Quantum Leaps

[Grumpy Bear]

 EPA Gasoline MPG                     EPA E85 MPG

 

20 Combine                             14 Combine

18 City                                      12 City

24 Highway                              16 Highway 

 

 

110 2014-2018 Silverado’s with the 4.3 Ecotec3 Flex motor reporting 1.7 Million miles produced the chart below the text. (Fuelly.com)

 

For all 2015’s 5,478,925 miles logged for 270 trucks across all motors and body styles of the K2XX fair about the same averaging 16.56 mpg combine.

 

The US Department of Energy says light truck drivers average 11,712 miles per year.

 

Worktruckonline.com makes a note that particulate filter service for diesel truck service intervals is 100,000 miles OR 3000 hours which equates to 33.3 MPH on such a basis. Ford Fleet services make is about 36 MPH on the same basis for gasoline trucks. A ballpark number. Just something to work with.

 

So how does Pepper stack up?

 

She has 5.43 years of driving logged in 21 months.

Miles/engine hours has her at 41 mph.

Fuel economy lifetime average is 26.5 mpg and still climbing.

 

So I put on over 5X more miles at a 20% faster average pace and use 47% less fuel doing it. 32.5% less fuel that the EPA test for this truck.

 

The question isn't: "What do I know you don't know". 

 

The question is; "What do you do to a truck to get 18 MPG as a National average?"

 

 

 

 

Edited May 26, 2018 by Grumpy Bear

[Grumpy Bear]

Opinion 

 

Merriam Webster defines it as; “a belief stronger than impression and less strong than positive knowledge”.

 

Meaning opinion cannot be ‘positive knowledge’; yet people are willing to argue a thing they know for a fact isn’t necessarily true, or do they? Do they actually know their opinion is nothing more than a personally held belief?

 

When responding to a thread that possess a question it is assumed that replies are indeed opinions. As such we feel entitled to argue the point. We feel obliged too. Why do we assume that the offer is opinion?

 

English is hard. For example when someone ask what your favorite ice cream flavor is we may say vanilla and someone else strawberry and we view those as opinions but your favorite flavor isn’t an opinion at all; it is a fact and one that is not shared by all people that even like ice cream. It’s really a preference and who can argue ones preference is superior to someone else’s?

 

I suppose I have but in general I try not to offer my opinion unless it is asked for specifically. I will state my preferences and my reasons for those preferences but they are hardly worth a fight. Mine or anyone else’s.

 

Besides what opinion may offer or preferences my dictate there are in some cases things that can be know through science and math but they have useful limits. Oh the science and math isn’t wrong but it’s practical application may be difficult and sometimes nearly impossible to replicate so that the math and the observations are a dead match. It can predict an outcome but it cannot guarantee that outcome unless all particulars are met to the finest of detail.

 

I find calculations based on such science and math useful. So does the remainder of the world. We have put man on the moon with such works. We buy and sell with those methods and we entrust our very lives to those same methods in the hands of people we will never meet, so I feel pretty good about offering those.

 

Then there is the world of one’s experience. If you’ve never baked bread is it wise to argue with a baker about the ingredients that make bread because you read on Google something other than the bakers word when you ask?

 

Stihl Power Equipment has a canned two stroke fuel promoted as a cure for the fuel lacquer/gum that puts your weed whip or leaf blower I the shop every year.

 

That can says; Contains no olefins, aromatics or alcohols and is made 50:1 with premium synthetic oil. Cost? $35 a gallon!! So I’m talking to the Stihl dealer and explaining the label to him.

 

I explain the olefins are as rare in nature as hair on a billiard ball. They are manufactured at great expense as precursors to other more profitable chemical reactions and have names like Butene. Ethylene. Propene and Hexene. They are not part of the natural distillation of gasoline as in not present in any crude naturally and way too expensive to use as a worthless low octane additive. Thus olefin free is a natural condition of all commercial gasoline. (I put almost ten years into a 1.1 BILLION pound a year Ethylene production plant for the purpose of making polyethylene.)

 

I further explain that gasoline by definition is in large part aromatic. Toluene and Xylene the two bulk aromatic components and what Stihl is actually saying is ‘contains no benzene ring aromatics’ which by law have be ban from gasoline for about 30 or more years. Thus, again, true of all gasoline.

 

Contains no alcohols also true of all gasoline before it is added.

 

Synthetic Oil could mean as little as 5% hydrocracked based stocks blended with good old Dino juice.

 

Basically Stihl has sold you a can of gas with what is likely the cheapest from of what can be “Legally” termed as synthetic at a cost that is under a buck a gallon at the blend rack for 35 times that cost that contains allot of detergent. The can it is packaged in cost more than then fuel the can contains. In fact you could buy pump alcohol free gasoline, blend a really good ‘known’ Group IV/V synthetic oil then add 1 ounce per 1.5 gallons of Techron and have a winter stable brew for about $5 a gallon retail. That and run your equipment dry for storage.

 

Know what he wants to do? Argue that his brochure and Stihl knows more about gasoline than the guy who has made tens of thousands of barrels of it. Go figure.

 

I know what I know and I don’t know what I don’t know and I know which is which.

 

I’ve allowed myself to get sucked into such silliness. It’s a flaw I need to work on.

[Grumpy Bear]

“I see stupid people. I see them everywhere”

 

Warranty and Extended Warranty. The factory gives one and the other is a purchase. People obsess over their warranties to the point of paralysis. It’s fine I suppose that such fear keeps one from doing something stupid but it also appears to keep people from doing something smart. What’s that? Take care of the thing like it’s the last one on earth.

 

Ever hear the saying, “No such thing as a free lunch”? Ever hear of the ‘protection rackets”? Who do you think pays for your warranty repairs? You do…you paid for them before you needed them buried in the price of your truck or in premiums. And paid enough I might add that on average the manufacture or insurer can and does count on it as a revenue source. Cream right off the top of the can.

 

Like insurance; and a warranty is insurance in the strictest definition of the term, is the reason items with a warranty, health care and drugs cost so much. The very thing they were supposed to help us with, cost us our lunch. That money doesn’t only fund research, defray cost and pay for repair/replacement. I pays for profits. Oh it isn’t that a collective couldn’t be a good idea. Everyone pitches in a penny so no one has to pay a dime would work if it were not for? Do I need to say it? Okay…GREEDY PEOPLE taking advantage.

 

Not just the one offering the warranty but those who abuse it as well keep running the cost higher. Still as much as that aspect irritates me it isn’t even my main concern nor that of this post.

 

Maintenance. Not the maintenance by letter of the warranty contract either. That schedule has its own agenda. Manufacture profit. It does so in a two pronged attack. Get you to replace items that don’t need replacement for starters. Then maintain it just well enough to have it drop dead at the next product cycle. GREED.

 

“I see stupid people. I see them everywhere”. Or maybe he said dead people. Either way it works.   

[KARNUT]

“I see stupid people. I see them everywhere”

 
Warranty and Extended Warranty. The factory gives one and the other is a purchase. People obsess over their warranties to the point of paralysis. It’s fine I suppose that such fear keeps one from doing something stupid but it also appears to keep people from doing something smart. What’s that? Take care of the thing like it’s the last one on earth.
 
Ever hear the saying, “No such thing as a free lunch”? Ever hear of the ‘protection rackets”? Who do you think pays for your warranty repairs? You do…you paid for them before you needed them buried in the price of your truck or in premiums. And paid enough I might add that on average the manufacture or insurer can and does count on it as a revenue source. Cream right off the top of the can.
 
Like insurance; and a warranty is insurance in the strictest definition of the term, is the reason items with a warranty, health care and drugs cost so much. The very thing they were supposed to help us with, cost us our lunch. That money doesn’t only fund research, defray cost and pay for repair/replacement. I pays for profits. Oh it isn’t that a collective couldn’t be a good idea. Everyone pitches in a penny so no one has to pay a dime would work if it were not for? Do I need to say it? Okay…GREEDY PEOPLE taking advantage.
 
Not just the one offering the warranty but those who abuse it as well keep running the cost higher. Still as much as that aspect irritates me it isn’t even my main concern nor that of this post.
 
Maintenance. Not the maintenance by letter of the warranty contract either. That schedule has its own agenda. Manufacture profit. It does so in a two pronged attack. Get you to replace items that don’t need replacement for starters. Then maintain it just well enough to have it drop dead at the next product cycle. GREED.
 
“I see stupid people. I see them everywhere”. Or maybe he said dead people. Either way it works.   

Most extended warranty’s are a waste of money, true. I can give one exception. During the research process of a vehicle my wife wanted a Genesis we found the car had a good rating with the exception of the blue tooth navigation. My wife likes to keep her vehicles a long time. Replacement of Bluetooth, navigation, backup camera is pricey. She bumped up her warranty to 10 year 100K Miles for a grand. She’s now at 7 years and 80K miles. Two replacement of the combo at 700$ per, free. You ad in that most people go 6 year car payments, so sometimes it makes sense.


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[Grumpy Bear]

2 hours ago, KARNUT said:

Most extended warranty’s are a waste of money, true. I can give one exception. During the research process of a vehicle my wife wanted a Genesis we found the car had a good rating with the exception of the blue tooth navigation. My wife likes to keep her vehicles a long time. Replacement of Bluetooth, navigation, backup camera is pricey. She bumped up her warranty to 10 year 100K Miles for a grand. She’s now at 7 years and 80K miles. Two replacement of the combo at 700$ per, free. You ad in that most people go 6 year car payments, so sometimes it makes sense.

There is always an exception to anything man touches. My point was then lost.

 

People fail to do what ought be done in fear of loosing it's perceived protections. 

[KARNUT]

There is always an exception to anything man touches. My point was then lost.
 
People fail to do what ought be done in fear of loosing it's perceived protections. 

I’m afraid not being college educated I don’t follow you sometimes. I started at 12 working on a farm, then for my father after getting my license. He only stayed in school till the 8th grade. He manage to build a successful business. Later on we his boys joined him and are going strong today. I recently retired. I basically cruise this site to offer what I have experience, not saying one size fits all. I’ve have trained 100s of people, usually with the same education background as myself to successfully operate the equipment we sell. So I have a pretty good read on the human condition. So in conclusion I can only summarize you think I blew your factual statement, I was only showing there are exceptions to every rule. Or maybe I miss understood.


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[Grumpy Bear]

1 hour ago, KARNUT said:

I’m afraid not being college educated I don’t follow you sometimes. I started at 12 working on a farm, then for my father after getting my license. He only stayed in school till the 8th grade. He manage to build a successful business. Later on we his boys joined him and are going strong today. I recently retired. I basically cruise this site to offer what I have experience, not saying one size fits all. I’ve have trained 100s of people, usually with the same education background as myself to successfully operate the equipment we sell. So I have a pretty good read on the human condition. So in conclusion I can only summarize you think I blew your factual statement, I was only showing there are exceptions to every rule. Or maybe I miss understood.


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Not to worry Stan. No offence even thought. My humor is odd sometimes. I'm sure you have taken note the number of times the "will it effect my warranty' card is drawn from the deck. This question often follows some oratory on a product, procedure or service that is being delayed that is actually a better service, procedure or product than the one the manufacture specifies. By the time the warranty is over, damage done. 

 

Some are ludicrous. One of my favorites has been GM will void your warranty if you rust proof your truck. Even if they could, and they can't, holding off until the rust has taken hold to keep a warranty they will 'loophole' out of anyway? C'mon man. Briggs and Stratton is now saying you never have to change your oil in their equipment or so I'm told. Really? Anyway.... 

 

I understand there are always loopholes and exceptions and I'm not offended that they get equal print as long as no one is offended by my pointing out some rather silly behaviors that are common enough to be the rule those exceptions are being drawn from.  

 

 

[KARNUT]

Not to worry Stan. No offence even thought. My humor is odd sometimes. I'm sure you have taken note the number of times the "will it effect my warranty' card is drawn from the deck. This question often follows some oratory on a product, procedure or service that is being delayed that is actually a better service, procedure or product than the one the manufacture specifies. By the time the warranty is over, damage done. 
 
Some are ludicrous. One of my favorites has been GM will void your warranty if you rust proof your truck. Even if they could, and they can't, holding off until the rust has taken hold to keep a warranty they will 'loophole' out of anyway? C'mon man. Briggs and Stratton is now saying you never have to change your oil in their equipment or so I'm told. Really? Anyway.... 
 
I understand there are always loopholes and exceptions and I'm not offended that they get equal print as long as no one is offended by my pointing out some rather silly behaviors that are common enough to be the rule those exceptions are being drawn from.  
 
 

We are more in common than not, don’t want to scare you. I did a similar project like you doing with your truck in the 80s. I built the perfect car according to me. The only thing was it was my wife’s daily, she still was a stay at home mom then. A 1974 Impala custom. I bought the car with 28K miles on it. Burgundy with a white vinyl top. Put in a 454, with semi closed chamber heads a little cam just enough to bump. An 700R4 overdrive trans, 373 posi. A high watt stereo. Keystone classic mags. Bit-chin. I was still playing at the drags then, test and tune nights. That car was heavy the weight transfer was real good I could cut a good light and beat cars a second faster. I got just under 14 sec in the 1/4. Not bad for the eighties. Then I got stupid. I wanted to go faster bought a 76 nova put everything in the nova and was fighting traction like everyone else. Lost interest sold them both.


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[KARNUT]

We are more in common than not, don’t want to scare you. I did a similar project like you doing with your truck in the 80s. I built the perfect car according to me. The only thing was it was my wife’s daily, she still was a stay at home mom then. A 1974 Impala custom. I bought the car with 28K miles on it. Burgundy with a white vinyl top. Put in a 454, with semi closed chamber heads a little cam just enough to bump. An 700R4 overdrive trans, 373 posi. A high watt stereo. Keystone classic mags. Bit-chin. I was still playing at the drags then, test and tune nights. That car was heavy the weight transfer was real good I could cut a good light and beat cars a second faster. I got just under 14 sec in the 1/4. Not bad for the eighties. Then I got stupid. I wanted to go faster bought a 76 nova put everything in the nova and was fighting traction like everyone else. Lost interest sold them both.


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Found a photo


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[Grumpy Bear]

19 hours ago, KARNUT said:

We are more in common than not, don’t want to scare you. I did a similar project like you doing with your truck in the 80s. I built the perfect car according to me. The only thing was it was my wife’s daily, she still was a stay at home mom then. A 1974 Impala custom. I bought the car with 28K miles on it. Burgundy with a white vinyl top. Put in a 454, with semi closed chamber heads a little cam just enough to bump. An 700R4 overdrive trans, 373 posi. A high watt stereo. Keystone classic mags. Bit-chin. I was still playing at the drags then, test and tune nights. That car was heavy the weight transfer was real good I could cut a good light and beat cars a second faster. I got just under 14 sec in the 1/4. Not bad for the eighties. Then I got stupid. I wanted to go faster bought a 76 nova put everything in the nova and was fighting traction like everyone else. Lost interest sold them both.
 

Well that explains allot.  Dad said he drown my twin and slapped my mother.  You think that might be why we get on each others last nerve once in a while? Hum....

 

A 13 second Street Impala is a great accomplishment! Perfect 'according to you' is about as solid a statement as can be made. She is a pretty one. My 13 second car was a 66 Ford Galaxie 352 Interceptor with a bit more than a cam. Four door as well, dog dish hub caps and all. 4:30 Locker and a bit of converter made it a handful on the street for highway work but I was young and didn't mind 55 mph with a big block spinning 3+ for hours at 8 mpg then. As you say, hook up with these is pretty easy so smoking some much bigger motors in much lighter cars wasn't all the hard. Think I lost maybe two races with that car the three years it ran before cutting it up with a torch scrapping it. That's a whole different story. 

[KARNUT]

Well that explains allot.  Dad said he drown my twin and slapped my mother.  You think that might be why we get on each others last nerve once in a while? Hum....
 
A 13 second Street Impala is a great accomplishment! Perfect 'according to you' is about as solid a statement as can be made. She is a pretty one. My 13 second car was a 66 Ford Galaxie 352 Interceptor with a bit more than a cam. Four door as well, dog dish hub caps and all. 4:30 Locker and a bit of converter made it a handful on the street for highway work but I was young and didn't mind 55 mph with a big block spinning 3+ for hours at 8 mpg then. As you say, hook up with these is pretty easy so smoking some much bigger motors in much lighter cars wasn't all the hard. Think I lost maybe two races with that car the three years it ran before cutting it up with a torch scrapping it. That's a whole different story. 

That and the Fairlane are my favorite older Fords. Oddly enough the 390 was my favorite big Ford engine. I had a friend in high school who had a Fairlane running a 3 Duce 302. I had a barracuda. No matter how hard I tried I couldn’t get around him. He was way ahead of me in mechanical abilities.


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[Grumpy Bear]

Omeprazole

 

I use to believe that people took Omeprazole to cure a stomach over acid conditions. WRONG! People take it so that they can continue to abuse the *#@^% out of their body.

 

Recently I have come to the same conclusion about synthetic lubricants. Used to continue in persisting in the notion that you can run them to some silly temperatures and over ridiculous intervals.

 

Wake up people!! It doesn’t matter that Omeprazole WILL allow you to continue to eat the crap that caused your condition. It doesn’t matter that synthetics will allow higher temperatures for longer periods.

 

Use them like you don’t’ need them and you can actually benefit from them.

 

Stupid is as stupid does, Right Forest?  

 

How's that for short and sweet?    

[Grumpy Bear]

Before we had many warm days this year I did a service dump, filter and fill of the trans with Red Line D6. A 50/50 then of the factory fill Delco and Red Line. The next eleven tanks averaged 2 mpg over Peppers life time average with a lot less tank to tank variation. Some data noise suppression likely due to the level and less tank to tank variation. The increase...a seasonal change in average ambient temperatures in part and the higher lubricity and slightly lower viscosity of Red Line D6. The next five tanks would up the ante another mpg, 29.5 mpg as the trans stat was bypassed allowing not only more rapid heating due to a more advantageous temperature. The next change saw a switch from 5W20 to 0W20 and four tanks around 30.3 mpg...then...the thermostat failure crashed two tanks as I awaited parts for a new plan of attack. A slightly higher water temperature (10F) and a more stable and reliable thermostat. Running a bit faster and with the AC as peak summer temps arrive has Pepper at 29.94 mpg. 

 

The AFM is on most of the time and that was the plan to increase switched on time to the maximum via perfecting viscosity through a combination of heat management and viscosity choice. Mission accomplished. I will be at the mercy of the weather and my convictions from this point forward. 

 

I actually expect to backslide a few mpg as I start increasing speeds further and use of the air for the seasons remainder more often. 

 

While all the summer data is yet to be collected, August ends my summer frame, to date Pepper is  8.7% above 2017 summer months. 8.6% above the running averages initial values thus seeing a 16.2% increase in the 24 point moving average over last summer and a whooping 25.8% Increase in here best 6 point moving average.

 

All this while increasing average road speed about 5 mph and prudent use of the AC unit.

 

Most of these increases are the result of quicker heat ups to more stable running temperatures. Something I will continue to refine.

 

Truth is, I've plucked most of the low hanging fruit.

 

Odd side note. After a 400 mile trip today that resulted in 29.5 mpg, I was disappointed. Really disappointed in a tank under 30 mpg. I'm loosing it.  

 

 

 

 

[KARNUT]

Reading your post prior to the previous prompt me to write this. My 14 5.3, 342 gear, cylinder deactivation deleted GMC, would generally get 23 MPG @ 72 MPH AC always on. My GPS on a trip one day advised me to a road with a 60 MPH limit. My 200 mile detour gave me 25 MPG. This reminds me of a cold air intake comparison on motor week sometime back. Will it save gas was the goal. Yes was the answer, if you drove it at 55MPH for 300K miles to pay for the product in question. Buying synthetic products at higher cost to run longer would be the reason most people buy it. Being backed by their vehicle manufacturer is another. Time is everything to most people. Added protection is a given. Most if not all motor oil is going to protect the average driver if used as directed. Using a product as directed is not, ( stupid is as stupid does). For an enthusiast doing your thing to your vehicle is cool and rewarding.


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[Grumpy Bear]

6 hours ago, KARNUT said:

Reading your post prior to the previous prompt me to write this. My 14 5.3, 342 gear, cylinder deactivation deleted GMC, would generally get 23 MPG @ 72 MPH AC always on. My GPS on a trip one day advised me to a road with a 60 MPH limit. My 200 mile detour gave me 25 MPG. This reminds me of a cold air intake comparison on motor week sometime back. Will it save gas was the goal. Yes was the answer, if you drove it at 55MPH for 300K miles to pay for the product in question. Buying synthetic products at higher cost to run longer would be the reason most people buy it. Being backed by their vehicle manufacturer is another. Time is everything to most people. Added protection is a given. Most if not all motor oil is going to protect the average driver if used as directed. Using a product as directed is not, ( stupid is as stupid does). For an enthusiast doing your thing to your vehicle is cool and rewarding.

I read this several times to make sure I got it. I think I do but there I go thinking again. Gets me in trouble. 

 

I would expect your statement in bold is on the money. Longevity is the #1 reason for it's use and as you, I find it cost effective. I can't speak for you on this point however that even when I use it at much shorter intervals than Mr. Joe Consumer I still find it cost effective. I say this based on my habit of 5K changes which I do consider 'extended' compared to my 'father's day' 2-2.5K intervals. 

 

Part of Peppers mileage numbers do come, as you say, from a pace that would drive a Woodpecker nutty; but not all. I can directly attribute a good deal of her efficiency to Red Line lubricants properties and to the heat management methods employed to reap those benefits from viscosities and grades not recommended by the manufacture. In fact in direct violation of my warranty, which I never have worried about.  My speed aside Pepper's 'same speed' performance is a solid 5 mpg over the factory delivered values. That lone pays for my synthetic habit.

 

Not so quick story. I run 10W40 Red Line car oil in the motor of my air cooled full dress 2005 Twin Cam Harley 88 and have from early on. She now has just under 50K on the clock. I run twin coolers and made a filter set up that allows filtration before cooling and a filter with a pint more capacity. Before Red Line I tried Screaming Eagle, Royal Purple and Amsoil, all 20W50 Motorcycle blends. Red Line in the same set up consistenly runs 10-15 degrees cooler than any of the others and 25 degrees cooler than Harley " Black Bottle" conventional. 

 

Early TC-88's were know to eat the cam chain tension shoes to the backing plates in 35K miles and so about that time my dealer and riding buddy begged me to service the system citing multiple examples of motors pushed past that limit that ate the backing plates and grenade the motors. I ran her to 45K and then submitted out of fear I am ashamed to say. Instead of cutting the pushrods and refitting S&S adjustable to save time and money I gave the shop a blank check. Told them to disassemble the entire top end, sans cylinders and to mic every part. Any part not within 5% of new was to be replaced without a phone call. I also authorized the installation of the new TC-88 hydro system and larger oil pumps.

 

I got a phone call the next day that sounded like a doctor telling his life long patient that he has a terminal illness and only days to live and I better get to the shop pronto. My heart sank into my shoes and I ran right over. Shop owner, mechanic and a factory rep were standing by my bike all shaking their heads. As I approached with her guts laying the table I braced for the bad news Dan, the wrench in charge of the shop started to laugh and tossed me a tension shoe that looked brand new. I was confused as the hydro system was to be installed.

 

"No," he says, "those are not the new replacements, those are the ones we are taking out". Fact was try as they might, there was not one single part that measured outside NEW specs!! The camshafts still hadn't a wear pattern to them nor the rollers. The entire service would not have been needed for double that distance. A distance the routinely sees three complete cam chest refits.

 

The shop manager had been laughing at me and warning me about use of the light oil and never missed a chance to tease me about it in front anyone willing to listen. That day he converted the shops go to oil to Red Line 20W50.

 

At home I made a deal with everyone I rode with. Let me do a full three hole Red Line fill at your next service. If you can't feel and hear the difference by the time you reach the end of the block I'll not only pay for that oil change, I'll pay for whatever you want me to put in it and eat the labor and gaskets. I've done quite a few and never had anyone go back to whatever they were using.  

 

Edited July 17, 2018 by Grumpy Bear