T.u.t. - BMW Forum

da_bull · 03-28-2006, 10:02 PM

Tune up time. Looking for tried and true brand of plugs, air/fuel filter, and any other items to get better than the 19mpg on the highway. Thanks in advance...

Eric S. · 03-28-2006, 11:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by da_bull

Tune up time. Looking for tried and true brand of plugs, air/fuel filter, and any other items to get better than the 19mpg on the highway. Thanks in advance...

DB -
I gotta say, I usually stick with OEM on that kind of stuff (NGK plugs for me, BTW). Check with getcoolparts.com for your best deal on the OEM stuff. Just replacing old with new should help your mileage some.

Another thing I did recently which bumped my mpg by almost 2 mpg: I changed my pre-cat O2 sensors. I used Bosch OEM, again available from getcoolparts.com. On my E39 that made a big difference - it may not be the same story on an E34, but it's likely worth trying if you're over 70K miles.

sp0rky · 03-30-2006, 03:46 AM

The m20 is just known to eat gas. A tune up will help, but don't expect a major improvement.

Whatever you do, stick with copper core plugs. Platinums on an m20 / m30 are miserable. If you have high mileage and original wires, you should probably replace those and the ignition coil as well. Oh yeah - and distributor cap and rotor.

OEM air and fuel filter work great. Nothing wrong with them - and you know whatever flows through them is getting filtered great. So what if the air filter doesn't give you that .02hp that the K&N would.

How many miles are on your car now? Is it auto or manual? With that kind of mileage, I'm going to assume auto...

da_bull · 03-30-2006, 05:48 AM

Yeah auto, I bought it at 102K, it now has 137K. I read the effects of K&N at BMWE34.net on the differences and not worth it at all. I'm sure the wires are original. I'll probably start out and replace from the rotor out to the plugs and see where that gets me. My air filter was just replaced not too long ago, but I'll check it anyways. Go back to BMW on rotor/cap/wires? Or is there an aftermarket that is better? My 18's are pretty heavy, I was thinking of going back to the stockers, like Torque has on his. 3-4 mpg would be wonderful, but I'm skeptical. This car is just so dern heavy

....

sp0rky · 03-30-2006, 11:33 AM

I usually just buy all my parts from BMA. Everything seems to be of good quality, etc.

Man - the wheels ... My 17s are heavy (27lbs a piece) and that car lost a few mpg and about 8 seconds 0 - 60 (making it now a 28 second 0-60 car) lol
They also took away a lot of braking power. Anywho, we have almost exactly the same mileage, ( I have 137,200 on the m20) but I haven't driven that car since back in early Feb. Anyway, back on topic - good luck

Jamison · 03-30-2006, 02:48 PM

sp0rky, how bad was your braking affected when you put new wheels on? slight difference or a big one?

sp0rky · 03-30-2006, 03:31 PM

The difference wasn't big enough to make me take them off, but it was definately noticeable. They still stop real nice, but it takes quite a bit more pedal travel to get the same effect. I suggest either upgrading your brakes or paying extra and getting a lightweight set of wheels.