating the truth.

Yea I'll just replace my wires and plugs to be on the safe side. And I'll ask my brother if he has replaced the fuel filter at any time in the past(Was previously his truck). At times I do sit in stop and go if there is a accident but, i can't walk,or ride a bike it'll take forever and i wouldnt be able to work my shift. I'll look into carpooling. Thanks for the help.
 






A few ideas have came to mind now that I got some input from you guys. And also researched around to see what other people are doing.
Some ideas are:
-Lightweight Roll Pan. (Seen as a suggestion in another thread)
-Lower the truck.
-Hot Air Intake. (Suggestion from a friend)
-Filling Tires with Nitrogen.
-Lighter Wheels.(Looking into some Saleen's... Please give input)
-Electric Fan
Any suggestions/ input will be greatly appreciated. Thanks
 






for low cost mpg improvment, clean air filter and proper tire pressure help i get about 27 mpg.
 






A few ideas have came to mind now that I got some input from you guys. And also researched around to see what other people are doing.
Some ideas are:
-Lightweight Roll Pan. (Seen as a suggestion in another thread)
-Lower the truck.
-Hot Air Intake. (Suggestion from a friend)
-Filling Tires with Nitrogen.
-Lighter Wheels.(Looking into some Saleen's... Please give input)
-Electric Fan
Any suggestions/ input will be greatly appreciated. Thanks

As for me, I was trying to give you suggestions that really won't cost anything, or just some maintenance costs. If you've got money, there are tons of customizations that can improve your mpg.

Hot air intake? Do you (or your friend) mean cold air intake (or CAI)? Not too bad, but not much gain in MPG. A few hp, but it might actually lower the MPG.

Lowering the vehicle will improve the aerodynamics. Improvement. But lots of stuff go along with that - like alignment, etc.

Electric fan might give back a hp or three, and that might add a MPG or two.

Try the change in driving habits before you spend tons of $$ in mods.
 



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My suggestion is go back to the stock maf sensor, and change your driving habits. Allow a bit more time and smile as people pass you going 65 mph max.

Remove the roof rack. Stick your arm out the window doing 65 and feel how much force it takes to keep it straight. Then, compare the surface area of your arm to the roof rack.

Eliminate any forward rake to the vehicle. Looking at the side of the truck, the running boards should be level, while the roof appears to slant down toward the rear. Believe it or not, a roof which slants back will benefit from a bit of push, while one which rakes forward creates more surface area, and more HP of loss due to drag.


One this is done you can establish a baseline to work from and start monitoring each mod you make.

I am not cutting on the idea of the 5.0 maf "working" however I do question whether it is the most efficient choice. Messing with the air metering is risky to say the least.

Just my .02
 






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