Ford Escort Wagons: MPG-Real World Numbers

PF_Flyer

With the price of fuel being what it is, the mileage you're getting is becoming more important. This is the place to discuss the mileage performance you're getting out int he real world.

batmick

Since we had this car (2000) I was always amazed at the difference between city and highway gas mileage. City and mixed traffic we average 22-25 mpg. Not very impressive. But on pure highway travel we get at least 32 and my record is 40 mpg during a trip to Sacramento.

hog6

I have had the car about one year and have put on roughly 15,000 miles bringing the total to 70,000. I have tracked my mpg at every fill-up and am really happy with what I get. I live in Portland, Oregon and do 50/50 highway/city driving. The worst overall that i got to a tank was 28 mpg and that was just before I needed to change the oil. I usually get 32-33 over a whole tank. I can definitely live with that considering how cheap you can pick one up. Even with the low miles (55,000) that mine came with it was just $2700. I really have no complaints with the mileage or the rest of the car.

PF_Flyer

People ask me why I track the mileage on every tank of gas on my car. It's simple. It's a real easy way to have an idea if something might be going on with the car. Any sudden change in mileage gets my attention, makes me think about whether the driving on that tank was THAT different and whehter I might need to look at other possible causes.

hog6

Definitely a good way to keep ahead of problems that might be arising. it doesn't take any time and can save headaches. I'll also add for anyone who reads these that i'm 6'5" and don't have a problem fitting in the car. another thing to like about it.

PF_Flyer

I even use it as a chance to work on my kid's brains by making them calculate it in their head, no calculator, no pencil and paper.

I know... I'm a mean Dad...LOL

But my 17 year old, WHEN she puts gas in the car, lets me know what the mileage was on the tank

kenmist3

Looking for a new car that gives good gas mileage and has room for golf clubs and luggage for two seniors. Thinking about the Ford Escape, but would like to have several to choose from. Any suggestions? We drive a 2004 Mazda 3 now and are happy with the gas mileage 28 mpg City and 32 mpg Highway, but it's a little cramped for distance travelling.

PF_Flyer

kenmist3, a good place to start to find info on the Escape would be in the Ford Escape Hybrid or Ford Escape discussions.

Since you're thinking of looking at several choices, the easiest way to find discussions on the vehicle you're interested in would be to use the Browse By Vehicle search tool in the left sidebar of any of the forums pages. Just select the make and model you want and click Go, and you'll be taken to a list of all the groups and discussions related to that vehicle.

If you ever have any questions or need assistance, feel free to click on my username and drop me an email.

Welcome to the forums!

PF Flyer
Host- Wagons Message Board

kenmist3

Thanks for the offer!
kenmist

abbu

just bought an 1988 SE wagon with 89000 miles - drove back from dealership 130 miles on 3.5 gallons of gas!
exactly the commuter car I was looking for!
hope it will run OK!

didenker

I used to get a consistant 33 mpg. Mostly local driving. Recently it dropped down to 26-28 for about 5 tanks of gas now. I added Slick 50 injector cleaner, checked the air filter, replaced the plugs. Still not back up and now the car has started to miss unless I run it at high RPM's. Could an oil change make that much of a difference? Any other suggestions?

zombietom3

How did this problem resolve? I have mpg issue on same model and wonder whether the Bosch 4309 plugs Firestone installed might be the reason.

katimo

I am looking for information on how to work on the fuel economy for a 95 Ford Escort SEFI 1.9.
The current issue is that the fuel economy has changed by use of an extra gallon of gas in the last two weeks. I really need to know how to tweek the car to put it back to the usage that it started with.

yellowtail3

Looks like this is old but I'll post anyhow.

In cold weather mixed driving I"ll get low 30s.

If I keep my tires at 45psi, drive very gently, keep speed under 65 on highway... I'll get about 36-38 mixed driving, and a little over 40mpg on the highway. Best tank ever was 46mpg. Average this winter is about 36, and climbing. 37.7 last year in NJ.

Car is a 95 Wagon w/5spd, and 137K miles. I've put 30K on it in past year and a half.

unixrocks

And now its even older....but I will post here to.

Got a Escort with 125K Miles on it last fall from the Junkyard for $600 and have put about $2000 into it. I didnt reallly plan on spending that much but I have gotten to really like this car and the fuel economy makes up for it - I could have spent a lot less but new struts were neeeded as well as a new waterpump and timing belt and I dont like doing that myself....to dangerous. replaced the tires. I did also replace the belt tensioner and the belt pulley as they were adding a lot of drag and noise due to the bearings being shot.

Lets see...put in new plugs, wires, fuel filter, battery, changed the oil a few times (boy - that oil was BAD...wonder when they last changed it) checked the Computer codes but nothing showed up as wrong. Once the oil started coming out as clean I threw a K&N oil filter in it to keep it that way. I have since added a K&N air filter which has helped by about 1MPG.

Keep my tires at 45PSI as well - drive sanely but dont hypermile or anything.

Do some mixed driving - about 70% highway when commuting (which is intermittent) but havent yet seen any real difference between around town and highway - maybe due to the high volume of traffic on the highways these days.

When I got it I was getting 26MPG - now I am 35-37 mpg with 39 being my best tank yet - Im at 150K miles or so...

It still idles a little bit rough - not bad but just enough to annoy me - considering new fuel injectors....

One thing I would LOVE to do is to find a way to replace the Air conditioner with something electric and install a second auxillary battery that I plug in at night and switch the stereo, all auxillary electronics and air conditioner to that battery.

Havent seen anything that would do the job thougth as far as small AC and I would want to remove the compressor to help make up for the weight added by the extra battery and charger....problem there is I havent found a belt that will fit only on the powersteering and alternator - they have been too tight or too loose - sure I can find one...just a matter of time.

It still has some work to go....I need to put in a new fuel filler neck since a small leak in the return line is causing some evaporation of fuel and still want to replace all the hoses - they arent failing yet but another year and they likely will be. Also need to replace the oil pan gasket which should be fun since you need to get the catalytic converter out of they way.

Since the money is getting away from me Im going to scour the junkyards for the filler neck - looks like most are charging about $120 for it plus shipping - junkyard is $10 if I pull it.

All in all I love this car - I probably could have found a better deal on the same car that had less miles but these things are so easy to work on and the engines are such tough little buggers I am not regreting it one bit - with gas at $4.00+ a gallon now the money is less of an issue anyways and as the price of gas rises it just makes sense to maintain this one and keep improving the mileage - my target is 40MPG without hypermiling but not sure if I will be able to attain that. Besides its a clean car - the rust on the body is minimal and the frame is perfect - so long as the frame is good everything else can be dealt with.

chefadele

I recently moved from San Francisco to Portland, Oregon. For years, from new, I got 30 plus mpg, in or out of traffic, rain or shine. I now get 20 mpg consistently.

I have had the car checked over, tuned up, etc. Nothing has been found and the car runs like a dream. Is it just the different gas? Is there anything I can do?

Thanks

melyndachubb

I bourght a 94 escort LX 1 and a half years ago with 121,000 miles on it. i now have 154,000 miles on it and it still runs beautifully. I have replaced the alternator twice (i used junk yard parts), the starter once and other than routine mantenance, i haven't done anything else to this car. i use the walmart at the pump additive once in awhile. i started out getting 38 mpg but dropped down to 25 mpg after 6 months or so, so i gave it a regular tune up and oil change and with the additive i managed to get back to 38 mpg. if i hypemile it in town i can get 45 mpg, but hypermiling is only possible about half a tank, so i get an average of 41-42 mpg. unfortunately, and i'm not sure why, i only get about 30-35 mpg on the hwy. of course it's probably because i'm doing 70 or so. she's great on gas at 55 or less, but when i start hitting 60 her mpg goes down. other than that, i have no complaints about this car. i've been putting about 2500 miles a month on her as a delivery driver and so far she hasn't failed me yet. even when her starter was shot, she's light enough i was able to push start her till i could get to the shop. btw she's a manual. i also bought an 89 escort with 200,000 miles on it. the engine just went after driving her hard for the last ten months, but at $400 plus $100 i've dropped into a $225 engine will stil make it worth my while to fix her. i've never seen a car as hardy and so full of heart as the ford escort. you can't go wrong with one of these.

xwesx

Nice post, Melynda.

Your highway numbers mirror my experience with a '98 escort. Mine is also a manual. I have owned it for ten months (108,000 miles at purchase), putting about 11,000 miles on it so far. On the one highway trip I have thus far taken with it (not a very good trip car in terms of comfort), I tested economy at 70mph on the way down (from Fairbanks to Anchorage) and 60mph on the way back. My economy on the way down was 36; on the way back it was 38. There was, surprisingly, no wind during either day's travel that might have otherwise hampered or improved economy. So yes, wind resistance seems to make a marked difference above 60 mph.

It is a great commuter car.

What is it that you do to "hypermile" it?