Hey guys, I am new to the forum but have read lots of great things about the product over the past year or so. I have a 94 chevy 1/2-ton with a 350 engine, 5.7L and I get horrible mileage. I have tried everything I can think of to increase the fuel effieceny but at 167,000 mile I am thinking that my problem is sludge related.
I just ordered 2 bottles of the ARX but am wondering if I need to do anything different while I am driving? I mean, my daily commute is about 2.5 miles each way. It takes about 15 minutes though becuase it is in a city and I go through about seven stop lights by the time I get to work. Therefore, my engine is barely getting warmed up before I park it for the day. Should I take it out on the weekends and drive on a hwy for 30 minutes are so for the engine to get good and hot in order for the ARX to work properly or will it do its job with the way I normally drive?
Poor gas mileage could be the result of several things, your short commute isn't helping the situation either. I think it would be a good idea if on weekends you could drive it for a half hour or more. I'd also suggest that you change out your PCV valve if you haven't already done so.
What kind of mileage are you getting, remember in the winter time there is a thing called winter gas that is supposed to cut down on emissions but it cuts into your gas mileage by 10%, have you changed the fuel filter and air filter lately, another thing I would do is maybe a cat-back exhaust, the exhaust system on those trucks is restrictive, when is the last time the plugs and wires have been changed, I would definetly take it out for a long drive on the weekends, you may also need to check your catylitic converter to make sure it is not a little stopped up, definetly change the PCV.
Sorry about the delay guys. I lost my internet due to construction but I did receive the Arx and dropped it in the crankcase yesterday.
As far as mileage goes, I get about 12 with some highway miles in and 10 if it is just city driving. That is with no A/C on. If I turn the A/C on then I get about a mile less per gallon in each scenario.
I have not replaced the PCV in a while but I poured some seafoam through it a few weeks ago and it seemed to be plenty clear. I am using stock size tires and dual exhaust. Everything else is stock besides the air filter which has been swapped over to K and N. Plugs and wires are not brand new but I didn't see any improvement when I changed them last time so I don't think that is the problem. As far as the cat goes, I think it probably has some build up in it given that it has so many miles on it but both pipes seem to breath pretty well so I don't think it is a restriction causing the poor mileage.
More than likely it is the short trips that I take all week that is killing my mileage but I feel like with as many miles as I have on the truck it would certainly benefit from a cleaning
