[96flmustang]

Well, I got my 93 Mustang 2.3 liter a couple weeks ago. Also new to this site but not to Mustangs. I love it but the gas mileage is horrible. I'm only getting 200 miles on a tank of gas. So I'm going to do a tune up and after searching the forums here I found the NGK plugs were preferred.

What about plug wires? Should I check some other components? I have to get this car up to 25 mpg on the highway at least. Otherwise I will just get the 5.0 motor and drop it in.


Thanks,

Rob

[Cobraman1024]

lol...............after getting 30mpg in my '93 LX 2.3L and it recently dropping down to 21mpg highway, I'm about at the same point you are for dropping a 5.0L into it.......

is your check engine light lit? any codes? does the car feel down on power?----as down as it can be compared to 105hp/135tq lol......

Plug wires-----autolite wires from Autozone should be fine, you don't need anything fancy or expensive

fuel filter?

change oxygen sensor? maybe the catalytic converter is clogged?

clean the fuel injectors?....Seafoam the engine through the PCV vacuum line and watch the smoke show.

its probably an automatic, so T5 swap? lol.......did it to mine and raised mpg from 24 up to 30. seriously though, change the fluid and filter.

clean the maf sensor

thats the basic stuff without going into "performance" modifications that can increase gas mileage.

[zonker]

some things to ponder:

stock 2.3's with an autobox are rated 19 mpg city / 26 mpg hwy

does the gas in your area have ethanol? typically one can see 5-10% lower mpg numbers with corn gas.

check your tire pressures - that makes a huge difference as well. inflate them to 40-45 psi.

also, 4 bangers don't like to pull additional weight around so empty that trunk and limit the amount of crap in the car.

[96flmustang]

Thanks guys.

Its an auto and it really feels like it doesn't have a lot of power but thats what I expected with this engine. Just wanted a cool car with great mileage until I could drop in an old turbo motor from a Tbird or svo.

I ran Seafoam through the brake booster last weekend. Wow, did it smoke. It smoked for like ten minutes. I started to wonder if something was wrong. lol My other Mustangs smoked a lot too but not near as much as this one. I also ran a can through the gas tank. I'm going to change the fuel filter this weekend and change the plugs and wires. After reading some of your posts Zonker, I'm going to try to get the Ranger pulleys, etc and try to boost the mpg up a bit. If it doesn't work, I have five hundred bucks left over that I can use toward dropping in a turbo motor. I have no idea how much doing that would run me.

[Cobraman1024]

For the turbo motor you'll need the computer and the wiring harness pluss your A4LD may not be living too long behind that thing depending on how much life is left in it anyway so figure that stuff into your cost.

Catalytic converters being clogged on these cars is pretty common and will definitely kill performance and especially gas mileage.....I got my 24mpg when there was a straight pipe in place and it still had the A4LD.

[zonker]

Originally Posted by Cobraman1024 Catalytic converters being clogged on these cars is pretty common and will definitely kill performance and especially gas mileage.

+1!!

A rant on Seafoam...

I bet more harm than good is done with people using seafoam directly in their pcv line.

IMO seafoaming a motor is a bad idea... it's best to leave the buildup where it may lie. Using it introduces harsh chemicals to your motor and clogs catalysts.

IT'S JUST NOT GOOD PRACTICE.

The smoke being emitted during and immediately after the process is not some magical fix.

It's just smoke from the seafoam itself burning in the cylinder.

[zonker]

Another urban legend about fuel economy and performance:

Blocking off the EGR will improve power and fuel economy.

Not true.

One of the keys to good fuel economy is keeping a working EGR system on the car. The EGR is there to introduce an inert gas (burned exhaust gases) to mix with the air and fuel during cruise to dilute the amount of air and fuel filling the cylinder which will reduce the cylinder combustion temperatures, allowing for more ignition spark advance on light throttle application.

At full throttle or idle, the valve is shut allowing the full volume of the cylinder to be filled with burnable air and fuel.

So if you want good mpg and longer engine life, do not disconnect it.

[Mikel89us]

Originally Posted by zonker Another urban legend about fuel economy and performance: Blocking off the EGR will improve power and fuel economy. Not true. One of the keys to good fuel economy is keeping a working EGR system on the car. The EGR is there to introduce an inert gas (burned exhaust gases) to mix with the air and fuel during cruise to dilute the amount of air and fuel filling the cylinder which will reduce the cylinder combustion temperatures, allowing for more ignition spark advance on light throttle application. At full throttle or idle, the valve is shut allowing the full volume of the cylinder to be filled with burnable air and fuel. So if you want good mpg and longer engine life, do not disconnect it.

+100

I had this argument when i first joined this forum with a couple people, im glad i am finding more and more people who are not total losses. haha

[96flmustang]

I'll keep those extra things in mind if I decide to do the turbo thing. I think I might just go ahead and remove the cats. I did it on my last Mustang and sounded great. If it will help with gas mileage than thats better. Here in Florida we don't have emissions so I'm sure we can squeeze some extra mileage out of our cars than Zonker can living in CA.

Zonker, you are probably right about the seafoam but it feels so good to see the smoke coming out of the pipes and "thinking" its doing the engine some good. : )

You know, the car is not throwing any codes. I wonder if a local auto parts store could pull codes from a 93 or is that too old?

I've been driving my 96 Sentra the last week until I can take care of this poor mileage with the Mustang. Especially in Orlando gas is like $3.60/gallon. I still have to do the tune up, finish painting the outside trim, put on new door handles. Add fluid to the convertible top motor and try to get it to go up and down properly. Not sure if I'll have time to do all this on Sat. Oh, my wheels are horrible. Gonna need some wheels soon.

[96flmustang]

I def agree with the egr explanation. I will make sure its working properly or leave it alone. Def won't remove it.

I've got 147,000 miles on it. Plus the car sat for 5 months I was told. I wonder if that could be part of the problem.

[zonker]

Originally Posted by 96flmustang Here in Florida we don't have emissions so I'm sure we can squeeze some extra mileage out of our cars than Zonker can living in CA. You know, the car is not throwing any codes. I wonder if a local auto parts store could pull codes from a 93 or is that too old? I've been driving my 96 Sentra the last week until I can take care of this poor mileage with the Mustang. Especially in Orlando gas is like $3.60/gallon.

1. Yes it sucks having smog checks like we do. Removing the cats will help mpg.

2. Checking the codes is easy - Ford Fuel Injection How To Run a Self-Test

3. I just paid $4.29 a gallon. Thanks for reminding me how we get raped out here

[Mikel89us]

You can pull codes with a scanner, AND you can veiw live data stream with the 91 to 93 mustangs. I thought that was pretty cool when i figured it out lol.

[ranger50toy]

You are not the only one geting an arab enema. $4.17 in Michigan last night. I have to disagree with you about the Seafoam. I use it repeatedly every 3-4 months and see a jump in milage after every application.

[OHC230]

A rant on Seafoam...

I bet more harm than good is done with people using Seafoam directly in their pcv line.

IMO seafoaming a motor is a bad idea... it's best to leave the buildup where it may lie. Using it introduces harsh chemicals to your motor and clogs catalysts.

IT'S JUST NOT GOOD PRACTICE.

The smoke being emitted during and immediately after the process is not some magical fix.

It's just smoke from the seafoam itself burning in the cylinder.



Disclaimer: First I would like to say, that my differing opinion here, should not demean or take credit away from Rob (Zonker) whose multiple contributions to this forum have been spot on time and time again. I am simply offering a different opinion.

Carbonization, occurs within an engine, when organic substances, in this case oil and fuel, are turned into a carbon-containing residue through a distillation process, brought on by extreme temperatures, usually above 800 °F.
Since the invention of the combustion engine, engine designers have had to deal with carbon build up and ways to fix or impede it. For decades it was believed that the build up of carbon within a combustion engine, was the solely the result of an excessively rich fuel mixture, coupled with elevated temperatures. More modern research has shown that while this is a factor, it is a fairly small part of the equation and it is in fact; excessive amounts of oil being fed to certain parts of an engine, which starts and sustains the process.

“De-carbonizing is a common “FACTORY SANCTIONED” process and many "auto manufactures" have developed their own products and procedures for de-carbonizing their cars and trucks.

The type of oil in the engine plays a huge role in the build up of carbon deposits and over the years we have seen a continuous improvement in terms of reducing carbon deposition.

As far as de-carbonizing products, chemically dissolving parts of your engine:

“NO COMERCIALLY AVAILABLE DECARBONIZER THAT I KNOW OF, WILL CHEMICALLY DISOVLE YOUR ENGINE WHEN USED PROPERLY”



If you are really curious, here is a table of Acids that dissolve metals, just in case you want to do that. BTW, it takes a long time to dissolve most metals;

Gold, Au Aqua regia solution, HCl / HNO3 (3:1)
Platinum, Pt Hot aqua regia solution, HCl / HNO3 (3:1)
Silver, Ag NH4OH / H2O2 (1:1)
Palladium, Pd Hot aqua regia solution, HCl / HNO3 (3:1)
Copper, Cu H2O / HNO3 (1:5)
Chromium, Cr HCl / H2O2 (3:1)
Nickel, Ni HF / HNO3 (1:1)
Lead, Pb Acetic acid, HC2H3O2 / H2O (1:1) or dilute HNO3
Molybdenum, Mo Hot concentrated H2SO4
Tin, Sn HF / HNO3 (1:1) or HF / HCl (1:1)
Titanium, Ti HF / HNO3 / H2O (1:1:50) or H2O / HF / H2O2 / H2O (1:1:20) or HF / H2O / ethylene glycol (2:1:22)
Iron , Fe H2SO4 / H2O (1:1) or HCl / H2O (1:1) or HNO3 / H2O (1:1)




While working as an automotive machinist, I realized a long time ago that carbon build–up is very common on most engines and has a profound effect on engine performance. This is even more true of your 2300, since the heads are on the weak side to begin with and have some pretty restrictive choke points which coincidently occur in areas where carbon build up will affect performance the most, in this case on the tops of valves.

As for ruining the catalytic converter; I’ll pose this as a question for the rest of you even though I all ready know the answer. Where…..does most of the oil your engine consumes go? If you thought it just gets burned up, go light some on fire with matches or a lighter for the rest of us and “PLEASE” take a picture.

[96flmustang]

An arab enema. LOL. Never heard that one before. I'm starting to read that these high gas prices might be hear to stay. Thats even more good reason to get this car running properly.

Thanks for the info on the scanning of the codes and the carbon build up info. I'm glad to see the different opinions on here and how things are discussed in a orderly manner. I have been looking over this site for a couple months now and have really gotten some great information. I'm glad I finally joined.

[zonker]

OHC, you're such the diplomat...

Good info on the carbon buildup there and the list of acids that dissolve metal.

As for me, I'm not concerned that the seafoam itself will dissolve the metal. I would think no aftermarket company in their right mind would offer up something like that as a cleaner.

I'm more concerned about the lack of lubrication / chafing that potentially could occur when you add a oil scrubbing detergent additive in such a large volume such as feeding it into your intake manifold under high vacuum.

I can appreciate using seafoam thru the gas tank / fuel injectors because it will not be such a violent amount and it will attack the intake valve buildup as well. I'd even add it to the oil too if I suspected the motor had a sludge buildup problem.

And if you truly have a carbon problem, like irregular compression readings, noticeable loss of power, excessive oil usage (over a quart per 1000 miles), and pre-ignition issues (assuming a stock motor, since we all now that can occur from other more racy things), then maybe... just maybe... i'd settle on giving it a go as a latch ditch effort before I pronounced the motor dead.

But for regular maintenance on a motor that does not burn oil... that makes as much sense to me as going to a medical specialist for an MRI scan as a yearly health checkup.

Both can cause more harm than good by offering up other side effects. Regular MRI's will degrade your body thru radiation. Regular seafoam smoke fests will decrease longevity thru potenial loss of adequate lubrication and if you really overfeed the motor, a hydro-locked cylinder.