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As for all this tire crud. Ive been running max sidewall psi for years. Ive ran over max sidewall on lower profie tires for years also.
The 06 Civic I just traded had 40400 miles on it. Max sidewall was 44 psi on its tires. I ran those tires at 53 to 54 psi on all for corners. There was only 1/32" diff. in tred depth between the inner two grooves and the outer grooves. Most of that I will blame on my daily drive. Straight hwy. The right rear always worn the inside edge more because of what I feel was a early production problem. I know folks that run 60 psi and have tires with 60 to 90k miles on them...
Hypermiling is just slowing down and making the most of every drop of fuel.
I don't see how you can get close to the same handling with rock hard tires, but maybe it's just me.
Seems dangerous...
At 60 psi I would not trust my car's handling in rainy weather and I would be very preoccupied with the tires blowing up at high speed, especially if the car is fully loaded and in hot weather.
60 psi could easily end up being 65psi or more under those conditions.
I also wonder what my insurance would say in case of an accident, upon discovering that the cause of the accident was severely over inflated tires.
Tires are not that expensive, are they? Buy a new nice set every 4 years and be safe.
No complaints at all about the car.
http://www.fueleconomy.gov/mpg/MPG.do?action=mpgData&vehicleID=23184&browser=tru- - - e&details=on
If you are very concerned about getting optimum mileage you might want to consider this device:
http://www.scangauge.com/
It can do wonders to your driving habits and is not too expensive IMHO.
0. Turn on radio.
1. Press and hold down CD and AM/FM buttons
2. Start your car while still pressing down on those buttons
3. The display will read, "DIS ON" which means Driver Information System On.
4. Release the CD and AM/FM buttons
5. Turn off and restart the car
6. Now press the Set button and cycle through your avg. mpg, miles until empty, current mpg!
Now you can truly know your Real MPG numbers!
Well, based on my calculations(miles travelled since last fill-up divided by gallons of fuel used), my true mpg is around 10% less than the average mpg reported by the DIS. BMW trip computers usually have a error of 5%-7%, but on most Bimmers you can unlock the service menu and adjust the computation factor in order to make the average mpg figure match the true mpg. I'm trying to find out if you can do something similar to the Mazda DIS.
FWIW, my true mpg is averaging around 22 mpg. Not too bad, considering I can't keep my foot out of it; I haven't lost a stoplight grand prix yet...
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
Mark
The Sandman
Ouch. And, I'm not at all a leadfoot... If I'd have known I had this kind of mileage to look forward to, I would have taken a closer look at the sentra
Your prayers are not in vain. Consumer Reports, in its September 2006 issue, lists an overall average of 25 mpg for the Mazda3 hatchback with automatic transmission .
That's significantly better than the 24 mpg I've averaged over 41,000 miles in my '06 s 5-door with manual transmission! At least 75% of my miles have been in horrible Atlanta traffic and the A/C is always on, so those have a significant impact. My heavy foot doesn't help either.
I recently topped the 30 mpg mark on a recent trip from Atlanta to Birmingham and back. I set the cruise at 75-80mph (depending on area) and turned off the A/C. I averaged 30.2 mpg for that trip. I guess the A/C impacts fuel economy more than I realized.
Keep on monitoring. I found that you need to go through winter to come up with a more complete picture. Typically, fuel economy dips in colder weather so you may find your numbers approach the 25 mpg average found by Consumer Reports.
I would love a reduction of just 1 MPG in winter. My experience has been over 10% (i.e. about 3+ MPG) primarily due to the need to warm-up the car. Getting stuck in the snow doesn't help either!
Presto, your mileage is back to (almost) normal.
Good idea. As it turns out, since this summer my car is happily inside a garage (unheated but not uncomfortable).
It's actually pretty poor I think considering the size of the car and how well the competition does.
Agreed. Mazda has to work on this. Since the Mazda3 & Mazda6 share the same 2.3 engine I'd be interested in how the new Mazda6 (coming next year) does in the fuel economy department.
In 11 years I would think any manufacturer's new small cars would get better mileage than any car in the class from 11 years ago did so hopefully Mazda can tweak their engines like Hyundai did with the Elantra to improve MPG.
When shopping for this car, I looked at Suzuki Reno, Nissan Versa, Kia Rio, and Mazda 3, and guess what? They all get what I consider lousy mileage, 23-29, city to hwy. I think this is pathetic for cars this size, and yet manufacturers still whine about how they will be unable to meet the upcoming increased standards. Only Honda gets appreciably better mileage, and they are way out of the price range of the others. Maybe the new Chrysler can summon up the ghosts of engineering past and find some real solutions and innovations.
The Mazda Club Chat is on tonight. The chat room opens at 8:45PM ET Hope to see YOU there! Check out the schedule
Considering the weight of the car and performance (huge torque), the speed3 is essentially giving free 100 hp extra. My v6 ford explorer is butt slow but still only gets 15 mpg. I think we're all doing ok in our Mazdas.
"You are here: Forums Hatchbacks Mazda3 Mazda3 Real World MPG" If you go to the main Forum page, and enter Mazda, and MazdaSpeed Mazda3, it takes you to the same topics as the regular Mazda3.
As far as weight, Car and Driver lists "Curb weight: 2889 lb" That's a sub-3,000 lb car in my book. I'm not saying the problem is Mazda's. It is the future of all car manufacturers to make cars that have adequate power, like the 3, safety and comfort, and still get a better than 30mpg average. We've got the engineers, we just need the motivation, or there will be more of the car companies dropping by the wayside.
As I've said before, if/when BMW brings the 335d to the US I'll be first in line. 35 mpg and low fourteens in the quarter mile. Yowza!
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
fuel economy. My '04 hatch is a summer car with manual shift.
I have consistently got over 30 mpg over 3.5 years and this
car COOKS! It is so quick and fun to drive - wore out tires in 18,000 mi. Even fully loaded - marble top dresser and a lot of other stuff, it made a 950 mi. trip at 80 mph @ 32 mpg. I recently installed an AEM CAI and while the sound and passing power now plaster an insane grin on my face, it has not cost me anything in fuel use as I just got an all time record of 33.2 mpg. We have cars costing twice as much as this luxury go-cart, but I'm always moving them out of the way to get to my REAL car! Maybe I just got a good one.
I must have gotten a good one too!
should have posted that probably 85% of my driving is highway, but 'spirited'. The
car can be driven like a four-wheeled motorcycle. If anyone is interested in the AEM CAI for the 2.3l I would be happy to discuss my 'real world' installation and driving experience with this device. Zoom-on, Bro!
Otherwise it went well. Temporary partial removal of the wheel well liner and working in that area was no fun either. I covered the new filter with a K&N dust bag.
With battery reconnected the chip reset after start-up. I took it easy for 5 miles.
The car already sounded good, now it sounds great! The torque and accelleration
anywhere from 35mph on up is way better and 3rd gear is now an addictive hoot!
High speed passing is more like a motorcycle - passing 2 to 4 vehicles at once is not a problem. Fuel economy while having all this fun is about unchanged. Since
this unit appears to be the same one offered by Mazda as an option, I don't think
they can screw with you on this, although some dealers may try. We'll see!
up low in the front fender, in line with the wheel hub. It is not an easy maintenance item as removing the splash shield under the engine provides perhaps the easiest access. I have removed the filter for inspection from above, but it would depend on the size of your arms and how well your finger dexterity is. That is why I covered the LARGE cone filter with the KN dust cover. This stops most dust from ever getting to the filter, and doesn't trap the particles but shakes them off. I only have 6 months on the system but so far so good. Purists would complain that the dust bag causes
some restriction to air flow and it probably does, but not to any noticeable degree as
I have run it with and without. I consider it a labor saver and motor insurance.
disconnected as the first step. After the modification is complete the battery is
reconnected for start- up. The MAF (?) reads the new data provided by changed airflow and the chip is reset automatically. I take it easy during the reset process
and give it maybe 5 miles of normal driving to settle in. Don't start it up and sit in the
driveway revving the motor like an idiot. I can't think of an easier and less expensive
way to get such a noticeable real world boost in sound and performance. I am considering adding the Magnaflow cat-back exhaust system, but I don't want to
drown out that sweet intake howl with heavier exhaust growl. We'll see if I can resist.
stand up and accept numerous dope-slaps. I suggested that installation may be
helped by removal of the grill. NOT SO! The grill rises with the hood placing you
face to metal with the impressively large radiator. Removal of this device would
definitely make the installation much easier but I would not recommend it. On a
happier note, I inspected the CAI and KN dust bag with a flashlight and a bit of
contortion and the dust bag is still shiny black after 6 months showing no sign of
particle accumulation which I believe would have the enclosed AEM filter in nearly new condition. Sorry for the error.
I drive it agressive around corners but not at takeoff (usually). I'm satisfied with the mileage overall; could have bought a Civic but the handling of the 3 is superior overall, and seat comfort is better. I'd much rather trade a few mpg's for more fun behind the wheel!
Anyway, I got 28.6 mpg on my first tank. Only about 360 miles on the car so far, about 50/50 city/highway. Not too shabby, I'll be interested to see if it improves with time. I know there's not much of a real break in period with modern cars, and I have been driving like a granny, so it may be typical. Will report back in a thousand or so.
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
around 360 miles per tank!
but now with winter here im getting 24mpg
1st tank - 31.7 MPG
2nd tank - 28.2 MPG
More city driving on tank 2 & a little more "fun".