I always thought my car got the crapiest gas mileage but today I filled up and did the math and on my last tank of gas i got 16mpg!!!! thats like a damn suv!! anyway I usually get like 20mpg which sucks too but this is just getting rediculous.. I have a usdm b16a2 running IHE everything else stock.. I usually shift at 4k but I do take it to 8200 once in a while
anyone else has a b16a getting shitty gas mileage???

 

I average around 21 mpg..Once had it all the way up to 28mpg but that was a one-time only

 

I used to get about 20 city with i/h/e in my 00 si. When i switched to a lighter weight synthetic oil(mobil 1 5w30) and bosch +4 plugs i went up to 28mpg. I did the oil first, that gave me about 5 and the plugs gave me about 3. You might give that a try.

 

wow all that with just going to 5w30? and boch plugs.... that doesn't seem possible but heck its worth a try.. isn't 5w30 not good for the winter though?

 

No, 5w30 is for colder weather. Its thinner making it flow easier when its cold. You could use it all year round, but after doing some research you'll find its not good for long highway driving on hot days. The jump in mileage i saw was going from a heavier weight conventional 10w30 to a lighter 5w30 not to mention synthetic which is lighter yet able to maintain the same viscosity as a coventional. Lighter oil = less windage (drag) on your motor's internals. Also i think importreview.com shows a dyno of 1 or 2hp using synthetic over conventional of the same viscosity.

The plugs were a gamble (sort of) They guarantee if you dont see an increase in mpg they'll pay for your plugs. So I gave em try.

 

Sounds like you need Tornado fuel saver.. hahahhaha, check em out at http://www.tornadoair.com

Iono if it works, but my bro has it on his chevy tahoe, and it suprisingly gave it better mileage..

Tornado's gay cuz its just a lil metal thing that goes in the intake/air box.. Iono how thats suppose to save gas.. haha, whatever floats the boat.. Damn, Americans be comin' up with crazy stuff these days

 

Well I'm not so concerened about having bad gas mileage.. I'm just concerned something might be wrong with my car... and wanted to know if ANYONE has ever gotten just 16mpg with a b16a?? like i said i dont drive it hard ALWAYS but i take it up to redline at least once or twice a day..

 

MPG is a tricky thing to track. There are many, many variables. A few off the top of my head include;
Tire size and pressure
Oil viscosity (Yes! It does matter. 5W30 is recommended by most and some manufactures recommend 5W20. Depending on the health of your engine, you may want to use a thicker viscosity)
Spark and Valve Timing.
Clogged air filter
Clogged Cat.
Leaking fuel pressure regulator
O2 Sensor
General Engine Tune and Health (weak coil, low compression, burning oil, etc...)

Obviously if your driving habits suck, you are lucky to get 20 mpg.

 

Good info.. I dont think my cat is clogged.. if you can see through it it means its not clogged right? if so then i'm good.. The other thing is how can you tell if your o2 sensor is bad? I just installed a o2 sensor in my cat bunge and i am not throwing any CEL's so I dont see how you can tell if its bad or not.. and you said burning oil can be bad? well what if you have an oil leak like i do? can that also affect it?

 

if i had to make a bet
i would say O2 sensor.

 

If an O2 sensor has a voltage output ABOVE .5 V it is considered rich. If the output is BELOW .5 V, it is considered lean. A healthy sensor will constantly vary from about .1 volts to about .9 volts.

On newer models, I'll check the O2 sensor with a scanner. On older models we just use a DVOM at the sensor. If the sensor output is lazy (voltage doesn't vary like it should) or if it tends to stay below .500 volts (and you KNOW it's not running lean) it's time for a new sensor.

As you can see, it gets a little complicated. It may be worth taking it to a Honda dealer and pay the $70.00 for check out.

 

What kind of scanner would you use? like a voltmeter?

 

The DVOM is the voltmeter. The scanner is the scan tool that reads engine data (and more). You can use a generic scanner (like Snap On or MasterTech) or the manufacture's scanner (Nissan-cunsult II, GM/Suzuki-Tech II Honda-PGM Tester, etc...). You are looking at a 2K-4k for a new scanner but I don't think Honda will let you buy their dealership tools. That $70.00 is starting to sound cheap, huh?


[Modified by cjo_28, 4:40 AM 1/16/2003]

 

have you ever reset your ecu after moding your car?

try it.

 

Yeah I've reset it many times.. maybe i'm not doing it right.. warm up the car , disconnect the ground wire, let it sit for 10-15 mins..reconnect ground wire, start car up and let it idle for 20 mins without touching anything right? done that a few times for other reasons...