Chevrolet Equinox Real World MPG

stever

Please report on your Equinox mileage in this discussion. Please include city/highway, odometer, driving style or similar comments that you think may be helpful. Thanks,

Steve, Host

jim_dandy

I guess it's human nature to complain, most people don't say anything if "life is good".

For me, my 05 Equinox is treating me good.

Here are my mileage results:
City; 17mpg
Mixed local and highway; 20mpg.
Some local and more highway; 22mpg
Little local and mostly highway with cruise set to 65mph; 25mpg
All highway cruise set to 70mph; 26mpg
I had a 30mhr tail wind, highway cruise set to 70; 30mpg
Yes, 30 mpg.

Nox On!
:shades:

jtnox

I get around 330 miles per fill-up, city driving stop & go traffic, '05 LT2 AWD, 16,803 miles

drambow

We own an AWD LT which my wife loves. For me the disappointing part of the vehicle has been it's mileage. I keep track of all fill ups from date of purchase. At this time we have 10,400 miles on it and are averaging just 18.2 mpg. This is 1/2 in town and 1/2 on the highway and we do live in Minnesota. Last weekend for the first time on a trip we got 25 mpg. We have only got +20 mpg on a couple of other occasions and we do not drive aggressively. The S-10 Blazer with four wheel drive which we traded in averaged 18 mpg for 90,000 miles.

icedog97

Just got our new 2006 LT (FWD) on July 4th and we haven't quite finished off the first tank of gas so still waiting on the first look at MPG.

One thing is for sure, it probably won't be pretty...we sat in traffic for 1 hour Saturday trying to go to the local air show...it literally took 1 hour to move about 3 miles.

I will say this...from reading other Real World MPG boards and having driven some of those cars as well, the climate, roads and hills in Western PA create some of the worst MPG conditions over the course of the 4 seasons. We had a 2004 Malibu Maxx that was pretty good on gas (rated at 22/32) and in our daily start/stop short distance travel we averaged about 20 MPG. On a trip to Hilton Head last year we averaged 30...which I thought was excellent considering we rarely drove below 70 mph.

We are going back to HH this year and I figure we'd be lucky to get 23mpg with the Equinox...which has me thinking we might try and cram ourselves and our stuff into my ION. I get 26-27 with my daily commute (about 1/2 city and highway type driving) so I figure it should get 30 mpg (loaded up) on the highway.

I will post my first tank numbers for the Nox in the next week.

icedog97

Well, it's about as ugly as I thought. I filled up the car today (the curiousity was killing me).

gas purchased: 9.7 gallons
distance traveled since first full tank: 150 miles
MPG = 15.46

BUT...if you consider my long delay (1 hour in almost standstill traffic to go approx 3 miles) it gets a little better.

After reading some "gas comsumed at idle" articles, I am gonna guess that I used at least 1 gallon of gas to go that 3 miles...

So, I will factor that out...
8.7 gallons to go 147 miles = 16.897 MPG

I am thinking that's fairly realistic...we do about 90% start and stop driving (up and down hills) and about 10% highway, so I expect the numbers to be closer to the city mileage.

This would also be in line with what we averaged with our Maxx. The Maxx was rated 22 city and we averaged 20. The Nox is 19 city and we are looking at around 17.

I'm curious to see what the next tank gives us.

icedog97

I'm just going to keep a mileage log...

2006 Equinox LT/FWD - lifetime MPG = 16.163

miles = 150 gallons = 9.7 MPG = 15.46 (1 hour in traffic to go 3 miles) -- 7/11/2006
miles = 107 gallons = 6.2 MPG = 17.26 -- 7/17/2006

jtnox

Hello, I have a 05' AWD LT, and I get around 300 miles to a fill up, from my understanding the gas mileage gets better the longer you drive it or so that is what I am told..

icedog97

2006 Equinox LT/FWD - lifetime MPG = 16.45

miles = 150 | gallons = 9.7 | MPG = 15.46 (1 hour in traffic to go 3 miles) -- 7/11/2006
miles = 107 | gallons = 6.2 | MPG = 17.26 -- 7/17/2006
miles = 164 | gallons = 9.7 | MPG = 16.91 -- 7/22/2006

shallwechat

i have 915 miles on vehicle.

first tank 17.9
second tank 16.2
third tank 15.75
fourth tank 14.2

hhhmm, strange.

stever

My minivan went from 16.97 to 19.14 to 14.84 to 11.41 during the first 960 miles. Four tanks later it hit 20.29. It sort of settled down after ~3,000 miles.

The 5th tank was my all time worse, at 11.16, so you may have that to look forward to (it was during a Feb. cold snap, but it still worried me). Hang in there for a while!

shallwechat

i'm hanging, i'm hanging! that's if i don't go broke with the gas before then! lol

patsmith

DOES anyone have a 2007 Nox? What is your opinion of it overall? comfort, gas, ease of controls.

oklahomadee

I just purchased a used 2006 Equinox with 15,000 miles. Looks like new. I've had it almost 3 weeks. The first time I put gas in it I didn't check the mileage but I knew the gas gauge seemed to go down pretty fast. So last Friday I filled it up and decided this time I would check the mileage. I live in oklahoma and because of the ice and sleet storm we had last weekend my equinox only had 22 miles put on it this week. (I work just a few blocks from home) On Monday I did let it warm up for about 45 minutes, Tuesday - Thursday maybe 10 minutes in the morning before I left for work. To make a long story short, I could almost see my gas gauge move right in front of my eyes. I was down to 3/4 of a tank and had only gone 22 miles since I filled up. I filled it up today and I had gotten about 5.5 mpg. I'm just sick and afraid I have purchased a lemon or there is a major problem with these vehicles. I called the dealer that I purchased it from and they said they would look at it. Does anyone have anything information, advise, or history they can share with me.

bdyment

You have spent most of your time and gasoline idling. At least 55 min. This is where most of your gas has gone. You are getting zero mpg. when idling. Also your trips are very short. The Equinox probably never gets into 5th gear. Wait till the weather clears and drive at least 200 miles of mixed highway and city driving. Avoid excessive idling. Check your mileage. It should drastically improve.

oklahomadee

Thanks for your reply. I'll be patient and after the unusual weather that we are having here clears up maybe I'll get a more accurate picture. Now can you help me with something else, please. The day I checked my gas mileage I also started smelling a nasty odor in my car. I've read all the postings about that problem. First thing I did was check my spare tire well because the soury, dead animal smell seemed to be coming from the back seat area. I couldn't believe it. Under my spare time is soaking wet. There is a foam pad under the tire (I guess that's factory)that is soaked and sour smelling. The other problem I read about was the smell from the coolant and the hoses. If I had to guess I say the water is what is causing my smelly problem but if I have a coolant and hose problem I need to address that problem also. My equinox is a 2006 model. Most of the posting about these problems seemed to be 2005 models. Have any of these problems been taken care of by GM on the 2006. Please help me out. I love my nox but it seems there have been a lot of problems that I wasn't aware of. Thanks for the forum as it helps you not feel like you are crazy and feel like you have some proof when others are sharing the experiences too. Please anyone reply!!!

heroshima

I have an 07 nox, after the repair I had done some hose came off "long story" I'm averaging 16.00 for short trips of aprox 20 miles each day. It gets up to around 18.1 when driving the 60 miles Rt to MY fienocess GP's house and thats 20% city and 80% turnpike at 60-80 mph so it gets pretty good gas mileage, Full tank gives me 338mpg per tank. I have the base 07 LT, as far as comfort goes its a ok comfort, kinda a truck felling. Handling is great as well as acceleration and breaking. The stock tires MUST be replaced however as there awful when it comes to water, Hydroplaning is a BIG problem with them. Still for the price its not bad, Id defiantly get the upgraded radio if I had the option, the stock dosent play mp3 and its cd player is very sensitive to bumps vibration or even the slightest smudge on the disk. allin all a 7/10

a918do

I think you neeed to look at gas mileage for other comperable small SUV's. Around 20 is what you can get out a full sized truck with a V-8 driving the same way. My worst average has been 13 and my best has been 20. I am deffinately not pleased with this vehicle. By the way, check out the other NOX subjects to get a real feel for your selection. :confuse:

greg_ny

What city you live in, because driving in NYC my 2006 EQUINOX 2WD with 7K miles at best gives me 240 on a tank. :lemon:

g089372

I have a 2007 LT with AWD.
For a full tank, you should get 300 miles.
The lowest mileage you should get is 18 mpg.
I have been averaging about 19-20 for mixed driving over two weeks. Pure highway, I have gotten 25 mpg.
Factors that hurt mileage:
1) Air-conditioning.
2) Driving with windows open while speeds are over 30mph.
3) Outside temperature. Cold weather forces refineries to reformulate gasoline to a mixture that produces 10% less fuel economy. Your best economies will be between Memorial day and Labor day.
4) Speed.Speed.Speed. The Equinox, like most vehicles, gets 10% less fuel economy for every 10 miles per hour over 55 mph. In other words, at 75 mph, you get 20% less fuel economy than driving at 55 mph.
5)Weight. If you load the vehicle up with 4 people and drive it on a long trip, you will get a little less economy than if the car had just a driver. (not a big factor).
6)Heavy acceleration. Leaning on the gas pedal kills fuel economy. You know you do this if your breaks are getting replaced after 40,000 miles.

grosloup

You're so right. Can you believe and to my surprise mine gets 26 mpg highway driving (in excellent weather). May I kick in my 2 cents for gas economie... use your cruise control for highway driving, keep your motor well tuned, check your tire pressior and please...no idling.

heroshima

Ok, I have been getting a little better gas millage, I put in 87oct, I recently had the car in for an oil change and tire rotation, was I ever surprised. Im getting around 17.2 for city and 18 for highway, I recently drove from Ft lauderdale to Disney land, Most of it was 65-80mph. I got around 18.5 but still no where near what I should be getting, Also the car seems to have quite a loss in power in the 70 mph and up. All in all I cant say id buy another one but it is a decent vehicle and for the price I think you can get a better choice with a difrent vehicle.

commuter10

15,000 miles

5W-30 Mobile One oil

I consistently get:

19 mpg mixed driving.

23 pure highway at 70 miles per hour.

sbarno

Just bought a '08 LXT, sats so far, but does anyone have thoughts about the the wast of gas when the car is idling. I realize that idle does help with mileage, but watching the driving range go down is quite disappointing even for a minute or two. Because the car is new, did those with '07 model improve, or is this something I have to live with. Maybe I should turn the car off at stop lights, like what they do in Europe!

tidester

I realize that idle does help with mileage...

Did you mean "does not help?" If not, then how can idling help mileage when you're consuming (a small amount) of gasoline while not putting on any miles?

tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper

sbarno

TYPO Should say" idle does not help" with mileage......

commuter10

My Equinox is up to 20,000 miles. I continue to get 19 in mixed driving and 22-23 pure highway. No problems with the car. I use Mobil One 5-30 and have the dealership do all of the service work.

rego500

I put about 10,000 hwy miles a month on my equinox for work and take very good care of it. I had a friend who is a Chevy Mechanic urge me to switch to mid grade gas from the cheaper stuff. It took close to 10 tanks for the computer to recognize the change, but now I get an average of 26 mpg hwy. The extra cost of the mid grade is more than worth it because you save money with the added mpg!

I also want to point out that the same friend urged me not to change my oil until the light came on. I was a "everey 5000 miles" man religiously, but I took his word for it. I now change my oil close to every 8,000 miles, I have never had a problem, and I get the same gas milage!

wifes07aveo

I got an 08 ls fwd. It currently has 3k miles. I consistenly get 19-20 mixed(when all city I get closer to 17-18). and on a short vacation trip I just took. two hour drive each way, I got 26 going and 27 comming back (elevation). During our wk there I drove city and many many very steep hills and I averaged about 16. I think i did pretty good. what do you all think?

laserblue

Mine is a 2005 FWD LT bought it new.
I've got 33,000 miles on it and every year on my summer vacation I go to Florida.
Total of 3,000 milles highway (round trip) and 600 miles in Florida (city and country roads).
I always average between 24 and 26 mpg every time. I use my cruise control at 68 mph and 90% of the time the air "on".
This summer will be it's 5 th time down south.

I LOVE MY TRUCK!

gamehawker

traveled over 450 miles this past labor day weekend (90% highway/10% city) and my 2010 Equinox LT2 FWD 4 cyl averaged 29 mpg. Considering my Equinox only had less than 400 miles before we began the trip and I was averaging 65 mph on the highway I am extremely pleased. I feel the mpg will only get better.

commuter10

That is great! my 2006 would be in the 23 - 24 mpg range.

clausenb

Purchased a New 2010 Equinox 1LT, 4 cyl engine, Purchased on 9/12/09, now has 1786 miles, vehicle computer shows that average fuel economy is 27.8. I have not reset any of the trip computer since purchase. My driving is probably 65:35 hwy to city ratio. Using standard grade gasoline 87 octane, no ethanol, conditions have been cool, so no A/C has been needed.

geohov

There not much here from people with 6 cyl engine. What has your mileage been. Mention whether you have AWD or FWD

10lt2

I have the 4 cyl 2010 Equinox FWD with std 17 inch wheels. I have no problem on highway only trips maintaining 35 mpg over ranges of 50 miles (not just instant mileage). Mileage drops off fairly quickly if you get into stop and go traffic. From my experience, I will have no problem beating 32 mpg on long trips. I have not driven enough stop and go traffic to get a good average. My typical combined driving is about 29 mpg.

I am being easy on the pedal to get the high mileage. Speeds toping out at 60-65 mph on the highway. Agressive driving will kill the high mileage. The good news for me is that this car can easily get over 32 mpg on the highway. I am pleasantly surprised. Total mileage to date is less than 1000. Car was built the week of October 19.

elisa81

My husband and I took a trip from Kansas City to Illinois this past weekend with our FWD 4cyl NOX. I wanted to try to hit the 32 mpg mark, but also wanted to make our trip as short as possible, as it was late at night. So, I ended up getting 28 mpg with speeds from 75-80mph and the rolling hills of Missouri and Iowa. So, I considered that pretty good and will look for another opportunity to hit that 32 mark, on a shorter drive in daylight!

10lt2

Update to mileage figures.

The 32-35 mpg figure is for mainly level ground with speeds between 55 and 65. I just took a trip into the mountains a little and could not keep 32 mpg. The car takes on the big hills fine but the mileage does drop. I hit 4th gear and 3000 - 3500 rpms several time to keep up speed in the mountains. As a reference, the tachometer is below 2000 rpms on level ground at the same speed in 6th gear.

Bottom line.. I drove around 60-65 mph for most of the trip and just managed a little over 30 mpg for the 200 mile trip (about 100 each way. I easily hit 32+ mpg on the way back home (down hill most of the way) but was getting 27 mpg going to the destination (up hill most of the way). (Baltimore - Hagerstown - Carslise and then back).

One other note, I am wondering if the trip computer is correct. I am checking it with actual gas usage. On the first tank I checked it was 2 mpg off in the higher direction. This means my mileage is actually 2 mpg less than what the car tells me. I need to check this over several tanks to be sure but I am suspicious of the trip computer now based on my first tank that was checked.

10lt2

Update to the mileage #2.

My trip computer is off by 2 mpg on the second tank also. It appears that my earlier mileage claims are exaggerated by 2 mpg.
What I have learned so far.

I can easily get 34 mpg on the highway doing 55-65 on relatively flat ground (Mileage is actually 32 when computed from gas usage).

I have been getting about 29 mpg in mixed driving to work. (Mileage is actually 27 when computed from actual gas used).

The car is doing what GM advertised. I do have to drive with a relatively light foot to get the 32 mpg highway number but it is not hard to do on relatively level ground.

brueggie

We are averaging right around 26 MPG per tank right now. We don't fill it up, just $30-35 each time which almost fills it up depending on what is left. That is what is advertised combined mileage even though we are rarely on the highway. Going to take some trips in June which will be the real highway test loaded down with luggage. No complaints so far.

LTZ 4cyl

sinnedk

I must have bought a lemon nox. 2010 fwd,4 banger 1000 mi. trip ky. to miss. going down 24.9 mpg at mostly cruise 72 mph. returned at 65 mph only got 25.8, drove a 50 mi. stretch at 60 and only improved to 26.2. the only way mine will ever get 32 is if someone pushes me part way. very disappointed with chevy.

stever

Well, yeah, but it was uphill all the way back to KY.

Seriously, how many miles on your Nox now? On some cars it can take 5,000 miles or more before the mpg gets close to the EPA rating. My van's mpg kept improving (although just slightly) even after I had put 20,000 miles on in.

runox

2010 fwd, 4 banger

That kinda tells me you're probably driving it like a Corvette off the line. These are mere babes that need to be coddled from a dead start. Sudden pedal to the metal is a mileage killer.

jpatrick99

Our 4 cyl has about 6000 miles and generally does 25/26 around town and 28/29 on the highway running about 73-74 MPH.
I've done a couple of slow highway trips and come up with 36MPG at about 60 MPH.
It seems anything above 68 MPH is the mileage killer.
When making those mileage checks make sure you nurse those last drops into the tank on both ends of your check. I find that I can coax about an additional gallon in after the automatic pump shuts off.

stever

That's not good for your vapor recovery system. It's possible to get gas in the charcoal cannister and may even trigger the check engine light on some cars. (link)

I bet the manual says to fill the tank until the first click and then quit.

That extra gallon may help your range but it's not going to affect your mpg.

jpatrick99

True enough on the vapor recovery system.
I only top it off occasionally so as to get that accurate check and ensure all is normal.
I have have found the computer provided mileage measurements to be less than reliable.
Additionally, the automatic pumps vary a great deal as to shut off time. Sometimes I add 1/2 gallon and other times 1 1/2 gallons. The extra gallon will not impact MPG, but for an apples to apples test you must start with a full tank and end with a full tank
Like I said, just an occasional check, I don't have the patience to trickle that last bit of gas in at every fill up.

stever

I track every tank so the errors tend to mitigate over 1,000s of miles. That way I don't have to worry so much about the variables between pumps and I don't have to try to go to the same pump at the same station every time for consistency.

And if my mpg takes a hit between tanks, I'm on notice that something may be going flooey with my engine.

fshi

I bought a 2010 nox 3mon ago, LS base model. The first 2000 miles are mostly local, my estimate is 75local+25highway. The computer reading is 24.5. The last two weeks I had a 4000mile trip, mostly highway. and my average is now at 27.

Observations:

1. Local with light foot, 23-24 is a realistic number.
2. Highway, very depend on speed. I have very carefully tested the fuel economy on my 4000 mile trip.

a. on a very flat road, 55-65mph cruise can easily yield 32-35.
b. 70-75mph yields 27-31.
c. 75-80mph yields 23-27.
d. 80-85mph 20-24.
e. computer reading is pretty accurate as compare to my hand calculation.

Therefore, highway speed is the key for the fuel economy, and 22-32 chevy advertised # are realistic. The equinox is a very solid vehicle on both urban and interstate roads. 0 problem to report so far.

peterdb

The absolute best mileage I have ever got with my 2009 nox is 23. That's on a straight road doing about 55 mph. Where the heck do they get the posted 37 mpg "estimate". I would be OK if the actual was about 10 % off, but being 40% off is blatant false advertising if you ask me. Every time the commercial comes on TV showing the "best in class" mileage, my blood boils!!

brueggie

37 mpg is not the estimate. It is 22 city 32 hwy. The 2010 'Nox now has the best in class fuel economy since it now has a 4 cyl engine to compete with Nissan, Ford and Toyota. Previous 'Nox's only came with the 6 cyl engines. The 2010 6 cyl engine 'Nox is estimated at 17 city and 25 hwy. Hope your blood simmers a bit now!

firefly8

You are comparing your 2009 nox 6 cyl to the 2010 nox 4 cyl

sinnedk

my 2010 nox gets 25 mpg on the road, gm advertises 32, they lie and i challenge anyone to prove to me that they can get 32 on any road anywhere anytime, all 2010 nox owners should take their cars to obamy and leave them at the white house steps, I am thouroughly pi**ed with government motors.