embarrassingly bad mileage... REALLY

[voodoo22]

Originally Posted by otterhere

I'd be crying if I were getting 20; my 29 (city) to 36 (hwy) is bad enough when I read about others supposedly getting 42-50 without even trying. It's rather disappointing.?

29-36 US MPG is nothing to be upset with on the Yaris. It isn't possible to consistently get over 40 US MPG without having a favorable driving routine and putting effort into how you drive.

[Woody_Woodchuck]

Dccurrent: For the gas used I record it when I fill up the tank. For the miles driven I use the difference between the last odometer reading and the present one.

Example: Friday I filled up using 6.181 gallons US (number right from the gas pump). The previous Odometer reading was 8,873.7 miles, when I filled up it was 9,172.9 miles, the difference is 299.2 miles. Dividing the miles by gas used: 299.2 / 6.181 = 48.406 miles per gallon US.

This is actually an approximation for the tank due to the actual amount of gas pumped. Did I fill to exactly the same amount as last tank? Most likely not even though I use the same pump at the same station. But, it all averages out over several tanks so if you are consistently getting about the same mileage it all good.

And yes, I work very hard to get this mileage! Light touch on the gas (drive like grandpa), no speeding, plan trips, use momentum up the hills-coast down them… It all adds up for me. I WISH I could get to the magic 50 mpg by driving like a nut but it isn’t going to happen. I believe anyone getting 40 mpg or better has modified their driving habits to get better mileage.

[yopauly]

Originally Posted by Spades

ok, well, your old school v8s should actually be changed in a few minutes after running. older engine tolerances arent as exact as the new engines, meaning that when the piston rings are grinding up against the rough cylinder wall edges, they are in the process of "seating". not only are they forming a seal, they are creating alot of very small metal shavings in the process.

with that being said, on alot of high performance engines i have helped build, we have fired them up, and changed the oil after running for 10 or so minutes, changed the oil, then, ran oil in it for a while during a hard run(if its in the car, take it out and run it through the RPM ranges) and then change it again.

using synthetic oil on ANY engine near the break in point is not a good idea, the molecules in most synthetics are so fine, that sometimes a proper ring seat is never achived because there isnt enough friction. as time goes on, more and more auto manufactures claim their engines do not need break in time, and that synthetics are ok from the start.

my personal recommendation for breaking a new car in...

run the factory oil in it for a day. drive the car through all the RPM ranges, even close to redline. dont push the car hard up hills or be abusive, but never granny it. run it through all the ranges at a steady pace, and never keep the RPM's the same for a extended period(if you are commuting, bounce between 3rd, 4th, and 5th if its a manual). change the oil with a high quality petrolium based motor oil of the vehicles recommended weight. run that oil for a few hundred miles and replace it with the same stuff.

if you plan to run synthetics, start running a blend no sooner than 5,000 miles. for the first few thousand miles, change the oil every 3k, sooner if you are doing city driving, lots of idleing, or start up-shut off driving.

after at least 10k, start with synthetics. you can start stretching the oil change intervals out if you have a high grade synthetic.

personally, i go:

100 miles or less(regular oil change)
300-500 miles(regular oil change)
3000 miles (regular oil change)
6000 miles (synthetic blend oil change)
every 3k a syn blend oil change(i do mostly city driving).

this is a VERY excessive and overly carefull break in process. you dont have to do it, you dont really need to do it. but, if you want to do things perfectly and you want to keep the car till it dies, its a few more bucks on oil changes, but its the obsessive way to do it.

p.s. forgot to mention. the side affect to piston rings not seating is oil consumption at later milage. most imports make it alot of miles before oil burning regardless of how they were maintained...im just obsessive compulsive on the proper break in stuff,lol.

Hey Spades. You are correct. Its been so long I forgot. I just knew it was pretty dang quickly.

Now something else. This is soooooo very important. Keep an eye on your air pressure. I forgot to follow my own rule of max pressure minus 2-5 psi. I hadnt checked it in like 3 or so months. Down to 28 I think right before we went on a vacation. I air them up and for the first time EVER I ALMOST broke 40!!! 39.11 with almost no town driving. I wanted to do NO town driving and actually put more than 170 highway miles on it before I checked but it was just a minor vacation.

[Twistoffate0817]

I also feel like im getting very LOW mpg, and no im not driving in "3" I cant figure out how to improve the mileage.

[Yaris Hilton]

Look here: http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1510

Scroll down to Section II, Basic Driving Techniques.

Equipment has far less to do with it than driving.

[voodoo22]

Originally Posted by Yaris Hilton

Look here: http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1510

Scroll down to Section II, Basic Driving Techniques.

Equipment has far less to do with it than driving.

More sound advice from Yaris Hilton

[briman]

I am a bit disappointing with with my 33mpg today, mostly highway.

[ozmdd]

Tire pressure and TRULY mellow acceleration are the keys to high MPG. If you've upgraded to bigger/wider tires/rims, you'll also see a slight loss of MPG due to more rolling resistance, but you get increased grip.
I drive "normally", without much attention paid to coasting, and try not to do to much jack-rabbit stuff in traffic, but I occasionally do have to double downshift and pass the ultra-morons on their cell phones. Also, I run some fairly stick tires 215/40/17 (Azenis 615's) on 17x7 Draglites, but I keep the pressure fairly high (35-ish) and the stock TPMS is happy. Most of my driving is city/freeway. I generally average 34 in town. I've gotten 41 on a tank on the highway on this same setup, but it was in the winter (no A/C), 65 MPH on cruise for literally 95% of the tank on west Texas highways (zero traffic, one restroom stop). On the outbound leg of that same trip, I was on the Interstate where the speed limit is 70, 75 and 80 mph, and I only averaged 36.5 with a headwind. The Yaris really suffers above 65-70 MPH, due to the simple physics of drag and a smallish HP rating. I suspect that a 55 MPH long-distance road trip could go well above 40 MPG, but I'd rather spend a few bucks more and get where I'm going in this lifetime.
Hypermiling is a fun game, and I did it quite a bit when I initially bought the Yaris (novelty, $4/gal gas and new car break-in), but I personally think I'm doing my share for the environment by simply driving a Yaris. I like my driving better now that I don't overthink it. Hypermiling is a lot like dieting.

[Lafiro]

I live in NYC as well, and during the winter, the snow, and the cold make me get around 26-28MPG, this is both stop and go, and mixed highway.

Now I'm getting closer to 28mpg average per tank. But honestly even on the highway in NYC, if its a quite night, everyone including me is driving at 70mph+, and when its the day, the highways are stop and go. Thats all because of the city/people going from long island o NJ and vise versa. Then there are the college kids driving too.

Wait until its the end of July, and there wont be as much traffic anymore.

But also, to add to my low MPG, I am on ADR Model Flite 4, with 205/45/17 Falken 912? tires.

So I know for a fact the day I went from stock tires in the summer, and 35+MPG, I dropped to 30MPG at the best because of these rims/tires. And it just gets worse with the cold weather and traffic. I ain't complaining though, because 28-30mpg is still wirth it. Especially the way I drive lol... heavy foot 80% of the time.

[GnomeBody]

This is neither here nor there but my previous car (2003 licoln LS) would monitor my MPG for me, and It would always amaze me how fast the number would start going down when I was stuck in traffic (bumper to bumper and less than 5mph)

any way, basicly what Im trying to say is if your at a stand still for half the time your running the car than I could see why you might be only be getting half the normal MPG.

[scape]

I get around 34 mpg consistently, and I drive spiritedly. I also change my oil every 4000-4500 miles, rotate my tires each time, and so on...the worst mileage I got was 26, once. it was saddening-- but it was summer, hot as hell, drove a lot and with many passengers, and I had the AC on all the time. if you're getting below 28, I'd suggest different gas- most gas is now ethanoled down which will lower your mpg a bit, but also no-name pumps are putting crap in there...i think if you make sure your car is in good shape, especially the tires and alignment, and turn off your AC once in a while-- the mpg will look better.

[scape]

Originally Posted by ozmdd

but I'd rather spend a few bucks more and get where I'm going in this lifetime.

lol, I agree. though I stick around 65+ usually, anything over 65+ and air seems to stack up too easily, almost exponentially