Zimbop,

You're missing the point entirely. Like someone else said, people come from all walks of life to buy a hybrid, why put them down ???? Just because the guy wants a little more oomph out of a WEAK ICE engine (without the IMA assist its DANGEROUS to drive, I know from first hand experience) doesn't mean he wants to "smoke his tires" at 75 mph. Grow up some. Not EVERY performance mod is strictly for performance. MANY are actually beneficial to FE. Problem is, you can drive the same way and get better FE, or you can take advantage of that extra power and get worse. Most people choose the latter.

Everyone seems to say, "well you should have got a regular Civic" or a different car. Who are you (or we for that matter) to judge what they should have gotten ???? Because he wants his car to perform better while still getting great FE ???? I didn't know that became a crime recently. Would anyone NOT want better FE and better peformance given the choice ????

Just because you have nothing intelligent to add doesn't mean you should poke fun at the guy....

Now on to the real point: Bellyboy. I KNOW K&N's work well. I'm just waiting for them to finish making one so I can buy it. I don't really know about cold air intakes. I've heard mixed stories about the theory of it. I actually suspect one of those is right in that your engine (since it DOES create little controlled fires in each of its cylinders) actually would prefer warmer air. However, this is something I will bring up with my physics professor. I too want to modify the exhaust, but NOT if its going to increase the sound levels. I REFUSE to have to listen to my exhaust rumble around in that car. I have my '68 Chevelle for that. But anytime you can increase the way the engine breathes and expels its air, you increase performance, and therefore INCREASE efficiency, which increases your FE, given the same driving attitude. You can't tune the timing, because its all electrically controlled nowadays. You can't adjust most fuel delivery options you could with engines that had carburetors because they don't have them. You CAN try and modify the ECU to get better power out of the injectors, but thats a risky proposition. I wouldn't do it, and I'm studying to be a computer engineer. You'd need a FULL understanding of the motor to properly program for it. Other than that, I don't know much else you could do without hitting the FE too hard. You could put a taller tire on there I suppose, but like you said, a wider tire WILL increase rolling resistance, and give you less FE. Bad part it, usually you have to go with a wider tire when you go with a taller tire. Let me know what you come up with. I too would like to get some more pep out of the motor so I don't have to rely on the electric motor so much and I can increase my fuel economy.

 

On the contrary. A hybrid should not be an elitist tool for a hypermiler/economy miser minority . . . If you want industry that supports economical cars, you have to make a hybrid appeal to a broad base of drivers, even if they aren't part of your "economy miser" crowd. The more support a hybrid gets from the consumer base, the better. This provides an incentive for the auto manufacturers to continue R&D for the next generation of hybrids and beyond, which ultimately moves us to where many of us want to be: past the archaic internal combustion engine.

I'm glad people who are tuners/performance enthusiasts are still purchasing "high MPG" hybrids (45MPG+). Just because a hybrid driver blows by at 75MPH (I personally curse this activity when I see it), or throws on some rims doesn't make their hybrid a waste. They will still get better mileage than if they were driving something else, plus we'll all benefit from the better emissions ratings and most importantly, support hybrid technology.

 

Heh, it is his car, he can do what he wants with it.A CAI won't improve his part throttle FE,but it won't hurt his FE either.
We-USA car owners-like to tinker.
I still think the electric motor is the place to tinker, not the ICE.
One last try on why improving flow upstream of the throttle valve won't improve part throttle FE. ANY DECREASE IN RESISTANCE TO FLOW YOU DO UPSTREAM OF THE THROTTLE PLATE WILL BE IMMEDIATELY SUBTRACTED BY THE THROTTLE PLATE BEING CLOSED A BIT MORE.At a given speed the volume of mixture(really the weight of mixture) needed for a given power level is fixed-more or less.The throttle plate opens enough to give this amount.If you decrease resistance with a CAI, then your throttle plate will just shut a little more.Our Hybrids-2006 HCH,TCH,PRIUS,HH,FEH,are all drive by wire auto trans(in truth it really wouldn't matter if they weren't but it makes it easier this way).
Well, it is his car,let him do what he wants.Luck,Charlie

 

uhhmm... i was under the impression if i were to take her to a tuner they could tweak it. maybe not with this car. when cars are manufactured they are set at a very conservative settings to protect engine breakin etc.does anyone else floor it from red light to red light- i dont- its a game i play to see what great fe i can get

 

Mexiken, Esk... et al,

Performance mods cost gas. Period. You aren't going to get the same mileage with a hybrid after you soup it up. If you want to do it anyway, go ahead, butI happen to feel like that's a waste.

There are plenty of cars out there for those who want more performance than a hybrid can give, and there are very few cars out there that get great mileage because they don't have any more power than they need. The more people support needless power, the less the market will support those of us who don't want to waste 20% extra on gas for a power boost that we'll never really NEED.

The industry IS supporting the power mongers in nearly every hybrid on themarket now. Lexus, toyota, Ford, Chrysler, et all have made power a priority and as such the "green" cars they make are not getting nearly as good FE as they should or could.

You're right, it is his car, he can do what he wants with it, but that doesn't mean I have to think its a good idea. And you ask who am I to comment on someone else's purchase? HE ASKED for comments - he started a thread about HCH performance mods, and I provided the best one I can think of - replace the little 1.3 with the bigger civic engine, hence get the other civic instead. Plus it saves you money. No brainer. That's my performance mod suggestion, take it or leave it.

We can all have different opinions here without questioning others' intelligence. If you don't like my mod then ignore it, but don't call me an idiot.

 

Again, you seem to want to continuously argue this point with no real facts or data. But your logic scares me. By your reasoning, a dirty air filter is OK and will no effect FE and therefore should never need to be replaced because a new filter is not going to help.

Here is a link to at least 100 people who think you are wrong.
http://www.knfilters.com/feedback.htm

As I have said before, this debate is pointless and nothing more than opinion without fact. You do what you want and I will do what I want. If I get better FE from the K&N then great, if not, oh well.

But I must ask that you stop being so careless about your claims and preaching to the masses information that is in fact misleading. Numbers do not lie. Facts and data take the emotion out of any situation. Unless you can show documented thoughts/proof from some reputable source, then you are simply talking out of your hind-quarters.

 

And thank you for the support. I guess we're not really welcome on this post so I'm going to check out, but nice to see that there are others...

 

Between you and phoebeisis I am forced to wonder if I will be accused of being a witch if I prove you both wrong.

For 2 guys who seem to so willingly embrase new technology, the two of you are certainly narrow minded.

 

Ok then. Sorry for getting ornery or off topic.

I am still waiting for any conclusive evidence that power can be boosted without FE loss. If you have some proof perhaps this would be a good time to present it. You passed off your 15 mpg claim as heresay yourself, so based on this thread I can only conclude so far that we haven't found the magic mod yet. I would love to be proven wrong, that would mean good things.

 

Kind of how if you turbocharge a motor, it is possible to see gas mileage increase due to increased efficiency of the engine, yet it is also necessary to keep the foot out of the gas pedal.

There are 800 HP motors out there that can get up to 20 mpg, yet there are also 300 HP motors that get far less. It's all a matter of the efficiency of the engine and the person pushing the gas pedal. (On newstands this month is the 5.0 Mustang featuring an article on an 800 HP fox body Mustang that gets 20 mpg, just in case you were wondering...)

http://www.50mustangandsuperfords.com/toc/thismonth/