Tuning for mileage?
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From: Overland Park, KS
Tuning for mileage?
I found an article that touches base on this type of ECU tuning. You don't lose any WOT performance and you gain a lot of MPG. Here's the link:
Electronic Ways to Primve Your Fuel Economy
Specifically for the '98 Ranger 2.5L, are there any tuner programs/chips that are made specifically for part-throttle fuel efficiency? Does anyone know someone that can do this?
Electronic Ways to Primve Your Fuel Economy
Specifically for the '98 Ranger 2.5L, are there any tuner programs/chips that are made specifically for part-throttle fuel efficiency? Does anyone know someone that can do this?
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From: SE Texas
Originally Posted by Pinhead-227
I found an article that touches base on this type of ECU tuning. You don't lose any WOT performance and you gain a lot of MPG. Here's the link:
Electronic Ways to Primve Your Fuel Economy
Specifically for the '98 Ranger 2.5L, are there any tuner programs/chips that are made specifically for part-throttle fuel efficiency? Does anyone know someone that can do this?
Electronic Ways to Primve Your Fuel Economy
Specifically for the '98 Ranger 2.5L, are there any tuner programs/chips that are made specifically for part-throttle fuel efficiency? Does anyone know someone that can do this?
Losing the o2 sensor is BAD. There is no reference to stoich without the sensor,and the adaptive fuel strategy of the PCM is whacked without o2 sensor data to reference.
There are several methods of bettering fuel economy,and a good tuner will know how to do this. I could discuss it,but there are people that make their living tuning cars,so it wouldn't be fair to them to share the "tricks of the trade". It's not uncommon to get 2-3 mpg gain at part throttle cruise with a good tune.
JL
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From: Overland Park, KS
2-3mpg isn't anywhere near 20%. How would it not be "fair"? There are people that make their living off of building mega horsepower engines, and that information is freely available.
Who are these people, BTW? I'd like to talk to them...
Who are these people, BTW? I'd like to talk to them...
Postmaster
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From: SE Texas
Originally Posted by Pinhead-227
2-3mpg isn't anywhere near 20%. How would it not be "fair"? There are people that make their living off of building mega horsepower engines, and that information is freely available.
Who are these people, BTW? I'd like to talk to them...
Who are these people, BTW? I'd like to talk to them...
There are several good tuners out there,and it's their decision to divulge information about proper tuning if they choose to. It takes a very intimate understanding of the control system to be able to setup a proper tune for ALL driving conditions.That's what seperates the tuners from the wannabes.
For a vehicle that gets an average of 13 mpg-a 2.6mpg gain IS 20% according to my math. Dunno where that 20% comment came from anyway.
I'm referencing a larger SUV or truck in terms of economy (2-3mpg) from a tune here-My TBird picked up 6mpg cruising with a good tune when it was still stock,but this isn't a Tbird forum,so that's a not a fair comparison.
JL
Last edited by Johnny Langton; May 22, 2007 at 09:41 PM.
Post Fiend
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From: Central Florida
With a few tweaks, my sniper special forces gave me almost 6mpg on the highway. Of course I am not stock. However, special forces does give you some adjustment to spark and fuel curves to suit your needs.
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Sorry, the 20% came from the last paragraph in the article. We were just talking about different vehicles; 2-3 mpg isn't 20% of 30mpg. I'm building my engine for efficient power; the mods I'm planning have been done on a 2.5L/Auto that got 23mpg before and gets 29mpg now. That's without a tune and an automatic transmission. With the same mods (and a few more) I'm trying for as much mileage as I can get, hoping that I can push my 2.5L/5-spd Ranger into the 40mpg range with power comparable to a 3L V6.
Last edited by Pinhead-227; May 22, 2007 at 10:07 PM.
Post Fiend
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From: Central Florida
Before you worry too much about tuning, I'd suggest volumetric efficiency tuning or even a supercharger. Deal with the mechanical first and then work on a dyno to get the tuning right. A supercharger should get you close to your goal, getting VE upto/over 100%, and then running right at or just below stoich at cruise speed with a modifier for WOT.
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From: Overland Park, KS
I don't want to add a lot to the engine (turbo/supercharger); I want to use what's there and make it as efficient as possible. High compression, high turbulence, fast controlled burn, good fuel vaporization and mixing, and nice high-velocity ports. The engine part will be taken care of. I just don't want to have to "fight" the computer like you usually do when trying to get max mpg out of a car. Most of the mods that I want to do will decrease detonation and increase lean-burn misfire limits. In other words, I'll be able to run a lot leaner without worrying about hurting the engine or making it un-drivable. Trying to lean out a computer tuned engine can be a pain (the computer usually learns around the mods), and is why I was wondering who/where/how I could get my ECU tune for economy.
Edit: This is OBD2, right? (just checking)
Edit: This is OBD2, right? (just checking)
Last edited by Pinhead-227; May 23, 2007 at 12:46 AM.
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From: SE Texas
Originally Posted by Pinhead-227
I don't want to add a lot to the engine (turbo/supercharger); I want to use what's there and make it as efficient as possible. High compression, high turbulence, fast controlled burn, good fuel vaporization and mixing, and nice high-velocity ports. The engine part will be taken care of. I just don't want to have to "fight" the computer like you usually do when trying to get max mpg out of a car. Most of the mods that I want to do will decrease detonation and increase lean-burn misfire limits. In other words, I'll be able to run a lot leaner without worrying about hurting the engine or making it un-drivable. Trying to lean out a computer tuned engine can be a pain (the computer usually learns around the mods), and is why I was wondering who/where/how I could get my ECU tune for economy.
Edit: This is OBD2, right? (just checking)
Edit: This is OBD2, right? (just checking)
JL
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From: Drain Oregon and Sacramen
Originally Posted by Johnny Langton
A '98 Ranger is OBD2,and if the base fuel calculations are setup in the PCM properly and the MAF transfer function is right,it won't learn around anything. Those that "fight" the PCM are not tuners,they're idiots that only know how to tune for WOT driving. I'll put it like this-if you've read about it on the internet,forget it-It's most certainly wrong or incomplete information that's from people that are clueless about tuning and/or still trying to tune with a screwdriver and a distributor wrench. The PCM is your friend-if you inform it of the changes you've made to the engine in the tables and scalars-it'll be able to accurately calculate spark and fuel for proper combustion.
JL
JL
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From: SE Texas
Originally Posted by bfloyd4445
Your right to a degree, however, from my experiance, and I am no expert, the PCM picks adjustments from a set curve stored in memory that dosen't change. The stored curve is designed around certain parameters, engine controls, and if you have modified your vehicle then that stored curve will only provide a ball park air/fuel ratio. To do a real tune a custom curve must be installed in the PCM if possible or external modifications must be made in order to compensate for the fixed PCM response.
JL
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From: Overland Park, KS
Getting back to this discussion... Does anyone know anybody that can tune strictly for mileage? All of the tuners I've ever heard of tune for added horsepower and get a little better mileage. Does anyone tune for added gas mileage and get a little more power?
Postmaster
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From: SE Texas
Originally Posted by Pinhead-227
Getting back to this discussion... Does anyone know anybody that can tune strictly for mileage? All of the tuners I've ever heard of tune for added horsepower and get a little better mileage. Does anyone tune for added gas mileage and get a little more power?
JL
Fleet Mechanic
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From: Sioux Falls SD
You need a custom tune. I have a 99 Ranger 2.5 and have a Diablo custom tuned chip. The chip has two tunes with a switch to change between the stock tune and the two on the chip. On tune 1 with E10 gas 89 octane my mpg increased by 3mpg. on tune 2 I have it set to burn E85, so far MPG is down 4.5mpg from E10 when running the E85.
Dan
Dan
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From: Drain Oregon and Sacramen
Originally Posted by Pinhead-227
Getting back to this discussion... Does anyone know anybody that can tune strictly for mileage? All of the tuners I've ever heard of tune for added horsepower and get a little better mileage. Does anyone tune for added gas mileage and get a little more power?