By Installing a CAM will i reduce fuel consumption or increase fuel consumption, also will it affect how many kilometers i will get to a tank on the freeway long distances...

i know it can improve power and torque but can it also reduce fuel consumption?

Does anyone know any information regarding selecting the correct cam for the right purpose...
I use my car for work mostly towing heavy loads etc
do travel long distances frequently
and short trips as well...
thanx guys....

Cams do increase fuel consumption.
That's about all I know about cams though!

Generally with cams to suit stock computer they will have very little noticable affect on your consumption. Maybe see improvements when driven nice and would expect to use more when your into it.

I agree, more power cant be made without fueling it. My cam chews more around town no matter how soft you drive it, but on the highway its barely affected

Sure it can. Think about it for a mintue. Something like extractors will increase power and improve fuel economy. Why because they are making the exhaust system less restrictive, meaning the engine doesn't have to work as hard.

The effect on fuel economy would greatly depend on what cam your planning on fitting. For example a cam that makes it's power at the rev point were you usually drive should give better fuel economy as at that rev point were you use your engine your engine would be running most efficently. Some of the Wade cams that are designed to improve low down torque for automatic vehicles are good like this as it is giving power increase in the rev range that people usually drive in.

Extractors, exhaust and intake mods can increase fuel economy both round town and on the highway. Plus they also give more power.


EDIT: twr7cx beat me to it.

Last edited by krisisdog on Wed Aug 15, 2007 11:14 am, edited 1 time in total.

Exactly right.

What you have to understand is that ALL cams are ground to behave in a particular efficiency range.

When i mention efficiency i am not referring to economy but the abilty of the cam to open and close the valves at any particular rpm point and display the desired engine characteristics.

The cam has ZERO impact on how much fuel you use. What does effect it is the rpm range in which the engine is designed to operate.

To take an extreme example: If you have a wild cam then you are going to have run the engine much closer to redline in order to gain the benefit of its efficiency range. Hence your right foot is really what determines the economy.

With a mild cam i wouldn't expect much of a difference. In fact if all you do is long distance driving and towing, installing a performance cam is a step backward. The standard cam is designed to be all things to all people. If what you want is a little more torque down low you could instead consider installing a vernier gear. This will allow you to bring the efficiency range of the cam up or down a few hundred rpm in the range. I would suggest ADVANCING the cam so you have a little more power down lower in the range. It would have nil effect on your highway economy.

HTH

with the 160rwkw to 176 rwkw figures i pull on dyno's i get better fuel economy now than i did when stock... on the free way i can get 930km to a tank.. and city/hghway still around the 6oo km mak... not bad for a six that can do 14.3..

With my 1636, I actually got better fuel consumption than the standard XR6 cam, both highway and city (7ish/100 and 14ish/100 respectively). Most likely due to the boost in the low to mid range torque cutting the effort of the engine to get from here to there.

When pushing it, it would use as much fuel as a standard cam, maybe a tad less.

There are lots of stories of cars with nice cams and power figures using the same or less fuel than stock. Eg EBTURB has a EB with a reground wade making 175ish at the wheels, but still gets factory consumption.

Be it a cam or extractors it depends on your right foot. If you prove it all the time and keep it down then you use more fuel if you drive well you will save and increase your econamy.