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[sk3k]

i have a 2000 ford taurus lx with 246,000 kms. the engine and transmission are in mint condition. it runs like a dream. i was getting 430 kms per tank of gas. but ever since the thermostat and a few hoses were changed, the gas mileage has dropped down to 310-330 kms a tank. my driving habits are exactly the same. the air filter is clean, but i havent done a tune up on it since i bought the car in jan 07.

[bling]

ONE GADGET THAT ACTUALLY WORKS

One gas saving gadget that can improve fuel economy is a simple vacuum gauge. The gauge displays intake vacuum, which is an indication of how much load is on the engine. The lower the vacuum reading, the higher the load on the engine and the more fuel it burns.

The gauge saves gas by helping the driver see the effect his right foot has on fuel consumption. Tromp down on the gas pedal and intake vacuum drops and fuel consumption goes up. Take it easy on the gas pedal and accelerate slowly causes less of a drop in intake vacuum and less fuel usage. Duh!

A more hi-tech version is a fuel economy meter that plugs into the OBD II diagnostic connector on 1996 or newer vehicles. The unit displays instantaneous fuel mileage and cumulative fuel mileage like a trip computer on on a vehicle equipped with this option.

FUEL ATOMIZATION

Back in the days when carburetors were used to feed gasoline into the engine, there were a couple of tricks that could improve fuel economy a bit, especially when the engine was cold. One was a simple honeycomb spacer that fit under the carburetor. The turbulence created by the honeycomb helped break up the fuel a bit. Another was an ultrasonic vibrator that mounted under the carburetor. The vibrator also improved fuel atomization slightly -- but only provided a marginal benefit when the engine was cold.

Some engines from that period used an electrically heated grid under the carburetor to improve fuel atomization following a cold start. But like the other devices, the benefit disappeared once the engine reached normal operating temperature.

Today's fuel injected engines atomize the fuel when they spray the fuel into the engine. They don't need intake manifold heaters or other such devices. The most efficient designs are the new high pressure "direct injection" systems that VW uses on some of its engines.

ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY

Other fuel saving tricks that actually work include variable displacement on demand (which is used on the new Chrysler Hemi engines in the 300C and other models), and the start/stop systems that some of the new GM and Ford hybrid vehicles have to turn the engine off when the vehicle sits for more than a few seconds at a stop light to save fuel. Fuel savings attributed to these technical improvements range typically from 5 to 15%.