Honda Element Real World MPG

tundradude

tidester

Yes.

tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper

cityslicker1

I've read alot on here not getting good gas mileage? What kind of gas are you using? I use Chevron, or union76, 87 octang. I've got almost 5000 miles on my 3 month old 07element, I bought this car new in Nov.07. I get 30 hiway and 24 city. If I use AM/PM I can drop at least 6 miles per gallon on both. Check the gas you're using, it makes a difference. Also I use cruise control whenever I can.

allenboyle

19.5-20 mixed driving

bigfur

Mixed highway and city. In the winter I have been getting around 20mpg when it was warmer i was getting 23-24.

tundradude

It is hard to tell any seasonal difference, because it gets to 40 about 5 times a year and thats a low.

ragets

I found out what the problem was! I was driving the whole time with the defrost on! On Honda's when the defrost is on the AC also runs. I stopped using the defrost and only used it for short periods of time and now over the past 2 months my MPG's are back up to 24-25. Thanks for your guys help though.

manchester1

Current Miles Per Gallon:
City 60% & Highway 40%: 22.19 mpg on mixed driving 205.5 miles/9.26 gals.
Highway 100%: 109.6 miles/4.11 gals. - 26.6 mpg

Equipment & Maintenance:
Odometer: 133,000
87 Octane Kroger Fuel Used 80% of the time
Synthetic Oil Change every 5,000 miles
Cooper Radial Tire Rotation every 5,000 miles
After Market Fuel Reduction Molecular Plates Attached to Oil Pan and Fuel Tank 8 Months Ago

Comments:
This vehicles used to get a maximum of 21 mpg on the highway and about 19 in the city. I added the fuel reduction plates about a year ago and have seen a maximum of 32.5 mpg on a trip during December between Columbia, SC and Orlando. I typically run 75 - 80 mph on the highway. The air conditioning is always running, even if I have the sun roof removed when it's really hot. The plates seem to be working. $80 well spent. Getting ready to install an HHO device to see what that'll do.

ykruss

I have 2005 fwd auto Element with 37000 miles on it.

It's a commuter car with 100% city driving.
Used to get 19.5 - 20 mpg.
Two tanks ago started to drive like there is an egg under gas pedal, trying to keep rmp near or bellow 2000.

And the result is 24 mpg on each of the last 2 tanks - that's 20% better.

elecow

Tell me a litlle about the fuel reduction plates and wear i can get them. Does it damage vehicle? Reduce power?
Best

leinahtan

Steve,
I'm interested in the 2008 SC Element automatic and have read alot concerning gas milage. Has anyone purchased any after market chips to improve their gas milage?
What types of after market handware are drivers using if any?

stever

I don't much about chips - seems like they usually are sold to increase power, not mpg.

The manufacturers are under a lot of pressure with CAFE rules to get the best mpg they can out of their engines. I think most of the aftermarket stuff is a waste of money. The easiest way to help your mileage is to slow down.

Anyone try a chip?

alamocity

Recently saw on the local news a story on hydrogen cell technology that sounds promising in improving fuel economy. Technology is currently being tested at Southwest Research so it will be interesting to see what the results will be.

kilo57

I've owned a '94 for 3.5 years now. I'm a Realtor in Huntsville, AL, use it for work (really!) and have already put 90,000 miles on it. It has never missed a beat. For more than 3 clients I tag-team with my wife and use her Odyssey.

Mileage - consistently 23 in town (hilly town) and 26 on the highway at 75 mph. I've done 27 mpg a few times when the road system is flatter than Huntsville. When the mileage slips I've learned to grab a new air filter; mileage shoots right back up. Once in a while the engine gets sluggish, which I've attributed to a bad tank of gas, and a bottle or two or injector cleaner gets things back to normal pretty quickly.

At 6'5" I love the head room and leg room in the Element. One tip I'll offer buyers/owners related to tires; the original equipment tires are more expensive to replace than wider tires with a slightly shorter aspect ratio (sidewall height). When the original set wore out at 30K miles I replaced them with 225/60R16 (not a perfect alternative but it works fine), I saved $100 on the set of tires and, since the car was much less likely to sway with the shorter aspect ratio, I got 45K miles out of the second set of tires. That's a huge savings for such a minor change.

stevedebi

"I've owned a '94 for 3.5 years now. "

How many miles did that used '94 Element have? Just kidding, I assume you mean '04! :confuse:

ccirelli

This vehicles used to get a maximum of 21 mpg on the highway and about 19 in the city. I added the fuel reduction plates about a year ago and have seen a maximum of 32.5 mpg on a trip during December between Columbia, SC and Orlando. I typically run 75 - 80 mph on the highway. The air conditioning is always running, even if I have the sun roof removed when it's really hot. The plates seem to be working. $80 well spent.

Hi, can you please post details about these fuel reduction plates, and where you got them? Thanks!

Craig

ccirelli

I've been reading through all the posts here, I have to say I am cautiously optimistic about the fuel economy on my Element. Just made the deal today, picking it tomorrow.

I will be tracking my fuel from the first tank, and I will post here frequently. My plans:

Immediately: K&N air filter; drive with "slow & steady wins the race" style; use Sunoco fuel, 87 octane; minimal AC usage.

Future: Switch to Castrol Syntec oil.

I've heard that the combination of using synthetic oil and the K&N filter will consistently yield about 10% better mileage. Remains to be seen, but that is my plan.

The only catch is, Honda recommends NOT using synthetic oil until the car hits 10K miles, at the earliest. I will hit that mark in about 5 months (I drive a lot..).

Any other thoughts or recommendations on when to begin using synthetic oil?

Thanks-
Craig

stever

I bet the aftermarket filter won't help any either, but you'll never know unless you run an OEM one for a while and switch them back and forth over a few thousand miles test period each. Ditto on synthetic; probably not a measurable difference on mpg.

Edmunds didn't find any measurable difference in mpg testing AC vs no AC. They didn't test driving with no AC and the windows up though. More here:

We Test the Tips

We Test the Tips Part II

Aggressive driving seems to be the real gas mileage killer.

ccirelli

Hi Steve,

Thanks for the info & links, makes sense. I will take your suggestion and run the oem air filter through the first 10K miles, and switch to synthetic oil and the k&n together. I'm not approaching it very scientifically, but I will have a good base to compare against as you suggest.

One thing I have noticed in my Civic is a solid 10% increase in mpg when I use Sunoco fuel. I've compared it against Sheetz, Citgo, and a few others. Again nothing scientific - but it happens consistently enough to keep me going back Sunoco.

Take care,
craig

stever

The gas stations that are hurting your mileage may be using an 5-10% ethanol blend. E10 is pretty common and is required in some states (if it's required where you are, then the Sunoco probably has ethanol too). I don't think most people experience that big a mpg hit though.

Is there a difference in mileage when using 10% ethanol vs. regular gasoline?

Sunoco is a Top Tier, but some say that's just a marketing designation.

Please report back as you enjoy your new ride!

ccirelli

Interesting - I learned years ago that Ethanol is added between October and April (at least in NJ / NY / PA, afaik). I always made the correlation between poorer mileage in winter to that - simply because there is a distinct and sharp decrease like clockwork, every October.

For example in my Civic, between April and October I would average 36mpg. Once October hits, I'm lucky if I get 32 or 33. And it's not a sharp drop in temperature, because literally one week it's high and the next week it drops... even if it's in the 50's... until mid-April again.

So whether my theory is accurate or not, I'm not sure. But I've always heard that Ethanol is widely known to cost us about 10% in fuel economy.

Picking up my Element TODAY.

Hey, should I pick up one of these Scan Guage devices? Thinking about it, wondering if it will pay for itself over time.

Thanks-

0311vn

I suspect not. Breaking in a car engine sounds so...'60s. The only caution I have seen about new car engines in the last ten or twenty years is not to make fast starts for the first several hundred miles of so. Engine tolerances have been improved, which supposedly nullify break in periods. (Feel free to correct me if I am wrong on this.)

See the NY Times article of 26 Jul 08 page B1 "Ethanol Stirs Up A Mutiny" on the effect of mpg. I noticed on a recent drive through South Dakota that mpg dropped off on a clocked tank full of "corn pone." (My moniker for ethanol.)

ccirelli

My advice on this, based on what I've heard over the last two years (and also going through this with an 07 Civic, and now an 08 Element):

- Stay below 55 mph for the first 600 miles

- If you go on a long trip (two hours or more), try to vary your RPM's now and then (e.g., don't go 60 mph for an hours straight

- Do your first oil change between 1500 and 2000 miles

- Use common sense and drive it "slow & steady" for the first 1500 to 2000 miles

Again, this is what I do, not stating anything as fact - just my opinion(s).

craig

0311vn

Other than a early oil change does Honda list a so-called "break in" period for its cars?

ccirelli

Depends who you talk to (not sure about "listing"), but most salespersons will tell you "naa, you're fine don't worry, just drive..", but most techs will reiterate what I mentioned in my previous post. I'll go with the techs, personally..

I should mention that my salesperson was also in agreement with his techs as well, but again others will tell you differently.

hth,
craig

micweb

I think you have to be more careful breaking in a stick shift. You need to be careful not to lug the engine (let the rpm sink low then use a lot of throttle with resulting pinging) or keep it at high rpm for extended periods (like driving 2nd on city streets or forgetting to upshift to 5th on the freeway). With an automatic all you need to remember are (i) no lead foot until warmed up and (ii) limit your lead foot to 3/4 of the throttle for the first 1000 miles.

ccirelli

FIRST MILEAGE REPORT

So I clocked my mileage for my first tank of gas. Now I have to say the dealer is the one that filled it - so whether it was truly full, that is unknown. If it was not full, this works in my favor.

My driving consisted of roughly:

- 10% highway
- 10% city (stop & go)
- 80% suburban / rural roads (40 to 50 mph, but plenty of hills here in PA)
- Additional notes: AC was on for maybe 1/2 hour, passengers ranged from 1 to 4 (mostly 1)

MPG: 25.81

Total miles on tank: 345
Refill: 13.367 gallons X 3.81 = ~$50

My driving style: For this tank I would rate it as slow & steady. I only really get on the gas when I have to pull hills, and even then I am as light as possible on the accelerator.

Not bad! Will report stats back on tank #2 this week.

EDIT: Oops, forgot: 2008 Element EX AWD Auto

0311vn

I've never driven a AWD vehicle. Does AWD reduced mpg all that much? How much extra weight does AWD add on to an Element? I'm guessing AWD must be a real asset when driving in snow. Does it improve handling a lot in rain? Is there a noticeable difference when braking with AWD, especially when braking hard?

Can an Element hit 30 mpg on all highway driving if you keep her at 65ish?

Is there storage in an Element for bags to keep them from shifting around when driving?

ccirelli

Does AWD reduced mpg all that much?

Depends - not really as far as the Element is concerned. The FWD models are only rated 1 mpg higher on both sides (city & hwy).

Can an Element hit 30 mpg on all highway driving if you keep her at 65ish?

Probably not maybe 30 with the wind at your back - but I think someone here reported 32 mpg after installing fuel saving "plates"? I asked for a link to more info but never heard back.

Is there storage in an Element for bags to keep them from shifting around when driving?

Yup - bungees. Plenty of little rings and hooks to tie down to. Plus the driver's side seats both have kind of a net behind them, good for smaller bags & things.

hth,
craig

pepsicolacat

you probablly can't get 30 mpg. I have 05 element ex awd and 08 ex awd 05 best is 24 and 08 is 27 . I got 24.5 all freeway on 08 but i hit 95 mph several time. Shell gas is better than discount gas like bp, walmart. You can test this theory. Empty your tank and fill up with bp or any store gas.make sure you reset mileage reader. Drive a normal route and when your gas light comes on you have 3.9 gallons left. When you fill up right down how many gallons you used to fill up and divid it by how many miles you went. Fill up with shell gas and do the same thing. Remember to do it when your just driving your normal route for both fill ups. My 05 had 24mpg combined city/highway 30%/70%highway on shell 10.3 gallons/ 244 miles and when I drove out of town all freeway with bp gas and filled up as soon as i got of the freeway. 10.6 gallons 221 miles. bp gas was literally 99.9% all free way. I didn't even drive a whole mile from the gas station to the freeway and when i filled up i costed down. I did hit traffic for about 8 miles.

pepsicolacat

the 2008 honda element awdex automatic gets the same gas mileage as a fwdex auto and the auto awd gets better than a fwd stick shift. the sc gets better mileage than the ex because it's lower. I have the 05 and 08 brochure. The awd drive is lite compared to other awd systems. when you use awd it well affect the mpg. i drove 100 miles around 270 with my friend to compare mpg. He used 4.26 gallons and I used 4.4 gallons but he followed behind me so who knows for sure. The difference is to small for me to give up safety feature like awd.

0311vn

...to store valuables such as cameras and a hand gun? Is there such a compartment built into the floor that can be secured?

ccirelli

the 2008 honda element awdex automatic gets the same gas mileage as a fwdex auto and the auto awd gets better than a fwd stick shift.

Well technically, the 08 awdex is 1 mpg less efficient than the fwdex, on both the highway and city side.

ccirelli

...to store valuables such as cameras and a hand gun? Is there such a compartment built into the floor that can be secured?

Well, not really. For that, I picked up the Cargo Cover, so people can't peer into the area behind the back seats. But it's not really a "locking compartment", like say, the trunk on a Civic.

If someone wants to get into your car, they will. But if you hide your stuff well and don't leave any clues as to what might be inside... you should be relatively safe. By clues I mean - no stickers advertising stuff you like - Nikon, Apple, stuff like that.

Guns...? Not sure. But most thieves won't break into a car if they don't see anything of value right out in the open (wallet, camera, watch, computer bag, etc.).

So the Cargo Cover should help with that. Out of sight - out of mind!

ccirelli

Oh another thought - leave the spare tire at home (if you're feeling brave) and use all that space under the floor to store valuables, if you don't have the Cargo Cover. Probably a safe bet if you only do it once in a while.

ccirelli

SECOND MILEAGE REPORT

OK, for my 2nd tank, I used my baseline of filling the tank between $.50 and $.75 over the "click" of the gas pump handle.

Driving conditions:

- maybe 5% highway

- 95% back roads, 40 to 50 mph, pulled lots of hills

- used Sunoco fuel 87 octane

MPG: 26.80

An increase of 1 mpg, even more back road driving this time. Still driving slow & steady, taking it easy going up those hills. Essentially I am doing the speed limit, maybe 5 to 10 mph more here & there. Nice & light on that gas pedal.

For my third tank I am curious to see what I get - I filled up with Sheetz fuel. I don't expect the same as Sunoco, but we'll see. And, I will be doing some more highway driving over the next few weeks. I will keep tabs on the general percentage of highway vs. back roads.

stever

I had several tanks in the first 3,000 miles or so on my last new car that were 10 or more mpg lower than what appeared to be the norm. No real rhyme or reason to it either. Some people seem to dial in their mpg right off the bat, but mine didn't really settle down for months.

(so don't get too upset if the Sheetz tank is way off what the Sunoco gave you ...)

coldcranker

The only possible difference in fuel economy between different types of fuels would be in the percentage of ethanol mixed into the gasoline. In other words, the energy density (amount of usable chemical energy per gallon) goes down the more ethanol is mixed into gasoline hydrocarbons. You automatically increase fuel consumption by around 2% for every 10% ethanol in there. For example, if you are running E85, you will get 8.5x2=17% higher fuel consumption. More common is E10, which is simply 10% ethanol, which is what I burn, so I routinely give up 2% fuel efficiency vs. pure gasoline hydrocarbons. The only exception is when you might run lower-octane gas in a car made for premium fuel, and the engine has a knock sensor, and the MPG drops when the lower octane fuel is used as timing gets retarded a bit. However, the Element does not have a knock sensor, so none of that octane variation really applies here.

dslightam

I've driven my stock (except for new tires) 05 AWD EX M/T for 3 years now in various conditions and driving mixtures. I'm convinced that approximately 28 mpg is the best I can do. I just got that mpg again on a trip with about an 30/70 mix of city and hwy, AC and no-AC, uphill and downhil. The gas light comes on after about 330 miles or 12 gallons (3.9 remaining). In other cases, "good" mileage on my E is about 24.5. Average "bad" mileage is about 22. 20 mpg is about the worst I ever do, but that's fairly rare.

The beefier new Toyo tires did seem to lower the mpg it for a while. Now it seems to be back to where it was before I replaced the stock good-years. I do agree that choice of gas does seem to cause some variance.

I am curious about the gas saving plates from earlier, but that sounds sketchy to me. There is a lot of chatter on this list lately. I'm cuious, are folks buying Es right now downsizing from larger SUVs and trucks?

ccirelli

I'm cuious, are folks buying Es right now downsizing from larger SUVs and trucks?

Personally, I just traded an '07 Civic EX for my Element. Took a hit in mpg (averaged 36 mpg in the Civic) but I LOVE the room and versatility of the Element. I rescue / train / show dogs, so it is a perfect fit for me.

Essentially it is costing me about another $80 per month to drive, but it's worth it. And now my wife - who never liked them before - totally wants one. They are contagious...

craig

micweb

26 mpg with awd/auto is superb

bigfur

So far my best is about 24.5 in an 07 awd auto. Winters here in MN drop it to about 21.

ccirelli

Better yet - today I calculated 28.01! No highway miles on that calculation, no AC either.

Again essentially I am just feathering that gas pedal, and taking easy up hills - and coasting on the way down. Slow starts & stops, and I do right around the speed limit, 5 to 10 mph above.

craig

coldcranker

The EPA rates the 2wd/automatic 2008 Element at 20/25 city/highway MPG. My '05 Freestyle, which weighs about 500 lbs more (3499 lb Element vs. 3959 lb Freestyle), is EPA rated at 18/25 city/highway, using the latest MPG test methods to compare. I routinely get the EPA numbers and often better, and have reached 30 MPG on a long trip with steady ~60 mph speeds. The Freestyle has a 3.0L 204 hp engine, and the Element is 500 lbs lighter with 2.4L 166 hp engine. ....Is there a gas leak in the Element? .... Maybe it can be simply accounted for by gearing alone, the Element being geared down without a good high range ratio for highway cruising. Are Element owners seeing high RPMs in highway cruising, compared to the Freestyle which does 1500 RPM at 60 MPH on flat roads?

The Element has a conventional 5-speed automatic while the Freestyle has a CVT, so maybe the difference is there, but how does that make up for 500 lbs of mass difference?

I like the Element and want to buy one, but am unwilling to get about the same MPG numbers as my bigger, heavier, more powerfull vehicle I have now for a 4-cylinder light Element. You'd think the Freestyle's bigger 17 inch wheels would reduce MPG to way below the Element, but thats not the case. What is going on with the Element?

ccirelli

Well - I think we're pretty close. Regardless of what the EPA numbers are, again - I am getting between high 26 and low 28 - with less than 10% highway travel.

I am reasonably certain that I could hit 30 on a long flat trip as well, based on what I've seen in my first three tanks.

At 60 mph the element (awd ex auto) hovers just under 2K rpm, if I recall correctly (sorry - I've only had it for 10 days..). At 70, 2.25K rpm. Not bad at all, and right inline with my Civic.

A lot of factors could go into why these two cars get about the same mileage, despite the weight and hp difference - the short answer is, that's just how they're engineered. Specifically, the CVT and general aerodynamics could be a big part of it as well.

dslightam

We have a dog too. We call the car a rolling dog crate. It is the most versitle vehicle I've ever interacted with and I have a hard time thinking of a more versitle one. I'm a little worried about the future child seat and increasing mileage crunch though.

ccirelli

Hahaha - "rolling dog crate" - perfect!

Ya between my dogs and my photo gear, it so versatile. Coming from a 36+ mpg Civic, it is still worth the difference in mpg.

I think the car will work well with your child seat, with the way the doors are designed. And it's an added safety that kids can't open the back doors without the front doors being opened first (although, to some, this is not a plus...).

coldcranker

The Freestyle should have horrible aerodynamics, just as the Element is not that good either. They are blunt boxes with only a little curviness here and there in the corners. Therefore, I don't know that aero has much to do with the fact that a heavier, faster Freestyle has about the same MPG as a lighter Element. Without other ideas about where the extra gasoline is going in the Element, I'd have to say that it must be the effects of gear ratios accounting for it. With a higher top gear, the Element should be able to reach better highway MPG.

stevedebi

"The Freestyle should have horrible aerodynamics, just as the Element is not that good either. They are blunt boxes with only a little curviness here and there in the corners. "

I owned a 206 FS, and I don't think the aerodynamics are nearly as bad as the Element. The Element is boxy; the Freestyle (while is has a pretty large frontal area) is much "smoother". It is based on the Ford 500.

I think the difference between the two is the CVT in the FS. When coupled with the 3.0 engine, the computer can use the lowest possible RPM.

ragets

I cannot believe I did this great with my car. I've been averaging 23-25MPG. But on my last tank I put 300 miles on and only filled up 9.78 gallons. That means I got 30.67MPG!!!! I couldn't believe it!
I use Shell Gas because it seems to run better and get better MPG's.
I go about 75% highway, 20% dirt/gravel roads, 5%city.
I ease off the gas pedal, brake easy, only use the A/C in spurts on the highway, use windows in town.
I wish I would have gotten the manual transmission though. I hate how long this auto takes to shift up and down. I wish I could do it myself!