Eco-Logical Vehicle xformation
Earlier this week I went out to have my smog check done… good news: my jeep passed the emissions test with flying colors; bad news: there’s a valve cover gasket leak. .. and “for only $185, we’d like to fix it for you”. If it were a head gasket, OK, I’ll have a mechanic do the fixing, but with a valve gasket, heck, I’d rather do that myself! So as I went to Kragen to get my $35 gasket, truly the most expensive rubber I’ve ever purchased in my life, I got to thinking about fuel economy again and inquired about it. Come to find out, the clerk happened to know of someone in San Diego who converts vehicles for about $700. As I walked off with my rubber gasket I thought it’d be interesting to research this and see what’s new out there.
This is what I found:
- HOW TO convert your vehicle
- video about Coskata, a new PA company which uses anything from recycled tires to corn in manufacturing E85
Most of the tips I’ve already implemented in my Wrangler:
- K&N conic air filter with wider intake
- MaxFlo exhaust
- high mileage engine oil
- using SLICK-50 additive
- decent spark plugs (don’t recall the brand)
- proper tire inflation
- proper alignment
To some this may seem like a lot of trouble BUT I do like to tinker —then again, taking the engine apart for fun and putting it back together it TOO MUCH tinkering for me. 3 points still hold me back from purchasing a new vehicle:
- I have 0 debt at the moment ie own my current vehicle and not looking forward to getting into debt again
- Current technology that’s available is not yet that impressive. There are vehicles eg the Tesla and the Aptera, but they are still either cost- or range- prohibitive.
- The jeep is the most terrain versatile vehicle out there compared to standard sedans and yuppy SUVs.