Chevy & GMC Vans

well my van has the 3.23 and before i had problems it would get up and go alright...but im having ignition problems and my tranny is going so im gonna say im in the 15's with my van 17's highway....

kings-x59 wrote:I read a while back about using acetone to de-varnish your gas tank. I assume it would do the same thing to the entire fuel system.

I'm no auto tech, but do NOT do that. You'll cause unnecessary wear on pump seals, and any rubber lines. As far as "de-varnishing" your gas tank, remember that the way acetone does this is by dissolving that crud, and then introducing it through the fuel lines right into your engine.

kings-x59 wrote:Dan,
I think the only thing you would gain from 3.23 gears is aggrevation. My '89 came stock with 3.23's. I drive a lot of stop and go traffic and wish every day I had 3.73 gears. (one of these days)
Lugs something awful in the bottom end of 4th gear.

I gotta agree. My Astro has 3.23's and in many cases it like you're dragging a boat anchor.
When you start going uphill, even a bridge or overpass, you loose tons of speed and you find yourself putting a lot of "foot" into it just to maintain speed. If you're towing anything, avoid 3.23s. 3.42's is the highest they recommend for towing.
I'd love a nice 3.73.

astrozam wrote:If your getting that kinda mileage,and your happy with how it tows then do not change anything.

A light foot with smooth acceleration, and let off the gas for decel will yield you better gas milage. Check out what gears you have and let us know.

On my 250 mile eachway drives towing out the the Colorado River, I like to drive barefoot to beable to lighten up on the pedal to maintain my cruise speed.

Dang it, I miscalculated on my last tank and ran the van dry. Thought I had about 50 miles left, the van gave me 8. My wonderful wife came to my rescue with our 2.5 gallon gas can. The number of gallons used this tank I recorded higher than I think it should be, cause I'm not sure exactly how accurate the gas can is, plus I spilled some. However even with the number of gallons being slightly inflated the van still got 22.44 mpg for the tank.

Well I just took a run out to see the parents and grandparent - had to show them the new baby... (7 weeks) I guess thats the grandparents and Great grandparents... LOL

Anyway Banff, AB I filled - drove to Invermere, BC - then some running around out there, but not much, and back home to Calgary, AB. I got just shy of 20 MPG - 19.2 MPG to be exact. Best mileage yet for my time with the Astro. Hope it stays like this! Anyway I thought this is good mileage for the size, weight, mountain pass, etc.... and AWD. 95% highway - maybe 5% town/city - 56 liters for 460km's... Did I mention that was the speed limit... driving like grandma.... 92kph in BC and 114kph out of the park in Alberta

Around the city it varies - from about 12MPG to 15MPG