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Comments
13-Jan 248.4 10.075 24.65508685
19-Mar 330.4 14.136 23.3729485
27-Mar 229.1 9.214 24.86433688
10-Apr 334.9 13.389 25.01307043
6-May 323 12.744 25.34526051
8-May 217.6 8.299 26.22002651
20-May 207.8 8.657 24.00369643
20-May 282.2 9.999 28.22282228
30-May 270.2 10.161 26.59187088
31-May 280.2 10.1 27.74257426
12-Jun 316.4 12.688 24.9369483
19-Jun 375.2 13.607 27.57404277
26-Jun 293.8 10.96 26.80656934
10-Jul 330.1 13.32 24.78228228
18-Jul 331.1 13.878 23.8579046
22-Jul 244.8 9.584 25.54257095
29-Jul 354.7 14.043 25.25813573
average: 25.07290953
-juice
I have three 3K mile trips towing a 1900 lb pop up camper. I'll put some stuff together.
But I have consistently averaged just over 21 mpg for those trips including side trips sans trailer. I have been very pleasantly surprised.
But then again, paisan told me he used to get 10mpg towing with his Trooper (heavier load, to be fair).
-juice
What kind of fuel economy are other members seeing out of the Forrester XS? Model Year? % city/highway?
Is this "Winter Blend" gasolene for real? More alcohol content during certain months?
I just want to know if I should settle for this or keep pushing the dealer to do something about it. We have owned the vehicle for three weeks today.
Thanks Everyone!
- Patrick
-mike
PS: Your milage will increase steadily up to 10k miles which is when a Subaru is broken in fully.
Also, you mentioned a break-in period, this is actually a used 2003. It was purchased with 26,000 miles and now has 28,000. My economy observations are for this mileage range over the past three weeks. Mainly Kansas City with one trip to Tulsa, Oklahoma as far as driving conditions.
Thanks again for your thoughts.
- Patrick
As for winter blend of 10% ethenol, depends on your area there should be a sticker on the pumps denoting the 10%, here in NY/NJ we have "winter" blend year round.
-mike
Best tank was 31 mpg, all highway.
Two keys--this is an MT, and keep the tires uniformly inflated between 32 and 35 psi. With an AT, lower tire pressures, and high city driving it will only get you what you are seeing.
John
I normally attribute winter conditions to a 5% MPG drop compared to summer driving. This year, it's 10% - 5% due to colder temps, and another 5% due to ethanol. This makes sense as ethanol makes up 10% by volume and has slightly over 1/2 the energy content of gasoline.
The governement has found yet another way to screw the consumer - our taxes are paying for ethanol subsidies AND we pay more at the pump due to lower MPG.
Life is grand... :sick:
-juice
Cold weather affects my subie the most. Global warming has hit this year big time. Most years my mpg goes from 27 summer to 23ish winter. This year it has been 25mpg. Except for 2 weeks when it was near zero everyday. Then it was 24mpg.
Perhaps Ethanol and cold weather has a bigger effect?
I have changed to Shell gas this year due to my work office moving. Maybe the "Tier 1" gas that GM and Toyota recomends is better? ethanol or not?
--jay
Come to think of it, that's not nearly enough to cause the drop I've seen, so I'm sure it's the cold weather we've had lately.
-juice
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gasoline
Also since ethanol is an octane booster it ought to allow the fuel producer to dispense with other octane boosters and save on costs. Of course, ethanol is expensive to produce and is subsidized. Also it is more expensive to transport since at present 10% ethanol fuel cannot be transported by pipeline. As I understand it the gasoline base is shipped by pipeline and the pure ethanol is shipped by tanker truck. The two are mixed at the wholesale distribution point.
-juice
Not bad for pulling a trailer these days... Oh, I have an 07 Premium Package MT. This does compare to my 04 X where I averaged 21 mpg on the same trip twice. They changed the torque power ratios and not for the better in 06.
07 Forester, 2.5X, auto, 240 miles
Reality check: lowest 87 octane gas now selling in SD area for $2.90 a gallon.
retired, white male Republican conservatives. So you are crossing boundaries.
But my driving this past week was a bit more liberal. On a trip from Nantucket to Baltimore I averaged 27 miles per gallon, often while driving 80-85 mph. It has been a while since I have been on the NJ Turnpike and I am amazed what the average speed is on that road. My 80 mph was not unusual.
-mike
I wonder what my mileage would have been at 60mph??
(EPA SmartWay designations show up EPA's on-line Green Vehicle Guide, but it isn't clear which Forester trims, etc. they refer too.)
In August I took it on several trips & kept track on mileage. My goal was to beat 30 MPG highway mileage. I drive with a light foot, usually shift between 2,500 - 3,000 RPMs, usually do not downshift unless it gets below 1,800 RPMs, overall drive conservatively with a light foot, tires are 34 front 36 back, use semi-syn oil, usually car racks are off.
In between trips, I checked my urban mileage (around small city with short (2-6 mile trips on freeway) & got 25.9 mpg on single tank.
445 mile trip from NW Idaho to WA coast including crossing 3,100' Cascade Mt pass, roof racks on, 5 people with light luggage, ~ 70% freeway, speeds ranged from 50 to 75, probably averaged 60 mph, AC on 60% of time = 29.9 MPG.
729 miles from NW WA to NW Oregon coast & back, 3 passengers + Lab retriever + ~120 lbs gear, racks off. Southbound, 90% highway (of which 60% was freeway), 10% urban (included a 4-5 short trips going to beaches, meals...), AC on 35% of time, ave speed estimated 55 mph - 29.1 MPG
Northbound cargo, same route, but 98% highway, about 10 miles of 0-30 mph on clogged freeway, no AC, ave speed about 60 mph = 33.1 MPG! Trip average = 31.1 MPG.
Conclusion: The NA 5 speed Forester can beat the EPA estimates! I am very pleased with my Forester's mileage, but apparently it can't beat our A4 1.8T CVT (not quattro) which has gotten up to 36 MPG.
Lead foot mostly highway 72 - 87 mph and 20% city also lead footed. Using 89 oct. and 93 oct [by mistake from habit].
Yield 24 mpg. with either.
-Dave
Date mileage brand gallons MpG
5/30/2007 6 n/a n/a n/a
6/10/2007 240 Costco 11.11 21.06
6/25/2007 517 Costco 13.265 20.88
7/8/2007 796 Costco 12.439 22.43
7/21/2007 1048 Costco 11.828 21.31
8/8/2007 1294 Costco 11.457 21.47
8/19/2007 1535 Costco 10.808 22.30
8/31/2007 1695 Costco 7.623 20.99
9/3/2007 2036 Shell 13.961 24.43
I fill up at my place of work, where gas is about 3.11/gal [cheapest in the area as far as washington state people see it] I'm very sure its about 2 gallons a day I use.. Old car I'd use over 2 gallons a day..
I'd say about 25-30mpg avg
Odometer just rolled over 700. 5spd MT.
328 miles into the CA foothills: 0 -> 2000ft -> 1500ft -> 2000ft -> 0 twice + lots of 80mph freeway, some with sunroof open.
26.1 mpg
Speeds were kept at 60-65 MPH for most of the trip, cruise control was used whenever possible and the A/C was on the entire time. Not too shabby for a car that was rated about 28 MPG on the highway when new.
Len
Average is usually 22-26 or so, though the wife drives mostly around town and in traffic.
We use our minivan for long trips and highway miles.
I think our cars are physically identical, yet the sticker on my 2008 Subaru Forester with AT and no Turbo says 20 town, 26 hwy.
Driving at the limits and using gentle accelerations, I am getting 26 around town (mixed suburb and city) and 28 on highway.
There could be a difference in the transmission between '06 and '08 (maybe just the software settings for control), or the engine con trol software.
Are the tires the same on the '06 and '08?
Then there is the possibility of variation in performance of identical cars.
Since the engine and transmission (4AT) have not changed recently, I would also welcome input from owners of older models with the same drivetrain and how it has fared long-term. Overall impressions of the vehicle would be welcome as well.
A bit about me. I'm getting rid of a 2000 Beetle TDI that gets 42 mpg average. So, obviously, mileage is a big consideration. My wife wants something with 4WD or AWD for the winter. I'd like something with a great deal of utility so I can park my 2004 Avalanche whenever possible. At the same time, I'd like something with the same level of luxury I enjoy with my Avalanche (pretty loaded up). I am an aggresive driver - not in the sense that you see used by law enforcement. But I accelerate quickly, I drive 5 or 10 over the limit and I don't over-inflate my tires or use any hyper-mileage tricks. I don't baby my vehicles (but I do take care of them). My commute is a little over 30 miles, about 70%highway/30%suburban traffic in a midwest metropolitan area.
By the way, I'm comparing this against a Nissan Rogue SL AWD.
My wife drives it, mostly around town. She tends to get 24mpg or so, but that's mostly in town driving, almost no long distance trips (we take our minivan on trips).
We've seen mileage from 22mpg (all city) to 34mpg (an all highway jaunt). We only have 1000 or so miles on it now, so I suspect that will improve as it breaks in (my 98 did).
I think you can realistically expect an average of anywhere from 23-28mpg or so, depending on your driving habits and especially the type of driving.
I'd be interested to see if anyone's taken a roadtrip with one of the cargo carriers on top. I'll need to do that once or twice a year.
Forester may get a CVT next year and I bet they'll use the same supplier as Nissan. My buddy has an Altima and that CVT impressed me, much better than, say, the one on the 2.4l Outlander.
This summer, I drove my minivan on a trip to the Kasilof river (about 500 miles from home). I had the same cargo carrier on top. I got between 17 and 22 MPG depending on whether I ran 70(+) or kept it at 60. I get that much around town (average 20.5 MPG) and managed 25.5 out of it (3.8L V6 in a '98 Caravan AWD) on a recent 400-mile round trip to Tok. At $4.50 a gallon, that was an expensive way to carry a little extra cargo.
buckhuntr - 24 doesn't sound that bad, but you don't say how fast you were going. Out here in the midwest, 75 on the interstate and 65 - 70 on the 2 lanes is pretty common.
xwesx - 17 is pretty discouraging, so I'm hoping buckhuntr is closer to what I might expect. I can haul everything I might want with the Avalanche and still get 17 mpg.
ateixeira - thanks for the info on the CVT. Just not sure I want to wait until next year.
Also - thanks to bbthomas for the input.
On my 04, the mileage really drops when you get up around 75 to 80. I'm pretty sure the combination of the boxy shape along with the short gearing (higher revs) is the culprit. When I moved across the country, I was amazed that my wife's Grand Cherokee actually got slightly better mpg than my Forester :surprise: But then it had a bigger engine (6-cyl), RWD and was turning about a 1,000 rpms slower.
-Frank