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Kia Sorento Real World MPG
I know my 2011 FWD Sorento is not broken in yet, but I'm a little disappointed in the mileage I'm getting. I've also noticed other comparative models, eg. Equino x, CRV, RAV4, etc., are also not doing so good according to forum reports.
Some observations I made today. I did a 30 mile run on the turnpike today. For the first 27 miles my mpg creeped up to 23.4 mpg while traveling on cruise at 70mph. I noticed after about 22 miles, my mpg pretty much stayed at 23.4 mpg. At 70mph, the engine was doing 2500 rpm. I then reduced speed to 55 mph and was doing 2000 rpm. My mpg began to increase. By the time I finished the 30 mile trip, my average was 25.6 mpg. Keep in mind the car has only 450 miles on it now.
One point I would also like to make is that my 03 Accord gets 32 to 36 mpg on the highway. It has a 5 speed auto tran compared to the 6 speed Sorento. The Accord is doing 1900 rpm at 55mph and 2300 rpm at 70mph. Both engines are 2.4 I4 engines. Yes, I know the Sorento is heavier, but I'm beginning to think KIA could have made the 6th gear a little taller in order to increase fuel efficiency. At 70 mph, very little HP is needed to maintain speed. Supposedly the final gear ratio on the Sorento is .77 but the Accord is .659.
There in lies much of the mileage difference. Don't expect to get anywhere near the EPA 29 on the highway estimate traveling 70mph.
I'd like to see others report their results on both the I4 and V6, FWD and AWD.
Some observations I made today. I did a 30 mile run on the turnpike today. For the first 27 miles my mpg creeped up to 23.4 mpg while traveling on cruise at 70mph. I noticed after about 22 miles, my mpg pretty much stayed at 23.4 mpg. At 70mph, the engine was doing 2500 rpm. I then reduced speed to 55 mph and was doing 2000 rpm. My mpg began to increase. By the time I finished the 30 mile trip, my average was 25.6 mpg. Keep in mind the car has only 450 miles on it now.
One point I would also like to make is that my 03 Accord gets 32 to 36 mpg on the highway. It has a 5 speed auto tran compared to the 6 speed Sorento. The Accord is doing 1900 rpm at 55mph and 2300 rpm at 70mph. Both engines are 2.4 I4 engines. Yes, I know the Sorento is heavier, but I'm beginning to think KIA could have made the 6th gear a little taller in order to increase fuel efficiency. At 70 mph, very little HP is needed to maintain speed. Supposedly the final gear ratio on the Sorento is .77 but the Accord is .659.
There in lies much of the mileage difference. Don't expect to get anywhere near the EPA 29 on the highway estimate traveling 70mph.
I'd like to see others report their results on both the I4 and V6, FWD and AWD.
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2003 Accord curb weight: 3128 lbs....160hp/161 ft-lbs torque 2.4L I4 engine
-Should not be that much difference in mileage. Sorento is heavier but has more torque and horsepower. I still believe the difference is mainly final drive ratio. Why wouldn't KIA make better use of the 6th gear?
After 3000 miles of city and urban driving [averaging 21.2 MPG] I took the car on a highway trip of 188 miles. It was 95% interstate highway at 70 MPH and 5% small town stop- and go. I averaged 27.4 MPG. Love the Sorento.
P.S. The trip was to and from a destination.
A 10 MPH tailwind there and a 10 MPH headwind back.
I think wind can be a big factor on these larger vehicles.
Today's cars do not need a break in period under normal driving conditions your mpg.
will not get better after 1000 or 5000 miles.
However, on my last new car, the mpg got better and better over time, and really didn't hit its stride until 10,000 miles or more.
2. Record the mileage, before even pulling away from the pump (Mileage A).
3. Drive normally until the next gas-up.
4. Fill up the tank again (preferably at the same station using the same pump as pumps may be calibrated differently). This time, pay attention to how many gallons it takes to fill up the tank. This is usually shown at the pump and on your receipt. We will call this Gallons B.
5. Record the mileage again, just like before. We will call this Mileage B.
6. Subtract Mileage A from Mileage B. This will give you the number of miles you drove since your last fill-up.
7. Divide 'miles driven' by the number of gallons (Gallons
Example:
Let's say you have a new Toyota Prius and want to track its mileage:
* Trip A: Added 8.663 gal at 3,117 mi
* Trip B: Added 9.251 gal at 3,579 mi
* Trip C: Added 8.876 gal at 4,017 mi
Mileage Calculation Answers
* Trip A: It doesn't count. It only is useful as a baseline.
* Trip B: (3,579 mi - 3,117 mi) / 9.251 gal = 49.9 mpg
* Trip C: (4,017 mi - 3,579 mi) / 8.876 gal = 49.3 mpg
As a side note we were also disappointed to find that this vehicle does not have daytime running lights since Kia touts safety.
Also be aware that this top of the line model has NO backup audio system as do their other models. We were told after the fact that the upgraded "chrome" bumpers forced the removal of this feature to the highest model in their line up.
Color offerings are severly limited. Hope you like "black".
Buyers remorse..?
All that changed last week. I took it on a trip and hit 22,000 miles at the beginning of the trip. The first fill-up averaged 23.6 mpg, next was 24.9, next 26.5, and finally --- wait for it ---- 28 mpg. Most miles were freeway @ 70 or better. Hopefully this trend continues.
I guess the break-in period on this Sorento must have been 20,000 miles.
Or maybe you hit three non-ethanol stations in a row.
Whatever you are doing, keep it up, lol.
have a new 4cyl gdi and getting mileage lower than expected. dealer says let it break in of course, but the gap seems too large. car has 500 miles now. i had the dealer check the computer and they say its functioning to spec.
when resetting the trip computer at 70-75mph, flat road, etc it will pretty consistently get 24ish. oddly, putting the AC on Max, rather than the normal setting seems to make a slight improvement. turning ac off makes a difference too - gets 26ish. car is rated for 32hwy.
drove a 6cyl for a couple of days and doing the same resetting at highway speeds was easily getting 26ish with the AC on. so more inline with rating and better than my 4 cylinder. it had 700 miles on it. (the 4 works for my commuter needs but the 6 was MUCH nicer to drive, btw)
i'll be checking by filling up the tank. also thinking i might go ask to drive another 4cyl on the lot.
what are others experiencing?
Thanks!
Wow, the truck I traded for it was almost this good and it was a 10 year old V6. The main reason we traded was for the mpg.
If this doesn't get better, we'll be looking back at the Equinox. I mean I expected maybe 24-25 but 20? Sad.
city two tanks= average 16.5 mpg
highway two tanks=average 19 mpg
Dealer says the advertizing is just averages and they way you drive, I say BS. I had this car on cruise contrtol for the majority of the way, and still got lousy mileage
NOT HAPPY, got better mileage in my 2003 6cyl merc
I'd give it at least another 4 tanks, and keep a log of fill-ups.
in any event, my early experience was like yours. then at 3000 miles i took my first road trip - 200 miles without much of a stop. around that time my mpg stepped up a notch. the dealer made a big deal of the car's 'learning computer' which makes me wonder if it needed the long trip to get something through its thick head, or if that was just coincidental timing with getting over some hump in engine break-in.
so early on i was averaging 21ish combined driving and now its more like 24. i'll see moments of 30 mpg on the computer when going 70 with ac on and a fair amount of 27 in same condition. i had to go 60 with the ac off to get a glimpse of 30 in the early days.
6-Speed Automatic Transmission w / Sportmatic
I get 19-23 "around town" on short trips (.5 mile to 3 miles). More like 26-27 on highway driving depending on a/c, open/closed windows and sunroof, load in car, etc. SUV is approach 5000 miles on odo. One thing I have noticed is that when I fill up at a Sunoco station (there is one close by but it seems to be true of Sunoco in general), I get about 2 mpg better gas mileage. My theory is that Sunoco uses less ethanol than other brands (not sure if that's true) but whatever it is it seems consistent.
Somethings wrong..I got better mileage with 03 merc 6 cyl
I've bought mine Sorento EX 6 cyl FWD a week ago and have on it 300 miles so far making city 19-20mpg and today I was driving really economical (easy and 55-65mph) on full highway 30 miles and did 29.7mpg which I consider as great if it goes about 6 cylinders
...but honestly I'm done checking mpg every 3 seconds cause it's make a little bit paranoic
Anyway it's a 7 passengers SUV so guys don't be so picky - Travers, CX-9, Highlander do much worse mpg..Enjoy your Sorento...