Need help, fuel loss.

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Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Been Here Before » Tue Apr 20, 2021 5:07 pm

I recently rebuilt my 1918 motor. I replaced the cast iron pistons with aluminum, high compression head, up graded to hotter cam, large intake valves, and have a distributor. I also changed the gearing.

Before the up grade I was able to achieve 21-22 miles per gallon. Now the mileage dropped to 20-18 miles to a gallon. I can't find any fuel leaks. Any suggestions.

Gnitseretni eb dluohs siht.
4/20/21


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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by speedytinc » Tue Apr 20, 2021 5:38 pm

Lead foot. now that you can, you do.


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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Kerry » Tue Apr 20, 2021 5:43 pm

More HP more fuel.


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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Scott_Conger » Tue Apr 20, 2021 5:52 pm

Is this April 1?
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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by George House » Tue Apr 20, 2021 5:57 pm

Larger valves allow more gas into combustion chamber. And you misspelled s_ _t
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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by TXGOAT2 » Tue Apr 20, 2021 6:20 pm

Your rebuilt engine is probably tight, and the rings may not be fully seated. A hotter cam generally is not conducive to better fuel economy. Raising compression usually is. You may need to change your driving style to get the best economy from your new, altered engine. Spark advance settings and carburetor settings may need to be adjusted differently than before. Your engine as altered will probably perform better at somewhat higher RPM/road speed than it did previously. I'd run it for 20-30 hours at various speeds and loads before I started worrying about fuel economy. Once it's run-in, it may give better mileage running at a slightly higher speed than its previous "sweet spot".


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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Scott_Conger » Tue Apr 20, 2021 6:32 pm

?thgir ,niahc ruoy gnillup si eh taht ezilaer uoY

.ton sseug I
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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by TXGOAT2 » Tue Apr 20, 2021 6:37 pm

.htn1 eht ton ht02, eht s'tI


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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by DickC » Tue Apr 20, 2021 8:21 pm

What am I doing wrong? I've seen others on the forum claim 20-25 MPG. I have had 7 T's from 1912, 1915, 1916, 1920, (2) 1924, and 1925. I have never gotten better than 15 MPG. My T's have all been standard, the one 1912 has a dual intake/exhaust manifold, and I don't "hot rod". When touring, we sometimes run in the mountains of North Carolina but most of the time we are on fairly level ground. I don't have an odometer but most of our tours have very accurate mileage steps for the tour day.

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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Oldav8tor » Tue Apr 20, 2021 8:26 pm

1917 Touring - alum pistons, Z-Head, 10 tooth pinion, 15 mpg.
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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Norman Kling » Tue Apr 20, 2021 9:25 pm

I don't know how many mpg my T's do, because none have speedometers. However, I can usually run all day on one tank of gas, which would be about 90 to 100 miles. I only need to fill up more often if I am climbing a lot of hills because of gravity flow.
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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by DHort » Tue Apr 20, 2021 9:49 pm

You do not need a speedometer. Fill it with gas. Drive it 150 miles. Fill it with gas. Then do the math.

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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Henry K. Lee » Tue Apr 20, 2021 10:05 pm

TOO DAMN FUNNY, LMAO!

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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Steve Jelf » Wed Apr 21, 2021 12:09 am

All those so-called upgrades increase the ratio of positrons to neutrons as the fuel sloshes around in the tank. The resulting static electricity increases evaporation of fuel through the vent hole. That's where your gas is going. You need to hang a chain from the rear axle to drag on the ground and drain away the excess charge.

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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by TRDxB2 » Wed Apr 21, 2021 1:28 am

You didn't fill-up with gas from Walmart or did you? :roll:
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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by TXGOAT2 » Wed Apr 21, 2021 9:58 am

Wal Mart gas is made from marmots!

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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Oldav8tor » Wed Apr 21, 2021 10:22 am

I use a old Garmin GPS for a speedometer / odometer and actually keep a log of "Arthur's Travels." As an old pilot like Bob Coiro, I log my trips, the people who ride with me and maintenance done. Knowing the mileage helps me keep on top of maintenance better.
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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Steve Jelf » Wed Apr 21, 2021 10:53 am

I log my trips...

On July 28, 1974, in Yautepec, Morelos, I filled my 1968 beetle that had 65876 miles on it. I paid 51 pesos for 35.7 liters of regular Pemex (1.43 pesos per liter). I keep a log book too.:)
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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Norman Kling » Wed Apr 21, 2021 11:21 am

David H.
How do you know exactly 150 miles without an odometer? And what are the odds of finding two gas stations exactly 150 miles apart? I suppose you could have someone follow you with a modern car, and then figure the mileage. But if the car runs a long distance on one tank and there are no leaks, why worry. My modern car tells me the mileage as I am driving and the average mileage. It keeps changing depending on how fast I go , whether going uphill or downhill or when I start out from a stop and when I am slowing down. It is never constant. So why worry about a slight increase or decrease in T mileage? To get a consistant comparison, you would need to go exactly the same speed, on the same route, in the same weather and driving conditions etc.
Norm

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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Craig Leach » Wed Apr 21, 2021 11:27 am

Congradulations.

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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Craig Leach » Wed Apr 21, 2021 11:35 am

Just out of curiosity what gear did you go to?

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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by TRDxB2 » Wed Apr 21, 2021 11:58 am

Don't ignore the affect of ambient conditions (weather, urban/highway driving) on gas mileage. Not sure when you took your readings but assuming it was these past months in Central Pennsylvania. Considering how weather conditions-atmospheric pressure, temperature and humidity-are factors that have an effect on air density which in turn could account for your mileage results . Cold air is more dense and requires a more fuel to maintain a proper air fuel ratio, a cause to drop fuel economy. Strange as it sounds, the more dense the air is the more drag on the vehicle; another loss in fuel mileage. The Model T isn't the most streamlined design.

I would expect that as the weather warms up you will see an improvement in you gas mileage. So keep your log and see how the weather may be affecting your mileage.
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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by John kuehn » Wed Apr 21, 2021 12:10 pm

Pretty simple. You ‘hopped up your engine’.
Something usually changes when you do that. I wouldn’t worry about a fuel loss of that little.
Drive it and break it in and check again a few months later. If it’s running good with the expected improvement in get up and go drive it and have fun.

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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Kaiser » Wed Apr 21, 2021 12:54 pm

I've got my T almost off of the Gasolene, running on 85% water now, FIVE miles to the Gallon, but hey, water is cheap..
My Oddometer will not count the even miles so I could be off by a smidgen
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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Mark Gregush » Wed Apr 21, 2021 1:03 pm

Re;
I would expect that as the weather warms up you will see an improvement in you gas mileage. So keep your log and see how the weather may be affecting your mileage.
If he keeps driving, by time the weather warms up, the engine will be broke in and the MPG might be better anyway. :lol:
I know the voices aren't real but damn they have some good ideas! :shock:

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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by TXGOAT2 » Wed Apr 21, 2021 1:47 pm

Cracked water is a very good fuel, if you can hold on to it .... but beware of that cheap-O heavy water. It will cut your fuel mileage while making your cylinders egg shaped and it will cause sand blisters on your tires. Many report that their hens no longer lay after they use heavy water and that donkeys lose their bray. It really should be banned, but Big Oil won't hear of it!

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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Steve Jelf » Wed Apr 21, 2021 2:16 pm

Whether you can hold on to cracked water depends on whether you keep it in a cracked pot.

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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by TXGOAT2 » Wed Apr 21, 2021 2:19 pm

The best cracked pots are those made in Crakow back before the war...

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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by TRDxB2 » Wed Apr 21, 2021 3:03 pm

TXGOAT2 wrote:
Wed Apr 21, 2021 2:19 pm
The best cracked pots are those made in Crakow back before the war...
This thread is getting a getting potty
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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Allan » Wed Apr 21, 2021 8:15 pm

Dick, you will get better MPG if you simply switch to Imperial Gallons. You blokes are all being cheated!

Allan from down under.


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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by DHort » Wed Apr 21, 2021 11:37 pm

Norm. Norm. Norm. No need to be that exact. It is only a model T. Take a ride of a certain distance and remember what road you used. When you get home plot it on google maps. Now you know your mileage. The rest is easy. Hey, if you want you could use regular one day and premium the next. Then let us know the difference. You live in the hills of CA, and that is included in your math. I live in the flats of WI, but I can hit some good hills if I want. We have hills made by glaciers and hills the glaciers never touched. Come on out and I will even let you drive a car. I know you have driven more T miles than I gave. Just no racing.

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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Ruxstel24 » Thu Apr 22, 2021 9:58 am

I use an app called “speedometer simple by Tevfik Yucek”. GOS speed, average speed, miles per trip, nice big analog gauge and a digital gauge. Also a compass.
And I generally get 20mpg or better with a 3:1 Ruckstel, Stromberg OF, HC head, aluminum pistons and oversized valves....on regular BP gasoline.
My Stewart speedo is in Russian Versts, so I marked it according to the GPS...55 Versts is 40mph. ;)
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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by TXGOAT2 » Thu Apr 22, 2021 10:09 am

You got to put clothes pins on your gas line and a magnet on your gas cap!


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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Jerry VanOoteghem » Thu Apr 22, 2021 4:12 pm

If you drive in reverse, does your fuel level increase? It only stands to reason that it should. :roll:


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Re: Need help, fuel loss.

Post by Dallas Landers » Thu Apr 22, 2021 4:22 pm

The best mpg is in my runningboard can. I cant count the miles I get from that one gallon of gas.

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