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Buick Rendevous Real World MPG
This topic is for Rendevous owners to share their actual MPG with others.
"Real World" Fuel Economy vs. EPA Estimates
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"Real World" Fuel Economy vs. EPA Estimates
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There are so many misconceptions about gas mileage generally that I would like to attempt to clear them up. The single biggest determinant of mileage is weight. It's simple physics. It takes "x" units of energy to move "x" pounds from point A to point B. Since the energy in a gallon of gas doesn't change and the length of a mile doesn't change, the weight is the major determining factor. That's why a V-8 in the same car vs. a V-6 has worse mileage. Not because a V-8 has 8 cylinders running vs. 6 (it will run at lower RPM's than a 6 to offset the difference) but because the V-8 is physically heavier than the 6 in the same car, therefore it takes more energy (hence worse mileage) to move that heavier engine. It's the same reason why AWD or 4WD is worse than FWD. Not because four wheels are turning - that makes no difference. The difference is that in the same vehicle, AWD is simply heavier than FWD because of the extra transfer case at the rear axle. With all else being equal, a 2000 pound vehicle will have exactly double the gas mileage of a 4000 pound vehicle. It's really just as simple as that. I've never gone through the exercise, but to compare apples to apples, compare the EPA listed mileage between vehicles (despite the fact it doesn't represent real world, it's a consistent benchmark for this purpose) to the weight of those vehicles and you will find a pretty consistent ratio. Having said that, there certainly will be variations due to driving habits (heavy foot means more revs per mile), driving speed (high highway speed means more revs to overcome exponentially higher drag at significantly increased speeds), vehicle shape (the higher the coefficient of drag, the more revs required per mile), efficiency of engine (the more efficient in converting the unit of energy in gas into revs, the better the mileage), driver weight (230 pound man vs. 120 pond woman), a/c usage (higher revs to run that compressor), tire pressure (lower pressure means more tire contact with the road, hence more friction to overcome) as well as a few other things I'm sure I've missed. But the point is that these are all minor variationscompared to simply the weight of the vehicle (and contents). The biggest improvements in mileage that Detroit has made in gasoline engines over time is simply by using more aluminum and plastic vs. steel, hence making cars lighter.
Hope that helps.
I think under the circumstances I've been very pleased by the mileage considering it is a hair over 4000lbs.
I'd get the Rendezvous down to the local Buick dealer and have them run a scan test diagnostic tool on it to check for any problems.
However since the end of October her mileage has dropped to about 27 or 28 mpg. Nothing in her driving habits has changed. We still fill up at the same place. Still use 87 Octane and the car seems to run and idle the same. Just the difference in the mpg. I was told the reason for the winter fuel additives is to prevent fuel line freeze up. The gas itself wont freeze but the condensation in the lines could freeze and cause the car to stop running. I believe they remove the additives around the end of March or early April
Rendu.
FWD = Front Wheel Drive (only its front wheels can spin)
AWD = All Wheel Drive (all 4 wheels can spin).
TCS (sometimes called TC) = Traction Control or Traction Control System means that if its special "wheel sensors" computer senses 1 wheel is spinning `too much`, it automatically applies brakes to that specific "spinning" wheel. Thus, forcing its opposite drive wheel to spin - instead of allowing its single spinning wheel to continue to spin. TCS exists on either FWD (Front Wheel Drive) or RWD (Rear Wheel Drive) vehicles. When TCS exists on all 4 wheels, its called Stability Track system. And yes, TCS on the front wheels and Stability Track across entire vehicle exists on the newer technology vehicles - like my wife's new 2009 mini-van.
If wondering, my wife has an older technology 2003 FWD RDV (her "in town" run-about vehicle) that only has TSC on its Front Wheels. When one front wheel spins too much, that single wheel speed is forced to slowed down, thus forcing the other wheel to take more traction. From a white board perspective, vision TCS as Traction Balance System - because it balances 'drive power' delivery to the other wheel(s) - that have better traction then its single spinning wheel.
Being a lighter weight 2003 FWD RDV (compared to more steel parts in its heavier weight AWD version), my wife's vehicle also gets good MPGs. Not as good as some better wind dynamic 3.4L vehicles (like a mini-van with 3.4L engine) but it gets much better MPGs then an AWD RDV (with 3.4L engine).
For good understanding of TCS, surf: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZzdyH8ethY
Hope this helps...
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