CX-5 Fuel economy

[Geoff]

I've done about 1100 miles now, most of it on motorway driving at 70mph... i'm still only getting 33mpg UK (equivalent in US is 27mpg)... I don't drive particularly easily, but at the same time i'm not too hard on it either.... I've spoken to my dealer about it and he says to wait until 2000 miles and if I still have an issue with it they will take it in to run diagnostics on it and make sure it is tuned up properly.... they said that other drivers have been getting mid 40's (about 37 US) doing similar distances, so i'm not sure what the issue is. I'm starting to wish I hadn't got the CX5, as the main reason I bought it was for it's supposed great fuel economy, given the soaring price of fuel these days.

 

[Bopper]

Try slowing down to 65 mph. I realize that is no fun. I still have a 90hp Vw jetta that will get 45-50 mpg at 60-65, above 70 it might get 40. The faster you go, the car will create a disproportionately amount of drag as go just a little bit faster. With aircraft, by doubling your speed you will quadruple the amount of drag it creates. it will take a lot more fuel to overcome the difference. Obviously the speeds we are talking about are a little different but I think the theory will hold up. But I'm not making any promises.

 

[Bopper]

New to the forums... so, whats up guys! This is my first Mazda, have had it for about 2k miles (AWD GT). I'm having the same issues with pretty pathetic fuel economy compared to what I expected. I'm coming from a '06 Acura TSX MT, and so far that car would dump on this CX-5's real world MPG. I've been keeping track with Fuelly... the best I've been able to get is 25.5 mpg with loosely 50/50 city/highway ratio. I goose the gas here and there, but 90% of the time I'm babying it and not accelerating fast. This sucks, because I bought this car solely based on accepting the fact that it's gutless but gets fantastic fuel economy. Now it seems I'm stuck with a car that is both wussy AND gets mediocre fuel economy.

This ridiculous cold Crap we have been dealing with does not help you numbers. The numbers should get better before they get worse again into summer.

 

[Geoff]

Try slowing down to 65 mph. I realize that is no fun. I still have a 90hp Vw jetta that will get 45-50 mpg at 60-65, above 70 it might get 40. The faster you go, the car will create a disproportionately amount of drag as go just a little bit faster. With aircraft, by doubling your speed you will quadruple the amount of drag it creates. it will take a lot more fuel to overcome the difference. Obviously the speeds we are talking about are a little different but I think the theory will hold up. But I'm not making any promises.

Thanks for the reply... Although I don't see why I should have to sit below the speed limit to achieve better mpg rates. My previous car was a Volvo C70, it was listed as doing 42mpg, where in reality I got 34mpg, which I consider to be an acceptable return. My driving style was no different then than it is now, so I would therefore expect, using the same percentages / ratio, to be achieving around 43mpg in the CX5, which allows for a drop of 20% from the official figures, the same drop I achieved in the Volvo.

 

[Bopper]

Where I live there is never a speed limit .ver 65mph. The roads I mainly use 50 & 55mph. Going 5 over the limit by me is still pretty easy on the car. But I do agree that going below the limit is not an acceptable solution.

 

[mongo2004]

Check your tire pressures when it get cold outside.

The rule of thumb is for every 10 Fahrenheit change in air temperature, your tire's inflation pressure will change by about 1 psi (up with higher temperatures and down with lower).
I find my CX-5's gas mileage drops dramatically when the tire pressures start to drop. I always run my tires a few pounds below the pressure rating of the tire (not Mazda recommended ratings) and that seems to help gas mileage significantly; at least it does on my 17" tires.
This car does not have much horsepower or torque therefore increased rolling resistance is much more dramatic on the gas mileage then say a normal V6 sedan.

And BTW... cold air will also drop the gas mileage. Cold air is much denser and it will take more horsepower to push the car through it.

Oh and one more thing. If you have a lot of stuff in you car, take it out if you can.

 

[mongo2004]

Check your tire pressures when it get cold outside.

The rule of thumb is for every 10 Fahrenheit change in air temperature, your tire's inflation pressure will change by about 1 psi (up with higher temperatures and down with lower).
I find my CX-5's gas mileage drops dramatically when the tire pressures start to drop. I always run my tires a few pounds below the pressure rating of the tire (not Mazda recommended ratings) and that seems to help gas mileage significantly; at least it does on my 17" tires.
This car does not have much horsepower or torque therefore increased rolling resistance is much more dramatic on the gas mileage then say a normal V6 sedan.

And BTW... cold air will also drop the gas mileage. Cold air is much denser and it will take more horsepower to push the car through it.

Oh and one more thing. If you have a lot of stuff in you car, take it out if you can. Unneeded weight also hurts gas mileage

 

[wxcrawler]

I've got a 2013 Touring FWD with about 3000 miles on it now. I know this is a pretty small sample size, but here's what I've found for mileage so far. We have a variety of speed limits around here, including a 75 MPH interstate, 70 MPH highways, and 65 MPH suburban freeways. I typically drive 4 or 5 MPH over the speed limit on the highway.

80 MPH - 28.2 mpg
75 MPH - 29.3
70 MPH - 31.5
65 MPH - 33.2

With just regular suburban driving (about 60% highway with occasional traffic/ 40% streets with traffic lights), we are getting about 28.5 mpg.

There are so many things that can affect the mileage. Wind is a big one here in the plains. I've noticed a big difference in mileage when we drive into the wind.....as much as 3-4 mpg.

I think all of us wish we could get better gas mileage. In my case, I am certainly not disappointed so far. We'll see how it goes as we continue to add on the miles.

 

[zober]

I have 2013 AWD Touring, 3700 miles on it and driving only in the city, my average speed is 12 mph and gas mileage 18.3 mpg

 

[Bombadil]

I have 2013 AWD Touring, 3700 miles on it and driving only in the city, my average speed is 12 mph and gas mileage 18.3 mpg

That's pretty much the norm if one is driving nearly 100% city. Consumer Reports got 19 from the CX-5 in pure city driving. By comparison a Toyota RAV4 with 4 cyl got 16 and with the V6 they got 15. The only way to get any kind of decent gas mileage when driving nearly 100% city is to have a small vehicle, and preferably a hybrid or electric. Even a Mazda3 sedan with 2.0L SkyActive got only 22. CR got 32 with a Prius and 33 with the Prius V wagon. A friend of mine has the V and loves it. He lives in the San Francisco bay area and gets in the high 30s around the city.

 

[zober]

That's pretty much the norm if one is driving nearly 100% city. Consumer Reports got 19 from the CX-5 in pure city driving. By comparison a Toyota RAV4 with 4 cyl got 16 and with the V6 they got 15. The only way to get any kind of decent gas mileage when driving nearly 100% city is to have a small vehicle, and preferably a hybrid or electric. Even a Mazda3 sedan with 2.0L SkyActive got only 22. CR got 32 with a Prius and 33 with the Prius V wagon. A friend of mine has the V and loves it. He lives in the San Francisco bay area and gets in the high 30s around the city.

I know that this is normal. With my previous car, CRV-EX 2007 I got 15-16 mpg

 

[CX-SV]

Average speed of 12mph/pure city driving means a lot of 0mph time idling and getting 0mpg. So average mpg will be very low.

 

[dad of jon]

600 miles - 46.5mpg, i was getting 40mpg from my old car so i'm happy.

 

[beergotmeripped]

This ridiculous cold Crap we have been dealing with does not help you numbers. The numbers should get better before they get worse again into summer.

Let's hope... so far I'm not so impressed, which to me means they marketed this car really well. I will probably take it into the dealer anyway to make sure nothing funky is going on. It's making me contemplate a trade in for a 2014 FWD 2.5L.

 

[CX-SV]

It's making me contemplate a trade in for a 2014 FWD 2.5L.

Yes, but will that result in improved gas mileage?

 

[Gregx-5]

Shouldve bought the diesel since you are in the UK... Also are you using the right octane gas? You should be using premium since you are in Europe, the CX-5 has higher compression there than in the US.

Did you do a proper break in? Pushing a new car for long drives at highway speeds is a big no-no. You risk damaging your engine, it can happen and does happen.

 

[beergotmeripped]

Yes, but will that result in improved gas mileage?

Most definitely not... but I'd go for the FWD which is stated to have comparable MPG rating. If I'm going to be getting this kind of mileage, at least it would have some more balls.

 

[CX-SV]

Most definitely not... but I'd go for the FWD which is stated to have comparable MPG rating. If I'm going to be getting this kind of mileage, at least it would have some more balls.

I see, so the fuel economy is less of issue now. Plenty of choices in compact SUV's with plenty "more balls", and easily exceeding 155-189 horsepower for those that demand it.

 

[MikeM.]

Plenty of choices in compact SUV's with plenty "more balls", and easily exceeding 155-189 horsepower for those that demand it.

Very true, but put me on a curvy, wet road with one of those SUV's with "plenty more balls" and let's see who gets left in the mist. The CX-5 is the first SUV that handles well enough that I would actually purchase one. A few years ago I test drove a 2006 VW Toureg with a 310 hp V-8 engine and was appalled at it's terrible road manners and relative gutlessness (relative to it's 310 hp). The thing did not feel zippy at all and it was necessary to slow way down for tight corners lest every occupant in the vehicle was pitched to the outside of the corner. The CX-5 just smiles and rails around the corner. And, woe to those who drove a rough road in the Toureg. Pass the puke bag please, that thing was like a land yacht caught offshore in a bad storm. At around $50,000 and 16 mpg (combined) the Toureg offered precious little extra room compared to the CX-5. At least it was capable of rugged off-roading (but how often is that capability needed?).

But my point is not to compare vehicles in different classes, it is to say that big hp numbers are grossly over-rated and do not translate into real world performance if the vehicle lacks decent cornering ability. As long as one is content to go with the flow of traffic and not feel compelled to do high speed passing maneuvers or tow large trailers the CX-5 has enough power to be more than competent in good hands and I am constantly stuck behind large lines of slower vehicles that have a lot more hp than the CX-5.

 

[CX-SV]

Agreed ^ 2006 gen 1 VW Toureg was POS mid-sized SUV. I know 3 owners (including Porsche owner), all hated their gen 1 Touregs, not to mention reliability. The 310 HP V8 was no rocket then considering the 5000+ pound curb weight.

Plenty of compact SUVs with balls are available today for those that need it.