Grumpy Bears 2015 Silverado 2WD

Grumpy Bear · October 2, 2016

300 mile trip today which brings the miles run at or about 55 mph on primary highways to 1359 miles yielding a shade over 25 mpg. Adding this to the information we accumulated at 50 mph with the grill open and it’s a dead ringer for the 10 mile short term test we did under cross wind conditions.

To me, that makes perfect sense over a longer time period. You would encounter a greater verity of conditions.

Interesting is the fact that the standard deviation is the same. Not numerically but on a percentage bases. 2.5%.

A 5 mph increase resulted in a 17% increase in fuel consumption. A loss of a bit more than 4 mpg.

Grumpy Bear · October 3, 2016

Between Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument and Tucson lies Arizona Highway 86 at a length of roughly 125 miles. A 250 mile two way trip across perhaps the flattest highway I’ve ever driven runs right down the middle of the Tohono O'odham Nation Reservation. There are no stop signs I remember. Almost no traffic. No towns or services of any meaningful size. Just 250 miles of fairly uninterrupted driving in some of the most fuel efficient conditions possible. Provided you’re not there during monsoon season.

I made that run about 15 years ago in a 98 Honda Civic HX 5 speed on a very hot windless day and netted 55 mpg at 55 mph. Highest number it ever recorded in the 200,000 miles I owned it from new. 11 mpg over its EPA highway estimate and 7 mpg over my person next best with the car.

The HX model was Honda’s economy box before the introduction of the Insight the following year and featured a rather novel two sensor wide band AFR strategy coupled with VVT that is pretty common place today.

Under certain conditions it would allow the mix to lean to a maximum and rather scary 22:1 and ignition advance well past 50*. Lean mix flame speeds are creepy slow. Or as rich as 7:1.

Anyway….point is; that particular road permitted best case scenario conditions for close loop extended cycle operation. It was hot enough. Flat enough, slow enough and I was patient enough to maintain that pace for almost six hours, without air conditioning on a 105 F + day. That boy ain’t right but he is a machine. Obtainable but in no way natural results are possible with a bit of knowing.

Mechanically there is little anyone can do to a modern engine that will affect the types of improvements to efficiency we could once hope for and often received tuning in the 60’s. But simply being aware of that is a useful tool. ALL of those things we did then plus a host of new strategies we could not implement or even conceive of are already under the hood today.

We have some room in heat management and some in aero but the remaining larger nuggets lie in understanding the environment. Both that which occurs naturally and that you opportune. Shopping for operational bargains.

That same Honda I exampled above use to give up about 40 mpg driving back and forth to work in the summer. Winter would be closer to 32 even garage kept. Installing a lower radiator block heater on a 3 hour timer restored the winter numbers to nearly summer values and provided instant heat. Just an example. One I'm working on for Pepper right now.

Grumpy Bear · October 4, 2016

Car and Driver tested the 2014 version of the 4.3 Ecotec3 in DCSB trim pounding the quarter to a 16 flat at 87 mph on gas and 15.7 at 89 mph on E-85 making note that the alky performance was in fact quicker than the 07’s 6.2 liter VortecMAX motor and very close to the 2014 LT1’s 15.3 times at 91 mph.

I suppose the main stream may have not noticed that the RCSB 6’6” pickups are about a thousand pounds lighter than the DCSB 5’ Car and Driver tested?

DCSB 5477 lbs. vs the SCSB 4521 lbs.

Yea. That means the 4.3 in the short truck is quicker than the LT1 DCSB. That will frost your pumpkin. Wallace Racing puts it at about 15 flat at 93 mph on gas or 14.75 near 95 mph on alky. That’s a pretty health V6.

Perspective is good. 87 Mustang 5.0 is a f 15 flat car. The 70 Boss 302 14.7. 1968 Plymouth Barracuda 14.7. 67 Camaro SS 15.2. 76 Corvette L48, 16.3. 68 Corvette 327 15.4.

I love my ¾ sized mouse motor.

http://www.zeroto60times.com/

Edited October 4, 2016 by Grumpy Bear

Grumpy Bear · October 5, 2016

I didn’t buy the K&N for the power or for the fuel efficiency claims. I bought it because it’s a really REALLY good air filter I have allot of experience with. Pretty important as filtering air is their job.

It was also $10 off today and the decal is cool.

10,000 Miles today.

Edited October 5, 2016 by Grumpy Bear

Grumpy Bear · October 9, 2016

A set of tire pressure and tread depth gauges were added to my glove box. Not that I don’t have pressure gauges. I have plenty. I have an analog dial gauge and several stick type gauges. What I didn’t’ have was a digital that would read decimal with precision.

With the seasons changes come some rapid and drastic temperature swings that produce some rather large tire pressure swings. I try to stay on top of that.

The factory tire gets a pretty low rating from Tire Rack’s consumer reviews. Chief among the complains is wear and pressure is a large contributing factor. As is basic tire composition and the users specific driving style. I tend to be pretty easy on tires and brakes.

So after 10K miles the wear is 1/32”. Starting with 10 of them and considering 5 my minimum for winter use I project 50K of tire life. Bridgestone wear bars are at 2/32 and driven to the bars would a project 70K life.

Across the tread 35 psig cold has given 9/32 center and a 1/64 less on the outer two ribs or 8-1/2/32. As noted in an earlier post I rotate every 5K.

I’ll bump up pressure 1 psi and give that a look.

Grumpy Bear · October 10, 2016

I was stunned how much difference in pressure there was between the digital and the stick gauge I normally use. 1.5 psi. 35 psig on the stick was anything between 35.5 psig and 37 psig. So…I start over. 35.0 psig and monitor. Okay then different topic.

Somewhere around 1978 I rode a Super Glide 1056 miles in just 22 hours and six minutes and never exceeded 60 mph doing it. That’s an average speed of 47.78 mph. Iron butt patch back the days of the double nickel.

I’ve run hour meters on vehicles for years. Day in, day out 35 mph +/- a smidgen is about as good as it ever got when simply dividing miles by hours for mixed city/highway driving. You can get a around 40-45 mph in primarily highway scenarios over short periods of time in favorable conditions when submitting to lawful limits. Over 45 is some serious Interstate, keep your butt in the seat, time given a 60 mph ceiling. The kind that makes your legs go numb and swell. Stupid really.

Learned some things doing it too about fuel efficiency. Most know that slower is more fuel efficient, as a general rule, but there is also such a thing as too slow. Older cars for example with automatics that do not have lock up clutches or converters can be driven so slow the converter is in constant slip wasting fuel and generating allot of heat. It is why we NOW have lock up clutches. Anyway….

That said, there is absolutely no such thing as too steady.

Steady is that thing that allows you to average a higher percentage of your base speed ceiling.

I drive 4 hours straight at 60 mph and cover 240 miles. Any idea how many times the same car or truck passes me in four hours that is running 70 mph or more? He drives like the wind, then stops and repeats…often. Often enough that at days end we get a room at the same hotel having started and stopped at the same time and traveling the same distance. He just did in on 40% more fuel and exposed himself to allot more risk. He truck to allot more wear and tear.

For a given speed ceiling the higher your running average the higher your MPG.

Grumpy Bear · October 10, 2016

Top to bottom cleaning today and some chip repairs. I found some flat black Rustoleum automotive touch up paint with the Duplicolor paint pens at Advanced Auto. Paint and primer one step.

Front bumper needed a few spots touched up. I’ve seen left alone bumpers. This ain’t going to be that. Speaking of which…..

Fella across the road has a 30 something Chevy sitting in the drive on a pallet just full of pumpkin. No running gear. No frame just a windowless body weathered free of paint for the most part. Know what? It isn’t a rusted though mess.

So Chevy could build a truck body in the 30’s that would last a lifetime but today not so much?

On another but parallel note. Saw a F350 Ford dually sitting in Mickey D’s yesterday. Looked to be about two years old. HUGE chrome grill and bumper. Huge pealing mess is what is was. 60 K for a truck that is falling apart before it can be paid for. Yum. Let me have two.

I traded a brand new Scion iA for this half ton. I actually loved that car but…it got no respect and Rodney would have said. Even at the body shop I was told, “These cars are built to have a five year life, period so we don’t spend much time perfecting them”. Wow!! A 20 year drive train in a five year body. There a Mazda 2. Had it up on a hoist a week or so before I traded it off and spent a good deal of time just looking it over under and over.

You know what the difference it between the this truck and the Mazda in build design and construction technique? Not a darn thing. No different what so ever. They are both built like a soup can. These trucks will not be sitting on some pallet holding anything 75 years from now.

Maybe not even 7 years from now without a huge helping of constant care and a solid prevent defense. If I would have fathomed the bar had fallen this low at GM I would have kept the Scion. It’s not better but it was less than half the price and got twice the mileage.

Well is what it is now. In for a penny. In for a pound. I’ll do the best I can but there will be no second helping.

Grumpy Bear · October 12, 2016

Getting glass clean, especially the interior, is pet peeve of mine. Now that the windows are tinted it is doubly so. I don’t’ often rave a product as there are so few that actually work it’s ridiculous. That said….

“Invisible Glass” has made it to my short list of products that do work.

Over sixty and not as flexible as I once was; spending time contorted is best spent short. This stuff gets it done quickly enough I don’t’ have to visit the chiropractor afterwards.

It not only works but works safely on film tinted glass with equal ease.

Some tips from my tint guy and a few I’ve learned myself.

Interior glass. Distilled water and a wrung damp-dry microfiber to remove the heavy stuff such as smokers haze and the dogs nose prints. No detergent required.

Don’t use paper towels. Many contain a chemical meant to aid wetting action but leave a residue you will chase to your insanity.

Short nap microfiber dry and Invisible Glass. Continue wiping until dry. If you have allot of glass this may take more than one towel.

Never use fabric softener sheets on your microfiber towels. No detergents. If you do so accidently (dryer sheets). Toss them. If they get mixed in with the good ones you can’t tell by eye. Softener sheets on microfiber is like greasing your glass. Powdered detergents may not completely dissolve and leave a hard grit imbedded in the towel. Liquid detergents can fill the spaces in the fiber that make it work. Grit isn't harmful to the glass but gets ugly on the paint in a hurry.

On exterior glass a single edge razor blade will remove tree sap, hard bug guts and anything else sticky. tricky or thick. 0000 steel wool NEW and DRY is glass safe to rid the film left by the razor. Wipe with a wet disposable rag to collect the fine steel fibers (or an air hose works too). Damp wrung dry microfiber to clear any remaining debris field. Then clean as above. If you’ve gone this far Rain-X by the directions.

Don’t forget to wipe the wiper blade edges with a damp rag before setting them on the glass.

Edited October 12, 2016 by Grumpy Bear

paullgj · October 13, 2016

Hi! Great looking truck and build. I'm 71 and also think pickups should be manual transmission. Just took delivery of a vehicle similar to yours - 2016 2wd WT standard cab Silverado, about the lightest and least expensive full size pickup GM makes. Will be following your build thread and probably will start one of my own. Thanks for giving me ideas.

Grumpy Bear · October 13, 2016

Hi! Great looking truck and build. I'm 71 and also think pickups should be manual transmission. Just took delivery of a vehicle similar to yours - 2016 2wd WT standard cab Silverado, about the lightest and least expensive full size pickup GM makes. Will be following your build thread and probably will start one of my own. Thanks for giving me ideas.

Get after it Gene. Would love to read your build thread.

2016fifteenhundred · October 13, 2016

Getting glass clean, especially the interior, is pet peeve of mine. Now that the windows are tinted it is doubly so. I don’t’ often rave a product as there are so few that actually work it’s ridiculous. That said….

“Invisible Glass” has made it to my short list of products that do work.

Over sixty and not as flexible as I once was; spending time contorted is best spent short. This stuff gets it done quickly enough I don’t’ have to visit the chiropractor afterwards.

It not only works but works safely on film tinted glass with equal ease.

Some tips from my tint guy and a few I’ve learned myself.

Interior glass. Distilled water and a wrung damp-dry microfiber to remove the heavy stuff such as smokers haze and the dogs nose prints. No detergent required.

Don’t use paper towels. Many contain a chemical meant to aid wetting action but leave a residue you will chase to your insanity.

Short nap microfiber dry and Invisible Glass. Continue wiping until dry. If you have allot of glass this may take more than one towel.

Never use fabric softener sheets on your microfiber towels. No detergents. If you do so accidently (dryer sheets). Toss them. If they get mixed in with the good ones you can’t tell by eye. Softener sheets on microfiber is like greasing your glass. Powdered detergents may not completely dissolve and leave a hard grit imbedded in the towel. Liquid detergents can fill the spaces in the fiber that make it work. Grit isn't harmful to the glass but gets ugly on the paint in a hurry.

On exterior glass a single edge razor blade will remove tree sap, hard bug guts and anything else sticky. tricky or thick. 0000 steel wool NEW and DRY is glass safe to rid the film left by the razor. Wipe with a wet disposable rag to collect the fine steel fibers (or an air hose works too). Damp wrung dry microfiber to clear any remaining debris field. Then clean as above. If you’ve gone this far Rain-X by the directions.

Don’t forget to wipe the wiper blade edges with a damp rag before setting them on the glass.

Check out Glass Works from Chemical Guys, best glass cleaner I have ever used.

Grumpy Bear · October 14, 2016

https://www.ammonyc.com/

While looking up the Chemical Guys products I ran across a how to video. You know how that goes. Like chips you can't eat just one so.....I ran across this guy's videos then searched for the link to his site and got sucked in.

No one gets to call me picky again.

Edited October 14, 2016 by Grumpy Bear

kstruckcountry · October 14, 2016

I have had great luck with Invisible Glass too. I use a "wet" towel for right after spraying, then another "dry" towel to wipe it again. Works really well.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

Grumpy Bear · October 15, 2016

I'm hooked on these videos. They talk about two towel methods among others. These people are crazy....in a good way. My glass has never looked so good and I still don't know what I'm doing.

Grumpy Bear · October 17, 2016

Having a bit of trouble with the X-Gauge package on the Scan-Gauge I dropped Linear Logic a line for some help. Seems not all GM specific codes will report to the device. That said OBDII codes will; and I was directed to a page on their site that gives those codes.

I’m looking for Barometric pressure and Air Fuel Ratio. The BAR sensor programed without a hitch. The AFR however never changes. Hum. I’ll try again using one of the host of O2 bank outputs and see what I get.

FYI. It reads a rock steady 14.6:1.

Wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been schooled on new technology. First time I got a look at the mapping of my Harley through the eyes of their Race Tuner was the first time I understood the VE of the motor when read on such a device isn’t referenced to the atmosphere outside the motor but the conditions between the intake valve and the butterfly of the carburetor or injector. A motors cylinders can have a 98% VE when the manifold is at 25” HG vacuum when so referenced.

I really do like being a student.