when EGR Valve goes bad, Does VX Milage Drop alot?

hey guys, I have had my check engine light on for like three months on now, its was going on and off, but now it's staid on, when i cheaked it, it said it was the egr valve, I'm going to get 1 this weekend, but my concern has been, Cuz i have waited to long, does that mean i have hurt my engine in anyway, i know i messed my catalyst converter, cuz i have a wierd sound coming from it, and i get like 300-320 miles on a full tank only. do u guys think that thats why my gas milage is so low? I have done everything else to gain miles on it, other then chance egr valve, get new spark plugs, and seafoam it. what do u guys thing, thank you. :)

I noticed about a 40-50 mile decrease in gas milage since I started throwing EGR codes for it being stuck open/closed at times. When I threw these codes (P0402 and one other that I forget), the engine idled rough and acted as if it was going to stall (but never did).

When the code is thrown; I simply clear it with the scan guage, get out and unplug the wires going in to the top of the EGR, tap on it with a flash light or screw driver, plug it back in, start her up and it runs fine. :_wtf:

If you're getting 320 for milage, I wouldn't complain at all! lol

At the moment (with a heavy right foot) I'm getting about 250-300 max before the light comes on (about a gallon or two left in tank upon fill up).

The noise from your CAT is most likely the heat shield under the VX below the passenger seat. It's the one labeled TOD. There are thin rings that hold the shield on that you will most likely find... have rusted apart. Yank it off. Wear protective eye wear when you do! Rust in the eyes hurts!

Now, I'm not saying my crappy gas milage as of late is all due to the EGR, my tires are under inflated as I can't seem to unscrew the caps so I can fill em up. Been meaning to take care of this for months now but never seem to get around to it. Before you laugh, I have chrome caps that seem to have rusted on to the valve stem. When turned the whole valve turns with it. I'm scared I'm gonna snap it off!

haha! vehix i had that problem.. i got some cheapo chrome stems from autozone and they didnt want to come off when i got my new good ones... using a sharp non serated knife i was able to cut through them with pressure (no sawing motion) and then use needle nose pliers to just tear them off, make sure to apply pressure only where there are threads under it though so you dont risk cutting into the rubber of your stem

costie - im pretty sure it hasnt done anything to your engine.. other things you might want to check is your differential and transmission fluids, if they are bad your gears wont turn as freely... also your driving style will greatly effect your gas mileage.. if i cruise on the highway at 65 i can get 18-20 mpg... at 80 i get 16... if you stomp on the gas in the city... your mileage is gonna go down too

Hey Costie, did you get the optional extra large gas tank on your's? I mean, if I saw 320 miles a tank and you had a feather you know where, we would both be tickled:_drool:

Be happy with 320, i get max 240.

I get right about 320. Thats S'C'd and with no EGR so I doubt the egr affects it physically, however if a existing EGR is throwing a code maybe the comp is sending more fuel to compensate for the "malfunctioning EGR."