> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-dakota-truck@bent.twistedbits.net
> [mailto:owner-dakota-truck@bent.twistedbits.net]On Behalf Of Brett
> Forehand
> Sent: Monday, March 03, 2003 9:52 PM
> To: dakota-truck@dakota-truck.net
> Subject: DML: RayB adds 2 mpg to my Dak!
>
> Hey RayB,
> I know you've told me before, (didn't believe you) and I recently
> read your
> post to someone else here on the DML concerning a factory
> can/fresh air tube
> vs. the open element filter (FIPK clone)on a GenII (still didn't believe
> you).
>
> With the price of premium being about 1.85 to 1.91 a gallon here,
> I decided
> to take your advice. I tried it out myself on a trip to and from
> Miami last
> week. I used the factory canister with a drop in 10" K+N. My setup only
> has one fresh air hose attached to the grill. I normally average
> about 16.6
> mpg on the highway with my 14" open element K+N. On this trip, I
> got 18.8
> mpg! That is also running the air conditioner the whole trip. Sorry for
> you guys up north, but it was 85-89 degrees here last week.
>
> Hallelujah Ray, I'm a believer!> Later, Brett Forehand
> '94 Dakota CC Sport 5.2 Auto
Hey Brett,
Glad to hear it worked out for you. Even with all my mods I still average
20.4 mpg on my annual trip to Indy for our bracket finals. (400 mile r/t,
a/c on, cruise set at 70) Yeah, I know my RC is lighter than your CC so your
mileage is really good.
I trust you've removed the factory splash shield in front of the intake
opening at the grill. To keep bugs and water out of it on the street, I
used just the flat part of that shield, drilled 4 small holes in it and
attached it to the horizontal bars of the grill with zip ties. On the
street I position it to cover the opening and I just slide it over while at
the track. Do you get the infamous love bugs on your side of the state?
As you know, I'm a bracket racer, and to be successful at this one has to
know what effect every little change in the weather can do to your
performance. If I'm evaluating something that can be easily changed at the
track I'll make 2 baseline runs, change something, make 2 more runs, then
change it back for 2 more runs. That way I know for sure what, if anything,
caused a change in performance. If it can't be changed at the track, I'll
rely on my records to evaluate it and leave it on long enough to establish
an average.
I've been doing this with the Dak for 10 years and took it from a stock
15.90 to it's current 13.74. Back when I started there was no solid
information on what to do for more performance so I bought everything that
came on the market over the years. Talk about disappointments! I could
write a book (so to speak) on what really works on these and what just
drains your wallet. Want to know the value of 94 vs. 92 octane fuel,
billet TBs, aftermarket ignitions, colder spark plugs, plug gaps, plug
indexing, K&N filters, short belts, electric fans, flow matched or larger
injectors, TPS adjustments, catalytic converters, etc.? You won't believe
it. :-) That's ok, no one else does either. So....why is mine faster. ;-)
At every Mopar event I've attended, people look at my engine, ask what I've
done and why I'm not using (insert trick product of the month). When I tell
them I've tried it and it slowed me down they want to impress me with how
much more performance they got with it. So then I ask them, if it makes all
that difference, why aren't they as quick or as fast as I am. Well, they're
always sure they would be but they decided not to race that day. :-)
Here's an example from the '70's I'm extremely fond of.... I was racing my
bone stock '69 Charger R/T (440) with only fine tuning, exhaust cut-outs
with stock manifolds, 3.55 gears and slicks. Met a guy with another '69
Charger R/T who had added a cam, aluminum intake manifold, holley carb,
headers, 4.10 gears and slicks. Mine idled so smoothly you could barely
hear it run. His loped like an all-out race car. Only problem was I was
running 13.60's @ 104 mph while he could only turn 14.20's @ 98 mph.
Wouldn't you know, he insisted for the rest of the year that I would be
quicker if only I would make the changes he had. :-) Yeah, sure!
BTW, met a guy over at Orlando Speed World a few years ago running a Gen II
dak with a 360 engine. It was a trailered race truck running 12.20's that
night. Guess what he used for air intake......yep, identical to mine.
Stock little canister/filter with a second snorkel added. And his throttle
body was the billet 4-bbl type. I think that proves the stock system has
adequate capacity and the key to performance is temperature management.
Whew, sorry I got so long winded. I joined the DML to learn more and share
my experiences so others didn't waste all the money I have but I've
discovered that the people selling performance products carry a lot more
clout than someone like me who has no vested interest in pushing a
particular product.
RayB
http://www.dragtruk.com/ENTRIES/20KM1FD2KWBP.html
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Fri Feb 06 2004 - 11:45:58 EST