Acetone..Does it work??

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Old Aug 29, 2007 | 12:25 AM
  #1  
bigmark89's Avatar
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Acetone..Does it work??

i did a search and found a few posts on it. Unfortunatley nothing gave the answer i was looking for. I am looking for someone whos done this on their car for enough time to find a real result. I heard that it works, ive heard that it doesnt work, ive heard that it will destroy your car, ive heard that its only safe to do it once a month.

But i still havent found the definite answer that i am looking for. I am getting horrible gas mileage. 250miles/tank or to be more exact about 15MPG which SUCKS . Any help would be appreciated.
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Old Aug 29, 2007 | 01:01 AM
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i believe your 19" wheels are throwing off your odometer and MPG. your engine is working harder to move the larger wheels and increased rolling resistence. i am sure that if you put your stock wheels back on for a tank or two of gas, it would be back to normal.
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Old Aug 29, 2007 | 01:05 AM
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Originally Posted by skoalpb
i believe your 19" wheels are throwing off your odometer and MPG. your engine is working harder to move the larger wheels and increased rolling resistence. i am sure that if you put your stock wheels back on for a tank or two of gas, it would be back to normal.
I dont have 19"s. if u look closer at my signature its on my Wish List. I have stocks
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Old Aug 29, 2007 | 01:34 AM
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u use 93 octane right? despite the tranny issue, i drive in ss mode and shift before i hit 3k rpm and i get about ~340 mi per tank
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Old Aug 29, 2007 | 08:44 AM
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Acetone won't do anything to improve your mileage and may well screw up the injection system.
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Old Aug 29, 2007 | 09:03 AM
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You need to find out why your car is getting such bad gas mileage. Simply throwing $ at it isn't going to do anything. Such low gas mileage is not normal.
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Old Aug 29, 2007 | 09:05 AM
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1) Make sure your Air Filter is clean. I try to always clean mine every oil change
2) If you have a manual, shift low, around 3K rpm (doesn't affect you since you have an auto unless you are using manual mode)
3) try to use overdrive as much as possible when traveling at decent speeds (5th and 6th gears) (doesn't affect you since you have an auto unless you are using manual mode)
4) make sure your tires are inflated properly. Improper tire pressure can result in bad mileage
5) alignment can affect mileage as well
6) monitor your driving habits, don't accelerate hard, and don't brake hard. don't uneccessarily shift gears if you don't have to (i.e. downshifting to speed up)

Worst case, have the dealership check out your o2 sensors to make sure they are operating properly.
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Old Aug 29, 2007 | 10:10 AM
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Concur

Originally Posted by Zippee
Acetone won't do anything to improve your mileage and may well screw up the injection system.
+1

If acetone really improved mileage without harming your car all the gas companies would put acetone in their gas and advertise the mileage benefits.

Also, it depends on where you drive. To-and-from work, I get about 21mpg - so 250/tank is actually about right for that. If I got 250 on pure highway miles I'd be worried, but I wouldn't put acetone in my fuel.
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Old Aug 29, 2007 | 10:24 AM
  #9  
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Originally Posted by Sly Raskal
1) Make sure your Air Filter is clean. I try to always clean mine every oil change
2) If you have a manual, shift low, around 3K rpm (doesn't affect you since you have an auto unless you are using manual mode)
3) try to use overdrive as much as possible when traveling at decent speeds (5th and 6th gears) (doesn't affect you since you have an auto unless you are using manual mode)
4) make sure your tires are inflated properly. Improper tire pressure can result in bad mileage
5) alignment can affect mileage as well
6) monitor your driving habits, don't accelerate hard, and don't brake hard. don't uneccessarily shift gears if you don't have to (i.e. downshifting to speed up)

Worst case, have the dealership check out your o2 sensors to make sure they are operating properly.
Thanx sly, i should probably also check my spark plugs. They can also affect MPG.

So things i should check are...
1)Air Filter
2)Spark Plugs
3)Tire Inflation
Would u guyz reccomend i also upgrade to a K&N drop in filter. I heard they slightly improve performance but they can also improve gas mileage.
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Old Aug 29, 2007 | 10:31 AM
  #10  
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get off your lead foot.
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Old Aug 29, 2007 | 11:12 AM
  #11  
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Originally Posted by bigmark89
Would u guyz reccomend i also upgrade to a K&N drop in filter. I heard they slightly improve performance but they can also improve gas mileage.
Won't improve it enough to notice. I have one and wouldn't spent the money again.
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Old Aug 29, 2007 | 01:42 PM
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Take out your resonator & you'll see a performance gain.
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Old Aug 29, 2007 | 03:01 PM
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When was the last time you changed your oil, and are you using 5w20?
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Old Aug 29, 2007 | 03:45 PM
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i used acetone for about a year ...no negitives... my driving was all lead footed city id get 240-270 a tank ! there was a very infomative write up ...
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Old Aug 29, 2007 | 04:10 PM
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White92's Avatar
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Do you sit in traffic alot? From my own experience, sitting in traffic idling during a 45 minute each way commute will make your mileage go right down the tube.
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Old Aug 30, 2007 | 02:49 PM
  #16  
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Originally Posted by gaping46and2
When was the last time you changed your oil, and are you using 5w20?
I do a routine oil change every 3k and yes i use 5w20 oil. Could i be getting bad gas mileage because of a build up in my intake manifold??? I am also installing XS Headers in a week. Would they affect my gas mileage in any way???
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Old Aug 30, 2007 | 04:55 PM
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Try running a can of seafoam through your next tank of gas. Don't expect to get any better gas mileage with the header install. If anything, the power gain will make your foot even more heavy. Just ease up, and drive the speed limit. That's really the best way to improve your gas mileage. Also, no jack rabbit starts from stop lights/signs, that KILLS your mileage. If at all possible, run in 5th gear as much as possible. If you're going over 35mph, flip into SS mode and drop it into 5th gear. Coast as much as possible too. All of these things I've noticed help increase my gas mileage.
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Old Aug 31, 2007 | 11:28 AM
  #18  
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Originally Posted by vipertrunk
+1

If acetone really improved mileage without harming your car all the gas companies would put acetone in their gas and advertise the mileage benefits.

Also, it depends on where you drive. To-and-from work, I get about 21mpg - so 250/tank is actually about right for that. If I got 250 on pure highway miles I'd be worried, but I wouldn't put acetone in my fuel.
Gas companies aren't worried about gas mileage, there concerned about profits. If it was profitable to manufacture gas with 10% acetone instead of Methanol, they'd be doing it.

When I was in High school my buddies dad swore by some paint stripper called "Xylene" he would put 1 cup into a full tank in his Jaguar XJS. He kept the car forever and had no issues with it.

That said, I don't know if it really helped (he considered it a Fuel injector cleaner).
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Old Aug 31, 2007 | 07:35 PM
  #19  
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i do the basics change my oil i use synthetic 5x20 and yes im bad but i change at 4-6k

sea foam every once in awhile also lucas fuel cleaner. have a cai from ebay 19" rims and a very

serious case of lead foot i still manage to get about 340...


If i drive like a grandpa i easily get 400-450
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Old Aug 31, 2007 | 09:09 PM
  #20  
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dang, i drive like a grampa and i get not even 300 in city but on free way i get a little over 400. my tires are inflated to maximum pressure on the tire. i have drop in filter with the resonator removed already. so next i will focus on: making sure my oil is 5w-20 (or is it 5w-30?). and maybe investing in a bottle of seafoam for my tank of gas. i have some normal fuel system/injector cleaner stuff that i put in but im thinking seafoam might make a bigger difference.
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Old Sep 2, 2007 | 10:44 PM
  #21  
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Not quite

Originally Posted by black label
Gas companies aren't worried about gas mileage, there concerned about profits. If it was profitable to manufacture gas with 10% acetone instead of Methanol, they'd be doing it.
1) Ethanol and methanol are not the same thing. Industrial ethanol is commonly added to gasoline; non-industrial ethanol is commonly added to jello and passed around at fraternity parties. Methanol is mostly used for non-fuel related purposes.
2) The US goverment directed ethanol use to buy votes from farmers in the midwest - even though it doesn't work as well as MTBE and it costs more.

And - profits are exactly the point. If Shell oil developed an acetone-enhanced fuel that produced 10% better mileage than their competitors - people would be buying that stuff like crack. Profits would go up. Unfortunately acetone is an urban legend which doesn't work, so that won't happen.
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