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Nissan Altima Real World MPG

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Comments

  • mlmcgaheemlmcgahee Member Posts: 102
    wow... It sounds like you've done everything you can do. I think my next step would be to have the Nissan service dept. reset the OBC and see if that makes a difference.

    Mike :shades:
  • seanizzleseanizzle Member Posts: 1
    I GET LOUSY GAS MILEAGE ON MY 02 ALTIMA TOO. IT USED TO BE GOOD, BUT IT HAS TAKEN A TURN FOR THE WORSE LATELY. LIFE SUCKS. :(
  • doc_ali2009doc_ali2009 Member Posts: 1
    Okay guys these are simple reasons why the Nissan Altima (New ones) are not giving good MPGs. Knowledge is power and following is genuine verified information

    1. New cars DONT give good MPG because the engine is not "broken in" so there is a lot of friction in the engine especially the pistons which reduces the MPG and gives that feeling of car NOT being smooth so don't fret. It will become a LOT smoother after your first oil change. I recommend changing oil even if your car has not done 3000 miles. Just get it changes after 3 months.

    2. My new Altima 2012 S was giving me 16mpg to start with then slowly it crept up to 19mpg and then after first oil change it has gone up to 23mpg (combined) Please DONOT expect good MPG before 5000 miles due to reason described above.

    3. You can get the ECCU (engine computer unit) reprogrammed by the dealer but the engine re programs seeing your driving pattern for last 30 MILES. So just drive whatever way you want and it will reset it self.

    Happy with the description?? hope it helps.
  • ohlodeohlode Member Posts: 4
    Just turned over 3000 miles. I have never gotten less than 28.7 mpg and that is city driving. If I mix in some freeway or expressway driving for around 30 to 40% of total driving miles it gets up to 31.0 pretty easily. I'd say if you are not getting at least 28 then you have something majorly wrong with your vehicle. (or you are an owner of a competitive model and just spoof on this forum for fun...)
  • chevyonlyfonchevyonlyfon Member Posts: 10
    @ohload its wrong to make assumption that we all are spoofing - or crazy - or we dont know how to drive etc... there is something wrong with our cars indeed - that is why we are here- and its not a little wrong. My wife said something to me after our first oil change at the dealer ship - she felt the car didnt get the same milage as when it was new - so we did get better milage but somethign happened - significant enough for wife to feel somethign was wrong - i was not the primary driver on the car - though once i started to investigate it and take a few road trips - we cant get mroe than 27 in perfect weather - with a/c off and no load or luggage.. - i had her drive my 97 blazer for a week to her school as she does with with nissan - exact same routes - same class schedule same times - same gas stations - same driving habits - she averaged 19.1 mpg with the blazer - rated at 15/21; and 22.3 with the altima - 70% hwy est with blazer - far below combined est with blazer - by the same calc - i should get about 31.5 mpg with the nissan as used for the this.. its about 9mgh - its way off u can not account for this by any logic like a/c how u drive( without being arrested and melting your tires off) there is somethign radically wrong with these cars - and i think its criminal - i bought this car because of the rated gas milage

    i have owned about 8 cars in my life and everyone - every single one of them got what they were rated at- andi mean using the old pre 08 ratings.. the new rating on my blazer is 14- 20 not the 15-21 pre 08 but guess what? i get 15-21 plus or minus a half// always air on - air off - 1000 pay load - doing 60mph doing 95mph doesnt matter- i did the whole florida TP at 95 mph i got 21 - i did all of nebraska 10% grade up hill going west for 600 miles.. got 22.5 mph with full load and ac going and uphill all way.. there is so little differnce in the gas milage between my blazer and the nissan - its so negligible we dont concern ourselves anylonger with the way we use each and for what trips.. yet the altima is rated at about 170% of the milage rating as the blazer - and we are far far from that - its about 15% more than blazer - negligible in the grand scheme. on the bright side - its not worse than the blazer.. but make no mistake - the altima is not economical car it was made out to be - and many many people here are attesting to it - and i have read posts here about people who are heavy footed and drive dense city and getting good combined.. this are people who self admit their driving habits and get good - mpg and yet i am very tame with my habits.. also i am mechanical engineer - -so trust me - when i tell you there is somethign wrong with the car and not the driver - and that is to the idiot - that said make sure your brakes are not draging and freewheeling downhill and blah . omg - believe me and the rest of the people with crap milage - we use real gas from shell and Exxon bp. etc - i dont know if think we are making it from corn mash in the backyard or what .. anyhow - i am with the poor bastards here that are getting crappy milage- there are some little bettter than me - most about what i get - the dreaded 26-27 max on interstate - and 18- 21 in city ..... but it appears there some even getting worse.. being that it has been suggested that some have experienced significant increases in milage with altitude.. and some like me experienced better milage before servicing - would suggest there is somethign about some comp management of the fuel - that may be in play. the good news is this is fixable - we need to get our act together compile the data in a way that nissan can investigate and remedy the problem .. - because i just don t think it can be anythign else - the comp controls all this - and i agree an engine like this just cant burn fuel to this amount of consumption - without making miles.. - so my guess its not burning it .. or at least completely ..... somethign is wrong with the mix.. and sensing the environment.. - maybe they got a lot of cheap comp chips - or static eproms. that are bad.. just not saving the appropriate settings.. or perhaps its a group of bad trannys that came off line - that somehow - are using a lot extra.. inefficient gearing... though mine seems way to low - and seems to have adjusted itself this way over time perhaps from babying the gas pedal - which tooo me would seem to be more effiecient so long as their is no heavy labor to get the car going - but the car seems to have ample torque so - i dont feel its tranny.
    though , in my case, i feel its just a comp setting that has gotten goofed up somehow.. never the less its poor quality control and not user error ........ i am comfortable reading these people testimonials and dont believe they are fruit cakes or incompetents and drive poorly or dont know anythign - i pretty much agree with all of them - and am shocked that people come here and tell how tehy are getting great milage - its shocks us almost - but it also puts salt in the wound because not only are you getting what you are supposed and we dont - you make it feel like its our fault.... double injury.. well i think we start a petition and some documentation and maybe do like with hyundia and start a class action suit - but more i would prefer just to have my car fixed. anyhow i think its time to collaborate - - if anyone wants to be contact for this - i suggest they make it known here.. i am not sure what the forum rules are regarding this..

    i hope nissan makes good on this - because i am for one never buying another nissan and probably never another foreign job again - they just are not as good a american cars- and i know all over the net you will here about how bad americans cars are - but i suggest you go and read the reliabilty reports on the 97 blazer - and you see its poor - but i have news for you - mine is now 16 years old in two months.. and its like mint - it drives perfect as new - everthing functions 100% and it has cost me almost nothing in repairs - i put a 495 ignition switch in it - a new radiator - per the dexcool thing- cost total of 111 dollars ( nice about domestics much cheaper to repair ) sisters lexus 750 dollars.. i put one alternator less than foreign again.. and one winsheild wiper motor which chev paid for outside of warranty. 16 years less than 1000 bucks.. oh just last yaer - i put new ball joints because i had to pass inspection in utah - one of few states with rigorous inspection.. this maintenance not repairs.. cost me less than 350 .. oh also i get about 45- 50 k miles out tires on the blazer never had car that was this light on tires - and i dont mean i road them till steel - i mean the tire wear indicators were not full showing at this milage - no rotation necessary too. and i know what a lot of people are thinking - they are truck tires they have lots of rubber - well no - the stock tires that came on my blazer were infact car passager tire
  • chevyonlyfonchevyonlyfon Member Posts: 10
    edited June 2012
    the stock tires that came on my blazer were infact car passager tires - mich cant rembmber anyway i have a mich ltx on it now - same wear will get 50 without pushing it - guess how many miles i get out of my altima tires - with same treadwear rating.. about 18k...... i have got many of reason to go back to american.. and i will let you speak with my sister and brother how thier bmw 7 series and lexus es fell apart long before my blazer - both had trim and radios breaking, wiper and antenna motors and virtually all mechanicals on the car falling apart post the 11- 12 year mark - both unbelievably expensive to maintain for even an oil change.. - i am so sick of the notion that the reliability of american is bad - - i dont see it - you cant prove it by me - its just crap.. u cant prove it to my brother - he went and looked a chevy cruze yesterday to replace the gas guzzler 7 series.. junk he wants something that can do the 100mi per day he commutes to work.. he was going to go foreign - but i turned him to chevy 10 minutes after he drove the cruze he said it smokes the foreign boxes in quality . never the less - i am thinking of ditching my altima for cruze too. or anything american - i dont hate my altima - but i am burnt a bit i bought for the mileage - and this has really hurt me - mean while i have fallen more in love with my blazer - as its still beautiful and shiny as the day i bought it and everything works as the day i bought - it... no one that see s it can believe its 16 years old - it was not even garaged but 3 years of its life.. and lived in high humidity 9 years in the se - and 5 years in northern wis harsh winters.. plenty of 20 below starts.. and salt.. i am not here to push americant - but as i see problems with a fairly new car - and have the same problem 5 years now - i have grown to repect and love the car that had brought me 16 wonderful years and never want to get rid of her as long as she runs perfect - and i mean that - it starts and sounds like the day she rolled off the line - the 4.3 - basically the old chevy 350 with two cyl cut off .. good block - good tbi injection.... solid car.. just had to get rid of dexcool for the good ol green..

    anyhow - its a shame - that somehow the mileage can be this off- like i said i have owned 8 cars all got exactly what they should on the old rating system .. and if this one was rated 26 35 it should get it - even if the changed the rating . to be more conservative - i think they had to because the real world - roads are busier then they were 20 years ago.. but not because the ratings were wrong we are justspending mroe time ni traffic.. however - my trips n the altima used - for mileage purposes here were done free of any traffic as a control.. - and for anyone here who thinks we are all stoned and the way we maintain or use our cars- come drive mine for a week - you will have nice enlightenment.
  • chevyonlyfonchevyonlyfon Member Posts: 10
    edited June 2012
    after all the mileage i have driven - i can come up what i would rate this car at or it should have been rated it .. this is a

    19 city .. 26 hwy .... car.... its not awful its par for a midsize car..in the pre 2.50-4$ gallon days - or maybe late 90s.. era car... but for post ..3 bucks .. to suggest this is 25 city car - and plus 30 hwy car is a joke.. its criminal..

    its better to take the 1990 caprice classic full size chevy and put a 50mpg sticker on it.. by they way 1990 chevy caprice classic was rated at 19- 26 at the time - which i thought was amazing - and it head plenty of power was a huge car.. and did get this - back in 1990 - so .. 19 26 out of smaller car 16 years laters - and published and maketed in a 3$ per gallon era - is criminal- we be better have a car 50% large and this old chevy engine......... there is somethign way way way wrong here/////////// again - this gets what my truck does - or slightly better.. my truck would get this - with aerodynamics of altima.... maybe i will dump an old chevy 4..3 engine in the damn car..

    cars that i have owned that got better milage than my 07 altima:

    1983 camero (151 4cyl)
    1983 mazda 626
    1985 subaru turbo awd
    1990 ford mustang GT

    cars that i have owned that got less mileage than the altima ( only by 15% less)

    1978 ford granada (302 V8 manual tran) 18 city hwy 22
    1997 chevy blazer (4.3 4wd) 15 city 21 hwy..

    chances are if you stepped out on I80 in chicago in 1985 and open fire with an automatic weapon - chances are what ever you hit.. would have gotten better gas milealage than the 2007 nissan altima..
  • chevyonlyfonchevyonlyfon Member Posts: 10
    thats what i get - almost exactly i am extremely dissapointed....... and i am tired of dealers and websites saying that not real world the ratings are comparison guide.. well - all 8 cars i have own in the past decade got thier ratings... this one doesnt get but about 60 % -- we are not talking like a littel off its like half almost... i cant achieve on hwy - what its rated in the city.... combined driving is way behind city even .
  • chevyonlyfonchevyonlyfon Member Posts: 10
    100% of the gas sold in this country contains 10% eth for about a decade now.. its says up to 10% but believe me its probably 10 to 12 % but it should be the problem - u think the epa got different gas when they tested the cars??special gas for them?
  • dudleyrdudleyr Member Posts: 3,469
    Not even close to true. Many states sell gas without any ethanol.
  • Kirstie_HKirstie_H Administrator Posts: 11,146
    You're dead right. Even in states that have ethanol blend stations, some areas do not.

    We live in a semi-rural area where a lot of homeowners have a lot of older vehicles, off-road vehicles, farming vehicles, and watercraft, some of which take diesel and others (particularly boats) that don't take kindly to ethanol. Thus, we have a lot of no-ethanol stations around here.

    In fact, as we drive down to our largest lake area, there are signs all over the place advertising ethanol-free gas.

    MODERATOR /ADMINISTRATOR
    Need help navigating? kirstie_h@edmunds.com - or send a private message by clicking on my name.
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  • busirisbusiris Member Posts: 3,490
    Agreed. There are 4 stations within a 6 mile radius of my house that sell ethanol-free regular gas.
  • busirisbusiris Member Posts: 3,490
    I bought a 2008 Altima 2.5 SL new. My daughter now drives it, about 15 miles each way to work, primarily highway route.

    She gets right at 30 mpg average, due to little in-town driving, and that mpg mirrors the mileage I got when I was driving it before she got the car from me.

    I believe you when you say you don't get that, and I have no explanation why.

    All I can say is that is indeed the mileage her Altima gets. It now has about 50K miles.

    Back in 2005 I bought a Chevy Aveo hatchback new, and for the 3 years that I owned it, it never came anywhere close to the EPA estimates, either city or highway. It was a real disappointment...

    I just happen to believe some cars, for whatever reason, just don't get the mileage others get...
  • chevyonlyfonchevyonlyfon Member Posts: 10
    i havent seen an ethanol free pump at any brand in a decade- taveling the whole south east midwest - and west.

    i use many major brands....... states i havent been in more than 10 years - northeast - south west north west and pacific coast - and texas.......states i have bought gas with only some undisclosed % if ethanol.. is wisconsin , illinois, indiana, iowa and nebraska ( special high % ethanol) colorado , whyoming, utah, nevada , oklahoma, georgia, missouri, tenn, alabama, florida, southcarlolina.. kentucky and ohio...... pls tell me what states u can get ethanol free gas? i have never seen a sign advertising ethanol free gas.. why would some states force ethanol gas - its not a smog thing - i dont live in smog areas - except knoxville has some bad air though because valley - but the main reason is not to add it because of smog - its to add it to reduce our dependency on fossil fuels and foreign oil .. they add the % they feel is safe to use in cars designed for gas.. though it can affect mileage - i guess - the truth is it doesnt in other cars- so what is special about the nissan that it cant use the same gas everyone else uses. again ethanol is added not because region but because oil consumption in general . so why woudl they be special to allow you to use pure fossil fuels anywhere ?? they dont.. i don tbelieve it.. never seen a sign for ethanol free. anywhere .. i think its more likely that some local laws dont require them to disclose additives less than 10% that is more like it.. anyhow - again i am tryign to tell you - this not well my gas is cheap - i have bought it rural places in city - in several states - all same.. i am sure u can get gas that can vary 1- 2 mpg or 5% or less of total milage - but we are talking i cant get city rating on the highway with ac off.. while peopel are driving the same car in the city getting mroe than i get i straight hwy.. this is not logical at any degree.. again i am saying its somethign broken with the car- not driver or gas- you can put of 2 - 3 or even 5 mpg for usage and gas - but i am talking i get combined wich is about 70% hwy at about 21 mpg - and my blazer gets about 19.. it geting 70% of hwy rating in this usage - i should be getting about 31 with car as others state they get here - so you chauk this up to gas??? comon - get a brain..... i get suv type mileage - i thought i was buying an economy car - per the ratings and yes comparing to other cars.. - oh and by the way i believe for first 3k i feel like i go tthis great milage without breakin even - it was right after first oil change it got bad and way bad - my wife said it first tank after service - so its possible they reset somethign if they checked it with comp. that is what i am feeling - and by the way the first mo i bought the car - when had almost no mileage on it - i taught my nephew to drive in parking lot and to park the car at the mall - according to the comp i got about 19 and some change mpg driving around a pakring lot - i was amazed...... we where averaging something liek 5 and some change mph .. according to comp now my car says - i average 26 mph and 20 and some change mpg............ - so tell me if this make sense.... somethign is breaking on these cars...
  • chevyonlyfonchevyonlyfon Member Posts: 10
    oh by the way - to the peopel who insist my milage is because ethanol gas - even if bought a gallon - and it was 10% eth.. i should still be able to get 90% of the rated mileage if the etha didnt burn at all as if it were water... and in that case- i should still be able to average above 30mpg on the hwy .. i cant.. i cant get within 20% mind 10% i am averaging about the same as my blazer in combined driving - i cant get 25 averge per tank mind 30 i am averaging 20 with 70% i use the car off hours to go shopping to avoid traffic and even with that - there is little traffic or lights betweem me and the main shopping district about 5- 7 miles average - 1 light - 45 zone one small hill - and ofcourse the parking lot turn offs at teh store. i must slow down for.. and the enterence for my community... its almost like i should be getting very close to hwy milage 100% i dont do stop and go driving and waiting in traffic....... and again even when i taught my nephewin the parking when i first bought the car i felt i got better milages turning and pakring and doing again .. and parallel parking and instructing i got better than i do now- somethign broke - right after first oil service i would almost say the dealer sabotaged the car if i didnt know beter or accidentally reset teh comp - but like people here i have to fight to convince them they will just say gas driving and ratings are not realworld blah meean while plenty of people here have good cars..... its a shame i got a lemon - never again buying nissan - because i cant even convince theier is a problem because of ignorance like here- and it should be an easy fix - because this car did get better much better milage before first service - what i shame......
  • busirisbusiris Member Posts: 3,490
    edited June 2012
    Ethanol free gas stations in SC... Many, if not all states have ethanol free gas.

    http://pure-gas.org/index.jsp?stateprov=SC

    Also, ethanol has roughly 33% less energy per unit as compared to gasoline, if I remember correctly.
  • dudleyrdudleyr Member Posts: 3,469
    All stations in SD and Iowa have ethanol free gas. In SD only 89 octane has ethanol and it is the. Cheapest. 87 and 91 octane are always ethanol free.
  • chevyonlyfonchevyonlyfon Member Posts: 10
    like i said previously - doesnt matter - because if had no energy value - i shoudl still be able to get 90% of the rated .. that is what i said.... but with this you are telling i shoudl be able to get about 96.67% - i get less than 60% .. so no gas can make this much difference - you people are still missing the point - i guess i am dealing with morons - who think they know somethign - it sucks to live in a world of 100 iq morons when u are above 140.. - sometimes i wish i were ignorant like the some of the masses..

    anyhow - read my post - i said its more likely that some states have different labeling laws. and that nice link u posted has a link on it to a site called fuel testers that states not all states are required to label this - and some states have different rules for what % they have to label as eth-free gas - exactly as i stated ... in post above../ and to the following poster about SD AND Iowa - its exactly as nebraska the mid grade is a special super high - eth gas because they produce it there - and infact is cheaper than the other grades.. - infact the other grades have it - they just arent required by law in those states to list it because of the % ---

    and oh by the way - the link you sent me - is a site where users submit gas stations - these are people who think they are buying eth-free but are not because they are not required to label - based on state laws and if they are not required to disclose they can advertise it as such - and by the way i looked at those stations listed there most are off brand and unbranded gas- and yet everyone here is saying to use branded gas - not the cheap - that is why u have poor milage - now you are sayign to use the cheap gas - not knowing where it comes from and what is in it..? right?? i got it - perfect sense - for a lowly 100IQ.. sorry - i am sorry you people are so gullible , no wonder the dumb states are republican - i am sure u are replubincans no doubt..
  • chevyonlyfonchevyonlyfon Member Posts: 10
    edited June 2012
    @smarty 666 sorry - u miss the point too - and ur perspective is way off - i dont live in the city of live on the outer skirts of a suburb of a college town of 180k people - i wouldnt say i drive city at all - i can freely do 45 - 55 on all roads i travel and half i travel are interstate whicih i can do 85 np (traffc flow) anyhow - i have one light between me and the main shopping district - i work from home so that is not a problem - my wife is a student - and drives interstate to school - she is 2 miles from the ramp with one light - and 45 mph limit - and at the terminal end of the trip the school is right off the express light one main light and one at the school - this is the driving we have done with this car - plus a few day trips strict hwy.. yet our combined average is 20mpg . we never get stuck in stop and go traffic - i have habits to go to store off hour just because its less busy. so this is our pace .. what u describe has no perspective on what people here are complaining about - its people liek you who are keeping us from getting our problems with the car addressed. they are real - they are not us - i get 22mph where my blazer got 19...... so its not worse thank god - but its about 15% more over all - and i dont care how and when u rated the car. and if its for comparison or what ever they say milage may vary - the truth is the nissan is rated at about 65% more milage than the blazer and real world is 15% ... this is huge - for my habits..... i understand if its really city duh hnow much milage u getting sitting a traffic light?
    i get horrible hwy mileage too - peopel here are getting blended at 31 - and i cant get 26 on the hwy....... and u tell me driving habits - dont be silly. u get a perspective- half of us have lemons are we are getting screwed good - it wouldnt be so bad if all the caars were the same but think how we feel that half these cars achieve good milage. so we know its somethign broken - and then in the honda hyundai suits - they used other peple testimonies to dissmiss the case holy [non-permissible content removed] . common - what does it have to do that your car gets good milage - that mine is broken - that makes u think u dont have to fix it or pay for it.? tzhe problem is they are using the excuse its our driving - trust me - there are way too many people stating grandma drriving habits and ultimate conditions getting crap mileage yet peopel with heavy feet and fair blended conditions getting great mileage.. somethign is up .. u need to read all and digest and not just assume - .........no pespective.. pls get one
  • busirisbusiris Member Posts: 3,490
    edited June 2012
    You seem to have an axe to grind.

    I made no comments on the mpg you get, or don't get.

    I simply gave you a reference point to find non-ethanol gas, which YOU said didn't exist any more... Your post # 269.

    While I'm sympathetic to those that, for whatever reason don't get the expected mpg they hope for, I'll make an exception in your case.
  • geptogepto Member Posts: 2
    I may as well add my two cents worth. Last week I took a trip north into Canada with a friend of mine and alot of luggage. We drove my 2011 Altima that has 9,000 miles on it. We did some off road driving in the Canadian Provincial parks, got lost for an hour TWICE in Thunder Bay, Ontario and took no special precautions to increase mileage. After over a thousand miles of driving, the computer said we averages 35.7 mpg. In the past the computer has proven to optomistic by about .8 miles per gallon compared to doing the math and calculating it manually. We got about 35 honest mpg and I'm very satisfied. Next years car should get well into the high 30's with an luck at all.

    Good mileage to all of you,
  • m6userm6user Member Posts: 3,181
    Obviously, if all you say is true there is something wrong with your car. If you spent as much time talking to the dealer(try to refrain from calling them morons) about it as you spend boring everyone on this forum maybe it would be fixed by now!
  • busirisbusiris Member Posts: 3,490
    edited June 2012
    I suspect any bridges the poster had with his dealer were burned long ago...

    Especially if he continuously informed them of his "superior" intelligence...
  • nimailninimailni Member Posts: 1
    @chevyonlyfon: Can you please start using regular sentences?

    Your posts are unreadable.
  • sergiynysergiyny Member Posts: 1
    edited July 2012
    Just got my new 2012 Nissan Altima, and now i've been driving it for 2 days in the city and the highest mpg i was getting is 19!!! The more i kept driving, the lower mpg got, to 15!!! i'm really disappointed with the car, i tried driving like old grandma but nothing changed.
  • m6userm6user Member Posts: 3,181
    Just rented a 2012 Altima for a 10 day from Chicago to Texas and return. 2200 miles total and about 95% interstate/5% city so for all practical purposes it was a hwy trip. Trip computer came out at 32.8 mpg with an average of 63 mph. I calculated 32.3 from 5 fill ups and drove the speed limits which varied from some 55 to mostly 65 to 75mph. Overall pretty impressed with the car and liked the CVT once moving at a good clip but from a stop not so much.
  • poormpginlapoormpginla Member Posts: 5
    Summary of what I learned from a Nissan "expert driver":
    Making short trips is bad for your gas mileage.

    Apparently a catalytic converter needs to be hot to do its job properly, and your car would produce drastically more air pollution if you drove around normally until it warmed up. To meet pollution standards, when you first start your Altima (and presumably most modern gas engines?) the car invests a surprising amount of energy idling fast to quickly heat the catalytic converter. So for the first couple of minutes you are in the car it is in a gas-expensive but pollution-reducing mode, and if you only drive for two minutes every time then you will get abysmal gas mileage. If you generally take five or ten minute trips, your mileage will still be noticeably worse than if you drove the same distance in one trip, because you burn extra gasoline each time you start driving.

    I want to point out that polite persistence can be very helpful in situations like this. I spent a lot of time talking to my dealer, and got to meet "the expert from Nissan" who explained that my car is perfectly capable of getting 35+ mpg driving on an empty freeway etc. He insisted that he couldn't tell me why I would consistently get half of that without being there to watch my driving habits, and waited for me to accept that I must be doing something strange and walk away.
    I spent an extra 20 minutes patiently restating that I needed to figure out what the problem was because it was costing me a lot of money, so would he please list the things that I might be doing wrong. He reluctantly tried thinking of a few, and was impatient when I told him that each one didn't happen to apply in my case. In frustration he eventually said "the only person I've ever heard of getting such low mpg is my wife, but she only takes the car for short trips of a mile or two."

    How to take advantage of this information is a whole separate problem, since I live in L.A. and am therefore legally forbidden to walk anywhere that a car could take me.
  • m6userm6user Member Posts: 3,181
    Since you have spent so much time working with the dealer to resolve your problem one would think the dealer would have insisted that the "expert" from Nissan drive your car to see if a so called expert could get a decent mpg number. It wouldn't have taken more longer than your conversation did. I did notice on the rental Altima I recently drove that city driving really drove the MPG down.

    One thing I can't understand in all this is that all I hear from Nissan is that the CVT is supposed to be so much better for MPG than conventional transmissions. But when you compare the other top midsize cars to the Altima(ie Sonata, Camry, Accord, etc) they are comparable in HP, weight and MPG. You would think if the CVT was that big of factor the Altima would kill the rest but that's not the case.

    I understand the new 2013 Altima has jumped in MPG but the older model Altimas have had the CVT for years and have never been ahead or even equal to some of the other midsizers with conventional transmissions. Just wondering why if the CVT is all that wonderful.
  • mtpetemtpete Member Posts: 9
    New car. MPG so far as follows:

    24.4 (mostly town/some highway)

    20.0 (all city, heavy stop/go, 3 mile or less trips, two weeks)

    40.0 (yes, 40 - all highway, cruise set at posted limits of 65, 75)

    35.0 (75/25 highway/city, 560 mile trip)

    That's right. These were calculated using fillups. And I mean filled to the TOP. All are with the climate control set on auto, usually A/C running.

    Car has 1900 miles to date and the mpg avg on the screen is 27.2.

    Engine RPM's at speed are very, very low - 1400 to 1750 depending on speed, holding cruise. Around town, with a light foot, you can keep it well under 2000 all the time.

    The car responds well to careful driving, paying attention to RPM's.

    Of course if you floor it, all bets are off, and the 3.5 certainly delivers with acceleration (I've read that it does the quarter mile in 14.3 and I have no reason to doubt it) that's impressive for a car at this price point.

    So, to date, I couldn't be happier with the MPG. We'll see how winter affects it with heavy snow and city driving.

    Also, the seats and stereo are outstanding. This is quite the car even for sticker price.
  • ahossa1ahossa1 Member Posts: 52
    Do U use Regualr unleaded or premium unleaded?
  • poormpginlapoormpginla Member Posts: 5
    Yes, the expert did drive my car before our conversation. He got great mileage: presumably this is part of why he was impatient with me, since in his mind he had already spent an hour proving that there was nothing to complain about.

    Of course, an expert driver paying attention only to his mileage, filling up the tank literally next to the onramp and and then the offramp so that he drove 99% on a freeway, was always going to get great mileage. He proudly showed me his receipts, proving he got 35mpg in my car. But I have effectively tried the same experiment, driving a couple of hours each way almost entirely on freeways . I got 32 mpg. (My OBC said I had been getting 35 mpg if you trust that more than my own fill-drive-refill-divide calculation.) Yes, my car can do it; no, I'm not an inherently gas-wasteful driver.

    So why *have* I been getting between 14 mpg and 19 mpg on almost every tank of gas since I got the car (new)? The one surprising answer I have been given is that really short trips give really terrible mpg. So a (very) short commute does save me money on gas, but not quite as much as I would have thought.

    It had never occurred to me that my car would burn significantly more gas in the first mile or two, revving fast in a fuel-inefficient effort to warm the catalytic converter quickly. It may not even be true. But I figured it was worth sharing the idea here.
  • m6userm6user Member Posts: 3,181
    If the kind of driving you do most of the time is very, very short trips of less than 3-4 miles or running a bunch of errands where you start and stop the engine several times in a relatively short trip, then you are going to get the worst possible mileage. And that would be with any car but the newer cars it may even be worse than the old ones. The EPA city mpg test is not nearly as severe as I described above so you should expect significantly less MPG thant even the EPA city rating for your vehilce. Remember they try to simulate a lot of differnent kinds of city driving to come up with their city rating. Even the city rating will have a range associated with it and it sounds like your type of trips may be on the lower end or even lower than than the lower end of their city MPG range.

    Comparing a car that is ten years old or older may not be a great comparison as these new cars are tuned a lot differently to get that high MPG in normal situations. If your situation is well off of normal than you may even get worse MPG with your newer car than with an older one if that makes any sense to you.
  • mtpetemtpete Member Posts: 9
    So far straight premium.

    Just had another almost 600 mile trip - came in at 32 mpg, mixed driving, over steep mountain passes.
  • growing_creditgrowing_credit Member Posts: 26
    Few questions:

    I have my altima for 2 weeks now and the guage shows me 28.4 mpg (may be bcs all of my driving has been in city and yesterday was stuck in traffic for 45 min due to acc) how to reset those numbers? I've yet to take a long trip on freeway and than see how the mpg numbers behave

    One of my relative adivsed me to use premium every 4 - 5 fill ups that will extend engine life. Is that true? Can I do that? Has anyone any exp of how it affects engine?
  • bartosisbartosis Member Posts: 2
    It is very sad that my 2011 2.5 Nissan Altima Coupe can't get better than 27 MPG on the highway. I do like quiet and comfort of my Coupe. I traded my 09 Civic hybrid in on this and I got 45 to 50 MPG all the time. The stated 32 MPG on the EPA window sticker was the deciding factor. Nissan grossly over estimated ergo... it was a lie. I don't know anybody that gets my 27 MPG let alone the 32 MPG Nissan advertised. I could have got the 3.5 or better yet a Mustang 5.0. I won't be buying a nissan again.
  • celidorcelidor Member Posts: 1
    I have a 3.5 liter Nissan Maxima. Bigger engine than your 2.5 and the maxima is heavier than the Altima but I easily get better highway mileage than what you are getting. You should be getting much better MPG. It should be easy to get the EPA's numbers or better. Most people I know get much better MPG than what you're experiencing and most get better than the EPA.
  • dilipgdilipg Member Posts: 1
    My 2.5 S Altima has run 13500 miles but is giving a mileage of 8-9 MPG in New york city.
    I am frustrated by its performance and the consumer Affairs of Nissan is of no help.
    Any suggestions?
  • jchd1340jchd1340 Member Posts: 13
    There is nothing you can do. i own an 07 2.5 with only 40k on it and my gas mileage is horrible ( 15 mpg average ) i tried everything! to no avail. spread the word and sell it. do not listen to anybody who says its because you don't know how to drive. it is the car!!!!!!!!!!! :(
  • thegraduatethegraduate Member Posts: 9,731
    My 2.5 S Altima has run 13500 miles but is giving a mileage of 8-9 MPG in New york city.
    I am frustrated by its performance and the consumer Affairs of Nissan is of no help.
    Any suggestions?


    Short trips = lower mileage. Having driven in NYC myself, I'm not surprised that its so low. You obviously make very short trips or you'd have more than 13k miles on a 2 year old car.
  • mlmcgaheemlmcgahee Member Posts: 102
    When is the last time you reset your mpg display. to get an accurate mpg you need to reset it right after every fill-up otherwise it will display the average mpg since the last time it was reset. How many months/miles have you driven since your last reset?

    FYI

    Page 2-18 of the owners manual
    Average speed mode
    The average speed mode can be selected to
    display the average miles per gallon and miles per
    hour since the last reset.

    Mike :shades:
  • rick2456rick2456 Member Posts: 320
    Remember, when you are stopped at a light (or by traffic), you are getting zero miles per gallon. That will drastically affect your average MPG.
  • haulthault Member Posts: 130
    2013 Altima 2.5 SV. When I drive at least 50% highway not exceeding 70mph I get 30-32 mpg. If I do a lot of suburban driving it drops to 26-28mpg. For the size car it's OK. I traded a 2005 Malibu Maxx that got 24-28 mpg in similar driving. I think poor fuel economy is mainly do to the great weight these modern cars have compared to the past. All the safety equipment that is saving lives and reducing injuries is a fair trade off to me. Everytime we stop at a traffic light it takes a lot of fuel to get these beasts moving.
  • uga91uga91 Member Posts: 1,065
    I've had my 2013 Altima for 4 weeks (tomorrow) and I've been getting about 26 mpg in mixed city driving. I'm expecting that number to go up as the car breaks in. I have about 850 miles on it now.
  • jake1950jake1950 Member Posts: 1
    I just drove 500 miles through combination of mountains, curves, and some straight flat roads. Central Oregon to Sacramento area. I set the trip computer at the start and the average mpg was more than 41! I was not driving in a manner to save on fuel. I still had more than 1/4 tank upon arrival. On the trip back I drove as fast as was safe. 70-75 whenever possible. Having reset the trip computer I got 38.5. The reason I purchased the 2013 is that I drove a rented 2011 last year for 8200 miles around the USA. I was astounded to get 39-40 through much of the trip. I drive little in stop and go city traffic. A hybrid is better suited for that.
  • mtpetemtpete Member Posts: 9
    10,000 miles so far.

    Screen average is 25 point something.

    Several long highway trips consistently give 34 mpg.

    Not much to complain about for the power!
  • uga91uga91 Member Posts: 1,065
    I just completed a 900 mile round trip between Atlanta and Louisville and I averaged about 38.6 MPG for the trip averaging about 70 MPH along the way.
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