Mileage Improvement?

[jparrette]

Greetings all -

Aside from the obvious, (tire pressure, driving slower, etc.) has anybody made any changes or modifications to your Pilot to improve gas mileage?

At $4/Gal, every little bit helps!

[N_Jay]

Originally posted by jparrette
Greetings all -

Aside from the obvious, (tire pressure, driving slower, etc.) has anybody made any changes or modifications to your Pilot to improve gas mileage?

At $4/Gal, every little bit helps!

You got them all!

[rlapid]

im not sure if this is 'obvious', but replacing the engine air filter regularly helps too.

[Seth Joseph]

I am going to put new spark plugs in and am considering the new generation Pulsestar plug.........I already have 105,000 miles on my 2004 and the service interval is coming quickly.......I figure that if I can increase the HP and the MPG by these new plugs then I will........The Denso and NGK NEW Plugs claim big HP and MPG gains as well........

[A6Pilot]

Originally posted by rlapid
im not sure if this is 'obvious', but replacing the engine air filter regularly helps too.

With all due respect, that is incorrect.

In an computer controlled EFI engine (Honda Pilot, for example) having a dirty air filter will not cut down on your gas mileage. A dirty filter will only lower your mileage if you are driving a car with a carb.

Sounds strange, but here's why:
The computer will continuously adjust the fuel delivered to try for the optimum fuel/air ratio. If your filter is dirty, and thus the air flow partially restricted, the computer will reduce the fuel delivered, maintaining that optimum fuel air ratio. As a matter of fact, by limiting the air delivered at wide open throttle (where economy is at its worst), you may actually improve you mpg! A dirty filter will, however, decrease your peak horsepower, but your mileage will not decrease.

On a car with a carb, the fuel air ratio will get richer (ie. mileage decreases) with a restricted air filter. That's one of the reasons computer controlled EFI systems do not have a choke.

Also, today's engines are equipped with high energy ignition systems. One of the characteristics of HEI systems and associated platinum spark plugs is that engine performance decreases hardly at all as plugs age. The cost of a new set of plugs will not be recovered by the tiny increase in mpg, if you replace them more often than the manufacture's recommendation. That's also the reason installing aftermarket spark plugs is a waste of money. Maybe these Honda powertrain engineers really do know what they are doing.

This is all very counterintuitive, isn't it? It's called a paradigm shift.

[N_Jay]

Originally posted by Seth Joseph
I am going to put new spark plugs in and am considering the new generation Pulsestar plug.........I already have 105,000 miles on my 2004 and the service interval is coming quickly.......I figure that if I can increase the HP and the MPG by these new plugs then I will........The Denso and NGK NEW Plugs claim big HP and MPG gains as well........

I have rouble believing in MPG or Power gains from plugs.

Other than the right heat range (hardly a concern anymore) and indexing, there is no magic in plugs.

[A6Pilot]

Originally posted by N_Jay

Other than the right heat range (hardly a concern anymore) and indexing, there is no magic in plugs.

With the advent of high swirl heads, spark plug indexing is ineffective. Modern cylinder heads are designed to create tremendous turbulence within the cylinder, thus orientation of the side electrode facing away from the intake valve (indexing) is no longer necessary to produce the highest power.

Installing spark plugs with two or four ground electrodes (some Bosch plugs, for example) may actually increase, slightly, the engines emissions, particularly unburned hydrocarbons.

Things have changed a lot since when I was in high school.

[whizmo]

Originally posted by A6Pilot


With all due respect, that is incorrect.

In an computer controlled EFI engine (Honda Pilot, for example) having a dirty air filter will not cut down on your gas mileage. A dirty filter will only lower your mileage if you are driving a car with a carb.

Sounds strange, but here's why:
The computer will continuously adjust the fuel delivered to try for the optimum fuel/air ratio. If your filter is dirty, and thus the air flow partially restricted, the computer will reduce the fuel delivered, maintaining that optimum fuel air ratio. As a matter of fact, by limiting the air delivered at wide open throttle (where economy is at its worst), you may actually improve you mpg! A dirty filter will, however, decrease your peak horsepower, but your mileage will not decrease.

This is too simplistic an analysis.

First, a clogged air filter will increase pumping losses. Engines are big air pumps and it takes considerable effort to pump air in and out an engine and this frictional loss will increase as the air filter clogs.

Second, as I understand it, the Pilot doesn't use a mass airflow sensor (MAF sensor), but instead infers the mass of air coming into the engine based on throttle position, intake manifold pressure, ambient pressure, and intake air temperature. This is a calibrated system and undoubtedly assumes that the pressure loss across the air filter is a value in a normal range. When the air filter clogs, the system will be running out of spec and probably won't be able to compensate, at least not completely. Even engines with true MAF sensors are subject to calibration error when the air filter pressure drop is beyond normal spec.

I agree that the effect of clogged air filter will not be as apparent on a modern FI car as an old carb'ed model. But I don't think you can say that it doesn't matter or that a clogged filter will actually help mileage. This is going WAY too far.

- Mar

[charly]

How about the famous TORNADO anybody has it in their Pilot. And those it helps really.?

[N_Jay]

Originally posted by whizmo


This is too simplistic an analysis.

First, a clogged air filter will increase pumping losses. Engines are big air pumps and it takes considerable effort to pump air in and out an engine and this frictional loss will increase as the air filter clogs.

Second, as I understand it, the Pilot doesn't use a mass airflow sensor (MAF sensor), but instead infers the mass of air coming into the engine based on throttle position, intake manifold pressure, ambient pressure, and intake air temperature. This is a calibrated system and undoubtedly assumes that the pressure loss across the air filter is a value in a normal range. When the air filter clogs, the system will be running out of spec and probably won't be able to compensate, at least not completely. Even engines with true MAF sensors are subject to calibration error when the air filter pressure drop is beyond normal spec.

I agree that the effect of clogged air filter will not be as apparent on a modern FI car as an old carb'ed model. But I don't think you can say that it doesn't matter or that a clogged filter will actually help mileage. This is going WAY too far.

- Mar

The air filter has to be REALLY clogged to cause these types of problems.
If you are doing anything close to normal maintenance it will not be a problem.
Replacing the air filter early is of no value.

[rlapid]

Originally posted by charly
How about the famous TORNADO anybody has it in their Pilot. And those it helps really.?

i don't know anyone who has one on their pilot. as a matter of fact, i don't know anyone who is actually gullible enough to buy one of those. those things are all marketing hype and a scam, imo. if they really did add significant MPG, don't you think the Honda engineers would have added it to all their cars from the factory?

[wwong]

Seth,

If you do get better mileage with the new plugs, let me know.

[humanoid]

Originally posted by Seth Joseph
~snipped
The Denso and NGK NEW Plugs claim big HP and MPG gains as well........

How so? Any sources to this statement?

[rocky]

Originally posted by charly
How about the famous TORNADO anybody has it in their Pilot. And those it helps really.?

Simple answer, no. But you can send me the money anyway....

[krygny]

Originally posted by rocky


Simple answer, no. But you can send me the money anyway....

I can top that. Send ME the money and I'll come over to your house and kick you in the nnnyutzz.