Good point. Fascinating as the discusion of internal components is, it's time to take it to the Auto 101: How to and How It Works discussion and let this one get back to mileage comparisons.
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Could anyone have data for these two versions? Please post here....
I assume, in City driving both are the same. Highway driving would be different. I have not seen any concrete numbers.... Dealer was saying that I should get 2-3 miles more with VCM. I seem to recall it is one a mile more for VCMs. Logic says, it should be much more though.. :confuse:
I think the highway mileage is better by a couple of miles with VCM. My '06 Odyssey with VCM and 2,200 miles is getting 22 mpg in mixed driving. I use the cruise control as much as possible. The "ECO" light is on most of the time.
If you drive fast enough or are going into a headwind, then the non-vcm will get better gas mileage. The vcm model is geared shorter, so if you are not cruising lightly enough for it to engage, then you will actually use more fuel than the non-vcm model.
Not sure what speed this occurs at. Can any VCM owners report at what speed the eco light will not come on when cruising?
From what I understand the eco light being on does not mean vcm is on, but if it is off, then vcm is definately off.
Are you still wondering about it? I can tell you about my experience with our 2005 Odyssey EX-L RES that gets that crappy MPG and a ton of issues. Soon I will get riiiid of it and trade it in for a Toyota.... never again HONDA!!!
You are making some assumptions. The engines in the VCM and non-VCM are not setup the same since the VCM engine achieves maximum torque at a lower rpm than the non-VCM model. I would agree with you fundamentally, but the only way that you could really answer this question would be to run a side by side test of identical VCM and non-VCM vans. You would have to equalize the weights, tires and tire pressures, oil, etc. Also note that with the shorter gearing in 4th and 5th and with the lower max torque, the VCM van should accelerate faster and get better mileage!
Two weeks ago I buy used Chrysler Town and Country (Limited FWD 2001) 60.000 I like to find what value show Your onboard overhead computer on same model [Miles to Empty] when Your Tank is a Full.
My car show me that i can drive ~ 270 Miles! - where is the problem ?
I think the Trip Computer shows the distance to empty based on the average mileage since it was reset. My 2002 T&C LX with the smaller 3.3L V6 has an overall average of 20.4 mpg since it was reset and has gone 1471 miles. It now shows 343 miles to empty with the fuel gage slightly above 3/4. The trip computer on my T&C is VERY accurate. Try re-setting the trip computer, drive a few miles on the open road, and then check your distance to empty.
Your drive style is the issue, and whether you're on the highway, or do strictly city driving. Here in Canada I get about 600km's in combined city/h'way driving with a thrifty drive style. When I step on it, the 3.8L will be quite a gas guzzler, so the 270Mi. is not unrealistic. Driving the vehicle hard will also wreck the transmission in no time!
First I think too that my drive style is a problem, but is not. For the test I exchange for one full week MY TC 2001 (Limited) with my freind same TC 2002 (LXI) he say that he make over 340 miles on his car. Result: I drive his car 337 miles with same style of drive that i do on my car. He make on my TC 275 miles. So where can be a problem...? Fuel injector? Tune-up? Bad computer setting...?
On some other forums I see info: that if I try to clear my computer (disconnect the battery) this will resolve my problem. This can be true...?
On my Sienna the gas mileage range is calculated from the lifetime average. If my lifetime average is about 20 mpg and my last few trips were 26 or 27 mpg, the range is still calculated with the 20 mpg, and would only be about 400 miles (21 gallon tank). Resetting the trip computer does not effect this.
I know the VW lifetime average is really a moving average of your last 1,000 or so miles, so if Toyota (or Chrysler) are like this then a long trip may bring up your average.
The whole point of DTE is so that you don't run out of gas - the last thing it wants to do is tell you you can go further than you really can. Since it does no know what you will do next it uses a long term average.
in my opinion, relying on a DTE estimate by a computer to judge how much further you can go with the "estimated" gas remaining based on "estimated" MPG metrics -> it can be problematic.
i prefer the low-tech method.
don't you have some indication of relative amount of fuel remaining, and also have some form of low-fuel warning light?
personally, i've always been successful with my vehicles judging when to fill based on the low-fuel warning light, which comes on conservatively when i have 3-4 gallons of fuel remaining. you really don't want to run out of fuel.
anyway, if i had a DTE or MPG estimator in my vehicle, i wouldn't use them, for the simple reason the short-term numbers are impacted by your short-term driving style, and as far as using or relying on long-term numbers, well, they don't reflect what you have been doing in the short-term.
try this: fill the vehicle, reset the trip odometer, run the vehicle till it's low on fuel, then fill it and divide miles driven into gallons pumped. do this a few times to get a handle on how accurate your vehicle's MPG estimator is if you want... but regardless, don't rely soley on that automation.
When I first heard, it was disappointing to me. I still wonder that this new technology worth getting just 2 extra MPG. over time 3 cylinders more worn than other 3
Is the glass half full or half empty? I would say over time three cylinders less worn than the other three. Also, it is not new technology. Cadillac did this (poorly) in the early 80's I believe. What you get with this technology is about a 10% gain in fuel efficiency for relatively little cost. It is a shame, though, that the deactivated and activated cylinders do not alternate. I guess that would require even more sophisticated noise cancellation technology.
What makes anyone think that 3 cylinders would be less worn? VCM technology doesn't mean the pistons aren't operating; all that happens is the intake valves remain closed for those cylinders so the fuel/air mix is restricted to the other 3 operating cylinders. I can't figure out why this would lead to differential wear in the engine (besides, virtually ALL wear in the engine occurs with engine startup when all the components are cold and all the oil is in the oil pan. VCM or no VCM would have NO effect on startup wear).
If the valves didn't open you would get engine braking on the three inoperative cylinders(similar to a jake-brake on big diesels). They still open and close normally, but no fuel(or very little) is injected into the air that is passing through. The only wear and tear that might occur is on the crankshaft bearings when the power pulses become more uneven due to high torque on firing pistons verses low torque on non firing ones. I would think that would be minimal. The three cylinders without fuel act a bit like the pistons in a compressor, just moving air. Your emissions should be very small with VCM engaged as your cat converter is getting more air to complete combustion.
In part, it reads,"It uses a solenoid to unlock the cam followers on one bank from their respective rockers, so the cam follower floats freely while the valve springs keep the valves closed."
Note the part where it says "keep the valves closed."
Honda's VCM technology is an offshoot of their VTEC technology and works by some of the same basic principles.
Here is another write-up on Honda's VCM technology:
City driving brings the average down real fast, and is not repeatable from one owner to the next. The only mileage that you can reliably compare is highway mileage (with no city) at the same speed, and under similar conditions (a/c, hills, wind etc.)
you can make sure your tires are inflated properly, and you can also verify that the engine air filter is clean. did you check edmunds (used vehicles) to see what the mpg estimates were for an unmodified van?
I've got about 6000Km on my 2005 Sienna LE. I'm not happy with the mileage I've been getting so far. I've used the TC and paper and pen to calculate mileage. What I basically do is take the DTE reading before and after I put gas in. Then I reset my trip odometer to 0 and start driving. Then I take the trip odometer reading until the DTE indicates the same value as before I put the gas in. Using this method on two occasions I got 280Km from 40L of gas and on 2nd occasion got 210Km from 30L of gas. This translates to 14.3L/100Km or 16MPG in each case!!
Now given these readings are taken during winter driving, but I would expect the mileage to be much better than this. I've been basically driving to work and back, you can consider it half higheway and half city.
Bottom line I bought the Sienna after reading it's advertised gas mileage but the actual figure is nowhere close.
I don't understand the benefit of filling the tank at the same DTE reading. Why are you so careful to do that? It is the distance travelled divided by the fuel used that determines fuel mileage. It is a good idea to calculate it after refilling a nearly empty fuel tank.
A few things come to mind: spark plugs: do you have the right ones and is the gap ok? Check the three in the front , they are easiest to access.
Tires and tire pressure
Does the torque converter lock? When you're driving at a constant speed of about 40-45 Mi/Hour the converter should lock, so the rpm's drop by about 500.
Also check the engine oil and transmission fluid levels and the condition of the engine oil ( have oil changes been done regularly, or is the engine clogging up?)
Talk to your mechanic, he/she might have suggestions
we own a 2001 chevy express 15 passenger van. it was purchased used w/nearly 40,000 miles. 3.5 years later and 1 major tuneup and 91,000 total miles, it still avg.s 10-11 mmpg. 30 gallon tank total trip 390-320 miles before looking for fuel.
the half ton (5 lug wheels) are rated better on the mpg, but i cannot attest to that since ours is on a 1 ton chassis.
Don't use the DTE to calculate mileage. It will not work. You must divide miles driven (as registered on your odometer) by gallons used, or even use the trip compuer mpg (I have found that the trip computer on my Sienna is just about spot on)
The DTE is based on lifetime/long term mileage. If you drive all city mileage, then fill up, your DTE may say 300 miles. You can then go on a long trip and drive 450 miles before filling up. The DTE is based on your city miles.
Of course the DTE will get more accurate as you use up gasoline since it tells you what remains, and does not subtract from the initial number. ie: DTE says 300 miles you drive 150 mile and the DTE now says 200 miles.
The difference is that the cylinders which are not active do not have a gasoline explosion in them many time per second. The pressure causes the rings to exert additional force against the cylinder walls theoretically giving more wear to the rings and cylinder walls. I would be more concerned about carbon build up and valve wear in an engine which was run significantly in the VCM mode since three of the cylinders would not be experiencing the same exposure to burned hydrocarbons (temperature and residue) as the other three. I also have questions about the break-in on a VCM engine. You could easily operate the vehicle for 4-5,000 miles and only have three of the cylinders running for say 500 miles. Is that adequate break in? As an owner of a 2006 Odyssey EX-L, I guess that I will find out!
"The pressure causes the rings to exert additional force against the cylinder walls theoretically giving more wear to the rings and cylinder walls."
True. But remember, VCM is only activated under light throttle conditions so the amount of 'additional' wear experienced by the active cylinders is insignificant compared to the amount of wear experienced by all 6 cylinders under normal conditions. IMO, I would be more concerned about the 'extra wear' on the engine caused by the VCM-equipped Ody running a slightly shorter final drive gear (meaning that VCM-equipped Ody's are turning slightly more rpm at all road speeds compared to non-VCM Ody's). Does 'extra wear' from running a shorter gear bother you? It doesn't bother me.
Carbon build-up? Why should there be more carbon buildup on the valves for the 3 operating cylinders than in all 6 cylinders of a non-VCM engine? Again, VCM only operates under VERY LIGHT throttle applications. You are stressing about 'extra wear' due to something (VCM) which is only operating when the engine is being stressed the least?
In all honesty, I would be more concerned with the reliablity of things like the adaptive engine mounts and noise cancellation technology than any internal differential wear experienced in the engine due to VCM. VCM or no VCM, how many Honda engines (given proper maintenance) simply 'wear out' their valve springs and/or rings/cylinder walls?
Carbon build-up? Why should there be more carbon build up on the valves for the 3 operating cylinders than in all 6 cylinders of a non-VCM engine? My 2006 Odyssey EX-L has just about 1500 miles on it. The last 800 of those were on a trip at 72 mph with the VCM on conservatively 95% or more of the time. 800 miles at 72 mph = 11.1 hours running; 5% of 11 hours = 33 min. So only for 33 min out of 11 hours did three of the cylinders have any hydrocarbon build up in them. I am getting 19x more exposure to carbon build up in three cylinders vs the other three on a long trip. I am not comparing VCM to non-VCM You are stressing about 'extra wear' due to something (VCM) which is only operating when the engine is being stressed the least? At what point does the VCM cut out. When Honda engineers have determined that the three operating cylinders will be beyond their HP/torque limit and need more. On a normal vehicle, this would be a downshift point. The VCM will "lug" to the point where more cylinders are needed. In my case I have noticed that, with cruise control on, the vehicle speed will drop 2-3 mph as the 3 cylinder engine runs out of power before the VCM kicks out. I do not notice this on "normal" vehicles which shift down to maintain speed. I believe that Honda engineers are good and hope that they have designed these vehicles to operate beyond their expected normal life. Only time will tell.
Tomorrow i will try to check the spark plug condition and gap.
My Tire pressure is fine, also i like to check the torque converter lock - maybe here is my problem...? I see some info label under the hood - on this label is: that Transmission has firmware upgrade on 2002 maybe Chrysler does some torque converter lock adjustment that is still not corect...?
All oils is changed to fresh on the day when I buy this car ~ 4 weeks ago...
2006 Sienna LE trip computer is very accurate according to my friend who bought one. The trip computer on my 2002 T&C LX is also very accurate. However, the DaimlerChrysler trip computer calculates DTE based on mileage since the trip computer average mileage was last reset...unlike the Sienna trip computer DTE which is lifetime/long term mileage.
I just sold a 1995 GMC Suburban SLT 4x4 with the TBI 350. I owned it for over four years and 53K miles. On a highway trip I would always get 15 +/- 0.1 mpg with the cruise control from 70-80 mph and AC on or off. With the 42 gallon tank this gave a cruise range of 630 miles. In town I would get 12-13 mpg. This vehicle weighed in at 6000 lbs full of gas. I would have expected your van to get equivalent or better mileage than a Suburban with the less fuel efficient TBI engine, or do you have a really big engine?
2002 T&C LX long time overall average 22.4 MPG. Previous refill with NO road driving, 10 to 15 minute warm up each morning, etc. 10.8 MPG. Refill today with half of the driving on the Interstate was 23.6 MPG.
Consumer Reports says long warm ups are unnecessary. Instead start out slowly and allow the car to warm up as you drive. Your conditions could make that difficult and/or unsafe. YMMV
Long warmups are unnecessary, but if it is -20 degrees outside, and the entire body of the car is a lump of frost, it sure is nice to have the car warmed up.
Not for the cars sake - for the drivers.
BTW even if you drive off right away you will still get poor mileage until the car is warmed up. This can take as long as 20 miles depending on the temperature (the coolant warms up in a few minutes, but the engine oil takes much longer)
Just took a 450 mile trip in my 2006 Sienna. Driving 75 mph in cold weather (about 10 degrees). Averaged 24 mpg one direction and 24.9 the other. This is with snow tires on, and less than 3,000 miles on the vehicle, and starting off with a very cold engine. I expect it to get better.
Did notice something intriguing - when I dipped into some long valleys that were below 10 degrees, the instant mpg dropped a few ticks. I know engines are most efficient when warm, but this was quite noticeable.
Your experience with the Sienna trip computer vividly illustrates why I love having a trip computer on my minivan. DaimlerChrysler stupidly eliminated the Instant MPG reading on the trip computer in 2003 or 2004. The Sienna now has the BEST trip computer of any minivan.
The best way to reduce engine wear, is to start up and drive off as quickly as possible, getting up to operating temp. Pre-warming a car is the worst thing you can do to it.
A cold engine that is idleing has no more wear than one that is being driven. If you rev it up that is of course bad. It also will have more wear per mile - as it is not moving. The car that is driven right away will warm up faster.
It is certainly fine to drive a cold car, but one of the worst things you can do for a car is to drive it hard when it is cold. Pre-warming a car is not bad for it, it is just not really necessary - for the cars sake.
I am concerned about startup wear though and that is one of the main reasons that I use synthetic oil. Makes quite a difference when the temp is well below zero.
A cold engine will have to have a richer gasoline mixture than a warm engine would. Having a richer mixture will increase the chances of carbon build up in the engine. Combustion blow by in the cylinder with a richer gasoline mixture will dilute the engine oil which will reduce the protection provided by the oil, i.e. more wear on engine. Plus more engine tune ups to replace sparkplugs fouled by carbon.
Driving a cold engine will warm up the engine faster which is better for your engine.
'04 Nissan Quest, 3.5L, recommends premium fuel. Using winter blend regular, it runs fine and averages 19.3mpg around town. I tried a tank of non-oxy premium and got about the same performance and mileage.
AGREE 100 %. Sadly, most minivan owners will NEVER have the instant mpg feature of the Sienna...and will NEVER know what they are missing. Ironically, some people will pay MORE for a minivan that does not have the features of a Sienna...just to get a few more horsepower and a few more lb-ft of torque. :sick:
and some people will buy a certain vehicle just so they have marginally useful technology like instant MPG indication (?), laser cruise, etc.
if you think you've got to have it all, or are jazzed by technology for technology sakes (gratuitous) or technology = value, then go for it.
yeah, i'm one of those people that would pay more for less. instant MPG calculation just adds to your heads down time hansienna. laser cruise? pleeesssseee.
Comments
On second thought......don't. :P
around town 19-20 mpg
70,000 miles and pretty reliable
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I assume, in City driving both are the same. Highway driving would be different. I have not seen any concrete numbers.... Dealer was saying that I should get 2-3 miles more with VCM. I seem to recall it is one a mile more for VCMs. Logic says, it should be much more though.. :confuse:
Thanks,
This is what I hear too....
When I first heard, it was disappointing to me. I still wonder that this new technology worth getting just 2 extra MPG.
over time 3 cylinders more worn than other 3 :confuse:
Not sure what speed this occurs at. Can any VCM owners report at what speed the eco light will not come on when cruising?
From what I understand the eco light being on does not mean vcm is on, but if it is off, then vcm is definately off.
-Dudley
...unless, of course, he included the phrase "NEVER again Honda" in every single post.....
The engines in the VCM and non-VCM are not setup the same since the VCM engine achieves maximum torque at a lower rpm than the non-VCM model.
I would agree with you fundamentally, but the only way that you could really answer this question would be to run a side by side test of identical VCM and non-VCM vans. You would have to equalize the weights, tires and tire pressures, oil, etc.
Also note that with the shorter gearing in 4th and 5th and with the lower max torque, the VCM van should accelerate faster and get better mileage!
My car show me that i can drive ~ 270 Miles! - where is the problem ?
Thank You
My 2002 T&C LX with the smaller 3.3L V6 has an overall average of 20.4 mpg since it was reset and has gone 1471 miles. It now shows 343 miles to empty with the fuel gage slightly above 3/4.
The trip computer on my T&C is VERY accurate.
Try re-setting the trip computer, drive a few miles on the open road, and then check your distance to empty.
Here in Canada I get about 600km's in combined city/h'way driving with a thrifty drive style. When I step on it, the 3.8L will be quite a gas guzzler, so the 270Mi. is not unrealistic. Driving the vehicle hard will also wreck the transmission in no time!
On some other forums I see info: that if I try to clear my computer (disconnect the battery) this will resolve my problem. This can be true...?
Thanks for any suggestions, Artur
I know the VW lifetime average is really a moving average of your last 1,000 or so miles, so if Toyota (or Chrysler) are like this then a long trip may bring up your average.
The whole point of DTE is so that you don't run out of gas - the last thing it wants to do is tell you you can go further than you really can. Since it does no know what you will do next it uses a long term average.
-Dudley
i prefer the low-tech method.
don't you have some indication of relative amount of fuel remaining, and also have some form of low-fuel warning light?
personally, i've always been successful with my vehicles judging when to fill based on the low-fuel warning light, which comes on conservatively when i have 3-4 gallons of fuel remaining. you really don't want to run out of fuel.
anyway, if i had a DTE or MPG estimator in my vehicle, i wouldn't use them, for the simple reason the short-term numbers are impacted by your short-term driving style, and as far as using or relying on long-term numbers, well, they don't reflect what you have been doing in the short-term.
try this: fill the vehicle, reset the trip odometer, run the vehicle till it's low on fuel, then fill it and divide miles driven into gallons pumped. do this a few times to get a handle on how accurate your vehicle's MPG estimator is if you want... but regardless, don't rely soley on that automation.
Is the glass half full or half empty? I would say over time three cylinders less worn than the other three.
Also, it is not new technology. Cadillac did this (poorly) in the early 80's I believe. What you get with this technology is about a 10% gain in fuel efficiency for relatively little cost. It is a shame, though, that the deactivated and activated cylinders do not alternate. I guess that would require even more sophisticated noise cancellation technology.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Variable_Cylinder_Management
In part, it reads,"It uses a solenoid to unlock the cam followers on one bank from their respective rockers, so the cam follower floats freely while the valve springs keep the valves closed."
Note the part where it says "keep the valves closed."
Honda's VCM technology is an offshoot of their VTEC technology and works by some of the same basic principles.
Here is another write-up on Honda's VCM technology:
http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/jk/041014.htm
I had a question about gas mileage.
I've only used one tank so far. Roughly 70% highway (with cruise control on) and the rest city driving.
My results were roughly 10 mph. Ugh! I was hoping for more.
It does have a Wheel Chair Lfit which ads weight.
I've read varoius places on the internet and in discussions where people with the same van/configuration are getting 15 to 18 mpg.
So I'm curious. Is 10 mpg really bad performance for this vehicle?
Anything I can do to improve it?
-Dudley
Now given these readings are taken during winter driving, but I would expect the mileage to be much better than this. I've been basically driving to work and back, you can consider it half higheway and half city.
Bottom line I bought the Sienna after reading it's advertised gas mileage but the actual figure is nowhere close.
I'm gonna do some more readings though.
It is the distance travelled divided by the fuel used that determines fuel mileage.
It is a good idea to calculate it after refilling a nearly empty fuel tank.
spark plugs: do you have the right ones and is the gap ok? Check the three in the front , they are easiest to access.
Tires and tire pressure
Does the torque converter lock?
When you're driving at a constant speed of about 40-45 Mi/Hour the converter should lock, so the rpm's drop by about 500.
Also check the engine oil and transmission fluid levels and the condition of the engine oil ( have oil changes been done regularly, or is the engine clogging up?)
Talk to your mechanic, he/she might have suggestions
the half ton (5 lug wheels) are rated better on the mpg, but i cannot attest to that since ours is on a 1 ton chassis.
The DTE is based on lifetime/long term mileage. If you drive all city mileage, then fill up, your DTE may say 300 miles. You can then go on a long trip and drive 450 miles before filling up. The DTE is based on your city miles.
Of course the DTE will get more accurate as you use up gasoline since it tells you what remains, and does not subtract from the initial number. ie: DTE says 300 miles you drive 150 mile and the DTE now says 200 miles.
-Dudley
I would be more concerned about carbon build up and valve wear in an engine which was run significantly in the VCM mode since three of the cylinders would not be experiencing the same exposure to burned hydrocarbons (temperature and residue) as the other three.
I also have questions about the break-in on a VCM engine. You could easily operate the vehicle for 4-5,000 miles and only have three of the cylinders running for say 500 miles. Is that adequate break in? As an owner of a 2006 Odyssey EX-L, I guess that I will find out!
True. But remember, VCM is only activated under light throttle conditions so the amount of 'additional' wear experienced by the active cylinders is insignificant compared to the amount of wear experienced by all 6 cylinders under normal conditions. IMO, I would be more concerned about the 'extra wear' on the engine caused by the VCM-equipped Ody running a slightly shorter final drive gear (meaning that VCM-equipped Ody's are turning slightly more rpm at all road speeds compared to non-VCM Ody's). Does 'extra wear' from running a shorter gear bother you? It doesn't bother me.
Carbon build-up? Why should there be more carbon buildup on the valves for the 3 operating cylinders than in all 6 cylinders of a non-VCM engine? Again, VCM only operates under VERY LIGHT throttle applications. You are stressing about 'extra wear' due to something (VCM) which is only operating when the engine is being stressed the least?
In all honesty, I would be more concerned with the reliablity of things like the adaptive engine mounts and noise cancellation technology than any internal differential wear experienced in the engine due to VCM. VCM or no VCM, how many Honda engines (given proper maintenance) simply 'wear out' their valve springs and/or rings/cylinder walls?
My 2006 Odyssey EX-L has just about 1500 miles on it. The last 800 of those were on a trip at 72 mph with the VCM on conservatively 95% or more of the time.
800 miles at 72 mph = 11.1 hours running; 5% of 11 hours = 33 min. So only for 33 min out of 11 hours did three of the cylinders have any hydrocarbon build up in them. I am getting 19x more exposure to carbon build up in three cylinders vs the other three on a long trip. I am not comparing VCM to non-VCM
You are stressing about 'extra wear' due to something (VCM) which is only operating when the engine is being stressed the least?
At what point does the VCM cut out. When Honda engineers have determined that the three operating cylinders will be beyond their HP/torque limit and need more. On a normal vehicle, this would be a downshift point. The VCM will "lug" to the point where more cylinders are needed. In my case I have noticed that, with cruise control on, the vehicle speed will drop 2-3 mph as the 3 cylinder engine runs out of power before the VCM kicks out. I do not notice this on "normal" vehicles which shift down to maintain speed. I believe that Honda engineers are good and hope that they have designed these vehicles to operate beyond their expected normal life. Only time will tell.
My Tire pressure is fine, also i like to check the torque converter lock - maybe here is my problem...? I see some info label under the hood - on this label is: that Transmission has firmware upgrade on 2002 maybe Chrysler does some torque converter lock adjustment that is still not corect...?
All oils is changed to fresh on the day when I buy this car ~ 4 weeks ago...
Willem - Thank You for great suggestions...!
The trip computer on my 2002 T&C LX is also very accurate. However, the DaimlerChrysler trip computer calculates DTE based on mileage since the trip computer average mileage was last reset...unlike the Sienna trip computer DTE which is lifetime/long term mileage.
I think each method has advantages.
Previous refill with NO road driving, 10 to 15 minute warm up each morning, etc. 10.8 MPG. Refill today with half of the driving on the Interstate was 23.6 MPG.
Not for the cars sake - for the drivers.
BTW even if you drive off right away you will still get poor mileage until the car is warmed up. This can take as long as 20 miles depending on the temperature (the coolant warms up in a few minutes, but the engine oil takes much longer)
Just took a 450 mile trip in my 2006 Sienna. Driving 75 mph in cold weather (about 10 degrees). Averaged 24 mpg one direction and 24.9 the other. This is with snow tires on, and less than 3,000 miles on the vehicle, and starting off with a very cold engine. I expect it to get better.
Did notice something intriguing - when I dipped into some long valleys that were below 10 degrees, the instant mpg dropped a few ticks. I know engines are most efficient when warm, but this was quite noticeable.
-Dudley
DaimlerChrysler stupidly eliminated the Instant MPG reading on the trip computer in 2003 or 2004. The Sienna now has the BEST trip computer of any minivan.
It is certainly fine to drive a cold car, but one of the worst things you can do for a car is to drive it hard when it is cold. Pre-warming a car is not bad for it, it is just not really necessary - for the cars sake.
I am concerned about startup wear though and that is one of the main reasons that I use synthetic oil. Makes quite a difference when the temp is well below zero.
Do love the instant mpg on the Sienna.
I agree that beating a cold engine is about the dumbest thing someone can do to a car.
Driving a cold engine will warm up the engine faster which is better for your engine.
Ironically, some people will pay MORE for a minivan that does not have the features of a Sienna...just to get a few more horsepower and a few more lb-ft of torque. :sick:
if you think you've got to have it all, or are jazzed by technology for technology sakes (gratuitous) or technology = value, then go for it.
yeah, i'm one of those people that would pay more for less. instant MPG calculation just adds to your heads down time hansienna. laser cruise? pleeesssseee.