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With the driving season well underway, there's been a couple of things Baby Blue is doing differently this year compared to last year -- not bad, but different.
One thing I've noticed is the car is running warmer. It's still staying on the good side of the "N" on the temperature gauge, but now it is more likely to be hugging the "N" as opposed to last year, when the only time it approached or went over the "N" was when I was low on coolant. Under normal conditions, though, the car always ran cool. There were no changes to the cooling system, other than replacing the heater return line. Same thermostat. Same brand coolant.
I had heard, at least with aircraft engines, that an engine running lean will run hotter than one running rich. I started noticing the temperature gauge sticking much closer to the "N" range when I richened the carb mixture. I'm thinking if there is more gas to burn, that would equate to more heat = higher operating temperature? The other thought was when I yanked the dash (and pulled the probe) that I unclogged or freed up something which is making the temperature gauge read more accurately.
Last year, Baby Blue was eating a quart of oil every 300 miles like clockwork through the self-lubricating chassis system and oil getting past the rings. This year, the oil consumption has dropped in half. I think part of that was me fixing a rather nasty oil leak on the valve cover gasket, and maybe I did a better job of adjusting the valves this winter. Could oil consumption also be affected by mixture? More gas to burn during combustion means less oil that gets burned?
One thing I've noticed is the car is running warmer. It's still staying on the good side of the "N" on the temperature gauge, but now it is more likely to be hugging the "N" as opposed to last year, when the only time it approached or went over the "N" was when I was low on coolant. Under normal conditions, though, the car always ran cool. There were no changes to the cooling system, other than replacing the heater return line. Same thermostat. Same brand coolant.
I had heard, at least with aircraft engines, that an engine running lean will run hotter than one running rich. I started noticing the temperature gauge sticking much closer to the "N" range when I richened the carb mixture. I'm thinking if there is more gas to burn, that would equate to more heat = higher operating temperature? The other thought was when I yanked the dash (and pulled the probe) that I unclogged or freed up something which is making the temperature gauge read more accurately.
Last year, Baby Blue was eating a quart of oil every 300 miles like clockwork through the self-lubricating chassis system and oil getting past the rings. This year, the oil consumption has dropped in half. I think part of that was me fixing a rather nasty oil leak on the valve cover gasket, and maybe I did a better job of adjusting the valves this winter. Could oil consumption also be affected by mixture? More gas to burn during combustion means less oil that gets burned?