Hyundai Elantra Real World MPG 2011 MY and earlier

nj2pa2nc · June 2006

after the dealer put additives in our car we have lost an average of 3-4mpg on our '05 GT Manual we were averaging 34.lmpg around town.

backy · June 2006

Bummer. Have you complained to the dealer, and what did they say?

Also, 34 mpg in "around town" driving is truly exceptional for the Elantra. What does "around town" mean? How much driving on highways and suburban roads with few stops, for instance?

doohickie · June 2006

Since getting the car, my overally mileage has been about 26.5 mpg overall. Lately, around town, I've been getting tank-by-tank, between 25.4 and 28.4 mpg with combined driving. I find that I get better mileage running windows-down, no a/c, than windows-up and a/c running. Apparently the old myth that you're better off running with windows up and a/c is not true with the Elantra. (I have an AT which I feel hurts the mileage because it definitely winds out more than it would if *I* were shifting it.)

nj2pa2nc · June 2006

it is considered a highway but has traffic lights and business on it. Alot of the drivers do not realize they have directional signals so they just brake and turn so you have to be on the lookout. In fact, today, a ambulance with it's lights and siren blasting came flying down the highway. Everyone moved to the right to get out of it's way. They missed their turn and proceeded to cut a car off in the right lane so they could turn around. There is a turn lane in the middle and then two other lanes. That car was able to stop, but the truck behind that wasn't. We were behind the truck and got very close but lucky no hit. The roads were wet. On true highways with few stops we have gotten on a good day in the 40's driving the speed limit with cruise control. But that does not happen very often. Usually between 36-38mpg We did sent the dealer a letter, waiting to hear but will not hold my breath.

starriver · June 2006

Mileage: 58450 miles
Fuel: 2108.05 Gallons
Cost: $4141.11
mpg figure
In the figure, Yellow: per fill, Blue: per 10 fill, Pink: accumulative.
At the beginning, I got very low MPG, because of the short one way drive(1.5Miles).
Recently, I am getting 31.5 mpg in average for 80% highway(75MPH), 20% local
2002 model does not have CVVT, so, I guess the later model with CVVT may have better mileage.

doohickie · June 2006

That is very comparable to the mileage I'm getting with my 2005 after almost 9 months and 15,000 miles:

I think it's interesting that we both calculate a 10-fill average.

The spike in mileage shortly after April 27 was when I was picking my son up at college, an 1800 mile round trip.

tsgeisel · June 2006

How often do y'all reset it? Do you do so on each fill up, between oil changes, before long trips, or what?

Also, how accurate have you found it to be?

I've got about 3800 miles on my car, and the number it's telling me (32.6) isn't really matching with my manual gas pump computation (29ish).

backy · June 2006

I play around a lot with my Elantra's trip computer. Sometimes I'll reset it frequently, using it to keep my foot light on the pedal (I watch for the number to stay steady or go up). Othertimes I'll use it for a week or two of city driving, or for a long trip.

I have found the trip computer matches manual calculations pretty closely when I am very careful with the manual calculations. By that I mean I fill the tank to the first click and STOP. Then when I refuel, I do the same thing, at the very same pump. And I use a pump that has a fairly slow flow. One gas station near me that I use a lot (low sulfur gas + cheap soft cloth washes with gas purchase) has a really fast flow, so it is very hard to fill the tank. Because of the variations in pumps, I prefer to measure my fuel economy using the computer vs. manually. I think overall it is more consistent and accurate.

doohickie · June 2006

I don't have a GT, so I have no computer. The numbers I reported are from measuring miles between fillups and dividing by the number gallons to fill.

mrearl · July 2006

Just completed a trip running 85mph with cruise and air all the way. No passenger; med luggage weight. Last tank 29.1; probably about 30 overall. Last year we made the same trip -- me driving my 04 Vibe AT with heavy load; my wife in the Elantra with med load. 85 mph 29mpg from the Vibe; 34mpg from the Elantra. This was night driving so air wasn't on all the time. The Vibe suffered cause it would down shift on most rises to keep the speed at 85.

scottradz · July 2006

1st "long" trip with the new 2006 Elantra GLS(AT)

Round trip - 161.3 miles one way. Parents drove all the time I was there, so the car was only used up and back. Since I am still in the break in period(started the trip with 778 miles on the car), I didn't go above 65 MPH. Cruise Control set at 65, and averaged around 55 MPH up and back because of very little traffic. Also has AC on set to #1.

Filled up right before I left. When I arrived, I filled up again with 3.57 gallons. I'm guessing the tank wasn't exaclty filled the whole way. but it kept on ticking off every 5 cents from $9.00 to $10.00. So this works out to 45.1 MPG.

Given the above, I decided to fill up at the original place as soon as I got back to guarantee I would get an accurate total for the entire round trip. 4.42 fallons this time for 36.5 MPG

So combined, same original pump top off to top off I went 322.6 miles and used 7.99 total gallons for a total of 40.38 MPG

nj2pa2nc · August 2006

just to let you a know, we received a letter from the dealer. They apologised for giving us wrong information. They seem to now have a new service manager and want to give us a free oil change so we will give them another chance.

kittyshrine · October 2006

My 05 Elantra 5 door gets about 23 miles to the gallon according to the display unless just after an oil change. Then it will go up to 29 and go down slowly over one week.

4ruth · October 2006

Kitty, I am grinning at your post. Click and Clack on NPR insist that mileage should not go up when we get our oil changed. It is always a woman they get into this with. The latest is that they have said that if this happens it is not due to the oil change but rather to the tires being better filled with air.

I too have experienced an increase in mileage after an oil change. Ruth

jvenezia · October 2006

So have I...a significant change of five or six mpg that also drifts down over the next few fill-ups. I really like CarTalk, but sometimes the boys are just plain wrong.

doohickie · October 2006

I don't have a trip computer, so I calculate my mileage by hand. There is no change whatsoever when I change my oil. I get natural fluctuations based on the amount of city and highway driving I do, whether I lean on the gas or drive with a light foot, and whether I run the AC. But there is no effect on mpg due to changing the oil in my experience.

dudleyr · October 2006

Changing oil does not effect mpg unless a different type of oil is used, and even then it would not be 5 or 6 mpg. Must be a coincidence.

gary045 · October 2006

Not so dudleyr,
This is it. Amsoil is done! The oil exceeded a year in service, with 14,000 miles on the ticker, and no filter change! Well, if the year hadn't ended, we would have had to change the filter now -- it finally reached our insolubles cap, 2,000 miles after Mobil 1. The main thing that stands out on this, our final Amsoil sample, is the ridiculous viscosity. This 5W30 oil has now thickened out to a 15W40 -- argue whether it matters if you like, but we believe engine builders spec an oil for a reason, and this oil is far, far thicker now than intended for the LS1. Switching to our flush Mobil 1 netted a nearly instant 10% improvement in fuel economy, and the engine runs a heckuva lot smoother too. To Amsoil's credit, wear metals remain in check, but we will soon see whether that was really thanks to the oil or just to engine break-in. We'll start posting detailed analysis in the coming weeks.

Full lab test story at,

http://neptune.spacebears.com/cars/stories/oil-life.html

gary045 · October 2006

trip to Houston and back. Averaged 35mpg as long as I didn't go over 70mph. With a 2004 5spd using no ac.

The RPM at that spd is near 3,000. Anything over that brings on eng growl and vibration.

On the plus side, the car used no oil.

gary045 · October 2006

PS, this is an synthetic oil test with no oil changes in 1 yr.
I used syn oil in my trip to Houston and back.

backy · October 2006

Vibration? What kind of vibration?

In my '01 GLS 5-speed, I regularly got upper 30s (regular oil) if I kept it under 70, with a sweet spot at 55-60 mph where it would do over 40 mpg.

germancarfan1 · October 2006

Vibration? What kind of vibration?

Are you kidding me? Over 70 MPH in an Elantra 5-speed produces revs in excess of 3K. At that speed I can barely hear myself think or as C & D described it in the new Elantra, "Maddening."

In 50/50 driving with the A/C on continuously (this is sunny FL), I average around 25-26 MPG. HYW speeds average 70MPH and City about 35-40MPH. A few of my friends report about the same average with their Elantras.

backy · October 2006

I was asking someone else what kind of vibration he was experiencing in his Elantra over 3000 rpm, per his post, because I hadn't noticed any exceptional vibration at that point. As for noise, I've found it comparable to other small cars with revs in the same range. Any boominess didn't show up for me until over 4000 rpm (which I almost never hit), because there's a valve in the exhaust system that opens at that point for more power. I didn't find the 5-speed Elantra to be so noisy that I couldn't carry on a conversation or hear myself think at 70--that's as fast as the roads in my part of the country go. Replacing the OEM Michelins, which are noisy tires, with Kumhos helped the noise level on the highway. Also I've found the automatic is quieter, probably because it revs about 10% lower than the stick.

tsgeisel · October 2006

Ah. In my 2k5 Elantra automatic, I don't notice any vibration or noise like that at all. And it hums along nicely at 3000 RPM at 80mph. It must be a manual issue.

Someday I'll have to try that "average of 70mph" thing and see how that improves my gas milage. But highway driving at around 80mph average gets about 31-32 mpg for me.

backy · October 2006

Yup, the fuel economy starts dropping off pretty fast over 65 mph I've found. 31-32 at 80 sounds about right.

gary045 · October 2006

It's a small amount of vibration you can feel in the steering wheel along with the engine starting to growl above 3,000 RPM as you push 75mph.

It's not enough to hinder conversation, but you can tell the car is working hard and not geared to run all day at 75.

By the way, what RPM does an automatic run at 70mph?

backy · October 2006

So it looks like you have a trace of the wheel shimmy. Have you tried having the tires balanced at a tire specialty shop on a Hunter machine?

I am trying to recall the rpms for the automatic at 70 mph; I don't have it up there very often. But there's about a 10% difference from the 5-speed. For example, at 60 mph my five-speed would run about 2500 rpm and the automatic runs at about 2250.

gary045 · October 2006

3000 RPM at 80mph in an auto? I find that hard to believe.
I wonder why your gas mileage is so crummy compared to a stick if your eng is not working so hard.
You should be running 2400 RPM at 70...lol

gary045 · October 2006

No, I haven't had the tires balanced on a Hunter machine.

So far I've blamed the slight vibration on the eng as it starts to growl above 3000 RPM.

But I'll see if anything improves with any tire work.
I currently have 14000 miles on it.

nj2pa2nc · October 2006

we have a 05 elantra gt with over 40,000 miles on it. when we have the tires rotated and they are not balanced correctly we get a vibration when we go over 60. If they are properly balanced and that is with a hunter machine there is no vibration. we get our tires rotated and balanced every 7,000 miles

backy · October 2006

It's definitely NOT the engine--unless perhaps you have a defective motor mount.

backy · October 2006

I checked the revs on my 2004 Elantra automatic at 70 mph and they are about 2550. It appears the 2007 Elantra AT runs at even lower revs; a review in CanadianDriver noted the revs were 2500 at 120 kph, or nearly 75 mph.

gary045 · October 2006

If that's the case. There is a lot of slippage in the auto trans to get less mpg than the stick.

I'll run a check to see if I feel vibration above 3000 rpm in 3rd and 4th gear. Which would rule out tire balance.

gary045 · October 2006

Adding 10 or 60 cents could be a problem. I did that in Houston and got a check eng light soon after.
On the plus side, it went out on the trip back after 600 miles in Tenn.

Plus, a check eng light is covered free in the 5 yr 60,000 mile warranty, unlike the GM 3yr 36,000 mile plan.

tsgeisel · October 2006

It's been consistent that way for over 10k miles now.

I'll try to take a picture for you if you don't believe me - when the road ahead of me is completely empty.

(And no, I don't have to use the viewfinder to get the picture. I've gotten pretty good at blind pictures with my point and shoot.)

doohickie · October 2006

I've heard that the vibration goes away with a balance on a Hunter machine, I've also heard that replacing the brake rotors can help. If they are not balanced, all the wheel balancing in the world is not gonna help you.

germancarfan1 · November 2006

This should probably be in the Elantra problems forum but i'll add my 2c.

I've had my tires/wheels Hunter balanced 2 times, replaced all 4 rims and 2 tires, turned rotors, and still have awful vibration. Hyundai refuses to fix the problem. Unfortunately, from what i've learn from users on elantraxd.com is that this is a design problem that plagues many (but not all) 2001-2006 Elantras. Some have suggested it is a drive shaft issue while others have claimed is a flaw in the front end. Either way, for many people (like myself), there really is no "fix" per se as the problem will keep reacurring.

backy · November 2006

If it were a design flaw, it would affect all 2001-2006 Elantras. It's quite possible that the vast majority of wheel shimmy problems on the Elantra are caused by routine stuff like out-of-balance tires, while a few cases (like yours) are caused by something else, related to a parts defect (e.g. bad driveshaft).

At any rate, this is something that should be in the Elantra 2001-2006 Problems discussion.

spmrebel · November 2006

A lot of people have reported this issue on models from 01 thru 06. Anyway ,this is what I have from my own experience with 01 and 05 Elantras I have owned.

1. 01 Elantra GLS did have the vibration around 65 to 70 mph. It was slight and sometimes annoying. I had the car until 35K miles and traded it in for a Suzuki Aerio SX. Anyway, I just learned to live with it and never had it balanced
2. In January of 05 I bought an 05 Elantra GT. As I recall I noticed a very small vibration similiar to my 01 GLS but it less intrusive (ever so slight). I went to 17" rims after about 1500 miles and have not ever experience the vibration again. Current ODO is 32K miles
3. In July of 05 I bought a Kia Spectra EX (shares near identical platform to 01-06 Elantra). This car does not exhibit any vibration what so ever with stock alloys. Have never balanced or rotated the tires yet. Current ODO is 23K miles.

It could be a design issue that is compensated by having a very balanced set of rims/tires or it could be a large set of crappy rims and tires that is causing this whole issue.

I have owned a lot of cars and the 01-06 Elantra generation is the first I have ever experienced this.

1racefan · November 2006

I wonder if this is more prevelant in Elantras with the steel wheel/hubcaps, or the Elantras with the aluminum alloys, or if it makes a difference???

backy · November 2006

My '04 GT has factory alloys and it developed wheel shimmy after I replaced the factory tires with other tires. The shimmy went away after the tires were balanced properly.

spmrebel · November 2006

Maybe steel wheels exacerbate the problem more. Steel wheels are heavier than the alloys on the GT. Thus, there is much more unsprung weight on the car. But my 17" rims are not the lightest in the world either. Heavier than the 15" alloys.

Its seems this is either a design issue or manufacturing quality issue. However, I just can't see that the result of unproper balancing of the wheels for that many Elantra's sold in NA could be the primary factor.

1racefan · November 2006

"But my 17" rims are not the lightest in the world either. Heavier than the 15" alloys"

You may be surprised. If you did a regular +2 wheel upgrade (increased the rim size by 2", and decreased the tire's side wall height by 2"), your 17" wheel/tire combo may not weigh any more than your original 15" wheel/tire combo. Of course, that depends a lot of the design of the new wheels that you picked out. I know this sounds crazy, but a friend of mine recently did a +2 upgrade on a car, and the wheel/tire package weight was barely any different from his original tire/wheel package.

But (to stay on topic), have you noticed any change in fuel mileage with the larger wheels/tires?

spmrebel · November 2006

When I went looking at rims I really didn't take weight into all that much consideration. I put mostly style into the equation. Anyway, I know you can get 17" rims that are lighter than the stock alloys but mine just don't seem lighter. Frankly, I did't weigh the rims and this is only by lifting them. My tires I believe are heavier since they are 215-45-R17 compared to the stock 195-60-HR15

I haven't noticed any decrease in mileage. If anything maybe the car is slightly more sluggish at take off. My mileage hasn't been that great with or without the new rims. I have an 05 auto GT with sunroof. My mileage is around 25 to 28 mpg with about 80% highway. This is comparable to my 01 GLS when I had that car.

spmrebel · November 2006

I forgot to add this. The car does corner quite a bit better than the stock rimas and tires. This is with the standard springs and rims.

acura03g · December 2006

first tank: 28 mpg with average speed of 27 mph.
2nd tank: 27 mpg with average speed of 28 mph.

I little worse than I had expected (I expect 30). The car is 650 miles now. Maybe after a few thousand miles, it'll get better?

1racefan · December 2006

"The car does corner quite a bit better than the stock rimas and tires"

That would be expected...with the decrease in rubber (sidewall), and the increase in metal (rim), metal flexes less than rubber. However, it would be over rough (washboard) surfaces that the ride quality would deteriorate.

backy · December 2006

The Beta engine is well-known for improved mpg with some miles on it. The fuel economy of my '01 Elantra was about 15% better at 15,000 miles than when new. It got even better with age. On the last long road trip I took with it, I got over 40 mpg on the highway at moderate speeds (around 60 mph). My sister, who bought it from me, reported low 40s on a similar trip that she took soon after she bought it. You didn't say how much stop-and-go and idling you have done, but your relatively low average speed indicates there has probably been some of that, which kills fuel economy. Also short trips will get you poor fuel economy, especially in winter.

When my '01 Elantra 5-speed was new in October 2000, I initally got around 24-25 mpg around town. After about a year I was getting upper 20s around town. So the fact you are getting upper 20s right now bodes well for the future I think.

1racefan · December 2006

"The Beta engine is well-known for improved mpg with some miles on it"

I will second that. The last highway trip I took in my '02, the car had 68,000 miles on it, and I got 39mpg on the interstate, going through the mountains. I never saw mileage like that when the car was new. I currently get 31mpg just commuting to work - 25 miles 1-way, stop and go, 2 lane back roads, with 83,000 miles on it.

acura03g · December 2006

Thanks. that's good to know. I have been using the car for a 12-mile (one way) commute to work. No interstate, just local roads with 30-50mph speed limits.

Hyundai Elantra Real World MPG 2011 MY and earlier

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