Itinerant Air-Cooled Northeast upd 8/27

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aopisa
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Location: Vermont
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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Northeast upd 8/27

Post by aopisa » Sat Sep 08, 2018 4:37 pm

Well, I wanted to wait for a another fill up after making adjustments to get the engine to run cooler before posting a short write up. The first tank was 13.5mpg :scratch: . We were really hammering on the engine getting it up to 70mph, climbing big hills, etc. So, I was waiting for the second tank to get a reading that was more representative of the way I drive. Drumroll please.....13.1mpg! :pale: Not acceptable. Down from the previous average of 15.4 mpg.

So now what? I don't find that the engine runs considerably cooler than it did before. I still regularly hit the high 300's just running around town. Why does it run so hot?


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Owen and Colin discovering that Woodweld (Weldwood?) cannot counter the physics of the curling edges of 40 year old laminate. It's better, but even Amskeptic found out that Naranja's laminate was defying his efforts to tame them as well.

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Drive thru mirror adjustment before stress testing the engine.

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Contemplating mixture, AFM, and timing adjustments during stress test after hitting max CHT of 436F. We drove close to 100 miles performing these tests.

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My friend Cliff who is a very accomplished mechanic in his own right learning the IAC way as we prep for front wheel bearing inspection. The bearings looked good so we cleaned, repacked them and installed new seals.

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The '74 Ghia. The sharp-eye IAC spied quite a few inconsistencies unknown to its owner of what 30 years did he say? The funniest part is when he discovered that the painter had spayed over all the wires so now you can no longer tell what is what. Colin had some choice words about that. Not to be repeated as this is the family friendly side of the forum.

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Amskeptic and the boy.

Next year will be the 10 year anniversary of IAC appointments. We will tackle some work on the steering to get it to come back to center on its own. Also, the bigger job of (re)installing the cooling flaps and thermostat once I locate one.
1977 Westy 2.0L F.I.

Flow with whatever may happen and let your mind be free. Stay centered by accepting whatever you are doing. This is the ultimate. - Chuang Tzu

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Amskeptic
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IAC "Help Desk"
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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Northeast upd 8/27

Post by Amskeptic » Sat Sep 08, 2018 7:50 pm

aopisa wrote:
Sat Sep 08, 2018 4:37 pm
Well, I wanted to wait for a another fill up after making adjustments to get the engine to run cooler before posting a short write up. The first tank was 13.5mpg :scratch: . We were really hammering on the engine getting it up to 70mph, climbing big hills, etc. So, I was waiting for the second tank to get a reading that was more representative of the way I drive. Drumroll please.....13.1mpg! :pale: Not acceptable. Down from the previous average of 15.4 mpg.

So now what?
Revert our adjustment and enjoy the cooler fall weather AND better fuel economy. Experimentation is fine so long as you record initial setting, changes, and results.

I went lean and caught a tank at 18.7, then 21, and had head temps of 434 and bleached plugs. Went back richer slowly to see if I could find a sweet spot. Now at 16 and head temps of 390-410*.
ColinInSantLouisAndRainingLikeHeckWTF?
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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