What do you guys average, mpg wise, on a 1.6L with automatic driving pretty conservatively. My wife only drove the car like 4 miles to work, and 4 miles back home mostly and used a remote starter in the winter so mpgs were low. I think the EPA estimates were like 26-29 if I recall, but I don't think we get that.
MPG for a 1.6L automatic
- Thread starter Pyro-tege
- Start date
Just found this thread, figured I'd contribute.
Currently,
39.5 avg ( 80% highway)
Best : 48.1 mpg (following semi's at 55mph with overinflated 5" wide tires with cruise control)
I know you've got over 5,000 posts, and I mean no disrespect, but can you explain how exactly you got better gas mileage than a Prius? I'm sorry, but unless you car was actually on the semi or you use a different type of "gallon" (or mean 48.1 km/gal or something), this is something I simply cannot believe.
No, the EPA revised the way they calculate fuel economy a few years ago to make the numbers more realistic. Again, this only further begs the question to the previous poster - how in the heck can you claim to get more than twice the EPA estimated gas mileage? Something's gotta be amiss...
All of these factors add to bump up the mpg.
1. Wind resistance - It's pretty much eliminated when drafting a semi
2. Rolling resistance - (skinny trailer tires pumped up to 80psi)
3. Fresh fluids, oil/air/fuel filters, spark plugs, etc
4. Driving style
-----all highway to avoid loss of momentum
-----shift into neutral whenever possible
-----never apply more than 40% throttle
-----limited speed 55mph
All standard US measurements.
If you ever go on a highway trip, drive behind a slow semi with the cruise control...
you'll be surprised how much of a factor wind resistance is.
All of these factors add to bump up the mpg.
1. Wind resistance - It's pretty much eliminated when drafting a semi
2. Rolling resistance - (skinny trailer tires pumped up to 80psi)
3. Fresh fluids, oil/air/fuel filters, spark plugs, etc
4. Driving style
-----all highway to avoid loss of momentum
-----shift into neutral whenever possible
-----never apply more than 40% throttle
-----limited speed 55mph
All standard US measurements.
If you ever go on a highway trip, drive behind a slow semi with the cruise control...
you'll be surprised how much of a factor wind resistance is.
Ah gotcha. I guess I didn't realize you were actually drafting a semi - you hypermiler, you.
Like I said, I meant no disrespect, I have just seen a bunch of newbs on this forum claiming outrageous gas mileage, and I still think the vast majority of the claims (not yours obviously) are simply overexaggerated.
i dont have an auto but i average up near 38-40mpg every fill up, and i do a mix of both highway and backroads driving, and weekend in the city(well kinda city it is NH after all). I got 423miles on my last fill up, and I put in 10.95 gallons you do the math. So the epa estimate isnt even close, and yes I believe prodigy is a ub3r hypermiler HAHA
lilpoindexter
Member
- :
- 99 prot 95 miata
I have a 99 1.6/ 5spd...I cant seem to bust 36mpg with it...even when i drive all hwy at 55mph here in flat - no hill michigan. In 50/50 hwy city i get around 32-34mpg. I have a 91 civic LX with automatic that gets 40mpg if i drive it the same way.
Ever changed the fuel filter?
I'm also one of those hypermilers. I drive an '00 automatic DX, and I use the pulse and glide technique and coast it down long grades. Where the gains are to be made are in how well it coasts. Inflate tires to the maximum on the sidewall [44 psi in my case], add a chin spoiler and block the upper grill. Add flush smooth wheel covers if you like, every little bit helps. You will now have a Protege with a lot less drag and really coasts nicely. This is key to breaking the 40 mpg barrier. I do draft an occasional truck or bus, but not overly closely. I stay at least 3 to 4 car lengths back.
What does all this add up to? My best to date was last weekend where I drove 460 miles and it only took 11.06 gallons of gas. This equals 41.87 mpg. The car is rated for only 33 highway. So hypermiling does work - big time in fact.
How do I know my test was accurate? I fill my car up all the way to the rim of the gas filler - every time for consistency. This does not hurt our 3rd gen Proteges' EVAP systems and won't make the check engine light come on [like it will on some other cars though]. This takes a bit of care and patience to do, but we pump our own gas in upstate NY so I have full control over this. In other states [like NJ] where you can't pump your own fuel, your out of luck on filling accuracy and hence accurate mpg numbers [every pump shuts off differently and you don't know how many more "clicks" the guy made after the first one].
Another thing to keep in mind is that your fuel injectors are shut off completely, under certain conditions while coasting in gear. Yes, it is using NO fuel during injector cut. The locking torque converter keeps the engine spinning on decell so it won't stall. I know this because I have a Scan Gauge and I can monitor when the injectors are off while coasting. My auto DX stays in injector cut until about 40 mph on coast down. If you turn off the overdrive button you can extend that until you're down to about 1400 rpm.
Lastly, you can't believe everything you read on forums, so I have to admit that 48 mpg with an auto 1.6 is little bit hard to swallow. I'd like to hear what method Prodigy uses for calculating his mileage.
Mike
What does all this add up to? My best to date was last weekend where I drove 460 miles and it only took 11.06 gallons of gas. This equals 41.87 mpg. The car is rated for only 33 highway. So hypermiling does work - big time in fact.
How do I know my test was accurate? I fill my car up all the way to the rim of the gas filler - every time for consistency. This does not hurt our 3rd gen Proteges' EVAP systems and won't make the check engine light come on [like it will on some other cars though]. This takes a bit of care and patience to do, but we pump our own gas in upstate NY so I have full control over this. In other states [like NJ] where you can't pump your own fuel, your out of luck on filling accuracy and hence accurate mpg numbers [every pump shuts off differently and you don't know how many more "clicks" the guy made after the first one].
Another thing to keep in mind is that your fuel injectors are shut off completely, under certain conditions while coasting in gear. Yes, it is using NO fuel during injector cut. The locking torque converter keeps the engine spinning on decell so it won't stall. I know this because I have a Scan Gauge and I can monitor when the injectors are off while coasting. My auto DX stays in injector cut until about 40 mph on coast down. If you turn off the overdrive button you can extend that until you're down to about 1400 rpm.
Lastly, you can't believe everything you read on forums, so I have to admit that 48 mpg with an auto 1.6 is little bit hard to swallow. I'd like to hear what method Prodigy uses for calculating his mileage.
Mike
Here's more on my 163-k Protege. Last August I entered it in an Economy Run event. In my prep for the event I added the above upper and lower grill blocks and the only place left for cooling air was small slot below the licence plate. I watched the stock temp gauge carefully and it never moved any higher than before. So I thought it did not effect engine temp at all - and this was in August! I believed this until I later bought a Scan Gauge and then found out that I was mistaken. With a Scan Gauge unit I can monitor the actual engine temp [digitally] as opposed to believing my stock gauge. In most cars built in the last 20 years or so the stock temperature gauges are frequently designed to appear rock steady during driving, making the owner feel that his car is very reliable. When that needle reaches the center of it's range, the engine could be 150 degrees all the way to 215 or so! In other words, unless the car is really overheating, you never know exactly what's really going on.
This past weekend I made the same grill blocks out of choroplast and reinstalled them before a trip to southern NJ. This time though, I could see what my actual engine temps were with the Scan Gauge unit. My car normally runs at 195 degrees. With the grill blocks back in place, I got on the Thruway and the temp went right to 205 and kept slowly climbing until 213 deg, at which point I decided that was high enough and pulled over to widen the lower grill block a little. I didn't have to peel back the lower grill block much to get temps under control, maybe 2 inches on each side. I don't mind 200 to 205 or so, as a hotter engine burns the fuel more completely. So here's what I ended up with.
As an additional note, I now know that my electric cooling fan comes on at 206 degrees. Obviously if you're interested in best mileage you don't want your cooling fan to come on at any other time than when you're stuck in traffic. It represents an increased electrical draw on the charging system and raises fuel consumption. Generally it should never have to come on when you're moving. With my grill blocks in place, mine was probably on the entire time during last August's Economy Run!
So how did my grill blocks do on my round trip to NJ last weekend? Well in addition to my new low drag moon disc wheel covers and folding in both side view mirrors, I finally broke 40 mpg [41.87 actual] with my automatic equipped Protege DX. That's almost 10 mpg more than the car is rated for. I like that.
