During the past two fill-ups I've noticed a dramatic decrease in my MPG's. I normally get around 23 with normal city/highway commuting. Now I am noticing I am averaging 19 MPG with the same conditions of driving.

I started to notice the changes after I installed the Outlaw Engineering Throttle Body and Intake Manifold Spacers. I torqued everything down correctly, in sequence...but I have no idea why this might have something to do with the bad gas mileage.

What do you guys think?

btw...only 93 Octane

 

Try an ecu reset maybe?

Pull the clock backup fuse for a few minutes.

 

go back and ck all vac lines are on good, and no leaks at end of lines?
all lines are correct in location--didnt put the coolant line to vac?

ck torque again--intake and exhaust bolts like to loosen slightly within the first 500 miles and should always be re'ckd--that probably not in any instructions~

tb to manifold torque correct?

a can of carb cleaner used to spray at vac lines with engine running at idle- will result in rpm change if you find a leak

ecu shouldnt be at fault in this case but a reset never hurt

tire pressures are good?
spark plug age?
no codes?

 

Thanks for responding quickly.
Spark plugs are only about 1.5 years old if that (NGK Iridium)
No codes.

I know I torqued everything good because I am EXTREMELY PARANOID about it ever since I over torqued a IM cover bolt and snapped it

I did notice some of the vac lines may have been a little nasty at the tips (torn a little bit).

What would be the best way to make sure all the vac lines are going to the right places? What would be a symptom if they weren't in the correct spots?

 

ahh- it wouldnt run right,, and would get bad gas mileage?

on torque--what I meant was: after several heat and cool cycles- the bolts you so carefully set can be loose by a few pounds! not your fault--blame thermodynamics
I would ck the manifold bolts- under the top cover- as they are subject to heat changes = even though the spacer is blocking transfer heat- the bolts still get it thru the core heat

vac line ends need to be clean and tight- no cracking or tearing
Shoot carb cleaner at them with engine running- you will know if one is bad
Some people mark the lines before removal, or look in the diys for pics after~

Visual--does the line appear to be in the correct place--they have taken a shape by now
Never hurts to replace vac lines

are you losing any coolant from rad or res?

 

Thanks for all the info on checking. I'm going to get back to you on all of those, I've been extremely busy with grad school...it hurts me to know that something is going on with her and not being able to do anything about it, lol.

 

I just re-torqued those bolts...I cannot believe how much they needed to be torqued. Glad I did that, but I think I did find the solution to all of my problems.

I forgot to mention a ticking noise that I have been hearing and after searching this site, I'm pretty sure it is the Purge Control Solenoid (https://acurazine.com/forums/2g-cl-2001-2003-50/purge-solenoid-valve-gas-mileage-478374/)

So considering everyone in that thread had the same problems with noise and gas mileage, I'm pretty sure that the problem right there. I'm gonna go grab it at my local Acura dealership ($50). It looks very easy to just pop the other one off and put the new one in.

 

that should not be a gas mileage cause, but if the noise bothers you--ok

otherwise lets focus on remaining issue of bad end seals on vac lines
and replace those or trim end as need- if room available on hose- most are minimum length already and a few dollars of new vac line never hurt

So I was correct on those bolts holding intake down??
everyone needs to go back and ck after 500 miles?

I learned this on the old chevy v8 and a cross country trip right after manifold gasket job,,didnt retighten at 500 miles and blew the gasket,,,bummer

 

The noise is annoying, but I thought other people in that thread were complaining because they were getting similar decreases in MPG when it started to tick.

You were ABSOLUTELY correct on those new bolts. For some of them it was almost a full quarter turn until the torque wrenched popped.

 

I do enjoy when my experiences in life can lead someone to a correct diagnosis--
ok- I just love being right! thats why I come here~

wow 1/4 turn on a 16 pound limit, thats got to be 2-3 lb loss!! thats enough to cause running issues

Was it only the new bolts with the spacer or all of them?
new bolts undergo a stretch

everyone- re'ck your bolts 500 miles or so after spacer install - or egr port cleaning via manifold removal

same rule applies to new headers--re'ck torque in 500 miles

 

I might be exaggerating a little with the 1/4 turn, haha but I was surprised by how much they had to be turned.

Maybe about 2-3 of them were perfectly at 16. All of the bolts were replaced with the new spacers. The bolts on the IM cover are only supposed to be torqued to 9lbs

 

16 lbs was referrring to the manifold bolts themself, not the cover

with all new bolts I am not the least surprised at them coming loose a tick--thats thermodymanics in action

now replace the suspect vac lines and it will purr again

 

Which Fuse do I pull for the ECU reset? What is it labeled as on the car?

Will this reset all the radio settings?

 

the CLOCK fuse on passenger end of dash -- is the `secret backup power` to the ECU
remove it for a minute and reinsert-
that forced a master reset and relearn

No prob with any saved radio stations or security--thats why we use this fuse over removing neg battery cable--that requires extra effort

 

19? i only get 14 city

 

Damn man...you must get on it

 

Bump..

So JRodes88..did you ever reset the ECU by pulling the clock fuse? Did you notice if it helped you bad mileage issue?

 

I did, but I think it was a combination of checking my tire pressure and re-torquing those IM bolts that did the trick. I'm back to the normal gas milage now

 

loose intake manifold bolts allow massive vac leaks = poor combustion = lousy mileage

low tire pressure = more surface area contact = increased drag = lowered mileage

new toys on my baby = extreme fuel consumption until the new wears off