Tweaks For Better Economy?

[Exasperant]

With luck I'm about to be the owner of a "why did it have to be silver, everything else about it is what I was looking for!" 940 2.0 LPT.

I'm wondering if there are any known tweaks to improve mpg. Not worried about outright performance, I already have a nippy throwable car for those moments.

I spotted some people selling chips claim their maps give "more economy", but I'm wondering how true that is? I'd have thought manufacturers would sacrifice performance for fuel efficiency...

[360beast]

2.0 LPT? do you mean 2.3? They didn't do a 2.0 LPT.

Manufacturers have to map cars for a best of both worlds and make them easy to drive so yes chips can increase performance and economy. They factor in longevity of the parts and not stressing the engines etc.

I and a couple of my mates all think silver is the best colour for the 940.

Edit: now I should actually answer your question, the best thing to do would be to give the car a stage zero. So new plugs gapped to 0.7mm (NGK BPR6ES), new oil and filter (genuine volvo oil filter only), air filter, distributor cap, rotor arm, HT leads (Bougicord only), PCV box cleaned out thoroughly with new O-ring, new belts and front oil seals and a new fuel filter.

There might be more things I've not listed but I can't think of them at the moment.

[volvo always]

As said above a good service and look over.

Mine could do with new front disks as feel warped under braking from 70mph as not touched them for 5 years when had all new discs/pads all round!

Fuel isn't the 940's "forte" but a reliable load lugger that's easy to work on.

LPG would be ideal if station near you and you do the miles! Mine does around 5k a year, so not worth it as nearest LPG outlet stopped selling LPG!

I have had 2 silver Volvo. A 1989 240 GLT auto estate and current 1996 940 SE LPT. A good colour for not showing the dirt. Had a change with my Auris and went for Blue!

James

[Exasperant]

Originally Posted by 360beast

2.0 LPT? do you mean 2.3? They didn't do a 2.0 LPT.

Oh gods, what've I bought!?

It was sold as a "Wentworth 2.0lpt", so... I'm kind of hoping some of that is true!

Thanks re the chips, that surprises me a little but makes them maybe worth thinking about some time.

And yes, I need to check the history when it gets here, it might be due the whole plugs, filters, etc thing.

[Exasperant]

Originally Posted by volvo always

As said above a good service and look over.

Mine could do with new front disks as feel warped under braking from 70mph as not touched them for 5 years when had all new discs/pads all round!

Fuel isn't the 940's "forte" but a reliable load lugger that's easy to work on.

LPG would be ideal if station near you and you do the miles! Mine does around 5k a year, so not worth it as nearest LPG outlet stopped selling LPG!

I have had 2 silver Volvo. A 1989 240 GLT auto estate and current 1996 940 SE LPT. A good colour for not showing the dirt. Had a change with my Auris and went for Blue!

James

I've thought about LPG, but I'm never going to do the miles to justify it - I'm more wondering if there are any "It'll add a tenth to your 0-60, but give you a couple more mpg" incantations I could throw at it.

As for the silver, it's just not my preference. But when buying used and not overly common cars, colour choice is low on the list of priorities. Shame it hides the dirt though, I was thinking of using the dirt to hide the colour

[griston64]

A Wentworth is a 2 litre HPT. 155 BHP

Do you have any pics ? It should have the built in boost gauge

[john.wigley]

As far as the car is concerned, 'Exasperant', the advice that you have been given is sound. This generation of Volvo has many virtues but will never be an economical car in the generally accepted sense.

If you are looking for economy, your own input can have a significant effect. Long runs with few cold starts help tremendously. My 944 returned well over 30 MPG on a 75 mile commute with just the two cold starts daily. Avoiding harsh braking and using gentle acceleration wherever possible, removing roof racks when not required and not carrying excess weight around (the 945 makes this very easy(!)) will all help.

Finally, try not to over stress about fuel consumption. You will have near zero depreciation and at 5K MPY the difference between 25 and 30 MPG, even at today's prices, is only about £200. There is more to economy than the cost of fuel!

Regards, John.

[Exasperant]

Originally Posted by griston64

A Wentworth is a 2 litre HPT. 155 BHP

Do you have any pics ? It should have the built in boost gauge

Not got a clear pic of the dash, although I think I made out a boost gauge under the rev counter.

[Exasperant]

Originally Posted by john.wigley

If you are looking for economy, your own input can have a significant effect. Long runs with few cold starts help tremendously. My 944 returned well over 30 MPG on a 75 mile commute with just the two cold starts daily. Avoiding harsh braking and using gentle acceleration wherever possible, removing roof racks when not required and not carrying excess weight around (the 945 makes this very easy(!)) will all help.

"Well over 30mpg" on a run would be reassuring, I was starting to gather I'd be lucky to make it out the high 20s.

I'm cursed with living in what seems to be one of the least "cruising speed" roads areas of the country, although my other car averages 33mpg despite my fondness for edging past the red line. So I can/ will still use that for short journeys anyway.

Economy or lack of it isn't going to keep me awake at night, I went for a 940 for comfort and the odd times I need a boot that can hold more than two bags of shopping. It's just one of those "Nice to improve if I can" things.

[TonyS9]

The best tweak for a 940 is the driver. Like many modern engines the lean running using the O2 sensor mostly only works in idle, fuel cut needs alot of ducks in a row to work, so keep acceleration brisk then as light a load as possible with a low an rpm as sounds comfortable, watch the speedo for acceleration, you want zero or minus acceleration to keep it in closed loop mode, and also less than 50mph. 1200rpm in 5th works fine for me giving about 30mph (B230FT). You can get 40mpg this way, but any faster than 30 it doesn't tend to work.
If you want to go really mad, again grisk acceleration then neutral and idle until the speed is unacceptably low and brisk acceleration again, keep repeating. This will give you over 40mpg, but at faster average speeds. It is considered anti-social so only for quiet roads.

Ideally someone should have made an electronic circuit to indicate closed loop mode by now, but not seeing any about. Either that or get an MPGuino.