Kinda Dumb

So check this out... I swore I'd stop doing aftermarket stuff after my last Mustang and how it didn't turn out so I bought an Escort. I have a slight itch to do it again but really have almost no cash and I don't really wanna get "ricey" with the way I do things. So what are a few lil technical things that I could do that are cheap and not idiotic? I've already done some custom work to the intake (as you can see in another thread) but now I'm curious and running out of ideas.

Forgot to mention, my escort is a 99 SE Sport

how about a mild exhaust system...Starting with some affordable headers

Well I understand all that and it'll come in time... but I was hoping on not really replacing anything with performace parts, as it is just an Escort (sorry to the enthusiasts... but it's not really a sports car). Like I altered my intake to increase my gas mileage... I just want to do small things that will benefit the life and use of my car overall. See where I'm comin from? I just wanna know if anyone has done anything really cheap or free in their spare time that happened to help the car either power or economy wise.

Headers will get you better fuel ecomomy.
They just let the exhaust flow better, which means it's working less.

Where I live we don't have emissions, and we remove the cat converters which really gets us better mileage.

Another way for better mileage is if they fit you can put on a bigger diameter tire. Don't do this if there are lots of hills where you live.
Lighter tires and wheels will also help

And probably the biggest gain is just keep your car tuned up

I bought a Turbo II muffler at Auto Zone for $18.99. Sounds nice. Seems to run stronger. On my intake I removed all of the ducting and baffles so the air is coming straight in the air cleaner box. I also added some holes to the bottom of the air cleaner box to increase air flow. I used a 3" hole saw and cut two new holes. All kinds of air flow now.

Just take the muffler off and replace it with a piece of exhaust pipe. If your car didn't have two O2 sensors(Damn OBDII), I'd tell you take off the catalytic converter too. It'd give you a little more power; Plus Escorts just sound sweet without mufflers.

Just take the muffler off and replace it with a piece of exhaust pipe. If your car didn't have two O2 sensors(Damn OBDII), I'd tell you take off the catalytic converter too. It'd give you a little more power; Plus Escorts just sound sweet without mufflers.

Removing the muffler will actually Kill most cars economy. They need the back pressure.

Your right about the cat though.
There are ways around the Oxy sensor. They are nothing more than a resistor that is controlled by the gasses, so find out what the resistance value is at the right temputure and buy a resistor..
Although this is illegal everywhere, so is it worth it?

Thanks for letting me know about the resistor/O2 sensor thing. My little brother has been looking for a way to take the cat off of his 96 S-10 without making the MIL light come on.

The only problem with hte resister thing is that you have to test it on an extremely hot exhaust system, so be carefull.

If you surf the net in the right places you might be able to find the restince somewhere.

I picked up an aftermarket coil. Accel to be exact, got even better gas milage, a little more power and a smoother ride. It cost about 110 canadian. Not excatly cheap but well worth it.