Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see May lease deals!
Options
Popular New Cars
Popular Used Sedans
Popular Used SUVs
Popular Used Pickup Trucks
Popular Used Hatchbacks
Popular Used Minivans
Popular Used Coupes
Popular Used Wagons
Comments
A manual calculation based on 1,000 or 1,500 miles will give a more accurate reading than a trip of 400 miles
You mixed your units of measure to arrive at a 0.66% error. While a pint is 1/8 of a gallon we were discussing miles per gallon. You figured based on one pint per 15 gallons and used that % per tankful. (1/120 = 0.83%).
Thanks
By the way. You do know that if your vehicle is getting anywhere within the specified range that's in the fine print on the Maroney Label under the big numbers, that they will tell you it's operating to factory specs. I had tell that to a customer and they just didn't believe me.
Anybody else having same mileage issues?
Thanks
Carla
There are other things to check to make sure the care is best positioned to maximize fuel economy. Things like making sure all tires are properly inflated, making sure the air filter isn't clogged, etc. You might also try a couple of tanks of gas from a top tier supplier ( http://www.toptiergas.com/retailers.html ) in case your current supplier isn't giving you a quality product.
EPA estimate is 22 city so you're only 3.25 MPG off. That could be due to winter gas, driving style, and your version of city driving (which may differ from my version and from the EPA's version). For instance, I call city driving anything non-highway. But I live in the suburbs and often can go for nice stretches at 40-45 MPH where my car is near peak efficiency.
I think I have addressed all the mpg variables above. My wife and I are achieving 13.x mpg, all types of driving combined. We have used several different methods to measure mileage. Hyundai used their own unrealistically conservative test and got 16 mpg.
They will do nothing about this because the car "is operating within design parameters". I have gone up the chain of command even at the corporate level and have been basically told "mileage may vary" and I "have no recourse".
Anybody else with a similar horror story, either the mileage or their refusal to fix an obvious defect?
This isn't going to cure your problem, but you should be able to figure out where the problem lies.
In terms of driving style we drive conservatively. In fact on the highway where the limit is 55 we don't drive faster than 63 mph, and then we got <23mpg. The EPA statistics Hyundai so fondly embraces and promotes, are for 22mpg in the city and 35 mpg on the highway. The reals world results found at the EPA website: <a href="http://www.fueleconomy.gov/mpg/MPG.do?action=mpgData&vehicleID=30105&browser=true&details=on" target="_blank">http://www.fueleconomy.gov/mpg/MPG.do?action=mpgData&vehicleID=30105&browser=tru- e&details=on give an accurate picture of how insincere Hyundai is when they tell me 16 mpg is within design parameters.
The idea about swapping your car, e.g. swap Sonatas with your parents, is a good one. If they get poor fuel economy while driving your car, and you get much better fuel economy driving their car, that will tell you a lot. But if they get good fuel economy while driving your car... that will tell you a lot also.
By the way, awful is spelled AWFUL, aweful would be something else.
www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=aweful
Hyundai has at various corporate levels told me the figures are within design parameters.
They have refused to "fix" the car because as far as they are concerned there is nothing wrong with the car. I am left only with pursuing the liberal New York State Lemon Law. I thought and still somehow hope Hyundai would, in the face of such a blatant defect, NOT tell me and the public, as I share my story of terrible mileage don't expect much of the 2011 Sonata. I continue to spread the word hoping the attention I get will "persuade" them to do the right thing. :mad: :lemon: :lemon: :lemon:
How about renting a Sonata for a day or two, and driving it as you would your car? That would also provide evidence to Hyundai and/or lemon law officials that there is something wrong with your car--if the rental does a lot better than your car, under the same conditions.
How about trying the highway test I suggested? That would take little time, and provide further evidence.
My average of 13.x mpg is well documented. The dealership service manager said of his city driving test of 2 miles he achieved 23.8 mpg. When I arrived home (exactly 5 miles) the avg mpg, having been reset before he ran the test, went down to 13.4 mpg. Their alleged 23.8 mpg "result" is written on the dealership's work order. In order for the avg mpg to have dove from 23.8 to 13.4 mpg, the Sonata must have averaged 9.x mpg for the trip home.
Hyundai corporate had absolutely no interest in this falsified information even though Star Hyundai is their agent. I don't understand what's wrong with the Hyundai people. :confuse:
Time to go rent a car for a week or so, I'd say.
I never imagined the magnitude of their lying so I did not carefully read through the paperwork nor the avg mpg display. Since then I have been much more vigilant about keeping a diary, jeeping track of emails and conversations with their legal dept.
I guess Hyundai will act when my wife, son or I incur physical injury due to their car's defect or condition. Hey, they said there is nothing wrong with the car, on multiple occassions. :lemon:
You had a great opportunity to get some evidence in your favor when the dealer drove the car... had you driven along with them and confirmed the mpg result at the end of the test. You missed that opportunity, but you have other ways, some suggested to you here, to confirm that there is something abnormal with your car wrt fuel economy. Do you own or could you borrow a video recorder? You should take that with you when, for example, the dealer test-drives your car (you can record the mpg meter at the beginning and end), and if you should choose to take my advice and do a steady-speed highway test on your car. Or if you choose to test a rental Sonata--you can record its results. The video evidence could be very useful in an arbitration or lemon-law hearing.
Wish you the best with this and I'm interested in the result. But..... You're going to have to rent a car and take pictures or video at this point. A fuel consumption spreadsheet is essentially worthless IMHO.
I do have plenty of photographs of the odometer and the average mpg meter that support exactly what I am stating
Driving a rental will create a reference against which my numbers they can still say are falsified. I believe I am stuck with this lemon until I arbitrate under New York's Lemon Law, General Business LAw 198(a).
Until then I will continue to spread the word of my experince, giving people pause for thought when buying any Hyundai, given their lack of standing behind their own product(s).
Realize however that a photograph of your car's mpg meter means nothing unless there is some context for it. If for example, someone were to take a video over your shoulder of the speedo and mpg meter while the car is running on the highway at, say, 60 mph, and the mpg meter says something abnormally low, THAT would provide some context.
Do you know someone in your area whom you trust and who knows how to drive economically? If so, you could ask that person to swap cars with you for a day or two. If he/she also gets abnormally low mpg, based on conditions, again you have evidence... and a witness.
Do your fuel receipts show a license number or something similar. Unless they do, they offer no proof of bad mileage for obvious reasons. In all probability, you're not going to be able to prove anything to Hyundai to the extent that they will fix the problem. You're going to have to prove something to support your "Lemon Law" case. Photos or videos may do that.
Renting a car is going to do two things for you. Number 1, you'll know for sure whether your driving style is the culprit. Number 2, renting the car will give you a chance to do a video which will probably be the best way to prove your case. Anything else, you may be just spinning your tires.
As a result, our 2007 Sonata is struggling to hit 16 mpg in recent days. And that's with some time by me behind the wheel, on some urban freeways. Without that, the mpg could very well get close to 13 mpg. When I drive the car, I get low 20s in the worst-case weather (in MN), around town; mid-to-upper 20s in nice weather with some urban freeway; and low-to-mid 30s on the highway. Huge differences based on weather, driving pattern, driving style.
That's why I think a car swap would be very useful here. See if it's the car, or the drivers.
1: are you a two footed driver? meaning do you use your left foot to brake. Often this causes really bad MPG as the foot rest on the brake.
2: oil? using 5w-20? This can have a huge effect
3: do you let the car warm up before leaving? or start the car and let it run for any length of time before leaving?
4: there are no brakes dragging, or bad wheel bearings?
5: You covered the rest.
Other than that it's engine rated my guess. Sorry if you know all this already.
But I do have one question - some of you mention idling - are you sure that idling at 5- 20 minutes several times a tank (while I do some office work by phone) affects the calculations?
Wouldn't any decent system realize the car is not moving and not count this time idling for the MPG???
Thanks for the help!
I'm curious as to why you wouldn't shut it off if you know you're going to be sitting for longer than a minute?
As for why I sit with the engine running, I will sometimes work from the car b/c I am on the road a lot for work - making phone calls, returning emails, taking notes, etc. - I will idle for the air, heat or just listening to the radio (for the radio, I thought idling was better than simply draining the battery).
I actually drove about 20 highway miles tonight after resetting the mpg. With eco on, keeping a steady speed of 60 mph (and no idling!) I was showing about 31mpg. So that's a good sign I guess - we'll see as I log more miles in the coming days.
Sitting in a car with the radio running and the engine off isn't going to hurt anything unless you do it for hours at a time. At this time of year you can get by without heat or A/C for longer periods especially if you're in socal.
There's also a (much debated) admonishment not to idle your turbo Sonata for more than 3 minutes to consider.
I'm loving this forum!!
If something is not right see the dealer. 13 is outside the range on the sticker isn't it?
Try this, reset your trip computer and drive a couple miles. Then pull over and sit there, noting your short drive MPG. Stay there stopped, as if doing your paperwork for 5 minutes or so and then check your average MPG.
My Hyundai service team at the dealership said they "never heard of a car ever getting 35mpg". umm, that is why I bought the car from that very dealer that sold me on the 35 mpg! I am furious. I am now in the process of being a part of the "fuel consumption test" at that dealership. These guys look at me like I have 3 heads. They said the average should only be about 25. I have another 33 months on this lease. Coming from Honda's over the last 20 years, I am sick. My Honda Fit got close to 40 mpg. These service guys said that was unheard of. "nothing gets that good gas mileage". Are there lemons out there? I know several people with this car that are getting 35 to 40 mpg. Anyone out there from Hyundai that can help??? Please?