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On topic, I have a 52 mile commute daily (38 of that is interstate, the other 14 is 45 MPH highway) and average 30-31 mpg in my '96 Accord LX with the 4-speed automatic. I keep my interstate speed within 5 mph of the limit (60) and travel before rush hour, 6:30-3:30. My
Sonata V6gets the same mileage on the same commute, but I'm still pleased with my old Honda!And yes, you're right, it is amazing that a modern midsize (borderline full-size) Sonata with 50% more horsepower and 500 lbs more "road-hugging weight" can match the economy of the compact '96 Accord.
You want "grossly underpowered"? I had an '82 Accord LX hatchback, 2300 lbs, 72 hp, three-speed automatic. Averaged 22 mpg in town and 28 on the interstate. Saw 30 mpg once--drafting a Mercedes diesel at 50 mph. Very similar mpg to my current '02 Accord 3.0 V6, 3300 lbs, 200 hp, four-speed automatic.
667 miles 16.2 gallons just over 41 mpg (Scangauge showed 41.7 mpg). 11 days of driving - 3 days of highway and the rest was all in town. Drove 100 miles after the fuel light came on - still had a gallon left in the tank, but I don't want to push it any further. I think 700 miles is certainly doable - just need a long enough trip so it is all highway.
Stats to date.
10 tank average 39.1 mpg
20 tank average 38.4 mpg
50 tank average 35.9 mpg
Lifetime average 34.7 mpg
Gotta get the 10 tank over 40 before it gets too cold.
I get great mileage in my 06 EX-L w/navi I4 manual but I've only been over 40 mpg twice and that was mostly all freeway (although it included mountain passes.) Still never had a tank below 28 after 87k miles though. I used to consistently get in the mid-30s when I had a long commute. Now there are more short trips so I'm down to low 30s around town.
Dudley is the master though.
Some of the things that I do to help mpg. No magic bullet, just lots of little things that add up. 40 psi tires, 0w-20 synthetic oil, a well broken in vehicle, tires are well worn (new tires get the worst mpg). I anticipate stops/ conserve energy, avoid short trips (cold engines get horrible mpg). Coast whenever you can, take routs with fewer stops. Park so you don't have to back up, try not to warm up the car - just drive off (when it is -20 out I let the car get warm). The stick shift helps immensely as it allows much greater control of the engine.
The most important thing is speed. You get the best mpg at the slowest speed you go in your tallest gear. I could probably get 70 mpg if I had a perfectly level road and I drove 30 mph in 5th gear, but who wants to do that. I do sometimes go 55 mph if I am not in a hurry and it is a nice day - especially if I am just on a trip for work. It helps that I learned to drive when the national speed limit was 55 even on Interstates, so driving 55 on a rural two lane road with no shoulders does not seem terribly slow.
Another huge factor is weather, but it is not under your control. Wind and temp are big factors. When taking a long trip I actually look at the winds and sometimes modify my route to avoid head winds if I can. In other words if I have to go north east and there is a wind from the east I will go north first if the wind will die down later, but go east first if the wind will get stronger later.
The Scangauge really helps show how all of these things change your mpg.
Tallman - you're too kind. I will concede master status to Wayne Gerdes. He went a bit further than me and turned the engine off every time he coasted (a little dangerous for me). I think he used to average over 50 mpg around town in an Accord - he used to post on here before he started his own web site. Google him for some interesting mpg reading.
Getting back to Interstate driving: I find it utterly frustrating that so many drivers are blocking the left lane by going happily at 5-10 mph below the speed limit, usually chattering on their cell phones. The interesting thing is that they apparently do not see the signs at regular intervals - Slower traffic, Keep right!
With the high final drive (3.29) plus 5th/6th being overdrives (6th is .77), my J30a4 6M gets in the high 30's on I-5. (On I-10 in the flat desert of AZ, Gila Bend west past Yuma, I calc'd over 40..............twice). Not often but possible.
Great engineering,
ez....
He said he would scan my car for $65 to see how the o2 sensor is performing; I might do this, but want honda to pay for it if the sensor is an issue. Also, i just ordered a scanguageII to monitor car parameters while driving to see if i can diagnose it without the big $150/hr of the honda techs. i'll keep you updated. PS: i am surprised that other people are getting over 30mpg with this car... hope to get there.
IMHO, the GenVII set the bar way up there. Replacement doesn't even paint on my radar.
best, ez...
Take the car on the highway once it has been warmed up fully (at least 15 minutes), then reset the scanguage and drive for about 20 miles at 60 mph. Make sure it is a warm day with no wind and you are on a level road. If you still get under 30 mpg something is wrong. I suspect you will get close to 40 mpg, in which case everything is fine.
We can't ever know how your city mpg compares, so it is necessary to check highway mpg. Ideally a full tank at a steady speed would be best, but the scanguage will get you pretty close. Make sure it is calibrated right.
My mpg is usually stellar, but extreme cold has really dropped it this winter. I took a trip that I could get in the high 40's and was in the low 30's. Temp was around zero degrees and that really kills mpg. Snow on the road didn't help either.
Fast forward a year later and I miss that car and I think my 03 Mazda 6 4cyl approaching 200K will soon need to be replaced. I really like the size and fuel economy of the 06-07 accords, but wonder what the penalty will be for getting an AT vs the MT. Any estimates as my commute will be the same as what I was doing in the 06 accord? My bro in law states he only gets mid 20s in his 06 exl 4cyl auto, but our driving is a bit different. I currently get 27-31 in the Mazda, but think the 4cyl accord could do better. I drive ~ 550 miles a week and would love to make it a week on a tank, something I regulary did in my old accord.
best, ez
Ken
and quite often cars are intentionally pessimistic, since that is safer than being optimistic!
Me, I still believe you should never let the car go below 1/4 tank. Less chance of picking crap from the bottom, or burning out your full pump.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
But I am hoping to get around 24-25 mpg to save some on gas. Kinda disappointed for not to see any improvement with MPG. Any idea if Honda comes up with some software changes to improve MPG similar to what they did for 2011.
I should have checked 2011 prices when i purchased car instead of listening to dealer tactics to sell 2010 cars. I am sure, i could have got 2011 for similar price.
Could someone tell me how to use trip calculator to get mpg?
I have a 2011 accord exl.
Thanks.
1) Reset your trip calculator (either Trip A or Trip after every fill-up.
2) At your next fill-up, divide the appropriate Trip reading with the number of gallons you just purchased. It's best to be consistent with your fill-up: top off with just one "click" of the pump, use the same pump each time if at all possible.
3) Go to step 1.
That's what I did before. My 07 Accord coupe always got above 30mpg. 02 Accord got 25mpg. Let's see what new 2011 Accord get.
Gas mileage ranged from 27.X to 29.X mpg. Not bad but not great, IMHO.
.....north to Seattle, WA on the left coast.
Thus the fuel efficient Gen7 Accord saga continues.........
............. 1600 miles round trip - on about 45 gallons of 87.
The numbers look like this: 1605.6 miles on 45.72 gallons.
For those of us who recall Statistics 101: Mean - 35.12, Mode - 36.25, Median - 36.24, Range 31.3 - 37.0.
For all: the 7th Gen 6M set the bar way up there (MHO). Where do we go from here?
ez
Total miles driven 1188; consumed 35.99 gallons of fuel--averaged 33 mpg.
I keep the cruise control set at 70-75 for most of the trip. My best tank of gas was 37.1 mpg during a run between Houston, TX and the far east side of Louisiana. Overall I was very pleased with the mileage I achieved during this trip.
2004 Accord V6 EX with Nav/Automatic: Best MPG on a trip from Stroudsburg, PA to Brooklyn, NY via interstate 80 East. Cruise control set to posted speed limits (50, 55 and 65MPH). 75F outside temperatures, no A/C or heat on. Myself in vehicle, (140 LBS) no junk in trunk, except for spare and jack, etc. 91 or higher octane used from day one, Fully synt. oil and Honda oil filter. Obtained 38.8 MPG, could have gotten better but reached my destination. (BTW we now have 27K miles on the ODO as of today). Yes we still have the original tires, brakes and most of the other fluids from day one, except for the motor oil. We constantly get over 35MPG on other HWY trips.
2008 Accord LX-P Automatic: This is our main commuter from Stroudsburg, PA to Queens, NY daily. Use 87 Octane and full synt. oil. Average MPG 32 MPG. Currenly have 91K on the ODO. Runs like a V6 says our mechanic.
Very pleased with the value that Honda has brought to consumers. Fun and Safe vehicles to own. Very economical to own.
Secondly, I do not believe for one bit those people in this forum that are achieving over 35mpg. Baloney. They are probably not filling their gas tank fully. What I mean is when you fill your tank, fill it up until you see the gas and your tank is completely full, drive, record the km or miles driven, and fill your tank up to the top completely again. I can assure you that are stating the incredible gas mileage, that when the pumps shuts off, I can pour 2 gallons more until the tank is completely full.
On the highway, if you have a light load, with summer driving conditions, flat land, driving at 60-65mph(100-105kmph) you can get at the max 34 mpg and that is with the 4 cylinder model UNDER IDEAL DRIVING CONDITIONS.
34.8 mpg lifetime mpg and dozens of tanks over 40 mpg. 10 consecutive tank rolling average once hit 39.8 mpg.