Exactly! There's been a countless # of threads on the fuel economy topic and you just summed it all up in nut shell.
Common sense FTW!!!!!!!!!!
Anyway to make the MS3 more economical?
- Thread starter IrishMidak
- Start date
Exactly! There's been a countless # of threads on the fuel economy topic and you just summed it all up in nut shell.
Common sense FTW!!!!!!!!!!
Super Unique
Member
- :
- 2008.5 Mazdaspeed 3 Black Mica
I have the gt, it's a 2008.5 and so far I am averaging 24 to 26 with a mix of highway/city. I calculate it the old fashioned way, miles traveled since filled, how many gallons to fill, do the math 
That computer in the dash is just guessing based on throttle position / speed and fuel remaining.
That computer in the dash is just guessing based on throttle position / speed and fuel remaining.If you're looking for things to do to the car, in addition to changing your driving habits, there are a few possibilities:
1. Run higher tire pressure -- slight over-inflation means slightly less rolling resistance. Balance out the wear at a few autocross events
2. Lighter wheels
3. Skinny tires (but it will hurt traction)
4. Remove excess weight. Spare tire is an easy 40 lbs. Back seat can't be too hard to remove. Same for the passenger-side front seat. How extreme you get is up to you.
But, like already mentioned, keeping your foot out of the gas is the key. Accelerate slowly, coast in-gear to stops or lights, and keep your speeds down on the freeway.
1. Run higher tire pressure -- slight over-inflation means slightly less rolling resistance. Balance out the wear at a few autocross events
2. Lighter wheels
3. Skinny tires (but it will hurt traction)
4. Remove excess weight. Spare tire is an easy 40 lbs. Back seat can't be too hard to remove. Same for the passenger-side front seat. How extreme you get is up to you.
But, like already mentioned, keeping your foot out of the gas is the key. Accelerate slowly, coast in-gear to stops or lights, and keep your speeds down on the freeway.
as everyone else here said, just lay off of it. highway its gets the best mileage(atleast i do) at about 60mph. I drive about 80% highway and 20% city and average 27.5mpg(according to the proper method, not the computer) but the computer on mine is only about 1mpg off its saying i average 28.4 mpgs
I agree...I have owned enough boosted cars to tell if I am in boost or not. For the record, mixed driving, I average 22-24 MPG getting into boost here and there. I have never driven without any boost...I am interested to see what MPG I get.(thought)
Tire pressure
alignment
don't ride around with a ton of s*** in your trunk.
I get 1-2 mpg better by using top tier gas (shell is what I try to use)
Discount gas usually saves a few pennies, but wastes more in MPG.
BTW, spending money to save money is stupid. (even if it's $50-$80 on a boost gauge)
alignment
don't ride around with a ton of s*** in your trunk.
I get 1-2 mpg better by using top tier gas (shell is what I try to use)
Discount gas usually saves a few pennies, but wastes more in MPG.
BTW, spending money to save money is stupid. (even if it's $50-$80 on a boost gauge)
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I got 27 mpg on my last tank. Around 70% highway(cruise control 70-75 mph), did not floor once on this tank but also didnt baby it. Still enjoyed my car and got great gas milage for a high performance car. When I drive it more aggresive I normaly average 21-23 mpg. I always use 93 octain and I usually dont have any passengers. I weight 190. I am also lucky to have a job that is only 12 miles away mostly highway.
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Possibly but you might look a little goofy riding on wheels that small.
That wouldn't save gas at all. That would give you a lower gear ratio. Make the wheels turn more times to go the same distance. Lighter wheels im sure would help, but not smaller.
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I drive about 80% highway and 20% city and on my last tank of gas I got 30MPG. The worst gas mileage I have gotten was in the winter when it was really cold and that was 24MPG.
Now, I am no Turbo genius, but I am full of common sense. If you shift before 3k RPM's and don't drive it like you stole it, you can get very good gas mileage out of these cars. The only mod I have is a Fujita CAI and don't drive my car crazy all the time, so there's your answer...
-Rich
Now, I am no Turbo genius, but I am full of common sense. If you shift before 3k RPM's and don't drive it like you stole it, you can get very good gas mileage out of these cars. The only mod I have is a Fujita CAI and don't drive my car crazy all the time, so there's your answer...
-Rich
Here is what I did. I started off averaging 24mpg. That is combine highway and city driving.
1. I don't let the car idle for a long time. When I stop for coffee in the morning, I turn the car off. The wife doesn't like it, but she hates the high gas prices too.
2. I shift between 2500 and 3000 rpms. Unless I am merging on the highway. Then I try to stay under 5000 rpms. I use the highest gear possible.
3. I pay close attention to the boost gauge.
4. I use cruise control on the highway.
Doing this has increased my milage to 27.9 mpg. I can live with that.
1. I don't let the car idle for a long time. When I stop for coffee in the morning, I turn the car off. The wife doesn't like it, but she hates the high gas prices too.
2. I shift between 2500 and 3000 rpms. Unless I am merging on the highway. Then I try to stay under 5000 rpms. I use the highest gear possible.
3. I pay close attention to the boost gauge.
4. I use cruise control on the highway.
Doing this has increased my milage to 27.9 mpg. I can live with that.
Sacrilicious
boom boom!
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- Cosmic Blue MS3 of hawtness!
being light on the throttle is VERY important. this is where having a boost gauge comes in handy. i have a cobb sri, and i'll be a horse's arse before i need a boost gauge to tell me if i'm boosting, but what IS handy is knowing that i'm nearing 0psi in MAP. if you want to save gas, you should be finding a cruise speed where you can chill at -15vac or -20vac in the highest gear possible. keep in mind that this means you shouldn't necessarily be in the highest gear available.
cruising at 35mph in 6th gear is not necessarily the best choice, because if you are in a hilly area and need to apply the gas periodically, your engine is going to waste a lot of gas trying to satisfy your speed requirements because you will have to apply heavier throttle pressure to maintain speed. basically, if you are given the choice of cruising at 0psi at 2500rpms vs -15vac at 3000rpms, pick the -15vac every time! you're actually using less gas even though you are technically revving higher!
yes, can get pretty anal and complicated, and who the hell cares under normal conditions, but if you're really looking for ways to get 25mpg+, this is what you're going to have to look out for.
EDIT: your MAP is caused by a combination of things: throttle pressure, engine load, rpm, gear, etc. to figure out the details, you will likely just have to sit and experiment. you can get a general feel from engine sound and feel, but if you get a boost gauge, you will see that there's a lot of subtle differences you can easily miss. make sure you get a gauge that shows boost/vac (-30/30) and not just boost (0/30).
EDIT2: i regularly get 24-25mpg (calculated at the pump, not from our stupid trip meter) on mixed driving even though i do my share of stomping it because when i'm not stomping it, i'm taking it easy on the throttle and saving the gas that i don't need to burn just to inefficiently maintain speed...=d
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happy and angry
Member
Shifting at lower and lower revs doesn't necessarily improve fuel economy. Shift too low and you take yourself so far out of the power band that accelerating up to speed uses more fuel because your engine is providing less power. You might want to cruise at a lower RPM (assuming flat roads), but to get up to speed you shouldn't be trying to stay as low in the power band as you can.
The manual provides you with shift points, and those are generally the most fuel efficient ones to use for daily driving. You don't lug, you have enough power to get up to speed without wasting fuel, you're not revving so high you're wasting fuel. The manual suggests shifting somewhere around 2,500.
The manual provides you with shift points, and those are generally the most fuel efficient ones to use for daily driving. You don't lug, you have enough power to get up to speed without wasting fuel, you're not revving so high you're wasting fuel. The manual suggests shifting somewhere around 2,500.
Yeah, I am still saving money over my Nissan Frontier V6 and I always put the cheapest s*** in that.
I have never cracked 25 mpg in the MS3 with mixed driving, and I have tried hard...shifting at 2000K for an entire tank on synthetic oil and driving it incredibly soft, using cruise control, no AC, etc. I still get under 25 mpg. I don't know where you guys live, but there must be a difference in the air or the terrain. In Georgia I really doubt anyone is doing any better than me without an intake.
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Ya i just noticed that, driving my sis to school i was tired and grandma driving and was driving up to 5k rpm with little to not boost feeling. Neato, guess its load or how much gas u give it.
I commute on the freeeway too.
1. Drive the speed limit 65-70. lower rpms + constant speed = better mpg
2. Go into neutral down hills, i was cruising 75 down a fatty hill for a while at 99.9 mpg!!! woohooo
3. Shift at 2500 ish, get through the gears fast keep the rpms low.
4. Keep AC off, windows up
5. FInd a big truck and draft it all the way to work!
I dont mind the gas in the MS3 because I wanted a sports car. I could have bought a Prius but, its a prius, and I wanted to go zoom zoom.
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