Grounding Cylinder Head Test Results (2024 CX-5 Turbo)

[jadmt]

Nice going! X2, cars are DC...

Snappy looking meter compared to shop worn one...

Now you landed it in the correct place.

Do the drivers side for bonus points!

I did. so no seat of the pants difference I can feel. we are actually heading out on a ~2000 mile road trip to the Oregon coast so we will see if any mpg gains.

 

[AL Cx5]

View attachment 382911

Now you're "talking"!

Driving impressions?
Fuel economy and/or performance??

 

[AL Cx5]

FWIW, buying a clamp on multimeter is not required. We have enough data to confirm my posts.

Just be sure to connect a ground cable to the points we know will give maximum benefits.

 

[jadmt]

Now you're "talking"!

Driving impressions?
Fuel economy and/or performance??

my seat of the pants feels no difference, I admit I was hoping too feel some difference but have not. I have not told my wife I did anything and it is her car and will see if she notices anything. she does drive much less aggressive than I do. we are heading out on a road trip next week to the Oregon coast so will no for sure if mpg has increased. I hand check every tank and believe it or not the cars computer is very close on highway driving to hand figuring.

 

[AL Cx5]

my seat of the pants feels no difference, I admit I was hoping too feel some difference but have not. I have not told my wife I did anything and it is her car and will see if she notices anything. she does drive much less aggressive than I do. we are heading out on a road trip next week to the Oregon coast so will no for sure if mpg has increased. I hand check every tank and believe it or not the cars computer is very close on highway driving to hand figuring.

These CX5s make great low end torque and are geared pretty darn close to perfect. It will take a will tuned Dyno Butt to feel the difference. I couldn't but my Engine Load A vs B tests on the same road, same day, same speed on CC showed a nice gain.

Another place to see if you notice, does it not downshift as often or goes further up the hill before a downshift than before.

I hope you guys have a great trip!

 

[AL Cx5]

What situations would you use it in where the Kill-a-Watt won't work?

I got the Triplett splitter, tester. It is a circuit tester and splitter. The indicator lights, light up to show if the circuit is grounded properly and does a GFCI test. I tested the GFCI in my bathroom tonight and it kill the lights! LOL

I'll keep it to test circuits and as a splitter for my clamp on meter. Down side, it's limited to 15a...

 

[jadmt]

just did my first complete tank of fuel since grounding and 0 difference on mpg in just running around driving. I am headed out in the morning on a week roadtrip which will mostly be 70-80mph cruising. this is a route I take often so with the price of gas I will cross my fingers but based on filling up this morning not looking good

 

[ruthrj]

just did my first complete tank of fuel since grounding and 0 difference on mpg in just running around driving. I am headed out in the morning on a week roadtrip which will mostly be 70-80mph cruising. this is a route I take often so with the price of gas I will cross my fingers but based on filling up this morning not looking good

Do you happen to run the trip B odometer for things like oil change intervals? Only time I’ve ever seen a mpg difference for sure was over 5k mile intervals. I see summer vs winter formulation gas (I think) causing a 1 mpg difference. I also can get 1 mpg better if I take routinely take the longer flatter route into town vs the shorter route with a mountain pass.

Curious if grounding yields shows a noticeable difference over a longer interval for you (hand and computer calculated).

 

[CrazyHippie]

I did a sanity check kind of calculation on these grounding upgrades. Assuming 14.5 volts when running, and using measured current, the resistance difference in the wire on the passenger side (OEM wire vs 4awg upgraded) is only about 150 milli-ohms. Likewise, the measured voltage difference across the wires is only milli-volts. I don't expect much of a difference with these in reality on stock vehicles. Racing vehicles -- perhaps. The heavier wires do look kinda cool under the hood and certainly, there's no harm in upgrading. But, I'm betting any butt-dyno improvements are a placebo effect. It’s been fun digging into it with everyone too!

 

[Koko_Bandit]

So, 150 mOhms X 15 A (what some people have reported) = 2.25V. That is 2.25V extra to operate various systems. We probably are not capturing the current spikes when solenoids (clutches, injectors, etc.) are being activated, you would need an oscilloscope for that.

Time will tell if there is a measured improvement, some have been able to do so. It could manifest as increased reliability since weak signals can accelerate solenoid failures.

 

[AL Cx5]

just did my first complete tank of fuel since grounding and 0 difference on mpg in just running around driving. I am headed out in the morning on a week roadtrip which will mostly be 70-80mph cruising. this is a route I take often so with the price of gas I will cross my fingers but based on filling up this morning not looking good

Are you hand calculating MPG?

The LOM, Lie O Meter, may very as much as 2 mpg. Mazda LOM is much better than my 20 year old domestic diesel but I see up to 2 mpg difference after adding an ECU tune. For my setup, the LOM reads lower than hand calculating.

Do you have a before hand Calculated as a reference?

 

[jadmt]

Do you happen to run the trip B odometer for things like oil change intervals? Only time I’ve ever seen a mpg difference for sure was over 5k mile intervals. I see summer vs winter formulation gas (I think) causing a 1 mpg difference. I also can get 1 mpg better if I take routinely take the longer flatter route into town vs the shorter route with a mountain pass.

Curious if grounding yields shows a noticeable difference over a longer interval for you (hand and computer calculated).

Yes I use my B trip for oil change miles..We are headed to the coast tomorrow morning. we do this route all the time so even if I am 1mpg I will know. the fuel I burned on my last tank was filled prior to may 1st....today should be summer blend. I hope I am pleasantly surprised. it literally cost me less than $5 and 10 minutes of my time to try it other than having to buy the meter which I needed anyway. seat of the pants was something I was hoping to feel but alas that has not happened..going to be driving over a few passes which again I have done many times...so we will see.

 

[jadmt]

Are you hand calculating MPG?

The LOM, Lie O Meter, may very as much as 2 mpg. Mazda LOM is much better than my 20 year old domestic diesel but I see up to 2 mpg difference after adding an ECU tune. For my setup, the LOM reads lower than hand calculating.

Do you have a before hand Calculated as a reference?

each and every time. my hand calcs are within 1/10 to 2/10ths mpg of my computer. has been that way for the last 47,000 miles. I generally fill up at the same station (costco) and fill up the same way each time..on the slowest setting and after it clicks off I wait 30 seconds and fill until it clicks again and call it good.

 

[N7turbo]

Are you hand calculating MPG?

The LOM, Lie O Meter, may very as much as 2 mpg. Mazda LOM is much better than my 20 year old domestic diesel but I see up to 2 mpg difference after adding an ECU tune. For my setup, the LOM reads lower than hand calculating.

Do you have a before hand Calculated as a reference?

As long as the method used is the same before and after, it doesn't matter. Consistency is key.

 

[N7turbo]

So, 150 mOhms X 15 A (what some people have reported) = 2.25V. That is 2.25V extra to operate various systems.

Voltage isn't something you want "extra" of. Components are designed to operate at specific voltages—so unless there is a deficit, which would be a design issue from Mazda, or a voltage sag due to an aftermarket stereo system or something, there wouldn't be a benefit to "increasing" the voltage. You may already know this, but I just wanted to clarify.

 

[Koko_Bandit]

Voltage isn't something you want "extra" of. Components are designed to operate at specific voltages—so unless there is a deficit, which would be a design issue from Mazda, or a voltage sag due to an aftermarket stereo system or something, there wouldn't be a benefit to "increasing" the voltage. You may already know this, but I just wanted to clarify.

"Extra" was probably poor wording on my part. The voltage drop in the ground lead reduces power at the device. A 12.5V system with 2.5V dropped in the ground lead leaves only 10V at the device. While it may be designed to operate at < 12.5V, it is not optimal. We called it 'ground lifting' when the voltage drop in the ground path become significant.

Injectors, solenoids, and electric clutches have high inrush currents when activated. in addition to the resistance in the ground path, there is also inductance which causes even higher voltage drops during these spikes. The heavier ground leads also reduce the inductance.

 

[N7turbo]

"Extra" was probably poor wording on my part. The voltage drop in the ground lead reduces power at the device. A 12.5V system with 2.5V dropped in the ground lead leaves only 10V at the device. While it may be designed to operate at < 12.5V, it is not optimal. We called it 'ground lifting' when the voltage drop in the ground path become significant.

Injectors, solenoids, and electric clutches have high inrush currents when activated. in addition to the resistance in the ground path, there is also inductance which causes even higher voltage drops during these spikes. The heavier ground leads also reduce the inductance.

Of course. This is all fundamental.

But unless someone has proven there is a voltage drop of that magnitude to affect operation, these extra wires won't do anything. And if Mazda were sending millions of vehicles out the door like that, it would be for shame. That's not just "non-ideal" operation; I would consider it an outright defective design.

And, consider how much engineering went into creating a new, thinner transmission fluid, risky cylinder deactivation, powered grille louvers, speccing narrow tires, and more—when all they had to do was put more grounding wires to achieve the same gains in economy. It just doesn't pass the sniff test, which is why empirical proof is so important.

 

[AL Cx5]

As long as the method used is the same before and after, it doesn't matter. Consistency is key.

As mentioned, my Mazda (2024 Turbo, Cx 5 with ECU tuning) LOM difference from hand cal is NOT consistently the same spread as hand cal.
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Ideally, take a trip, use CC with the grounds attached, run out a tank of gas. Connect the grounds, run another tank. I simply disconnect from the body and arrange so the free end doesn't touch any metal parts. Only need to carry a 10mm socket in my case.

I will do the above on our next trip. It's a quick, clean process to do while filling up. I will hand calculate MPG and compare to the LOM as well.

FWIW, the three 30+ MPG 5.9 diesel tests, I noted:
traffic slowdowns,
CC speed,
engine RPM,
ambient temp, wind speed and direction
terrain,
starting tire pressures,
tire type,
loaded or unloaded,
which and how much fuel additives,
which ECU tune and so forth.

After 20+ years, most of these trucks have been modified over the years. Most of their modifications hurt fuel consumption. Lifted with bigger, wider tires is number one. Store bought CAI is second most mod that reduces MPG.

Detailed report of 30 MPG give validity to my claim. LOM data is not accepted as valid with the truck guys. Even the new diesels, LOM data is not consistent.

I'll list of modifications we did to our CX 5: cylinder grounds, turning vanes in the inlet air duct, variable volume CAI and tuners name and tune with some of the above driving conditions on my A to B test this summer.

30 MPG in a 20 year old Dodge, 230,000 mi, 2500 is up from 18 MPH when I first bought it 17 years ago with 30,000 miles. The fuel savings is REAL.

I want real data too to prove or disprove if grounding helps a Skyativ engine. It MAY not. LOM may or most likely will not give meaningful data.

 

[jadmt]

Comparing a 20 year old dodge diesel and comparing a 2023 mazda is not really even in the same stratosphere. My cx5 has always given consistent good mpg and hand calculation always matches the computer. I hope i get a bump in mpg but we will see. 30mpg has always been my norm on road trips if i get 31-32mpg this trip i will be elated and give Al cx5 his props

 

[AL Cx5]

I did a sanity check kind of calculation on these grounding upgrades. Assuming 14.5 volts when running, and using measured current, the resistance difference in the wire on the passenger side (OEM wire vs 4awg upgraded) is only about 150 milli-ohms. Likewise, the measured voltage difference across the wires is only milli-volts. I don't expect much of a difference with these in reality on stock vehicles. Racing vehicles -- perhaps. The heavier wires do look kinda cool under the hood and certainly, there's no harm in upgrading. But, I'm betting any butt-dyno improvements are a placebo effect. It’s been fun digging into it with everyone too!

Maybe do an A to B comparison, take a wrench with you, disconnect the grounds at the house, drive, stop and connect, drive again. Or get an OBD2 blue tooth and log in CC on the same road, email the Logs and graph the like I posted way back.

My dyno results were 7 to 9 HP to the road or 10 to 11 HP at the crankshaft.

Someone tuned into their car butt dyno could feel the difference in a NA CX 5.

My wife felt the difference when I grounded her Honda. I didn't tell her and she asked me what did I do to her car. My daughter reported she could pass folks that she couldn't before in her Toyota. Lol