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This is true for the non-turbos and the turbos.
-juice
The former used regular fuel, but a friend that owns one complains about the mileage all the time. The more powerful engine likes premium fuel, so I doubt it would cost any less to fuel up.
-juice
I have seen Apex'i SFC devices that can control how much the fuel mix is leaned out. One car I rode in had it running 2% more lean to save gas. But the device costs something like $400, so you'll never recover the investment.
-juice
I have one for the suburban. The company that put together the package , Stillen in costa mesa, said the combination of K&N filter, bored out exhaust, reprogramming the computer, etc....makes the engine run more efficiently , thus saving gas....
but I think you may notice more power, but very slight gas mileage improvement, if any at all. Most vehicles waste gas moving the mass from standstills....so if you are driving mostly local miles, than gas mileage will be in low teens, even if you get all the hi tech gadgets, IMO.
I only see an improvement with freeway mileage.
2800kms
27mpg hwy
20mpg city
22mpg combined
Yes that's US gallons
Overall 14.6 mpg
Best Highway 18 mpg Fully loaded with cargo and 4 passengers
going 60 mph....got 18 mpg also.
faster you go, the worse the fuel economy. Recent trip to LA, with 8 people and luggage, going 80 mph (slightly lower end of average traffic speed) got only 13 mpg.
5.7L V8, 4x4, K1500
339,000+ miles (not a typo!)
Brand new it got 16.5 mpg
Now it gets about 15.7 mpg (original engine)
Go easy on the gas on city roads, mpg doesn't drop more than 1/2 mpg. I can't complain.
-juice
Also, address issues when they are little before they become big issues: small leaks, funny little noises, etc.
Some maintenance was due to wear and tear (alternators, brake pads, trasmission, steering linkage) while some other was due to age/exposure/rust/rot (fuel pump, A/C lines, brake drums/pistons/cylindars).
Here's my question: Have any of you had any adjustments or repairs made that actually improved performance? Even with modern manufacturing techniques, I wonder if there is some factory setting that is wrong or some (minor) thing that can be fixed.
I would love to hear about some sort of "magic bullet" to improve my mileage. (No, I don't want to hear, "Avoid jackrabbit starts.")
Thanks for your help.
-juice
my unprofessional advice is to run your hand front to back on the tires to see if they are smooth. if one or more is not, it could be an alignment problem, although i'm not saying 19 mpg is a problem.
also a major factor is the type of driving you do.
a good example is my mother's malibu; it gets the epa numbers; 20 city, 32 highway! that's a big spread. if you take a lot of short trips, your mileage just isn't going to the best. maybe those high gas mileage posters have a 50 mile one way commute, and live in florida (flat as a pancake and no winter gas).
one more thing: avoid those jackrabbit starts!
good luck.
In fact, my tires had been a bit low. However, after at least 3 full tanks, I saw NO increase in mileage. (I even checked the pressure on the spare!) Perhaps there is no "magic bullet."
Perhaps some cars are better than others, I mean otherwise identical cars. Maybe you got a Friday 5pm build? ;-)
-juice
Hey, I've lost 5 pounds since then without those Friday KKs! ;-)
tidester, host
i did notice that the 'guzzling' thread was at the top of the list a while back, and i was following it. decided not to post, after a while though. archived, but still active(double secret probation?)!
as far as idlswdy goes, i guess they couldn't handle the truth. ok, that's enough movie references.
gas mileage is about the same as usual.
merry Xmas and happy new year too !!
I knew you would pick it up...you are sharp as ever....so one dozen glazed ones and a dozen chocolate coated sprinkles....with a double starbucks, this friday..... :-)
double secret probation with a chance to be paroled from Siberian Gulag... :-)
funny, I just posted a line from that movie also...
remember Col. Markinson said " Col. Jessup didn't get to where he is without knowing how to sidestep a few landmines." ??
my gas mileage doing the same also....
Happy Holidays also...explorer... !
:-)
I have 6600 miles on my 2004 CRV EX. I bought it in July. I was getting 23 mpg and above until the end of September, early October, and since then I've been hovering somewhere around 21 mpg. It's frustrating. I know it's not a drastic change, and when it's city driving, I can understand. But even when I'm driving all highway and I can't get above 23 mpg, I find that annoying since I was getting 26-27 mpg highway back in the summer.
I know that people were saying mpg goes down when it gets cold. I can understand that in December, but it concerned me that it was already dipping in October.
I'll have to check my tire pressure. What does everyone generally keep their pressure at? The recommended amount or more/less?
Thanks.
___I don’t know if the pic will show as linked here in this forum but if it does, I will start out with the following
03 Acura MDX Touring w/ RES - EPA estimates: 17/23 City/Hwy.
___Good Luck
___Wayne R. Gerdes
You may have gotten a 33 mpg figure on your computer....but that may be the average when coming down the mountains.....You would use more just to get up the mountains, IMO.
I think the real average mpg is around the EPA estimate...my friend drives a Pilot, which is similar to MDX...and he is getting 19 mpg average.
___No, it wasn’t down a mountain. Since you cannot take a picture for what its worth, might I suggest that you study up on the following? Many FE tips and tricks can be found with a bit of research. Beating EPA estimates is child’s play for hypermilers
http://www.greenhybrid.com/compare/mileage/details.php?cid=54
http://www.greenhybrid.com/compare/mileage/details.php?cid=164 <-- My wife and son are involved in messing this one up but just read the tank over tank details
http://www.greenhybrid.com/compare/mileage/details.php?cid=380
___Finally, you can do much better in an MDX then you have written as I usually receive 25 around town and low to mid 30’s while out on the highway in the summer with ours.
___Good Luck
___Wayne R. Gerdes
don't mean to rain on your parade...but as you may understand, its normal to be slightly cautious when one is making high mpg claims...
OK....if it can be reached...the high mpg , what can you suggest , how do we do it?
do you think the tornado works, plus mobil synthetic oil, plus slow careful driving ?
please let me know...
___A few to get you going. Tire pressure. I run the MDX up to 40 #’s right now. If it had the Integrity’s (the Base MDX does), I would run them up to 50 as that is where I run them on the Corolla. Next, 5W or 0W-20 Mobil1 synthetic depending on your VTEC use. This oil has the lowest kinematic viscosity of any oil at 0 and 100 degrees C that is recommended for your automobile.
___Tips and tricks I won’t post them all here because the Townhall forum threads disappear into the ether after a few hundred posts bury them but follow up at the Hybrid sites where the FE posted comes from. Many hypermilers have posted the actual techniques in painstaking detail. Mainly it is very slow accelerations when no one is behind. Driving w/ load while climbing, cresting and accelerating w/ gravity alone down the other side for small hills/overpasses and the like. Drive like you don’t have brakes. This will focus your attention on timing lights, traffic conditions, and the roadway you are currently traversing like you never have before. Know when to coast and know when the ICE should be shut down. Where and HOW to park in parking lots. Use the Kinetic/Potential Energy trade off to your advantage when slowing and accelerating as well as height advantages wherever they appear when slowing and stopping. Drive the speed limits. The 55 mph highway speed limit was created during our second national fuel crisis and there is a darn good reason why 45 in a 45, 55 in a 55, and 65 or less in a 65 saves a ton of fuel vs. 5, 10, 15, or even 20 + over whatever the speed limit is. It isn’t all aero-drag but RPM friction is a huge hit as well. All SUV’s that I know of are good drafters Now when I say draft, I can see the images pop in everyone’s minds but there are 4 different types and everyone has used at least 3 without even knowing they were in one. Close, Distant, Surf, and Traffic side should get you started. Cold temperature setups. Warm air intakes, radiator blocks, and Engine block heaters will help quite a bit in this regard.
___Good Luck
___Wayne R. Gerdes
sounds good to me...
I will try some of them tricks....but probably will not go into full fanatical mode (no disrespect intended
do you think one should wait for a few oil changes , then change over to synthetic, or is it OK to change now, in your opinion ?
My v-tec engine has only 8000 miles and just had its first oil change .
thanks again ...and thanks for the site...
:-)
1- what is ICE ?
2- what is the 4 diff drafts ? can you elaborate a little , as I think it would help all readers of this forum,,,,
thanks
Maybe some of this is talked about over in What about fuel types & gas mileage? (but I haven't read that discussion).
Steve, Host
___At 8,000 miles, it is time for an oil change anyway. I will say this up front that the FE gained will not pay for the added expense of Mobil1 synthetic at $4.27/quart from Walmart. Running Mobil1 synthetic does deliver a small increase in fuel economy but its superior wear and lubrication attributes are the real reason to use it.
___Don’t take FE to the extreme like I do? Whhaadda you mmeeann Whhyyy I outtaa ;-)
1- what is ICE ?
___Internal Combustion Engine
2- what is the 4 diff drafts ? can you elaborate a little , as I think it would help all readers of this forum,,,,
___Close. < ½ second from the underride guard of an 18-wheeler. Not safe but the FE is great. Distant. ½ - 2 seconds back. Safer but not as great FE. Surf. Following the wake of the 18-wheeler in the other lane. Safe but the increase is less then the close or distant. Follow the dirt/debris blown along the sides of the road to tell where the best spot is. Traffic Side. In a group of cars going 60 + mph in the high speed lanes, if you are doing 55 as the entire group passes, they give you a group draft or what I call traffic side. This continues as traffic continually passes. If you are maintaining pace, this can work for you if you are in the back of the group as well. The passing automobiles drives the Insight’s numbers through the roof as I am always in the far right lane hugging the white line and all the traffic going by provides her with a little lift ;-)
___Good Luck
___Wayne R. Gerdes
___When you park in a Mall or store lot, park in the back. My ICE is usually shut down as I enter the lot and I am coasting to a nose out place in the back and at a high spot in the lot to help me slow down coming in and give me some potential to work off when I take off again. When you start her back up, there is no one back there to fight with, wait for, and crawl through while shoppers are walking in front of you to and fro. It will save your car from dings as well ;-) And always get your nose faced out so you are not backing up to turn into a lane and then move forward. That is unless you have to load the trunk and the lot looks really really full. Do you think the EPA backs up to turn into a lane before they do the EPA test all the while measuring FE? Not a chance! And be ready to move. Don’t start the car and then buckle up, comb your hair, move the mirrors around, place something or other in the garbage bin, etc. The EPA doesn’t do this when testing cars on the treadmill so why should you? Be ready to go as soon as the ICE fires off and the idle stabilizes. Don’t run like a bat out of hell from that initial start as that is bad on the ICE but any more fuel used besides letting the idle stabilize before taking off slowly is simply a waste.
___There are a ton of little tricks to add to this but not for this forum
___Good Luck
___Wayne R. Gerdes
We do try to maintain a G-Rating! :-)
tidester, host
agree....synthetic oil provides the most value by protecting the ICE (see, I picked it up) better... once I called San diego to see about buying a vehicle..and ended up talking to the guy for 1 hr. He said he puts syn oil in every engine...and once took apart a suburban engine to see if it was ok, and to have the engine blueprinted. It turned out the engine was very well protected by syn oil....all tolerances were righton...
OK....I tried alittle slow acceleration today...but will not know the gain until whole tank is used....will keep you up to date.....(so you were the one attaching the BAT Cable to my bumper for a free ride !? :-)
thanks for the drafting info....I see all the bike racers do it....will try it (either SAFE or traffic side) during my trip down to LA this weekend....I-5 is very straight....and hope I can latch on to some larger and same speed vehicle... :-)
thanks for your wit and wisdom...
one dozen Krispy Kremes for you :-0 :-)
how goes it..? thanks for the advice on parking...it makes sense....but wife tells me to park a little farther from the crowd...,saves gas, more room, and more exercise for us....
who's going to bring champange for NY , tides ?
I'll bring cracked crab and caviar...
Thanks for the parking info, Xcel. I'm guessing you always fill up your tank during the coldest part of the mornings too.
Steve, Host