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While it can help those folks with MPGs what the "hypermilers" do is to NOT try to hold a steady speed - they hold a steady throttle position so that they slow down up a hill (sometimes a LOT) and coast down the hills. You don't want to be in traffic with them either, since to maximize MPGs they can be really slow up the hill and really fast down it. They also will draft off of trucks to save gas. They can report some fantastic mileage, but you don't want to be on the road with them either
Dennis
I ordered my cruise control from AllScion:
http://www.allscion.com/cruisecontrol.html
The cruise control kits are made by Rostra, who wholesales them to a big automotive distributor. AllScion (and competitor M&R) send your order to the distributor who ships directly to you. AllScion was very good about notifiying me when my order was shipped and answering a few questions.
During shipment AllScion contacts Rostra, the mfr, and locates the nearest installer to you, and emails you.
AllScion first gave me the name of a place in a city 80 miles away, and when I checked the company through the BBB it was unsatisfactory. I asked for a place in my city, and they came back with an excellent company that had done 75 Scion cruise control installations in the past 3 years for the 3 dealers in town. And they were members of BBB with an excellent record. They installed the cruise control for $150, using 2 people in an hour while I waited.
I sometimes get in line with a truck that doesn't go over the speed limit. Its varying speeds in hilly country are good for max economy in the xB, without bothering other cars, and I can stay with it downhill.
Drafting is not good, as you have to get extremely close. The trucker can't see you, you can't tell when he might suddenly slow, and you get the grit that is kicked up whenever the trailer wheels weave out of the swept track. You can't feel it in a car, but on a motorcycle there is a lot of side buffeting behind a truck until you get within about 2 carlengths, when the sudden lack of wind resistance feels like a push from behind and you have to back off the throttle. If the temperature is chilly, you can also feel the warmth from the big engine ahead.
Pennzoil differentiates their oil from other synthetics by saying it has "time-released molecules"...
http://www.pennzoil.com/products/motor_oil/platinum.html
is this a stickshift or automatic?
If 54,000:
At what point did you replace the OEM tires? What did you put on? Checked the tire pressures lately? Changed the air filter?
Often the car makers pick the OEM tires based on low rolling resistance and low noise (makes for good economy numbers and better test drives). A better or different replacement tire may hurt mileage a bit, but properly inflated even the worst rolling tire would not drop it that much.
If 5,400:
Check the tire pressures and note how you are driving the car. If the pressures are OK and you are not driving around at wide-open-throttle I would say you have a problem.
Most cars get better mileage as they age and wear in, up to a point.
Dennis
I am generally a gentle driver, but once took the car on a race track, so with my manual xB I have seen as high as 42 and as low as 24. Many trips were 37. Last summer it usually got 34 around the city, but now with winter it has fallen below 30.
I am not tempted to complain to the dealer because I know:
1. Cold starts begin with the engine at 30F instead of 80F. I can see temperatures on my ScanGuage.
2. It takes twice the distance to get the blue light off (137F), meanwhile the engine must run rich.
3. On short multi-errand hops the engine never reaches its operating temperature (186F) before I stop. All morning can be spent never getting over 160F.
4. I have given up trying to get good mpg in winter, and am using the throttle for more fun, which further reduces mpg.
Also, I run synthetic oil in mine and run my tire pressures at 32-34 psi. Good luck.
I replaced the OEM's with Falken ZX 512's in 195 60 15 size. The wider tire slightly lowers the MPG but really shines in the grip, ride, and handling areas. I run them at 32-34 psi. They have good reviews from both Tirerack.com and Consumer Reports. I also run synthetic oil and change the air filter every 10,000 miles.
You may be getting about the same mileage. If the larger tires are larger in circumference, they will travel a little farther with each revolution. The odometer and speedometer are most likely measuring speed by the revolution of standard size tires. This is probably measured at the transmission output shaft. The measuring device has no idea what size tire you are running.
Example if std tires are showing 50 mph at a given rpm, the larger tires will show the same speed at the same rpm. Even though they are actually rolling a bit farther.
NOTE: You will also be going faster than indicated by your speedometer.
You can get a rough idea by checking your odometer against say 10 miles of mile markers. Sixty mph equals a mile a minute. Chances are good that if you run exactly 60 mph for the 10 miles you will cover the distance in less than 10 minutes and show 9+ miles driven instead of 10 miles.
Although the mile markers may be off a few feet, 10 miles worth will give you a good indicator.
Kip
http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html
MrShiftright
Host
Has anyone seen actual photos of the new XB? All I've seen are concept drawings. Also what are the specs as far as engine? I've heard that the 1.8 engine from the Matrix is being used.
People have to remember that to calculate gas mileage reliably you really need to do it for a couple of months to get the average. It's easy to make fill-up mistakes plus or minus and throw the mileage off by quite a bit.
Can someone explain the "topping off" rational?
MPG is an average, if you fill up and drive until near empty, then fill up again you get the average MPG for that tank - say 28 mpg. If you stopped at 3/4 or 1/2 tank your numbers may vary quote a bit depending on the the driving you did right before you stopped - say 26 mpg to 30 mpg. No matter when you fill or how often you can average it out over a longer period and get the same average MPG.
I hate stopping, so I tend to drive until I have to stop. I have ScanGaugeII gauges in the cars now which so me mile to empty a LOT better than the gas gauges do. The exception is my case is a local station offers a discount on premium on Wednesday. So if I am driving one of the premium drinking cars on a Wednesday I may stop in a top off
Dennis
I don't go by the pop-off switch on the pump, as there are several variables that affect its operation. Many people believe that once the pump switch kicks off the tank is full. There have been several posts on this site in the past of owners complaining that they're getting less than 250 miles out of a tank of fuel.
Topping off the tank seems to be the only means of determing that your tank is actually filled to capacity and determining the true avg. mpg of each tank.
She is complaining about averaging 30mpg? EPA MPG on the xB is 30/34 mpg with an auto and the CR test reported 23/37mpg with an average of 30mpg. Sounds like she is getting the average number. As was mentioned, driving a bit slower on the freeway/Interstate can net an easy increase in fuel mileage - but who wants to go slow
Dennis
You would be better prepared for unforeseen traffic issues if you refueled at 1/2 or at least 1/4 tank.
"I don't go by the pop-off switch on the pump..."
By topping off, you risk getting gas into the vent for vapor recovery system, which taps into the filler neck just below the gas cap. This could foul the emissions system and cause an error code. For this reason, many owners manuals recommend against topping off.
My manual xB gets routinely gets 33 mpg in daily driving, I fill up with 8 gallons long before the light comes on, and am satisfied with the resulting 250+ miles between gas stops.
I call mine "Chief" or "Big Chief" which is short for "Big Chief Thundercloud". A running joke between my daughter and I that started when she looked at the xB for herself (she ended up with a new Civic).
Dennis
I suppose you could get into the "hypermiler" mentality and achieve this but for normal use on normal road conditions, I don't think 40 mpg is xA's normal territory. It's rare for a car to exceed its upper EPA estimates anyway.
But yeah, you COULD squeeze 40 mpg but it's not easy IMO.
So far the people I'm in touch with report identical average mileage to mine---that's 33-35 mpg over a year's time or so.
The 60mph thing is not that it was "designed" to for the most part, but just simple math and science. The faster you drive the more power is required to maintain the speed due to wind resistance. But it is not a linear formula - see formula here. As is noted in the text, it requires 8x the power to drive 2x the speed. So going 50mph rather than 60mph would save more than simple math would indicate, and going 70mph rather than 60mph would use more than simple math would indicate. I also costs to get up to that speed - more than it does to just maintain it. The you factor in terrain - you get to coast down but have to power up hills. Most of us set the cruise at a speed thinking we get the best mileage that way - that is not true. We do get better than if we slowed down and speed back up due to inattention to our speed, but not as good a mileage as hypermilers due when they allow the car to slow down when they go up a hill, then speed back up once they crest it (more of a constant throttle driving than constant speed). Of course, you don't want to be in traffic with someone driving like this, no matter how much they are saving.
The amount of power needed and fuel burned varies a lot depending (I would think) mostly on the drag coefficient of the car and the efficiency of the powertrain. My RX-8 would seem to have a nice, low drag coefficient but has a horribly inefficient powertrain. So driving a constant 60mph on a flat road my instantaneous MPG (as shown by an SGII) is around 20mpg. Drive 70mph and, of course, it drops further. Drive on a normal road with the cruise set and it may drop to 10mpg going up a modest hill then jump up to 30-40mpg on the way down.
There is a most efficient engine RPM that factors into this as well - this would be the "designed to" run you mention. In airplanes they have a best cruising speed - the speed at which the engine(s) uses the least fuel. If due to design choices in the engine and transmission your car is most efficient at some speed, then driving faster than that speed would make an even more dramatic drop in mileage occur becuase you are not only having to overcome more wind resistance on use more power, you are now operating your powertrain at an RPM at which it is not most efficient.
While out riding one of my motorcycles I got stuck behind a LEO for many, many miles (limited access parkway and he was going to the end, same as me). So I had to ride 40-45mph constant the entire time. When I filled up I was amazed by the MPGs I got for that tank. I was bored to tears driving a constant, slow speed but that clearly returns MUCH better MPGs than my normal riding style
Recently there was a news story (during the $3 a gallon gas days) about weight and MPGs. Seems if we all went on a diet we could save at the pump. So if I weigh 300 lbs and drive around with my car laden with stuff and you weigh 150 lbs and only carry what you need then if we drove the same car in the same style you would always best me in MPGs.
So a lot goes into it, but in my case it is mostly driving style. Like on the bike, I just don't like driving in a hypermile kind of way. In my xB this means I get better mileage than I do in the RX-8, but would not be likely to get as good as others may post. I understand and accept that - and I have to pay the price for it at the pump
Dennis
I'd say that if it doesn't improve by 2,500--3,000 miles you have a problem of some kind.
How's tire pressure? Try between 32-35 psi.
What's your rpm reading at 60 mph?
I have a manual 2006 xB and have kept a spreadsheet of each fillup since new. At 10,000 miles last Fall the overall average was 35 mpg. There were two tanks of 42 mpg holding steady 60 on Interstate trips, and two tanks of 37 mpg holding 55 on curvy hilly rural back road trips.
In winter now the mileage has dropped to 30 mpg, with frigid cold starts in the AM, then short hops where the engine does not reach normal temperature on the ScanGuage, and engine temp dropping to 75F between between hops.
I upshift at 2000 rpm, accelerate gently, cruise at 45 mph in 5th as much as possible, and don't go over 65 mph if possible.
My friend bought the same model/year and gets 27-28 mpg. We're both in the SF Bay Area, and self-employed, which means we are almost never in stop-and-go commute traffic.
I wouldn't have even take the Scion for a test drive if I'd known the mileage claims were bogus. I'd rented / borrowed other cars in its class which gave me 30-32 combined city/fwy mileage. I'm very disappointed -- no, more than disappointed: I'm ANGRY!
Here's a link to a newspaper article that mentions (near the end) the way Toyota fudges its mileage claims: http://www.mercextra.com/blogs/nauman/2007/01/09/detroit-07-mpg-confusion/
Well the mileage should get better by about 10,000 miles. Also you could test your tire inflation, and after your first oil change at 5K you could go to synthetic oil. If you can get up to 32 average mpg, that's about as good as it gets with an automatic xA.