Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

I found this link and was wondering if this is really true? Has anyone heard of this before?

http://www.moremiles4u.com/default.aspx?p=59364

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Heard of them. It's crap.

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

I think they tested those on Mythbusters as well.... and found they were crap. Not suprising really.

Its always funny when companies cite patents on their products as if its some sort of government approval of performance. All a patent says is no one can copy you... says nothing about if it works or not.

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Why do people that believe this stuff think the manufacturers have not put magnets, etc. on the cars they make? They will spend thousands for a few more mpg (like a hybrid drivetrain), but won't put a $1 magnet on a fuel line to gain more advantage? Could it be that...it doesn't work?

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Ok...so I'm getting the distinct feeling...and correct me if I'm wrong here, that they don't work!!

But don't you just love it when the story is so well told...

North, South...East West. Sounds great. Just strap on a couple a magnets and bingo...phseudo hybrid economy.

Why can't life be so simple.

Thanks everyone for your prompt reply posts.

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

To debunk any other products, the EPA did extensive testing in the 70s, and again last year, on almost every type of 'fuel booster.' NONE of them did any statistically measurable good. Not airflow gadgets like turbinator, not magnets, not acetone, not nothin' And several caused damage. A few 1/10s of a mpg here and there, but no real gain to justify the claims.

C&D, Popular Mechanics, CR, etc have all done similar testing. There is no 'hidden technology that the big 3 don't want to get out' or anything like that. No free lunch- the technology is too mature to have any hidden secrets left.

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

What Gonvay said.

That stuff is all crap.

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

I believe that the reason that these things get any credibility is that everyone thinks that somewhere, sometime ago, someone invented (or reinvented) the ICE so that it got 100-120 mpg and that the oil companies squashed it.

So, therefore, anything goes. Where it is going? No one knows.

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Yes; preying on the combination of conspiracy and general scientific ignorance. If it sounds sciency enough, it MUST be true, right?

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

While reading through the "Fuel Master" website, I was reminded of another website for some reason.

DMHO

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Another tactic they use is "1 million sold", "money back gaurantee". They get away with this because sometimes they price them so low that people buy them "just to try". And then to ensure they don't get too many returns they price it low enough where shipping back to them would be too expensive to be worth while by requiring insured shipment or some other ups/fedex mark up. If you paid $15 for something and it costs $10.00 you would actualy lose money claiming the "money back gaurantee". Which never includes shipping.

On our site over at cleanmpg.com we use google adsense which tries to fit the advertisments with the content. Since we are very much about improving mpg we get a lot of these ads showing up in our banner. I am currently using googles adfilter to remove any such ads from our site. These gimicks are mostly garbage and until I hear some resounding success stories I will consider each and every one of them as fraud.

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

I almost know the answer to this question already, but following the last post...do you know of any improvements I can make to my HCH-II that will actually improve FE. Other than the normal driving techniques, tyre inflation etc.


In Australia we are currently being bombarded with advertising about a product called a "Fitch Fuel Catalyst". Some sort of alloy inserted into the fuel line, supposedly "breaking up" the fuel molecules to make them burn more efficiently.

Ever heard of this. It's a U.S. product!

Thanks:D

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

There are NO silver bullets. Technique is 90% of the game, assuming fluids, tires, etc are optimized already. There are some very very incremental improvements that can be made aerodynamically and with warm air intake for the engine, but the bang for the buck is low. Well, warm air intake helps a lot when its colder out.

go to gassavers.org and poke around- they are very into making physical mods there. Lots of it centers around transmisison changouts on older automatics.

BTW- "breaking up fuel molecules" is what the engine is supposed to do anyway!
Any time you see anything that sort of vaguely talks about chemistry or physics, its a sure bet to steer clear immediately! Legitimate products don't need to advertise quasi-science on the front page.

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

I was at the Ford dealership earlier this week and noticed advertisements all over the place for a similar magnetic product. I think the main board listed a normal price of around $180, but a special 'right now - limited time offer' price of $150. This product advertisement was all over their service department! I wonder if it was management's idea to sell this item, and the mechanics all know it's crap?

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

hey! maybe if we wrap some magnets around a flywheel and induce a rotating magnetic field around the whole thing it might..........naaaaa. couldnt possibly work....

Drivers urged to be wary of gasoline scams
 

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articl...scams0618.html

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Nice mod.:D

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Good way to collect nails before they imbed into your tires, too. :)

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

That version has the magnet rotated down. In cartoon physics, magnetic attraction flows directly inline with the magnet orientation.

Bob Wilson

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Joining the thread late.

This reminds me of the braces that are supposed to cure arthretis.

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Bob:Hurry up!
You should APPLY FOR A PATENT for this one! :confused:

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Whew... for a second there I thought you were describing RELIGION. Had me worried! :)

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Hi,

Ok:
What was your before fuel economy?
What is your after fuel economy?
How did you measure it?
Have you taken it off and seen a return to the original fuel economy?

Did you read the great write up from the EPA about this product?
http://www.epa.gov/otaq/consumer/devices/pb82194937.pdf

". . . The "Super-Mag Fuel Extender" consists of a set of two rectangular magnets mounted on plates, two steel plates, and two plastic ties that are installed around a vehicle's fuel line, about 3 inches from the carburator. The magnets and plates are arranged so as to form an open-ended four-sided box surrounding the fuel line. A claim for the device's effectiveness appears in a message on the package label, which reads "Transforms Molecular Properties of Liquid Fuel to Maximum Combustion Efficiency." . . .

The EPA evaluation of the device using three vehicles, showed that there was no emission or fuel economy benefit due to the installation of the "Super-Mag Fuel Extender."

This was a report made at the request of "the Consumer Office of the Metropolitan District Attorney for Denver, Colorado."

Hummm, do you live in Colorado, near Denver?

This is just another SPAM touting a fraud. But no doubt, it may make another amusing set of PowerPoint engineering charts . . .

Thanks,
Bob Wilson

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Hi David,

I'd like to recommend this US Environmental Protection Agency site that lists common energy frauds:

http://www.epa.gov/otaq/consumer/reports.htm

I'm curious, did you get a chance to study any physics or chemistry in school? The reason I ask is there are some very readable books on both subjects around. With a little bit of study, you'll gain a lot of insight and be less subject to "Cartoon Physics" as documented by MIT. Here is another excellent list.


Bob Wilson

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Hook, line, and sinker ;)

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Just another day of play . . . or was that your sock puppet?

Bob Wilson

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

My post was removed.

I guess this site isn't the place for sarcasm. My apologies go out to the readers who were affected by my reklessnes.

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

I had a hard time telling from the tone of your voice. That is why I only posted a useful link and didn't call you stupid.;)

Re: Do magnets REALLY help fuel economy
 

Ever get the feeling that simply by talking about junk like this (beyond a basic, scientifically sound rebuttal) that we in some way give it credibility? Or at least a few sales ...no such thing as bad publicity... ?