forby

I've been getting about 25MPG with mostly local driving. Not what I expected. Even if I drive politely, I wasn't getting better than 26MPG. Very consistent mileage. I only use Sunoco which in my area contains 10% Ethanol.

On a whim I switched to Lukoil. Now I believe there is a law mandating that all fuel contains some Ethanol, but so far only Sunoco puts the sticker on the pump.

My mileage has averaged 31MPG since the switch!!! That's better than a 20% increase!!! I did a 5 hour highway round trip on just over half a tank. I got 34.04 MPG on that trip.

I'm guessing that the fuel makes a difference- nothing else changed.

Just passing this along since we are all looking for better MPG's

BTW: I have a K&N Cold air installed.

Cinderblock

well if your mostly doing city that makes sense, i have i/h/e/p and i get around 26 city, and 34 highway. ive ever heard of lukoil

DJ_SpaRky

Ethanol is worse for MPG just like 93 vs 87

aye87

dont all the gas station contain 10% ethanol, it just they dont put the stickers out or the stickers too worn to appear, i see all gas station have this sticker on it, some of the gas station which is the same company dont have it, but also the same oil company in other gas station have this sticker on the pump

burstaneurysm

Well... technically, you're mileage average improved because of the highway stint.

Drive a tank only locally and see what happens.

I usually get 27-28 local, but I'll average 32 if I'm on the highway more often.

Winter

no, most largely spread stations use 5% like Cheveron, Shell and 76.

Arco uses 5% aswell but they thin out their gas causing a full tank to last only briefly.

in town mileage can vary sometimes. i've had WAY above the rated mileage and most of the time i'm around 27-28 my self. the highest i've had is almost 40mpg, but that was about a week straight of taking the same road which only one half of the way was somewhat uphill while the rest was all down hill.

Cheveron's "Techron" is their 5% ethanol. i know 76 has the ethanol stickers on their pumps. i generally use Cheveron and 76 all the time, 76 normaly gives me around 350-375 miles a tank depending on my routes and my driving habits. Cheveron's gas carries more energy then most and i normally get around 380-420 miles out of a single tank but Cheveron in my area is one of the most expensive.

drwoodwind

I think gas formulations vary from locale to locale. Here around Chicago, I've been unable to find anything other than the 10% blend...

I seem to get a little better mileage from Shell and Bp, but haven't taken the time to chart it out. Winter, I get 27-28, and as the weather warms, I can get a bit over 30 for my regular route.

draxcaliber

that makes no sense to me.

ethanol does not have the same energy content as gasoline. e-85 gets about 25% fewer mpg.

but small amounts, like 5-15% shouldn't make a huge difference.

also, there are lots of things that factor into MPG. driving politely doesn't mean high mpg automatically, there is driving politely, and driving efficiently, terrain, atmospheric conditions, how much weight you are carrying around, how much time you spend sitting idling. etc.

Hottab

Ethanol kills katalytic neutralizer. Lukoil is a Russian oil company so I believe that gas on their gas station is also made of russian oil with russian standards. Ethanol is fully prohibited in Russia since 2005. IMHO ask for Lukoil gas for better results.

FormulaTwo

I'm not sure about the rules against posting links to other websites, but if you are interested in this sort of thing go to Gassavers.org. They have a forum dedicated to people trying to improve Fuel Efficiency. Lots of interesting things.

draxcaliber

wrong again.

the crude oil itself may very well come from russia, but it is refined in the united states, and has to meet our requirements for gasoline, and federal mandate requires that all gasoline sold in the US have some ethanol.

Winter

-Draxcaliber- ethanol only increases octane which is just meant to have lower chances of pre-ignition or detonation for performance vehicles. the higher the amount of ethanol is present, the less actual gas energy there is which results in lower mpg.

an update though on my mileage

50/50 city/highway
driving habits - normal shifting in city, spirited shifting on highway.
additives - 5W30 Castral GTX, Bosch performance filter, Royal Purple 75W90 tranny oil, NGK Iridium 0.032 plugs, slightly modded intake box. tire pressure at 35psi all around, no handling sacrifices at this pressure either in my opinion.

result - half tank measurement of 6 used gallons resulted in 237miles which comes out to about 39.5mpg average

chiburu

damn, how the hell do you get those numbers?
i drive roughly 55/45 highway/city
i use synthetic oil, stock air filter, NGK platinums, tire pressure 33psi, i think. best i could get was 208 miles on half tank and i thought that was good.