Question....Read until my eyes fell out regarding egr blocking. Has anyone noticed a drop in mpg especially with an LBZ? I went from 14 to 12 under the same exact conditions and I'm wondering if anyone else is in the same boat. No lights or leaks anywhere and the Fingerstick works perfectly. All this was done on a 65 hp Predator tune.

Heck, I got 13 with the egr unblocked, 40 hp tune, and pulling a 4000 enclosed trailer.

Something stinks......

Yea Ive Been Holding Off On Doing That With Mine,id Hate To Loose Mpg.

I've seen mixed reviews...some saw an increase, some saw a decrease in MPG's...I saw an increase, but I also had the Diamond Eye Turbo Direct Pipe installed that same day, so I don't know if my MPG gain was from 1 or the other.

And yet another reason why I'm not blocking mine. I never blocked my 04.5 LLY either.

Yeah I just installed my egr blocker a couple days ago and I'm thinking about taking it back out. I haven't calculated the MPG with it yet, but I have noticed the truck seems to take longer to warm up. It also seems to not start as easily. I have a thread going about it in the 3rd Generation forum. I'm beginning to think that these things are engineered to have the EGR and its not as simple as "just block it and forget it".

I did'nt see a change in mileage, good or bad when I installed mine.

X5........not sold on doing it as of yet either.

And yet another reason why I'm not blocking mine. I never blocked my 04.5 LLY either.

Should have listened to you the first time...

I took mine out tonight. I'll see if the mileage goes up. Other than mileage, I really didn't notice anything at all different.

I put one in about a month ago when I was having EGR problems. They said my truck needed a reflash for the EGR so they did that and when I got my truck back I put the blocker in. I can tell you it surely didn't improve my mileage. With pulling every now and then and the extremly damn cold temps here lately its hard to get a good reading on MPG but my truck is running around 9-10. Absolutly pathetic, makes me wish I didn't sell my 6.0!

Ive had mine blocked for several months, i didnt see any change in MPG either way. If your milage dropped I'd be inclinded to think its leaking or something is not right.

I think my truck is not warming up and staying that way as well. On the interstate there is no issue but around town it simply doesn't seem to warm up as quickly or as well.
But, the MPG could simply be due to winter fuel. I usually lose about 2mpg in the winter. I do run B20.

I already factored in the winter fuel. I'm just wondering if the LBZ actually likes to be blocked. Sounds stupid I know, and believe me, I would like to keep the soot out of the intake, but now, a couple of things need to be ironed out before I put it back in.

As for leaks, there were a few tiny bubbles near the plate when it was in, but that shouldn't be a big deal.

It's kind of funny when my best tank was actually the first tank....

I already factored in the winter fuel. I'm just wondering if the LBZ actually likes to be blocked. Sounds stupid I know, and believe me, I would like to keep the soot out of the intake, but now, a couple of things need to be ironed out before I put it back in.

As for leaks, there were a few tiny bubbles near the plate when it was in, but that shouldn't be a big deal.

It's kind of funny when my best tank was actually the first tank....

Well, not sure then. I too have thought about taking it out. It's just so hard to believe it's not a good thing when you've got forum members who know a heck of a lot more then me about these engines saying it's the best thing you can do for this engine.. My trip to work is about 5 miles and my truck barely gets warmed up. Here in SE TN most winter mornings at the worst are 30. Most of the time 35-40. My MPG is 85% city,(35-45mph, some stop and go)
and my DIC shows 14. I think when I hand calculated it I found it to be about 1-2mpg on the low side. I do think if the truck heated up better it would get better MPG but with my short stints around town it never gets near 210. I'd guess 165 at best but then again everyone says these stock guages are inaccurate..?

Since my blocker plate install it seems my MPG has dropped. When the warmer weather comes around I may take it out to see where I am at with the MPG

Well, I took mine out this evening before the drive home from work. I'm not sure if it changed the fuel mileage, but it definitely sounds different when blocked. With the blocker out the motor is very smooth when running about 1400-1800rpm. With the blocker it sounds and feels a bit more like a traditional diesel- a little less smooth and a bit more rattle.

What does this mean? I don't know, but after just 2 days with the blocker in it had a black soot ring on the blocker. I really want to keep that out of the intake, but I like the way the truck runs (and starts) without it. I'm still on the fence. I just want my motor to last but don't know if the cure is worse than the disease?

I was at the dealer a few days ago and looked at the egr assembly out of an 07 w/ 39k miles and let me tell you the valve and ports were so caked with soot, I would hate to see what the inside of the heads looked like.

Quote:
Originally Posted by JRKRACE http://dieselplace.com/forum/images/buttons/viewpost.gif (http://dieselplace.com/forum/showthread.php?p=2402511#post2402511)
I took mine out with the same results. But the reason I took mine out was because of mileage. I lost 2 mpg with the thing in and now I'm trying to see if the mileage creeps back up.

Has anyone else noticed this? Could it be the colder temps this winter? I did not gain any mpg (maybe even lost 1-2) after I installed a turbo-back exhaust and blocked and fingered my truck. But, it turned off cold after I did all of that and I just thought that the losses were because of the colder temps. Could it be because of the blocker plate?

Well, I took mine out this evening before the drive home from work. I'm not sure if it changed the fuel mileage, but it definitely sounds different when blocked. With the blocker out the motor is very smooth when running about 1400-1800rpm. With the blocker it sounds and feels a bit more like a traditional diesel- a little less smooth and a bit more rattle.

What does this mean? I don't know, but after just 2 days with the blocker in it had a black soot ring on the blocker. I really want to keep that out of the intake, but I like the way the truck runs (and starts) without it. I'm still on the fence. I just want my motor to last but don't know if the cure is worse than the disease?

It seemed to me that everything I read on here indicated the blocker plate made the truck run smoother and have more power. It definitely seemed like that to me. My truck starts right up with no issues and is as smooth as glass at the indicated RPM range. I do run B20 which seems to quiet my truck up pretty significantly. This MPG thing is really a mystery. I really don't think mine changed much when I installed the blocker but I think right now with the cold temps everyone is disappointed with their MPG...?

I think the drop in MPG's people are seeing is because it takes ALOT longer to warm up with the plate in than it takes with it out.

I noticed this too, we had a few days here in the 50's a week or 2 ago, my truck got right up to 210 and my "Range" on the DIC actually started going UP. I know you can't really go by the readings on the DIC once you have a "tune" loaded, but my Fuel Needle hardly even moved that day...days when it's freezing out, I use ALOT of Fuel.

Diesel's like to run "hot". Not like overheating hot, but they like to be hot and not warm or cold.

I think the drop in MPG's people are seeing is because it takes ALOT longer to warm up with the plate in than it takes with it out.

I noticed this too, we had a few days here in the 50's a week or 2 ago, my truck got right up to 210 and my "Range" on the DIC actually started going UP. I know you can't really go by the readings on the DIC once you have a "tune" loaded, but my Fuel Needle hardly even moved that day...days when it's freezing out, I use ALOT of Fuel.

Diesel's like to run "hot". Not like overheating hot, but they like to be hot and not warm or cold.

You may be right on with that. I have noticed the increase in warm up time and my truck cools off much faster. I really wonder if this is worse than having soot build up in the intake..?

Growing up I always understood diesels operated optimally at full temp and never work one hard unless it was totally up to temp..
My truck runs at a solid 180 around town and then will go up towards 195 on the interstate but coasting down a hill at 65 it will drop down to 180 again.... Not sure how good that is for it. I wish some of the motor heads that build these engines would chime in and give us some real facts. I know the factory guages are not that accurate.

This may have been covered in another thread so please forgive me if it has. If the blocker plate is removed, is there a need for the finger stick?

It seemed to me that everything I read on here indicated the blocker plate made the truck run smoother and have more power. It definitely seemed like that to me. My truck starts right up with no issues and is as smooth as glass at the indicated RPM range. I do run B20 which seems to quiet my truck up pretty significantly. This MPG thing is really a mystery. I really don't think mine changed much when I installed the blocker but I think right now with the cold temps everyone is disappointed with their MPG...?
Yeah, i did some more experimenting with and without the blocker, and I believe my experience (cold start, different sound) was due to the cold weather < freezing. I was probably a little too quick to blame it on the blocker.I'm not sure on fuel mileage, but I don't think there is much difference either way.Now that the weather is in the 50's & 60's it seems normal.
FWIW I'm rolling with the blocker for now. :)

This may have been covered in another thread so please forgive me if it has. If the blocker plate is removed, is there a need for the finger stick?

No...Unless you want to put the blocker in at a later time.

Ok...Same additive, same 65 hp tune ,same diesel station and almost the same temps.

Without blocker, and a little hwy.....315 miles.....20.37 gal.....15.5 mpg.
With blocker,all city......................216 miles.....15.60 gal.....13.8 mpg.
With blocker all city,2nd tank.........167 miles......12.88 gal.....12.9 mpg.
Without blocker, some plowing.........97 miles......8.676 gal.....11.2 mpg.
Without blocker, all city,3rd tank....134 miles......9.405 gal.....14.24 mpg.

A little close to call, but I did notice the mileage creep up. I'll still keep track until the snow hits this weekend.

This is one of those frustrating topics that surfaces from time to time. Frustrating because I get all the inquiries that "I'd like a blocker, but hear there are problems" etc.

My 2005 and 2007 have never had functioning EGR (blocked or turned off in tuning) for any extended period of time. Both get stellar MPG of 20+ (Kennedy Custom Tuning) with the slight edge going to the heavier 2005 so I don't believe that EGR disabling affects MPG much if any. If anything though it should be slightly positive. What I see are that the majority report no change. A small percentage think that they saw a gain. A small percentage think that they see a drop. VERY few ever do any truly scientific testing.

What I do find is that the LBZ seems more prone to mpg drop during warmup. If I get out and run, it will return 21+mpg at speeds under 65mph in decent road/wind conditions. If I stop and have to warm it back up, it will drop and take a while to recover. The 2005 does this somewhat, but to a much lesser extent than the 2007.

Mine is blocked and tuned by EFILive. Mileage stayed the same, 21mpg @ 68mph, 20mpg @ 75 mph but drops to 18.5mpg @ 80 mph.

Rob

Louder engine operation can happen because the fuel is burning faster.

Blocking should not increase or decrease the MPG.

If you are seeing a drop, check the seal on both sides of the blocker plate. You probably have a leak.

As far as the leak issue, I have checked and tightened. A little soapy water at the joint resulted in a few tiny tiny bubbles in one spot. The engine did quiet down a little along with a little more soot after removing the plate.

I'm tending to think like Kennedy, that the LBZ is subject to more of a hit during warmup in the mileage department than the LLY. IIRC, the LLY ran a little hotter to begin with. Mind you, I drive about 11 miles to work everyday, so I'm testing for worst case scenario. I would also think that if the truck was driven further everytime, then the mileage wouldn't take as big a hit.

The mileage tests are still ongoing.

I've been guilty of a leak on the Boost side of the plate. PITA to detect.

I was at the dealer a few days ago and looked at the egr assembly out of an 07 w/ 39k miles and let me tell you the valve and ports were so caked with soot, I would hate to see what the inside of the heads looked like.


Thats what has sold me on a blocker the only thing keeping me from installing it is the warranty.

In January I installed a blocker, finger stick and a 4" MBRP down pipe back. I increased .75 MPG (hand calculated) since doing this. As I was reading through all of these posts it occurred to me that most of you have 06 and 07 trucks and most live in the north. Maybe that has something to do with it, I don't know. I have a 05 LLY DRW 4X4 truck and I expect my mileage to suck. But I'm very happy with 17.3 MPG. I do very little in town driving.

In theory, the way EGR works, the engine should be more efficient at cruise speeds. The exhaust that is inserted into the combustion is an inert gas and takes the place of some of the fuel charge, resulting in less fuel to burn. Also less performance, which you don't need when simply cruising empty. If it is working correctly, it should not be operating in stop and go traffic. This is from an SAE Certifide Master Technician who owns a very successful shop. He's also a good friend of mine. And he stated this to me just like this, "In theory......"

He has not blocked his EGR, I have blocked mine. I think I lost a bit of mileage with my LLY.

In theory, the way EGR works, the engine should be more efficient at cruise speeds. The exhaust that is inserted into the combustion is an inert gas and takes the place of some of the fuel charge, resulting in less fuel to burn. Also less performance, which you don't need when simply cruising empty. If it is workin.g correctly, it should not be operating in stop and go traffic. This is from an SAE Certifide Master Technician who owns a very successful shop. He's also a good friend of mine. And he stated this to me just like this, "In theory......"

He has not blocked his EGR, I have blocked mine. I think I lost a bit of mileage with my LLY.


Does not replace fuel. Displaces air and the O2 it carries. Slows the burn, reduces chamber peak temps and pressures.

Does not replace fuel. Displaces air and the O2 it carries. Slows the burn, reduces chamber peak temps and pressures.

If that's the case, I guess it wouldn't really result in higher fuel mileage then would it....

That's probably what my buddy said and my brain scrambled it up a bit.

EGR helps control combustion and lower emissions, it is very debatable if it is worth it to remove or if it actually hurts other then getting rid of the system if it keeps failing components.

Does not replace fuel. Displaces air and the O2 it carries. Slows the burn, reduces chamber peak temps and pressures.

I ran across this thread via google. If this is true, wouldn't this result in longer engine life? However, is any gained longevity offset by soot entering the engine? Not to mention the failing parts of the EGR system down the road.

I'm on the fence as far as blocking the egr and that is why I'm asking. My plan, which is subject to change, is to keep this truck to 500,000 miles. So longevity is of upmost importance. PCV re-route is a must. EGR block, I don't know.

I just bought the pcv route to do to mine. I bought a plate but haven't put that on yet. If I understand correctly since I drive mostly on the highway, I might be better off doing it, I'm not sure.