How can I improve MPG on 94 Honda Passport

[105]

Its a 4WD V6 and this car gets 16mpg at best. It sucks! What do you guys think about this to improve MPG:

1. air intake upgrade
2. exhaust cutout
3. Underdrive pulley, if they make one
3. remove 5th wheel and wheel mount on back
4. remove rusted trailer hitch
5. remove rear seats
6. somehow remove the 4WD lol, i have no idea

[bajapointe]

Buy a Ford Escape hybrid and see what happens.

[FL2002Z28]

Max out the tire pressure if you can and put Amsoil in all places where lubricants are in. The Amsoil will reduce the friction on the engine and transfer cases. I'd heard of people with Ford F-350 7.3L duallys getting 5 MPG more from switching to Amsoil. I heard of another guy with a Dodge Cummins Turbo-Diesel getting 4-1/2 MPG more.

Try it. If you don't like it, go back to what you are using now.

Click on the Amsoil sponsor button.

[QTRHRSE]

yes tire pressure is a big one!! but also try to change the fuel filter and use fuel injector cleaner, if you can try to get the darn thing tuned! if you have the windows down dont use the a/c... i know theres always the debate about whats better, windows down or windows up and a/c... but defintely dont do windows down AND a/c...
also try running a one-stage thinner oil... instead of 10-30 try 5-20 or something like that, reduce the windage

and dont use a bug shield or vent visors... i know its stupid but every little bit helps right

[FL2002Z28]

Switching to 5W20 won't make a noticable difference in gas mileage. Also I tried changing my fuel filter and it made no noticable differences in mileage, even though the fuel filter should be changed every so often. Check the owners manual to see how often to change the fuel filter. I changed mine at 30,000 miles. I also saw another improvement from driving under 60 MPH. I know in many places, this is not possible. I couldn't do that in South Florida as the speed limits are 70 MPH and most people drive from 70-90 on I-95 and I-75 down there.

Since I am in the oil business, this is an email I send to customers who use 5W20 and I try to get them to use the 0W30 since it has much longer drain intervals... This message may give some of you a little education:
----------------
My research has uncovered the following from a SAE technical paper written by Mobil Research and Development Corp. in 1975. "Research Oil 5 (RO-5) is a conventional 5W-20 viscosity mineral oil product containing an API SE quality additive treatment, but that it may be deficient in some API SE engine performance requirements. RO-6 is also a 5W-20 viscosity and API quality SE but utilizes all-ester (synthetic) base stock components. Adequate wear protection with conventional 5W-20 viscosity mineral oils has been difficult to achieve under moderate and high temperature operating conditions." Mobil's new 5W-20 synthetic formulation, XRN 1669 "has been evaluated in both laboratory and field tests to determine its antiwear performance. In all cases, wear protection equal to or better than premium API SE quality SAE 10W-40 mineral oils has been provided by this experimental formulation"

Now, keep in mind that this is from almost 30 years ago. My intent here is to show that 5W-20 is not a new viscosity of oil. It just never became widely used. The most popular motor oils back in that era for automotive use were typically 10W-40 and in later years 10W-30 and 5W-30. What this data indicated is that a 5W-20 petroleum oil provides adequate engine protection under normal operating conditions, but does not compare to a premium quality 5W-20 synthetic in moderate and high temperature operating conditions. The new 5W-20 oils of today are formulated to meet the latest API SL performance specifications and are perfectly suitable for use in your new vehicle that specifies 5W-20, however my personal opinion is that there are superior oils to use that not only meet the 5W-20 performance specifications, but also exceed them.

Here is a brief discussion of some of the most common questions consumers have regarding the 5W-20 motor oil that is specified for their new vehicle.

Question: My owners manual species 5W-20 oil. Do I really need to use 5W-20 oil and why did my 2000 model year vehicle require a 5W-30 oil, while the same engine in my 2001, 2002, 2003, and later engines "requires" a 5W-20 oil?

Answer: You do not need to use a 5W-20 oil. Do not let your dealer scare you by telling you that you have to use it for your warranty. That is a tactic that some dealerships use to scare customers. Once you know the facts and the Federal Magnusson Moss Act law you will be much better informed to protect your rights and use the type of oil you want to use.

One of the main reasons 5W-20 was specified for your engine is to increase the CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) reported to the Federal Government. CAFE is the combined average fuel economy of all of a vehicle manufacturers product line. Minimum CAFE levels are specified by the Federal Government. In order for a vehicle manufacturer to continue selling profitable large trucks and SUV's, which typically have poor fuel mileage ratings, as compared to smaller cars, and still meet mandated CAFE requirements, they must also sell enough of the smaller cars which have much better fuel economy ratings to offset the poor fuel economy ratings of the larger vehicles. The change to a 5W-20 oil will allow a manufacturers overall CAFE to increase by a very small amount, typically in the tenths of a mile per gallon range. 5W-20 oil is a lighter viscosity than a 5W-30 oil and therefore has less internal engine frictional losses, or less drag on the crankshaft, pistons and valve train, which in turn promotes increased fuel economy. This increased fuel economy is virtually undetectable to the average motorist without the use of specialized engine monitoring and testing equipment under strictly controlled test track driving when compared to a 5W-30, 10W-30 or a 0W-30 viscosity motor oil.

Question: Could using a 5W-30, 10W-30, 0W-30 or even a 10W-40 or 20W-50, oil in my vehicle which specifies a 5W-20 oil void my new car warranty?

Answer: Absolutely not. Vehicle manufacturers recommend using motor oils meeting certain viscosity grades and American Petroleum Institute service requirements. Whether a motor oil is a 5W-20, 0W-30, 5W-30, 10W-30, 10W-40, 15W-40 or 20W-50 (for certain racing and high performance applications) or even a synthetic vs. a petroleum based oil will not affect warranty coverage. The manufacturer is required by Federal Law to cover all equipment failures it would normally cover as long as the oil meets API service requirements and specifications and was not the cause of failure. In addition, the Federally mandated Magnuson - Moss Act states that a manufacturer may not require a specific brand or type of aftermarket product unless it is provided free of charge. If your dealership continues to tell you that you must use 5W-20 motor oil and or/ a specific brand of 5W-20 motor oil (and will not provide it free of charge), then ask them to put it in writing and then contact an attorney. Their position is inaccurate, and, in fact violates existing law.

Additionally, if there is ever a question of whether or not a particular motor oil was the cause of an engine failure make sure to get a sample of the used oil in a clean bottle, typically 6 oz. minimum. The oil can then be sent to an independent ASTM certified testing lab for analysis. This is standard procedure for most commercial vehicles, trucking, construction/excavation and fleet companies and there are many certified test labs all over the country. Remember, a knowledgeable and informed consumer is your best defense against being taken advantage of by a car dealership service center.

Question: My car dealership service center states that I must use 5W-20 because the oil passages inside my engine are smaller and a higher viscosity oil will not properly flow through them. Is this a true statement?

Answer: Absolutely not. That is ridiculous to assume that a manufacturer would purposely make the oil galleys and passages smaller. There is no technical or cost/performance benefit to doing this whatsoever. My inspection of oil galleys, pistons, bearings, crankshafts, oil pumps and passages from pre-5W-20 engines to the same size and brand of engines that specify 5W-20 indicate there are no measurable differences in the oil passages in these components.

For those consumers that still desire to use a 5W-20 oil, once again one specific manufacturer, AMSOIL INC., does manufacture an excellent extended drain interval 5W-20 synthetic motor oil, called XL-7500 5W-20. It is a 7500 mile/6-month motor oil and the only 7500 mile/6-month 5W-20 on the market that I am aware of. AMSOIL's 5W-20 synthetic motor oil provides outstanding wear protection and increased power, performance and fuel economy in high and low temperatures and also meets and exceeds the manufacturers specifications. Other conventional 5W-20 motor oils must be changed at the manufacturers specified change intervals. If 5W-20 becomes more popular and widespread in use in the coming years more oil companies may offer 5W-20 oils, however at this time the selection is not as varied as with other viscosity motor oils

My personal recommendation is for even better performance and protection to use AMSOIL's Series 2000 0W-30 synthetic motor oil. This is the top performing AMSOIL Synthetic Motor Oil for gasoline powered light trucks and passenger cars. It uses race-proven technology and provides unsurpassed fuel efficiency and superior wear protection than other conventional and synthetic motor oils. It is a 35,000 mile/1-year change interval motor oil. Use it in conjunction with AMSOIL's Absolute Effeciency Oil Filter's that specify a change interval of 25,000 miles/1-year, whichever comes first.

[105]

Originally Posted by FL2002Z28

Max out the tire pressure if you can and put Amsoil in all places where lubricants are in. The Amsoil will reduce the friction on the engine and transfer cases. I'd heard of people with Ford F-350 7.3L duallys getting 5 MPG more from switching to Amsoil. I heard of another guy with a Dodge Cummins Turbo-Diesel getting 4-1/2 MPG more.

Try it. If you don't like it, go back to what you are using now.

Click on the Amsoil sponsor button.

I have a small oil leak in this car, won't synthetic oil cause it to leak more. I've heard the molecules of synthetic oil are smaller so it will pass the seals more easily. I've never tried it though. I use Mobile 1 in my Z, works great.

Thanks for the advice guys!

[FL2002Z28]

Synthetic oil doesn't cause leaks.

I just wish everyone would start with synthetics when the cars are new and keep using them. There's no real reason to use conventional oil except durnig the initial break in. Conventional oils are too expensive and cause unnecessary wear and tear on drive-train internals. Anytime you put conventional oil in your engine, you're simply sending your money to IRAQ which isn't right. Keep the money in the country.

[105]

I'll definately give it a try. What type of amsoil do you recommend for the passport? It looks like a lot of people are using 5w30 or 5w40 on their ls1's.

[Screamin_99]

wow this thread is crazy.

best thing to do is get a air intake upgrade like you said.
change the oil and filter.
change your fuel filter.
just regular stuff.

Plugs and Wires.


If your car once got good/better gas mileage and now its getting bad.. you jsut gotta keep up on regular matiance work!

you shouldnt have to remove seats and such just to get MPGS back.. that makes it lighter lol which may help some but not enough to tell!

[FL2002Z28]

You shouldn't be using a 40 weight oil on an LS1 unless it has a ton of miles on it (I mean A LOT) and the engine is worn out. I had to do this with an old Hyundai Accent. After I switched to a thicker weight oil, the oil consumption went away. The previous owner didn't maintain the vehicle well.

The '94 Passport 4 and 6-cylinder both use an EaO20 oil filter. This filter is to be changed every 1-year or 25,000 miles, whichever comes first.

Amsoil recommends either 0W30 (product TSO), 10W30 (product ATM) or product 5W30.

The 0W30 is supposed to be changed every 1-year or 35,000 miles, whichever comes first.
The 10W30 is supposed to be changed every 1-year or 25,000 miles whichever comes first.

Just so you don't think I put a typo for the 0W30 and meant 3,500 miles, I just took a picture of the back of the label on the bottle. It says to change the Amsoil filter every 12,500 miles, but that was before they came out with their new EAO oil filters. The SDF filters has to be changed every 6-months or 12,500 miles. They no longer sell the SDF filters. They need to update their labels.

Here's the label on the back of the bottle. They even proudly show some of the competition on the back. I don't know of ANY oil company who would do that. They couldn't put that stuff on back unless it was true.



As you can see, Mobil 1 rated as one of the worst. People just keep using Mobil because they buy into their massive advertising. I know I did. How are you supposed to tell unless somebody went and paid big bucks for an independent test. Amsoil did. They paid a 3rd party company to analyze a bunch of the most popular oils.

I spoke with another guy who owns a Ford Explorer. He went from 19 to 21 MPG after switching to Amsoil. Not a bad deal. The gas mileage ends up paying for the oil. Amsoil costs me absolutely nothing now because of the massive savings I'm getting on fuel.

I have over 20,000 miles on the same oil right now and my gas mileage is still great. I changed the filter a few days ago. Some of the old oil came out with the filter. There's absolutely no sludge at all. The oil still flows perfectly. I can't wait until I hit 35,000 with it or 1-year. I want to get the oil analysis done.

Who do you guys recommend to do the anaylsis?

Also... one thing to keep in mind... You'll notice that other synthetic oils always compare themselves to "Conventional Oil" in their ads. Amsoil didn't wimp out here. To keep things on a level playing field, they compared themselves to OTHER SYNTHETICS. Any synthetic will be better than conventional oil made from crude oil. Amsoil blows away ALL conventional oil AND ALL other synthetic oils. If you would have talked to me about these 5+ years ago, I would have told you I thought they were all the same. Back then, I did absolutely no research.

[105]

Thanks for all the info! I'm probably going to try it on my Z too because I've read in another thread that it will reduce that sewing machine sound of the engine, or piston slap. I can't stand it!

I don't think I will take the rear seats out of the passport.

[FL2002Z28]

My '02 still has a little piston slap. It's not a cure-all oil. It did help with my oil consumption and gas mileage. Not only that, it's saving me money all around. Use it the way they recommend and you'll be happy. I know it's hard to swallow the 25,000 and 35,000 mile oil changes. When I first went over 10,000 miles on oil, I was totally freaking out. I never went that far in my life. But after doing it in several cars so far, I've had zero problems. The oil works exactly the way the company says it does. In over 33 years, they've never had an engine failure due caused by using their oil. I've read TONS and TONS of documentation on their products. If there was ANYTHING and I mean ANYTHING better, I'd be using it myself. Go down to the pits of NASCAR and you'll see over 80% of NASCAR using this stuff. Not just the oils, but the wheel bearing greases and all kinds of stuff.

[105]

What do you guys think about a cutout, or will it lose too much back pressure. The stock sound of this car is terrible it sounds like a house AC except louder. I've found intake setups for around $30, it would be cool if I could do a cheap exhaust mod to compliment it. By the way, this stock 3.2 liter produces 175 hp.

[FL2002Z28]

With only 175 HP, I guess I'd be trying anything. I would think you would need a better intake to take advantage of it.

My Saturn Vue has a 3.5L in it. 250 HP out of that sucker. It's amazing what they are getting out of 6-cylinder engines these days. It has the same engine that's used in the Honda Pilot and Acura MDX. I should one day put a better exhaust and intake as well. The engine doesn't pull hard all the way to 5,000. It's like it gives up past 3,000 RPM's... similar to what my LT1 used to to. Then when I put a K&N cold air kit, new throttle body and new exhaust, the engine would go right to 6,000 RPM's with no problems at the expense of a loud exhaust.

[lt1kid]

so, speaking of amsoil, which grade should be used in a 02 mercury sable, 3.0 v6, with 50k miles? i got this as a daily driver, and well gas wasnt as good as expected, but i like the car. is there also a auto tranny fluid that they make? im willing to give it a try, to see if i notice the difference.