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How does the lie-o-meter compute?

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Old Oct 10, 2005 | 12:33 PM
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How does the lie-o-meter compute?

Odd question...how does the lie-o-meter (that's what i have commonly heard it referred to as) compute the mpg? Is it a direct relation to wheel travel?

I ask this becuase my mileage is showing low, and i'm trying to figure out if it is due to the reduction in power with the tire install, or if it is due to the computer being thrown off by tire size. Becuase i guess my mph will show lower now too, which i guess means my mpg will show lower. I'm just not sure if that how it computes it or not.

I am hoping so. Hate to think that i have really dropped 2 mpg with the install of my new tires. I can lived with an innacurate computer.

Is ther a way to fix it if this is the problem. Ilove to monitor the mpg, but not as fun if it's not accurate.

thanks!
 
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Old Oct 10, 2005 | 12:48 PM
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It uses the reading from the same sensor that the odometer and speedometer use. So if you changed tires sizes without telling the computer about it, your trip computer won't be accurate. The computer can bbe reprogrammed with the new tires size so that everything reads correctly. Ask your dealer.

Larger tires can reduce fuel economy.
 
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Old Oct 10, 2005 | 01:32 PM
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I'm sure it's a little combination of both issues then...reduced fuel due to larger tires as well as reduced readings on the computer due to larger tires.

Thanks.
 
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Old Oct 10, 2005 | 07:11 PM
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But how does it actually compute? I know how it gets how far, with the VSS, but what does it look at to see fuel flow? Injector pulse-width plus HPOP pressure?

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Old Oct 10, 2005 | 07:16 PM
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This is a duplicate posting. This slow server thing is going to cause a few of them today. This is what I edited this to.

Pop
 

Last edited by SpringerPop; Oct 10, 2005 at 07:18 PM.
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Old Oct 10, 2005 | 11:35 PM
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I thought of this too, and came to this conclusion.
It must use throttle position, speed and rpms to figure the mpg. And the miles to empty is figured by the fuel gauge reading and existing mpg calculated.
When you put in a tuner or chip, your throttle position is less, so you get more mpg.
 
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Old Oct 11, 2005 | 11:43 AM
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That's why it's called the lie-o-meter.
When you put in the tuner and your throttle position is less, the engine doesn't get less fuel at that throttle position. It actually gets more as if you were pressing the throttle more. The computer only knows the throttle position, and NOT the amount of fuel actually consumed. Thus you get the false readings. The computer is not lieing but just telling us what it sees. The computer is being fooled. It's not a fool just tricked, but whoever believes that they are getting more mph after a tuner install is. Fool-o-meter is more like it!
 
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Old Oct 11, 2005 | 12:28 PM
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Originally Posted by Hello
It must use throttle position, speed and rpms to figure the mpg.
Nope. It uses vehicle speed and time to calculate distance, and uses the injector pulsewidth and the flow rate of the injectors to calculate how much fuel is used. Throttle position and RPM don't make a difference, other than both of those will change to pulsewidth of the injectors.

Originally Posted by Hello
And the miles to empty is figured by the fuel gauge reading and existing mpg calculated.
That's correct. It seems to use the existing MPG calculation over a fairly long time, not just since the last MPG reset.
 
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Old Oct 11, 2005 | 12:41 PM
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Casey,

The flow rate must be based on what AD's will flow (on average) with the HPOP regulated to factory specs. Since the flow rate of the injectors will change with the HPOP pressure, can we then also fool the calculation with something like a 10K mod?

Pop
 
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Old Oct 11, 2005 | 12:52 PM
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Originally Posted by Casey
Nope. It uses vehicle speed and time to calculate distance, and uses the injector pulsewidth and the flow rate of the injectors to calculate how much fuel is used. Throttle position and RPM don't make a difference, other than both of those will change to pulsewidth of the injectors.
If this is true, then why doesn't the lie-o-meter show a higher mpg after a chip of tuner install. If it calculated the actual fuel flow, then there wouldn't be this huge difference, and be close to actual like before the tuner of chip install.
 
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Old Oct 11, 2005 | 01:03 PM
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Originally Posted by Hello
If this is true, then why doesn't the lie-o-meter show a higher mpg after a chip of tuner install.
Because a chip or tuner fools the computer into thinking the flow rate is different that it really is. That's how they make more power, they inject more fuel. The computer doesn't know this, it thinks the flow rate is still stock.

From many reports I've heard the computer DOES show a higher MPG after installing a chip or tuner.
 
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Old Oct 11, 2005 | 01:04 PM
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Originally Posted by SpringerPop
The flow rate must be based on what AD's will flow (on average) with the HPOP regulated to factory specs. Since the flow rate of the injectors will change with the HPOP pressure, can we then also fool the calculation with something like a 10K mod?
Yes, I think that would fool it, too.
 
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Old Oct 11, 2005 | 01:52 PM
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Originally Posted by Casey
Because a chip or tuner fools the computer into thinking the flow rate is different that it really is. That's how they make more power, they inject more fuel. The computer doesn't know this, it thinks the flow rate is still stock.

From many reports I've heard the computer DOES show a higher MPG after installing a chip or tuner.
I know the computer takes readings from the various sensors and calculates how much fuel to inject for a given load. There is no MAF like gas engines, so it must use the throttle position for the calculation somehow. Then I guess if you increase the HPOP pressure, the computer will think it's injecting a stock rate, but actually it is much more. Then your truck will be going down the road a lot faster at that throttle position than it was stock. The lie-o-meter calculates this as more distance, and less throttle. So you get the inflated mpg. I know I'm guessing, but I can't figure it any other way.
My mpg after the Predator 100hp tune is hugh. I could get up to 25mpg on the lie-o-meter, and I actually hand calculate it to 15mpg.
 
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Old Oct 11, 2005 | 02:19 PM
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It doesn't use throttle position in the calculation. It calculates the amount of fuel that is being injected. It's that easy.

The engine computer calculates how much fuel, partially based on throttle position. With a tuner or other power enhancing mod you get more fuel than the computer knows about. The engine computer tells the trip computer about the fuel it knows was used, but in reality more fuel was used. Now the trip computer calculates the wrong mileage.

The display will go higher because with a tuner you only get more fuel when you stomp on it. With or without a tuner it takes exactly the same amount of fuel to cruise down the highway at 70 MPH. The difference is that you press the pedal down a bit less with the tuner so that the computer thinks you are using less fuel than you really are.

And I'm not guessing, I know how this works.
 
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Old Oct 22, 2005 | 12:02 PM
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I can believe it calculates the mpg from the amount of fuel injected. As I have a 100 gallon tank auxilary tank with a remote controlled transfer pump that moves the fuel into the fill pipe. I can drive all day without shutting down and usually fill when gauge gets to 1/4 tank. I can fill a few times in a day and the fuel gauge gets confused. but still remembers miles to empty.
 
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