hey guys just wondering what performance upgrades i can do that will boost my hp but wont hurt my gas mileage? or are there some that might even help it? When i talk about gas mileage I mean the mileage i get when I'm taking it easy with the car.

 

i heard an intake actually improves your gas mileage...

 

omg this is like asking..
what kind of chocolate cake can i have without gaining fat

 

None.

The explanation is simple. A motor that makes more horsepower uses more fuel. An example is one 350Z making 250 horsepower and another making 270 horsepower. Weight held constant. The 270 horsepower 350Z will use more fuel.

There are performance mods (such as a clutch) that do not increase horsepower. Fuel use will remain the same.

 

Intake should increase HP and MPG. It does on our Jeeps.

 

how about a final drive... better accel... no extra cost on gas

 

everone on this site has felt the pinc of increasing gas prices but hear is some food for thought:
the more horsepower the more gas and a perfect oxygen mix is needed to supply that power.
well thats the lesson for today,
be safe and have fun driving

 

I believe an Intake would add extra hp and better fuel economy, however; the intake sounds really nice when you mash the gas.. Chances are, you are going to mash the gas to hear the intake resulting in bad gas mileage... hahaha... CATCH 22 no?

 

No. A shorter FD is one of the worst mods for gas mileage. It increases cruising RPM in every gear. That's why our cars are geared so tall for like +180mph even though we don't have the power to ever see those speeds, not to mention the car is limited at 159. A taller FD lowers the cruising RPM and helps fuel economy.

 

^Roast is right. IIRC, the 3.9 changes your 80mph cruise RPM from like 3000 RPM's to like 3300-3400. Doesn't sound like much, but it does make it a little less fuel effecient.

Besides, gas has dropped like .60 per gallon in the last six weeks by me. Who's worrying now? Lol.

 

lighter wheels and tires.

 

are you out of your mind? your rpms will be higher at all speeds.

 

Mods that reduce intake and exhaust restrictions will improve mileage. Why? Becase the engine then has lower pumping loss, the power required to push exhaust out and intake air in. Yes, they will make more horsepower, but most of that is at the high end, and in cruise it results in better mileage. Anything that reduces weight-wheels, exhaust, losing unneeded tools/spare will also increase mileage.

 

How about suspension mods?

 

Lowering has potential to reduce drag as do aero mods, the problem is that most aero mods create more drag/downforce than the stock bodywork. Lowering drag is tough on most cars.

 

Especially a car like ours. It already comes with zero lift. There are really only a couple of kits out there that somehow manage to keep those performance features.

 

Anything that reduces weight would be a good bet

 

Synthetic Oils should help a tad.

Iridium Plugs / K & N Filter (or any free flow filter)

Headers / Performance Exhaust

Better grounding - Questionable

Performance Intake - Smoother flow doesn't choke cylinders which makes others work harder.

Balancing / Blueprinting and polishing internal passages. This is an extreme art to get it just right.

 

For once your wrong. The car comes naturally running rich. You can increase HP by adding boltons, lean out the mixture and while you're running more HP, you're using the same amount of gas. If you dont romp on it like most people do once they have bolt ons, and if everything else is constant, temp, humidty, weight, oil weight, then you actually gain some fuel economy. I gained 5mpg going from 17 to 22 mpg, until i got my most recent exhaust, and it dropped to 15mpg cuz im always on it