Jan06xB

Nope 5 speed manual - but I am running Synlube in the Tranny, Power Steering and Engine so that helps a lot. I am still in the high 30's at 80mph with 4 adults in it too but don't travel for more than a few minutes at that speed. The colder temps are here now - did a Cape Cod trip today and only managed 43.6mpg round trip 161.3 miles just about all highway 50-60mph and night time coming back so the lights running kill the mileage a little. That and a couple of surprise red lights.

SentraSE-R

I've found it very difficult to get great mileage out of any AT automobile. Best I ever did was 3 tanks at an average 42 mpg on a rental Toyota Yaris in New England last July. Considering it has the same engine as my xB, and is much more aerodynamic, the fact that I beat the Yaris' mileage with my xB, traveling similarly strange new roads, speaks volumes.

I've gotten between 37.5 and 38.5 mpg from my wife's AT Hyundai Elantra on long highway trips. Low speed P&G should be much, much better, but the best I can do is about 40 mpg. Short trips in town are real mileage killers, dropping her average mileage down to the mid-low 20s

My MT Nissan with 30 more hp and 500 cc more displacement gets about the same highway mileage as the Elantra, but can achieve 60 mpg with low speed P&G.

SentraSE-R

Very impressive, Jan. I owe you dinner if I get back to New England again, or if you get to the Bay Area. I was up in NE ME to take a boat to Machias Seal Island to see Atlantic Puffins and Razorbills. Unfortunately, the trip was canceled, but that gives me a reason to go back again.

Zman

I wish I had a manual sometimes.

Jan06xB

Yeah Darrell if you ever get out this way let me know - I can get away any time since I am self employed and work is very slow. The manual is nice - I was out there visiting a older friend who thinks he wants a ScanGaugeII for his new used 2006 Toyota Senica 3.3L 5sp Automatic so he can hypermile to Fla later this month when he migrates for the winter. We took it out for a spin Added more air to the tires which really helped (38 PSI cold - Sticker recommends 35 PSI) with my SGI connected and got 34 mostly Highway . . . idle starts at 1gph 80F coolent and comes down to 0.2gph when warmed up (181F) in neutral at about 600rpm idle speed. But man V6 engines can suck down fuel. His problem is slowing down too soon for exit ramps then burning gas to get to them and taking off too slow which keeps the tranny in lower gears too long. MAN talk about dangerious the guy goes 40-45 MPH on a 55mph two lane highway.

RedneckwithanxB

394.8 miles on 9.4 gallons...............42 miles per gallon

Jan06xB

If you want to get to 500+ miles on a tank you first have to start by getting it full to the top - that last gallon of gas takes a lot of clicking on the pump to get it in there as the air slowly escapes from the tank and the gasoline flows in down the filler pipe. I saw a funnel rig used in something that sealed against the filler opening and prevented spilling of gasoline as the tank overflowed during a fillup. Will have to make something like that or at least something to catch the tank overflow instead of the dumb rubber seal that drains over the fender and tire. Once you get the tank full you should have exactly 10.0 gallons of usable gas before the fuel light comes on and then 1.9 gallons after that for a total of 11.9 gallons.

SentraSE-R

There are a few of us who get in the 40 mpg neighborhood fairly frequently. Good going, Redneck. If we could get MadMike to slow down, he might surprise himself. Any of you who are beating the EPA average are at least trying, and doing a good job.

I started slowing down on long drives (400 miles each way) to my mom's. If I pushed my SE-R to 72 mph, I only got 26 mpg. My wife's 2000 Elantra wasn't any better, nor was her next car, a 2003 Focus. So one trip I set the cruise control to 62 mph, and my mileage went up to 32-34 mpg. Next step was 55 mph, and my mileage for the whole 800 miles went up to 38-40 mpg. At those mileages, I was doing the whole drive on one tank of gas. Yes, my 6-1/2 hour drive was now taking another hour or so, but it didn't feel like that much, since we usually stop for meals, pit stops, and refueling when my wife is along. I saved the refueling time every trip, and now I was in a contest to get the best mileage. If I P&G the whole 400 miles, I can get 44 mpg in my SE-R, and about 52 mpg in my xB.

My mpg game isn't political, but I do get some satisfaction in knowing I'm not selling America to OPEC. If everyone got 45 mpg, the USA wouldn't have to import a drop of foreign oil!

Zman

Yeah I like saving money plus helping our addiction to oil!

I just hate the guilty feeling of turning my car on for a couple minutes before leaving when its really cold out. I know its bad for the engine.

I keep gloves and a coat in the box with me so I don't have to turn the heater on, just have warm air flowing through the vents.

Sciond

but you live where the land is like a postage stamp

Sciond

crummy tank grrrr due to 1.5 hrs in a traffic jam yesterday........327 miles 10gal......car crept along in stop and go for over 1.5 hrs...so not totally bad

RedneckwithanxB

its not as flat as you think that it is

SentraSE-R

Grill block and engine block heater will help with that. When I lived in snow country, I had dipstick and battery heaters, too.

You should idle as little as possible. If the engine has to be on, it should be doing work for you.

Jan06xB

If the engine is running well it doesn't really burn much fuel at all at Idle - about a gallon in 8 hours. I am not sure about automatics but mine 0.12gph if the lights are off and no heater fan . . . yeah the electrical loads burn more fuel and you can see it on the Scangauge.

Zman

I know this. I don't like wasting money on idling.
I don't have a garage. Where is a good place to get a engine block heater?
I don't know if you've driven the automatic but it stays in third gear until the temp hits 139 degrees.
On really cold days that could be for a couple miles.

I read in Consumer Reports that the Buick Lucerne burns 1/8 gallon at idle in 10 minutes!

RedneckwithanxB

Holy hell... I know GM is all about screwing fuel economy, but thats a little retarded

Sciond

why you have hilly corn fields?

Pauly-FL

I average 25-26 mpg around town with my RS 1 w/ auto trans. The best highway I got was last year on a trip from Boca to Orlando and back where I finally got 30 mpg on both tankfuls.

A/T are harder to get better mileage due to the added weight and most folks don't put them in neutral at stop lights.

MadMike550

I'll always be driving the speed of traffic...safety over mileage
I'll take safety every time


I wasnt complaining about my mileage, so much as sharing with you what mine gets.
doesnt matter if it's me behind the wheel or my wife

we have never broke 30 MPG's

Sciond

92 miles of first 1/4 w00 hoo!
actually just under which means about 375 0n a tank or so