How can I increase my mpg? What fuel to use?

Ok...now I have the car and already I want to plan my future purchases!!!

I'm looking to make this a great looking ride and better on the mpg, but increasing speed is not my objective....I like to cruise low and slow!!!

For now I'm happy with the VX's looks....now I want to work on the gas milage

So...please tell me all my options for INCREASING my MPG!!!

Air filters...breath better

Synth oils? my new VX has 11,700 miles now
Mobil 1 ok?whats best synth oil? Whats that purple stuff all about?
Where to get best price? how often then to change it for just city highway no offroading?
Do I put synth oils in the other gear boxes and diff now or wait till scheduled change?
CAN YOU DRAIN IT AND THEN PUT SYNTH OIL IN WHEN ITS BEEN REGUALR OIL TO DATE?

Exhaust....will that improve my MPG much and which ones and how much louder will it be at highway speeds? I assume that improves your Hspwr. Do you bring it back to one tail pipe or split in to two from the muffler back and go for the looks?
What are my exhaust options? Anyone go for stainless ?

Where the rubber meets the road....I'm going to stick with the tires on there for now....they look like there is good life left so that will not be changed out .

OH...and lastly...those wimpy horns...guess you can go air or stay electric....whats the loudest electric replacements out there? Do you replace both ?

What gas and test level does everyone run in their VX's?

I'm looking for roof racks also...will that kill off a few mpg? what racks are avaialble and what is the best ones?

Anything else to suggest for improved mpg????

Thanks in advance to anyone who takes the time to answer this long winded request!!!

First off, not sure, but will watch thread for info also.


Second:

Quote:

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Originally posted by drdavidr4u
Ok...now I have the car and already I want to plan my future purchases!!!

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Car? I'd watch what you call it, people around here might wanna linch ya or something if ya keep calling it a "Car".

:D

The only way I know of to increase the mpg for the VX is to put on the PV Muffler or complete Cat Back System. After putting the cat back system on my VX, I went from 16 mpg to 19 mpg.

I am now getting 17.5 mpg, but that is because I put in a custom chrome intake and cone air filter. So I would stay away from any changes to the air filter if you want to save gallons.

If you have tons of money, you can always buy a 4 cylinder engine or convert the VX to electric...

Brent
www.xanderstudios.com

Air filter: Try the K&N or Amsoil that fits in the factory enclosure.

Oil/ Grease: Synthetics should be fine. The sooner the better. Engine, transmission, transfer case/tod, differentials, wheel bearings and u-joints.

Exhaust: PV. The PV 1st.gen. catback system(stainless) had a smaller diameter tailpipe tip than the stock VX tip. You may be able to change out the tailpipe tip to custom tailor the sound to your liking. Some members were checking into custom silencing tips, but never heard any results. Maybe THEY mellowed to the muffler's sound.

Gas: Regular grade should be fine, until you install a supercharger.

The only rack that will fit must be purchased through the dealer. Folks here like St. Charles Isuzu's prices.

Lastly, forgive my heretical sacreligious blaspheming, but don't use power mode and keep your foot out of the gas for the best mileage

Disclaimer: Your actual mileage/results may vary. ;)

I was told power mode would be ok on or off and there would be no difference. Any comments?

Thanks for all the tips....

POWER MODE
when i took delivery the dealer told me absolutely do not drive around all day in the power mode. He said its bad for the tranny.
He said just use it up hills. ANY MORE IDEAS ON THIS?

AIR CLEANER
We seem to have a diff in opinion here. One member says yea, one says nea. I always thought that increasing the breathing efficency can only help performance and possibly mpg?????

Synthetic oils
I assume you just drain out the old standard and fill with the synth?
Which ones are the best , where does one get the best prices?

Thanks

I've found a slightly better MPG by airing the tires up to 40 psi. The rides a bit rougher but every little bit helps.

Quote:

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Originally posted by drdavidr4u
Synthetic oils
I assume you just drain out the old standard and fill with the synth?

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You assumed right. You can switch from mineral oil to bland or to fully synthetic oil at any time. No any kind of special engine preparation procedures require.
Just stick with your manufacturer recommended viscosity grade.

Quote:

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Originally posted by drdavidr4u
Which ones are the best , where does one get the best prices?
Thanks

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The best fully synthetic motor oil your money can buy is Mobil1 SuperSyn
If you ask me why, then my answers would be as following ->

1. It is a real! fully synthetic motor oil.
2. Available everywhere and accessible at any time.
3. Price cheaper comparably to other synthetic oil brands such as Royal Purple, Amsoil, and Redline.

IMHO!

Air filters - think about it. More air supposedly means more performance. More performance = less mpg.

Keep the stock air filter. Replacing it will maybe give you slightly better performance, but your mpg will drop.

I have kept detailed records of my mpg before and after upgrades. I was getting 16mpg stock. After the cat-back, I went up 3 mpg to 19mpg.

Once I replaced the stock air filter with the custom chrome intake and the cone filter, my performance increased (no dynos, just the feel), but my mpg went down to 17.5...

These are real world numbers based on the VX.

To sum up:

Get the PV Muffler (replace the tip to tone down the sound)
Use synthetic oil - Walmart is the best price ($30)
Air up your tires to 40 psi.
Do not use the Power button - this will increase performance, but will decrease mpg (and no, this will not ruin the transmission - where do they find these sales people?)
Do not mash the accelerator pedal to the floor
If you see that you will need to slow down, take your foot off the accelerator and coast as long as possible.

If you want even better gas mileage, replace your engine with the new direct injection engine for the Axiom.

Brent
www.xanderstudios.com

...Please post your current MPG to better help us determine if your MPG is allready optimal. Many things factor into MPG, so depending on weather, altitude, quality of fuel, driving habits, maintenance, etc... your individual results will vary. If your current MPG falls between 10 and 15MPG in mixed driving, consider that normal. Monitor your mileage for a few weeks and keep us posted. Keep in mind, the VX is a high pefromance vehicle and is not fuel efficient by design.

If I can get the Fed's to approove my grant proposal to further the development of an engine powered by tap water this issue would be moot :D

Quote:

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Originally posted by tiggergreen
..... Use synthetic oil - Walmart is the best price ($30)
....

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I'm buying Mobil1 in B.J. Club at the price of $22 for case of 6 quarts

Quote:

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Originally posted by Navigator
If I can get the Fed's to approove my grant proposal to further the development of an engine powered by tap water this issue would be moot :D

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I have already designed this engine. The only problem is that it would have to hold about as much water as a zamboni, and there would be chunks of ice flying out from underneath the car. ;eekp; And it would be really slow, however it would have a lot of torque

They do Mobile 1 at Walmart - and that price is the total cost for doing a complete oil change for you. While you wait, you can go blow lots of money on things you never knew you needed just because the price is so good ;) ...

If you were to do an oil change at a place like Oil Can Henry's or Jiffy Lube, you would pay closer to $50...

Brent
www.xanderstudios.com

My Dad used to install upgrades to motors to run on tap water. However, the engines wouldn't last long - they would rust out... If you wanted to get this done, you would definitely need to put ceramic on your engine to avoid this.

The concept is this:

H2O - electricity separates the hydrogen and oxygen - the hydrogen is used as fuel and the oxygen is released as a by-product.

Pretty cool - however, you won't be seeing anywhere near the 230HP my engine currently produces (stock + 15HP gain from Cat-Back System).

Brent
www.xanderstudios.com

Quote:

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Originally posted by tiggergreen
.... If you were to do an oil change at a place like Oil Can Henry's or Jiffy Lube, you would pay closer to $50...
Brent ....

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... Or you can do an oil change yourself for free ;)

Right... free, plus the price of the oil.

I think Dr. Dave went well over the 20 question limit. :D

Quote:

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Originally posted by Clyde
I think Dr. Dave went well over the 20 question limit. :D

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Ha ha! I was thinking the same thing! Over anxious newbie! Can't blame him, though... although the search feature is up there and ready for use!

The best way to get more mileage is to install a switch that lets you lock up the torque converter at will.....(2-4th gears only)


this will allow you to cruise around in 2nd or 3rd at a LOW rpm with the TC locked up, thereby eliminating the "slip" or power/effeciency losses,

On the hyway, I get OVER 21 MPG and that is with 36" tires!!!!



Allan

Quote:

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Originally posted by BigMeatVX
The best way to get more mileage is to install a switch that lets you lock up the torque converter at will.....(2-4th gears only)

On the hyway, I get OVER 21 MPG and that is with 36" tires!!!!



Allan

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Can you elaborate on that??

I installed a switch to manualy lock up (or unlock) the torque converter, a couple weeks ago...nice improvement
does NOT lock up in 1st or reverse though.
noticed a 2-3 mpg improvment.
It threw a tranny code at first, but I have tricked the computer now with a simple light bulb...no more codes (unless you do something silly like a winter mode start with the switch on.)(engine stalls)

Allan L
99 VX on 35's



Tone

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Would you like to share how you did it? Lockup automatically occurs about 2 secs after a shift. I offer and electronic shift kit from AutoTrans in Canada that allows for quicker shifts and adjustable converter lockup (delay).

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Pete6
Club Member

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Well, I cut the brn/blue wire comming out of the middle connecter on the main puter...
Splice in a small light bulb or a resistor(aprox 20 ohms) on the computer side and ground the bulb...
Connect a toggle switch to the body side of the cut wire... then run a 12V+ to the switch...

flip the switch on and you energize the lockup solinoid...

All the light bulb does is trick the computer in thinking everything is normal.

It is possible to also throw a code by doing something really abnormal...like turning it on @ 1500 rpm in 2nd (normally it locks up in 2nd @ 4100 rpm)

Next, I will be working on a series of swithes or a fancy 3-position switch that would return to the normal mode, also.
(it is nice to be able to leave the switch off (unlocked) for some circumstaces like a long hill, ect...)

now if i could just get it to lock up in 1st....
any body else tried this yet?
Allan L
99 VX on 35's



Origanly posted on Vmag


Allan ........ Pete6 or BigMeatVX