i have an 05 xA

what type of gas should i use?
i normally pump 91, but there's 87 and 89 too. since gas is getting expensive, do the xA really need 91?

Car dropping...
is the process reversable? coil over or spring? and how low should i drop it?

body kit...
if i was to get one, do i need to drop the car to get that "low" look?

that's all, thanks

PS: who wrote the estimate mileage for the xA? i get no where near it, mix city/highway get me about 30mpg, they lied to us lol

 

Congrats

The owner manual calls for 87, so use 87. All your doing by putting 91 in, is wasting your money.

If you keep the stock parts, yes its reversable. Coil over vs springs + shocks. Depends on if you want to spend more, or pay less. The coil over would give you the ability to change the ride highet when you want, while the springs are a set number for a drop. How low should you go? Depends on where you live. Is it all flat, no holes in the road, just like a perfect place to drive? If not a 1-2" drop should be about the range you would need.

To get the whole car to look good, yes a drop would be better, not needed, but helps.

Your welcome. The estimated mileage is done under ideal conditions. Some ppl get better, some get worse. It really goes on where you live & how you drive.

 

Toyota recommends 87 octane (Regular) for the xA. That could be part of your mileage issues. I have an 05 xA Automatice and I get 36 combined easily. If I were to slow my highway driving down to 65 I am sure I could get 38 mpg.

Andy

 

Regular gas is fine. I use it without any noticable difference.

Dropping by springs or coil overs is reversable. They come out just as easily as they go in.

Lots of pics here on body kits... search around.

I get consistant 30mpg per tank in 90 degree plus weather, running the A/C and running the car pretty hard in stop and go traffic. My xA is a manual. If you have an auto that would lower the gas milage.

 

"I get consistant 30mpg per tank in 90 degree plus weather, running the A/C and running the car pretty hard in stop and go traffic. My xA is a manual. If you have an auto that would lower the gas milage."

Unless you drive on the highway more then the auto's taller final gear will get you better mileage. I drive like you do and get 32-34 mpg. Cheers.

 

yep, ditto on that! ive been getting steady 34mpg (i shift around 2-2.5Krpm regularly with occasional bursts of WOT)

when people ask me about the scion, if they havent already fallen in love with the look of it- they are always drooling over the mpg!

-jon

 

GRANNY SHIFTER!!!!!


A short shift to me is 4K! Usually I shift in the 5-6 range and still get 30mpg.

 

he shift like that to save gas , i have an auto though... the reason i'm debating between coil over/spring is because some said that spring would give better suspension than coil over. I'm gonna start pumping 87 from now on.

 

A matched coil-over is the best but most $$$ way to go. I have just the TRD springs and the ride suffers a bit.

 

Weird...our manual says to use 89 (research 91).

It also says it may ping.

The car has 10.5:1 compression.

If you run 87 octane, your car pings but you don't hear it because your knock sensor retards your timing.

I spend the extra 90 cents per tank & run 93 octane. No ping, no need for the knock sensor, no retarded timing, full power all the time. High compression warrants high octane. 10.5:1 is high compression.

And you should re-check your manual...oh, and for those of you who want to argue because you think you know everything - try something new & go do some research before you hit the 'reply' button.

 

actually the manual said 87 if i recall correctly, i gtg check it again but i remember the last time i checked it it said 87

 

regardless of what the manual says...

i've been driving the xA(AT) for a while now and have a great amount of miles on it (150,000k) and have noticed that high octane ratings actually effect the car. With the 87 octane when going around 70 your rpms are actually higher than when you drive with 89 or 91 octane. also the gas pedal is lighter with the 87 while with the 89 and 91 the gas pedal has more resistance when you step on it, dont kno the cause. I drive on an average, while working, at least 150 miles a day and tend to use 87. I prefer 91 octane though, i use it on weekends and when i go out. You can tell its 91 when you got it in your car.
I might not know any of the technical terms but i can tell there is a difference.

 

the part about driving 70 and your rpms differ from 87-91 octane, thats mechanically impossible. for any given rpm, your car will be going one of 4 or 5 speeds (depending on if you have an automatic or a manual) these speeds will not change unless you physically change the gears and modify gear ratios inside the transmission. what you speak of is called a hydrostatic transmission, where the gear ratios change consistently (these are used a lot in riding lawnmowers) but they arent in cars- for practicality- and definitely are not in any kind of toyota.

if you are confused about the way a transmission and engine components work together, a great site is http://www.howstuffworks.com/ .... they have a great section on automotive.

about the gas pedal being lighter, thats mechanical as well (your gas pedal is connected via a cable that opens and closes your throttle)... there is no way the gas could interfere with this mechanical connection, as it is not connected in any way to the fuel part of the engine.

sorry for the long post... i just figured id save you from getting flamed pay it forward... lol

.........

and about that part with me being a granny shifter... i take that to heart man!!! lol... obviously somebody's mommy pays for their little gassy poo, and thats why they dont know what it means to shift early and save gas!! haha j/k j/k... dont get me wrong though... it all depends on my mood.. when im ____ed i cannot shift below 4Krpm it seems.

-jon

 

[quote="jwa276"]
LOL, I pay for my own gas, mortgage, taxes, cars, stuff for the kids and wife etc...

I was teasing him about granny shifting for fun. One thing I like about the xA is you can drive it hard all day long and still get 30mpg.

 

I wish it was just 90 cents difference. Last time I checked, the diff between 87 and 91 was at least 20 cents, so that's about $2/tank which for me is about $100/year that I save.

They don't sell 93 in CA so eff all you high octane bastards. ;););)

 

It'll be less than that because if you run higher octane you'll get better gas mileage.

I'll try to break it down one more time:

10.5:1 compression and factory advanced timing + 87 octane + a modern engine at operating temperature under load = detonation.

Modern cars employ a 'knock sensor' to sense the unique vibrations of a 'spark knock', or 'detonation', or 'ping' and use the ECU to retard the timing, thus stopping the ping in many cases before you even hear it. This also negatively effects power & gas mileage.

You can drive around putting 87 octane in your car all you want, and THINK it doesn't ping, but you are mistaken.