tonyb1968

Sorry, but I had to brag to you guys a bit. Today was the first day that my wife and I could get out on the open road with the Taurus I recently bought her.
We filled up and reset the trip odo, then drove 60 miles to a larger town to shop and have lunch, then back. The trip was measured from my local station's pump #4 and back to the same pump. Total miles=129.2 and gallons=4.3. If I am doin my math right, that is just a hair over 30MPG in a car that has 199,000+ miles on it.
The gas was unleaded plus with 10% methanol ( it is 10 cents a gallon cheaper than regular here). Tires were at recommended pressures and the only engine mods are a short-ram intake and Spectre air filter.
This is the 24v DOHC and I would have been happy with 22 MPG considering the old gal is due for a tune-up and makes some odd noises from her rear-end area--the car, not my wife--all in all, a pretty good day.
Planned future upgrades are cross-drilled and slotted rotors, HID headlights, heavy-duty shocks and struts, E3 Diamond-fire plugs and performance wires with new coil-packs...Oh, and I need to drop the oil pan and replace a leaky gasket...maybe this summer.

Bert

That is good mileage. You must be a easy on the throttle kind of driver.

__________________
Bert

chipset

That is about normal. Put the recommended fuel in it and your mileage will be even better.
Those engines take premium gas. You cannot put HID head lights in that car. You will melt
the lenses.

tonyb1968

Chipset, I had not even thought about those lenses. I did polish them back to clear and they look a lot better. Nitto makes a kit for that car. I wonder if they have addressed the issue? Strange. Thanks for the advice...maybe HID lights are no good.
Bert, I tend to be somewhat easy on the throttle, but most of that trip was on cruise control so that helps.

chipset

Those lights are very good and also very expensive. You have to replace both at the
same time even if only one burns out. They are over $100.00 each.

tonyb1968

Chipset, not starting a fight here, but page 158 of the owner's manual for this vehicle states that 87 octane regular unleaded is the recommended fuel for both the Vulcan and Duratec 3.0L engines. http://www.motorcraftservice.com/pub.../98tauog1e.pdf
I use at least 89 octane.

chipset

Those engines are 10 . 1 compression. For what it's worth. 94 Vulcan 3 lt. is 9.1 compression. They run fine on 87 but much better on premium. Try putting 87 in a SHO.
89 is very close so you will not have problems. The Taurus is a nice car. i have 86 the first
year. 90, 92, two 94s ,95, 96. You will enjoy your car. I hope.

360ci

My '99 gets decent mileage. Even after replacing the suspension parts a couple years back it's still lower than stock so I'm sure that helps mileage on the highway. Winter tires however, take away some mileage benefit due to their "all terrain" tread style but I can't complain. I average 25mpg and with only 145hp (Vulcan here) there's no sense in driving it like my old Mustang...especially considering that the Taurus weighs nearly two tons!

As for the headlights, I polish mine every few months. The first time I wet sanded the lenses down with super fine grit paper and just Blue Magic the lenses to keep them clear. I use a buffer that fits on the end of my 1/2" drill and put on two coats at a time. Rain, snow and slush just bead right off. My OEM headlight bulbs took 12 years to burn out. HID bulbs are overrated when halogen's can be had for under $10 each and last over a decade with no worry of melting other components or getting in trouble with the DOT.

Once a year, before I change the oil in my Taurus I throw some Seafoam or Amsoil power foam into the engine to clean out any carbon buildup. I can put 15K on the car in a year running synthetic oil and at that 15K, the oil is still golden brown!

__________________
'00 Durango R/T 360ci 290hp (modded); 138,500m
'06 Pontiac G6 GT 3.5L 220hp; 44,000m
'12 Chrysler 200 Limited 3.6L 283hp; 13,000m
'99 Taurus 3.0L 2V Vulcan 145hp; 154,300m - Traded
Amsoil in all vehicles!