Delaware Valley NCRS Chapter Newsletter - Clubs

Gas Mileage 101
by Donald Klumpp
With today’s gas prices exceeding $4.00 a gallon
[Donald wrote this in late 2008, but I think prices will be
back in that area soon enough — Ed.] anything we can
do to our cars or the way we drive that will increase gas
mileage keeps money in our pocket.
Increasing fuel mileage in our cars can be
broken down into two areas. First is “mechanical”. e
following are relatively easy and inexpensive things we
can do to our cars:
1. Air lter — change the air lter no later than
the manufacturer recommends. A dirty oil lter
makes the engine work harder to draw fresh air
in.
2. Use synthetic oil — it’s slippery nature makes
your engine produce more power with less gas.
Be sure to follow the recommended viscosity in
your owner’s manual. I believe “Corvette” is still
recommending Mobile 1.
3. Tire pressure — I recommend inating your
tires to at least two to four pounds above the
factory settings. is slight increase will reduce
rolling resistance without decreasing ride
quality.
4. Wax your car — it will reduce wind resistance.
is tip is most effective if you do a lot of
highway driving. e use of a product like
“Rain X” on your windshield will also reduce
wind resistance.
5. Front end alignment — a properly aligned car
will have reduced rolling plus you will minimize
tire wear.
e second area is “driving habits”:
1. Starts and stops — this is almost self
explanatory. Steady acceleration from a stop and
and greater anticipation of stops is something to
practice.
2. Cruise control — use this feature on your car
whenever possible. It does a much better job of
FEBRUARY 2009
maintaining your speed than your right foot;
thus saving fuel.
3. Speed — the higher the speed the greater the
wind resistance the lower your fuel mileage. Out
on the highway I try to stay at or no more than
ve miles per hour over the speed limit. In some
southern and western states where they have 70
mph speed limits that’s where I set the cruise
control. Above 70 mph wind resistance can only
start to eat into your mileage.
In conclusion, employing the things I have
talked about could improve your mileage by as much as
10%. at’s like reducing the price of a gallon of gas by
40 cents. Keep track of your mileage as a way of
checking on your progress.
The Invasion Of The White Blob
by John Kane
One afternoon in 1982 I was driving through
suburban Trenton and drove by Towbin Chevrolet on
Nottingham Way. Whenever I passed the dealership I
would always glance at the showroom and front display
lot to see if any new Corvettes were in stock. At that
time I was 35 years old and had never owned a new
Corvette, although I was in the middle of what turned
out to be a three year restoration on my Panama Yellow
1958. However, as I drove by this particular time my
view was completely blocked by a car transport trailer.
Immediately I noticed that on the very top was a single
1982 Collector Edition. I had never even seen one of
those models although I had read several articles in the
car magazines and I knew they were to be released soon.
At that time Towbin Chevrolet was the sponsor
of my local Corvette club, Capitol City Corvette Club
of Trenton NJ. I was very active in the club and I knew
the dealer quite well so I thought that maybe he would
give me a chance to take a test drive to check it out. I
pulled in and quickly found the dealer, Joel Towbin,
and he told me “John, we will be pulling that off of the
trailer in a few minutes, why don’t you hang around and
I will let you take it for out for a spin”. Well, he did not
have to ask me twice. I watched as they carefully
unloaded this silver beige beauty. e yard boy gave it a
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