Ef9vsDa9

Sign is a bit much not really getting it

Humphrizzle

the sign is really dumb. i would give you the finger if you were in my way.

kcarroll491

Lol I personally appreciate the sign... At least you're not being that *** hole who comes off like you're the only person on the road meandering at 45MPH on a high way. those people are who I give the bird. so for what it's worth, thank you for be conscientious of other drivers.. lol regardless of what reaction, whether someone gets butt hurt about it or appreciates it, it's getting the job done.. I think it's hilariously Ironic that people say it's too "look at me!..." well no **** lol that's the point of a sign.. again, it's getting the job done.

94 accord typeR

65 MPG is an amazing accomplishment but that sign is rather large. why not just get a JDM status sticker saying "slow as ****"

OG Wagon

Yes, sometimes the "KISS" method is best! The MPGuino acts much like a ScanGauge, but for pre-OBD II cars. It monitors fuel economy/usage, and provides extremely accurate instantaneous and long term data.

See post below from kcarroll491, he's got it nailed, I believe.

...I'd probably wave back like I know you and am excited to see you again, just to create an awkward mind game. Then,I'll typically give an obnoxious lil' toot of my horn as I pass you in the slow lane a few minutes later, after you've wasted all that gas trying to get ahead and are now stuck with everyone else "in a hurry" that are now locked up in the grid on the far left lanes, stressed out, brakes all hot, pissed off your stuck, yet again, in the same spot you were in before you whipped around me minutes earlier.

All that, and still late, and out a few bucks on fuel economy. Toot, toot!

Thanks so much. I appreciate the feedback. Yes, you are getting the sign.

Hmmm... not sure if that would work sitting right next to my Elevation Church sticker, ha! Thanks for the compliments. It was a freak tank. Hopefully I can hit it again soon.

Jedi_Sol

Excellent build! Reminds me of when I ecomodded my del sol back in the day

Grill block


Kill Switch


Smooth undertray



Side mirror delete and rear wheel skirts


I averaged 42-45mpg with a B18C1

Keep up the Eco-Tuning!

Ef9vsDa9

All that is just going to bring you negative attention on the road trust me i
get picked on by people in newer cars all the time in my beater db7.

Caoboy

Hey somebody that'll get less respect than I do in my Prius!

I tried hypermiling the Civic, I just can't do it. MT in a lowered car just makes me want to drive faster...

So I bought a Prius. It's a lot easier to drive more efficiently in it. I love keeping the car in EV mode, even though it makes people angry.

The funniest thing to me is that people cut me off, aggressively pull out from behind me and cut me off, speed passed me, and I'm doing the speed of traffic on city roads...I guess the temptation to cut off a Prius is too much for most people. I've had someone pass me and cut me off only to stay right in front of me the whole time we were driving through town, only to turn off in front of me into their side street. All because I left a big enough gap in traffic (the engine braking buffer gap) that they could squeeze in...lol!

Have fun hypermiling, you'll eventually get something like a Prius, there is nothing like it. I've owned it a month and just filled it up one time. First tank of gas, I pulled about 460 miles out of it. I want to reach the '700 club'. I'm learning to drive slower and slower...it's amazing how much you realize you're in a rush for no reason once you start paying attention to MPG and efficient driving. I do still get urges to 'keep up' with traffic or cut the gaps just to get that couple feet further ahead.


I just saw your post about the hybrid battery. They last about 10 years. They cost about $1800 plus replacement, from the dealer. You'll save more money in gas than you'll spend replacing the battery.

A buddy of mine bought his Prius with 100k. The battery went out at about 285k-300k. I can't remember the mileage. He found a dude online that would replace the battery with a refurbished one locally for $500. It was going to cost almost $2000 from the dealer IIRC.

It's give and take. I used to be worried about hybrid batteries and how it seems like they're going to go out. Once I started researching them though, I realized it's not as big a deal as everybody assumed. Shoot, you still see first gen Prii driving around, I'm pretty sure those batteries had to have been changed as some point! Heck, they even make an upgraded battery addition for the Prius to get 100mpg out of it vs the 60mpg....

OG Wagon

Ef9vsDa9, I thought that could be a possibility a few days ago, and was even a bit nervous putting the sign on for the "maiden voyage". Man, it's been a huge surprise though. I'm getting much more respect on the roads now that I was without the sign. People are definitely giving me a nice buffer distance now, no more "whip around's" either. People seem to just get-it now.

Even if they don't respect me, they will at least go around me. The bright yellow catches the ghansta-lean-and-go-90-as-I-weave-left-to-right-in-my-300M-on-22's types about 50 yards out. They still weave around me, but nowhere near as closely as they once would, nearly clipping my tail light.

No sir, not for me! I'll keep my Civic. When/if the "grid" goes out, I'll still have my gasoline car. It's always gonna have parts too, b/c there is a broken down Honda withing 300 yards of every house, with parts. So, I'm good! Also, 430 miles: how many gallons does your tank hold? That sounds like a very expensive car to only get about 30 miles more than me on it's tank. Ya know?

OG Wagon

Also, Jedi, that Del Sol is sweet! Love the shape of the rear wheel skirt. Nice stuff!

Caoboy

I believe it's a 10 or 12 gallon tank. *EDIT* (Fueleconomy.gov puts the tank at 11.9) *EDIT* Last fillup was 8 gallons, I'm leaning more towards 10. I also don't wait til the last possible second to fill up, I'm still a 1/4 tank=empty kind of guy. I'm too scared to wait til the light is blinking and I have an estimated 10 miles left on my cruising range indicator to fill up. I should try it though, only thing it's going to hurt is me having AAA come out and put in a gallon of gas and I end up waiting another week to fill up.

We were due for a new car anyways, which is why we ended up with a Prius. It makes sense to me to get something more 'economical' given the way gas prices are. It really is an 'in town' gas saver, seeing how most of the time I can keep it in electric only mode driving on city streets, and as you probably already know, you waste the most gas accelerating from a stop. It has it's advantages.

Part of the problem for me in 'saving gas' (or rather, saving money) is that my other half doesn't know how to drive. She tends to be one of those people that is accelerating until she has to hit her brakes...so she tends to complain that the car doesn't save gas, until I drive it and she starts complaining that I drive slow (aka normal?) and that people are passing us up. I'm still trying to drill into her that we aren't racing...and that's why I mostly drive when we go somewhere lol!

It is a heavier car, and it has A/C and other amenities. It was designed so that a normal driver 'not trying' to save gas should get about 50MPG. On a Prius forum there is a 700 club and a lot of people are pushing 700MPT corrected. I'm happy with that. Sometimes I hit 75mpg on a trip. Other times it's 46mpg. Either way, I still get better MPG out of the Prius daily than I did in the CX, at most I'd get about 45MPG. The CRV we got rid of only got about 28MPG on a good day, but that's like comparing a brick to a football when it comes to Aerodynamics.

OG Wagon

Hilarious post!! Thanks for sharing. My commute is mostly highway, so the VX makes the most logical sense to me. But I def see where your coming from with your city-driving commute and the Prius seems to be a great choice.

willimo

How does it monitor fuel economy? What sensors is it collecting signals from? Fuel ratio, MAP, the fuel sending unit? I'm really curious.

Caoboy

Ahh yes, lean burn mode, that's all the rage on ecomodder. I recall a thread there where some guy bought a Civic HX just so he could pull the engine and wheels off and put it in a CX hatch so he could have the lightest and leanest engine of the 96-00 chassis.

I'm curious, did your VX come with the blockoff plates that some did? I remember a long time ago on HT they had a thread about it, They came with certain things like AC grill blockoffs and a rear bumper under tray and you could only get as an option on the VX. I'm trying to think if it came with anything else that was special to it.

Jedi_Sol

since the MPGuino is built for preOBD II cars, the MPGuino taps directly into the Fuel injectors wires and VSS signal wire.

All the rest is just "maths" that are programmed into the unit. Quite ingenious little thing.

Jedi_Sol

The Prius is a ninja at "coasting." While coasting, it also shuts off the engine.

Therefore, a lot of Prius owners that get great mileage do a thing called "Pulse and glide." Meaning:
1) they drive up to the speed limit
2) step off the gas
3) the car automatically goes to neutral and turns off the engine
4) then "glide or coast" down to 50mph (or whatever you feel safe).
5) Then you step on the gas, car fires up again
6) rinse and repeat.

kcarroll491

Yeah no offense to anyone who owns a Prius but I have way more respect for the HyperMile EG.. rollin in style and gettin killer gas mileage. lol the Prius is waaaayyy more function over form.. My eyes sting a little every time I see one.. to me the HyperMile has the perfect amount of form and function for the purpose of the car. And not to mention, the big motto for most Honda/import guys is "Built not Bought..." to me this is the same idea.. People who bought the Prius just bought that ability, which again, too each their own.. but I have a lot more respect for someone who claims the "care about gas mileage" or trying to be eco friendly when they put all that hard work and effort into making a car that they chose and enjoy also perform the way they want it to in terms of being eco friendly.. I'm team HyperMile Civic all the way vs. the Prius. and the obnoxious sign lol the more butt hurt I see people get about it, the funnier it gets...

Caoboy

A .25 Drag Coefficient comes with a price, and that's why it looks the way it looks. By the way, that's the same as the 1st Gen Honda Insight, but without the wheel well covers and 4 doors.

I'm curious to see what your DC would be OG Wagon!

OG Wagon

Thank you sir! I appreciate the support. I never new a magnetic and removable sign could cause such a response. Ha! I love the sign. I'm afraid it's staying fellas. Sorry to those that don't diggit.

You and me both sir! I can feel it from the drivers seat. Turbulence is getting less with every aero-mod. No scientific proof of that though, of course.

OG Wagon

Update 11/8: JDM Sidemarker Install

Hello all. I got a small, but important, "JDM" detail done on this project today. I finally got around to installing the OEM JDM Stanley sidemarkers I purchased a couple of months ago. I typically dread this part of my projects, as cutting the holes for these is always a bit nerve-wracking to me. I've found it very easy to "slip" with the Dremel and slice a cut through your paint past where the sidemarkers will eventually mount. I wore thick gloves this time, went slow, and held on to that Dremel like it was a winning lottery ticket!

Fortunately, things went really well. Once the cuts were complete, I chose to wire them up in JDM-spec fashion. The sidemarker lights come on (solely) with the turn signals or emergency flashers fire.

Here's some pics:


















More soon to come. Thanks for EcoTuning in.

kcarroll491

#Hatersgonnahate

glad to hear it!!

OG Wagon

Update 11/10/2014: Side Skirt Extensions

Hello all. After completing the front air dam in composite lawn edging, I had just enough material left to make some side skirts as well. Later, these will be used to bolt the undercarriage paneling up to.

Composite lawn edging is a strong and very durable material. I think it also has a neat appearance. But Iv'e found it a difficult material to work with and set into place, since it comes curled up and likes to stay that way...

In case anyone is wondering, here is the process I used to complete this project:

1. Un-roll and clamp composite edging to table. Cut to size (I measured 73” for the EG Chassis side skirts)
2. Pre-drill mounting holes every foot, about .5” down from the top of the edging.
3. Let sit in the sun/heat. Use a heat gun to further relax if needed.
4. Wait 4-5 hours.
5. Flip material over and re-clamp.
6. Overlay a shop rag (to serve as a buffer to protect the material from melting) and steam iron the strips to further straighten.
7. Drill small hole about ¾” from the top of OEM skirt. I found this the right length down to cause the extensions to lay flat. The OEM skirt is curved, and this length creates the correct angle.
8. Bolt up first hole from extension onto OEM skirt, using self-tapping flush mount screws.
9. Line up hole just beside this one; drill and mount that one as well.
10. Pull material to other end of OEM skirt. Bolt up here also.
11. Continue to bolt up all other pre-drilled holes in the extension (pre-drilled from earlier, measured every foot)
12. “Eye-Up” and drill holes in between each previously drilled/mounted hole. You should now have holes drilled/mounted evenly every 6”, for a uniform look.
13. Finish up by drilling an extra hole at each end, about 2” in from the current ending hole. The material likes to curl-up/bow at the edges, so the extra screw is necessary for strength/support.

Finished Pics:

















Thanks for EcoTuning in!

Eddie

God I wish my VX was this clean.

Thnx for posting

OG Wagon

Thanks so much bro! I appreciate it. I was fortunate to fine such a clean example. Underside is ridiculously clean/rust free.

OG Wagon

Happy Friday!

No progress updates for today, but thought I’d check in with some performance progress and future plans. The Civic is still pulling 65mpg trips, notably one 30 mile trip with my whole family in tote.

However, I’m finding it harder to do now that the weather is a good bit colder and the fall winds are really picking up here on these NC mornings. I’ve also started getting the family around in the Civic on the weekends, since the F150 was getting us 15 mpg each weekend. That will save us about $90 per month, we calculated. Basically, I have the coolest wife IN THE WORLD.

As a result of these changes, my MPG average dropped a good bit, as I’ve now been off of solely doing my normal/predictable work commute paths. I ended up with 55mpg last tank last week. I’ve since gotten that up to 58.5 mpg so far this week, but I’m not sure if I can pull back above 60 mpg until more Aero work is done, atleast until we get a more full-efficient car to ride the family around in on the weekends.

Here’s my aforementioned trip with the fam on Tuesday. We went to do some volunteer work in the community, and I had VTO from work, which was nice: Family time + volunteering.








Also, I believe my fuel pump is weakening, so that is likely a factor in the lower MPG’s as well. I picked up an OEM-used and warrantied unit from Beaver’s Honda, and also a new OEM-spec sock filter from Autozone. I plan to replace the pump this weekend. The car has been struggling to regain fuel pressure when coming back off of an EOC. Its been getting worse daily, and was scary yesterday on the highway, so I’ve just stopped EOC’ing all together, until the pump is replaced and/or the issue is corrected.


I’m taking a trip to pick up some used Eibach Sportline springs + OEM shocks tomorrow morning. I will put them on asap. I’m hoping to pick up 2 more mpg’s with the lowered stance. It will, of course, be nice to have a bit more of an aggressive stance for aesthetic reasons as well... I cringe every time I look at that 4.5" wheel gap. Wowza.

Likely, this will also mean me needing to shave 1-2” off of the front air dam. That’s fine, as the front dam will then level out with the height of the side-skirts. While I'm in that area, I have also found a clean OEM drivers seat that I will likely pick up. I’m uncertain, at this point, as to whether the fabric color on the sides of the seats is an identical color to mine, but the center pattern is a direct match. The outer gray fabric appears to be a lighter gray than my own, but that could just be the exposure on the seller’s pics. I hope that is the case, as he only want’s $25 for it, and it's rip free :cool:

Also, I have been discussing and have received confirmation from user "The Donkey CRX" at EcoModder.com that I can use his rear end aero designs. I will use his proven designs to finish up the aero work on the OG VX, alongside a full underbody Belly Pan and rear diffuser. I plan to drill in 12mm nutserts across the rear end to mount the new aero. I’ll then use anodized black washers + SS Allen-head bolts off of Ebay for a clean/flush look to all panel mounts. For those curious, he is making regular 85 + mpg tanks with his aero package. He is truly an eco-pioneer for us Honda-heads, and his showcase thread is HERE.


Once all aero work is done (around late winter), the car will get a fresh coat of Milano Red paint.

I hope to be show-ready by late- spring, with hopes bringing the car to the Import Alliance 2015 summer meet.

Anyone want to Eco-Roll with me to IA 2015 this year?!

Finally, I stumbled upon these pics today of one of my first builds, the "OG Wagon". Man, this made my day! New owner, Chase, is doing a great job with the car, taking it to new heights and adding his own unique twist to the car. Love the period-correct PRIME rims he has put on, and these rolling shots are superb!

All, have a great weekend. Thanks for EcoTuning in.