worried about my car

Paralyzer · Post by **Paralyzer** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 10:58 pm

I was on my way home from my girlfriends hosue and was wondering....what is my time for my car. So I got my cell phone out and used the stopwatch part of it.

My times from a dead stop and go at a red light was as follow:

0-30= 3.66
0-60= 7.88

Is this normal or is my car way out of wack? It is bone stock so I was wondering if it was at a normal pace or if something is wrong with it. Please let me know. Because I would like it to be at a normal range being stock b4 I start doing engine mods.

unsuper man · Post by **unsuper man** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 11:03 pm

bone stock manual 2gen? those numbers are optimistic. your looking at a 0-60 of around 8secs oin a stock 2 gen.

Paralyzer · Post by **Paralyzer** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 11:13 pm

it is an automatic

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 11:30 pm

You have nothing to worry about.

OB · Post by OB » Sat Feb 04, 2006 11:31 pm

shouldnt be that quick, are u on stock wheels/tires? the only way i could see u gettin sub-8 times is cuz the speedo is inaccurate due to incorrect overall tire height. ive seen several websites claim that a stock 2gn will do 0-60 in like 8.6 seconds or somethin. theres no way in hell that ur stock ATX is gonna be a second faster. not to mention that ur stopwatch skills are prob not very accurate. youre lookin at high 8, low 9's id say. have to use a really nice radar gun for true accuracy.

Paralyzer · Post by **Paralyzer** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 11:32 pm

that is good to hear. I didn't know what the times are so I wanted to find out. Also I was wondering...does our cars run better on higher grades of fuel?

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 11:37 pm

Paralyzer wrote:that is good to hear. I didn't know what the times are so I wanted to find out. Also I was wondering...does our cars run better on higher grades of fuel?

Nope. Not until you have done a lot of modification. Use regular, if you use anything higher, you're just wasting money.

Paralyzer · Post by **Paralyzer** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 11:39 pm

ok just wondering. thanks for the information

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Sun Feb 05, 2006 12:30 am

P.S. For future reference, a topic like this would go under "General 2gn Questions" , not "Naturally Aspirated".

Paralyzer · Post by **Paralyzer** » Sun Feb 05, 2006 12:32 am

sorry. I apoligize.

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Sun Feb 05, 2006 12:42 am

No worries.

It just helps more people to see the question when it's in the right place, and it keeps the specific topic area's cleaner. It's easy to put stuff in the wrong place though, I'm guilty myself.

tamadrumr88 · Post by **tamadrumr88** » Sun Feb 05, 2006 7:54 am

Paralyzer wrote:Also I was wondering...does our cars run better on higher grades of fuel?

my friend that has an '03 sxt 5spd (only has an intake and booger bushings

) ran 91 in his car for a few tanks and he felt the car idled and drover better/easier. you cant complain about only an extra 80 cents at the gas pump every week - just go without that bag of chips at lunch for one day

scneonchic · Post by **scneonchic** » Sun Feb 05, 2006 11:21 am

I run 93 in the blue neon...have done it for a long time. most people would say Im waisting my money, but it seems to idle better, run better, everything. In the other one, Im just going to stick w/ 91...I dont think Ill ever run 89 in anything, just because it seems to run better w/ a higher octane

Mopar00Neon · Post by **Mopar00Neon** » Sun Feb 05, 2006 1:01 pm

Paralyzer wrote:that is good to hear. I didn't know what the times are so I wanted to find out. Also I was wondering...does our cars run better on higher grades of fuel?

If you didnt know what baseline times were, why did you make a post saying that you are worried about your car and asking if something is wrong with it?

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Sun Feb 05, 2006 1:24 pm

scneonchic501 wrote:I run 93 in the blue neon...have done it for a long time. most people would say Im waisting my money, but it seems to idle better, run better, everything. In the other one, Im just going to stick w/ 91...I dont think Ill ever run 89 in anything, just because it seems to run better w/ a higher octane

Around here (the midwest), you get to choose from 87, 89 and 91. 91 is probably, on average, 25 cents more per gallon. I use 89 in my car, but sometimes only 87, because most of the 89 mixes are 10% ethanol around here. (Ethanol's molecular structure can bond with water, where as pure gasoline's cannot, so it's probably not the best to ALWAYS use an ethanol blend, because of moisture issues)

This is my theory on gas quality and octane....ready?

In a car like a Neon, even with some performance modifications, as long as the stock ECU is still being used and nothing else that would tend to cause detonation has been done to the car, it is way more important to buy quality gas on a regular basis, even if the gas is a lower grade/octane. Gasoline in America is kind of a scary thing. There are really very few standards that the refineries and distributors have to meet, and the additives that get put in different brands of gasoline vary A LOT. I always use "Top Tier" fuel in my car. Google it, and also at least go here http://www.toptiergas.com/index.html

So, even though you might feel like the car is running smoother or better, part of that is your own conscience, knowing you put more expensive gas in, and part of it might indeed be the car running slightly better. But that is probably very marginal, and MOSTLY a funtion of the additive/detergent mix of the gas, NOT the octane rating. Bottom line, even 87 octane is plenty for our Neons. Just make sure you always buy quality gasoline from a store that has a lot of gas turnover, and gets fresh gas on a regular basis. And one last thing. I've used 87, 89 and 91 in my car, and I can't tell a dang difference.

If you keep fresh/good plugs in your car, you shouldn't physically feel a difference between a higher octane and a lower one. You'd just feel a difference between brands and additive/detergent mixes.

Mopar00Neon · Post by **Mopar00Neon** » Sun Feb 05, 2006 2:46 pm

Thank you, Dave. Ive been saying the same thing for years. The only vehicle I could ever feel a difference in was the 57, but 11.5:1 compression with California gas and 100+ degree weather can make for huge differences. lol

OB · Post by OB » Sun Feb 05, 2006 3:29 pm

i run 87 (regular in CA), but i did run 91 (premium) once, and the car did feel to idle much better, and acceleration was more linear and less bumpy. the valvetrain sounded more smooth, almost like what it sounds like after a long-overdue oil change. the owners manual however, says that using anything but regular could actually cause DAMAGE to the motor. I wouldnt suggest 91 unless u have a computer program to support the added octane. cars nowadays are very sensitive, and o2 sensors and other items have been know to be damaged by using the wrong octane fuel. dont quote me, just my 2 cents.

Post by **racer12306** » Sun Feb 05, 2006 3:43 pm

the only way to really set a baseline is by taking it to the drag strip.

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Sun Feb 05, 2006 4:36 pm

racer12306 wrote:the only way to really set a baseline is by taking it to the drag strip.

Ah, and back to the original idea. Racer12306 is completely right. I didn't get all bent out of shape initially, figured I'd just let it go, but timing yourself with a stopwatch while you floor it away from a stoplight is pretty much the worst way to measure performance or time. Not even remotely close to accurate. The only worse way I can think of, is to put a pre-schooler in the back seat and say, "I want you to start counting when I floor it, and then stop when I say so". That could give slightly less accurate results. But probably not a whole lot.

Paralyzer · Post by **Paralyzer** » Mon Feb 06, 2006 11:11 pm

sorry for taking so long to answer you guys. The only reason why I was worried about it is because I feel like something ins't right about the car. I feel like it has issues with a few things. And I feel like I need to go ahead and do all of the maintaince on it because I am hitting 53k.

Few things I am worried about:

Electrical:
if I gun it...my headlights turn into strobe lights, my check engine light comes on giving me the code P0700.

My headlight dim to almost completely off when my system is on and I am normally driving or even sitting still.

Drivetrain:
The Belt squils at me when I gun it and really gets mad more than usual when I wash her and a "little" water gets in the bay from spash.

my gas milage is for some reason varying really bad and the only gas I can put in my car is BP for it to last a while.

I just don't know what to think. If you guys have any ideas please feel free to fill me in.

J8t4m · Post by **J8t4m** » Tue Feb 07, 2006 8:58 am

hmmmm - I would agree as well . . .

If you have a stock R/T ECU - Your car will run better on higher octane (As recommended from DCX)

IVe done tests . . . mileage test - Speed test - And 1/8 and 1/4 tests . . . The R/Ts run much better on prem. fuel

============

As far as your "problems"

Both of those problems may be linked

If your belts squeeling . . . then its running to slow over a pulley or to fast over a pulley . . .

Basically - You wanna check the belt - make sure its not cracking . . . make sure its not stretched out real bad

Im guessing - the alternator isnt geting a good grip on the belt for whatever reason . . .

If the belt looks good - and its good and snug . . . your pulley on the alt. might be getting ready to go out . . . maybe a bearing or something in there

If your really worried - just replace the belt - or take it to a mechanic and have them do it . . . . If its still squeeling and your electrical is dying on you . . . might be time to get the alternator tested (or just replaced) -