Winter Gas Mileage for Auto P5's

[xvdarkyvx]

Alright. I'm getting kind of annoyed with my p5 mileage.. Just filled up and got 22 mpg... Wtf is that. Anyways, i have an 2003.5 auto p5 at 22900 miles. Mods = mazda speed wheels, at 215/45/17 and mazdaspeed exhaust axelback for p5. Anyone know what I can do to improve mileage because it seems everyone else is getting way above this. I also want to know what other p5 autos are getting.

[djdanny5000]

i get the same exact gas mileage here in FL and i have intake and header and i drive pretty rough to try adding acetone some people have used it and said they got better gas mileage

[Lord_Zath]

been getting the same here or worse. but sometimes I get really good mileage, too. Must be the gas...

[kgo]

i've been getting about 25-27 mpg on a consistent basis. granted, i dont drive it too hard (dont really go past 3k rpm, ~65mph), but i do live in the city. best thing to do is probably the general things....tire pressure, drive at a more constant speed and at a low rpm, clean air filter, oil change, blah blah blah.

[xvdarkyvx]

Just ticked me off.. I drive pretty slow but yeah. been getting 25+mpg .... Suddenly drops to 22 and never been up since. Argh...

[Lord_Zath]

you can always try resetting the ECU.

[p5power]

i always seem to get worse gas mileage in winter. 24mpg is a good day. i did put the roof rack back on though, so i kinda figure that's also effecting the economy. but the car looks better with the racks on during the winter, i think. it gives it that utilitarian look being all dirty, covered in snow and sporting fugly wheel covers over the steelies.

[xvdarkyvx]

alright. so i guess 22's not that bad... but i still think it is when i'm suppose to be getting what? 27... haha. anyways, when you guys stop with the tiptronic, do you down shift, or do you just let it automatically downshift for you to first? do you think this would make any difference in the mileage?

[kgo]

if i know i'm going to stop, then i just let it downshift on its own. i dont think it would make any difference on your fuel efficiency since it's not requiring you to use any more/less gas in any of the instances. if i'm going to be slowing down and not stopping, then i'll take it from 3rd to 2nd only because i dont like it when it's in 1st in those situations. this, at least in my mind, should reduce the gas consumption relative to being in 1st. bear in mind that when you start thinking of this ahead of time when you're driving, you tend to come to a full stop less often, and thus should be able to save gas. just one of the few things i do to occupy my time in the car and prevent myself from sheer boredom in traffic.

[fLyPiNoY7]

28mpg...mostly highway driving and a bit of city driving too...

[djp5]

Recalculate your mpg based on your larger wheels...theyre about 4% larger (btw i have the exact same setup, auto with the axleback and MSP wheels for the summer). I took a road trip from PA to FL with 4 ppl and luggage and we averaged 24 to 25 mpg, going 65-75 mph.

[MP5_509]

ive been averaging 25-27 this winter. The drive to work is 7miles highway at 60mph.

[xvdarkyvx]

I did throw in the 4%... yeah.. not that great... I average all city, everything under 10 miles per trip + my dad moves my car to the sidewalk/other side of the driveway 1 or 2 times per day. So i guess that might factor into it too. Apparently, I should leave my car on the driveway most of the time because someone hit my car a few weeks ago and didn't leave a message.. =(

[CTt3P5]

I have been reading everybody's mpg but how many miles are you getting to a tank?

The dealer sent me off last week with a full tank and I had to fill 'er up Sat. with 254 miles on the trip odometer. Is this about average? My commute is 40 miles roundtrip with 25 of those highway, oh and the wife had her one day around town. Next time I fill her up I am going to calculate my mpg.

I have the auto with roof rack....currently looking for the caps/covers so I can remove my cross bars.

I am sure it doesn't help that I live in the Northeast considering the additives they put in the gas for 'cleaner burning' :bs:

[SoonP5ismine]

2 weeks ago i came back from canada and on highway use with 87 octane gas i was getting exactly 30 miles per gallon so this means that everything is like it should be. as far as mixing city and highway i cant really tell you cuz it depends on traffic conditions and other factors. manufacturers get their milage ratings from government tests on closed test tracks. if i could repeat the exact way i drive every day untill i run out of gas then i could tell you the city milage i get. maybe that is it? you driver differently in winter like warm up the car, use the heat and other things and thats why you see that your milage is less.

[Protege52003]

i get around 25 with my normal weekly driving around town.......winter and summer. get around 30+- on the highway in all seasons; a little lower with bikes and skies on the car and a lot lower with the kayaks on the car!

winter gas hurts me in the winter and AC hurts me in the summer.......

[redpr5]

ive been wonderin whats up with ppl gettin terrible gas mileage in their p5s. i average 30mpg all the time, summer and winter. with roof racks on and wind deflector on year round. i got a bone stock 2002 auto p5 and i drive it hard too. i think the lowest i got was 24mpg, but that was cuz i was goin 110 down the highway at full throttle, but other than that i get really good milage on 87 octane and no additives at all.

[FunkyBuddha]

Winter tires make a difference. In winter I get bad mileage as well. I think it's because of the denser air, the heater going, and the idling time during cold starts. I usually let the car warm up for 5 - 15 minutes depending on how cold it is.

I get about 450km per 45 Liters of gas

In the summer I average 530km per 45 Liters.

[p5power]

Winter tires make a difference. In winter I get bad mileage as well. I think it's because of the denser air, the heater going, and the idling time during cold starts. I usually let the car warm up for 5 - 15 minutes depending on how cold it is.

yeah, i was just thinking about those things today...after i got back from the gas station and found i got like 22mpg. ugh...can't wait to put my summer tires back on!!

[aMaff]

any1 mention winter blend gas for y'all northerners yet?

[dupa12345]

im glad we got this thread .. cause im on a pussy driving mission as of last fill up

im in the hard core econo mode .. finding new low points for shifts, coasting all the time, and all that .. its actually super annoying but i'm determined to last a whole tank .. as spinning around in one place doesnt help gas mileage i even gave up on some snowy lots few days ago .. all in all, i think im about at half and 150 miles and ill let you know my best possible winter mileage in a few days

[NoRotor,NoMotor]

also if you use the defrost mode alot it automatically uses the a/c with it which reduces mileage

[dupa12345]

yeah .. none of that .. no heat .. no wipers .. dude im seriously giving it the total slim fast treatment

[aMaff]

heat's not bad if you have it on either of the 2 top-right positions (head / head-foot). those are the only 2 that don't use the compressor

[CTt3P5]

aMaff - Thanks for the tip on the heat settings.

I just filled my tank up this morning.....291.8 miles on the last tank and she took 11.7 gallons....just under 25mpg. I was honestly hoping to see better (30 or so) but I have hopes for summer (no 'winter blend'). Although they will jack prices up due to 'peak season' and I will still pay more to fill up a tank even if I get better mpg. :mad:

dupa12345 - I know what you mean about trying to drive easier....but it is sooooo hard to do. (drive2) This car is a blast to drive....my only regret is waiting so long to get one.

[xvdarkyvx]

hmmm never knew about the defroster thing... better not use it then.. haha. maybe it'll help my mpg.. also, redhotp5... do you have a manual or auto.. believe that autos get such a crappier mpg.

[aMaff]

From what I can gather, you have 3 things working against mileage in winter (only 2 if ur not in a winter blend gas state...)
1. Winter blend gas. Nuff said.
2. Defroster kicks the A/C compressor on (even if you have it on heat only)
3. (If I'm mistaken here, lemme know, but: ) Even w/ a stock intake, you have colder air going into the engine. Colder air is denser, meaning you get more air. ECU sees more air and compensates to get the right a:f ratio by pushing more gas out of the injectors

[CTt3P5]

xvdarkyvx - I have the auto. I know the 5-speed would be better but never had the oppurtunity to learn.... Reason I was hoping for better is the majority of miles driven are highway....50 mile roundtrip. I will use aMaff's advice and try running my heat w/o the compressor....should help some.

aMaff - I never actually thought about it but point three makes a lot of sense!!

[tokstad]

Just clocked 20.8 mpg on my p5. This was 90% city driving with defrost on most of the time. Also short trips (3 miles or so each way).

20.8 is aweful. I think I'll pull the battery cable to reset the ECU. I've also just done the grille modification so more air can flow into the snorkel on the intake.

[dupa12345]

AC kicks on only in two settings - windsield and windshield/feet, the other 3 are heat only
winter is good for performance if its just cold .. but moisture kills it .. so on snowy days it all goes to hell
and yeah its hard as fuck .. everytime i get passed by grandma in a taurus i feel like somebody is raping my assss

anyways i pretty much mastered shifts at 0/10/20/30/40 and coasting to my target ..for example from say 42mph i can coast about at least qtr of a mile to redlight without disrupting traffic

and off course .. RR crossings engine off

as im doing all city driving .. the biggest skill is anticipating red lights and best speed for approaching them to prevent stoping and starting again from first .. so i usually let it costs somewhere in the 30's to be able to pick up in 4th and right back to 5th

speed limits are pretty much 35 around here so 40-45 in 5th is fair though i go faster sometimes

[aMaff]

ac kicks on in Feet only mode. Sit outside the car one time, you'll hear the compressor going on and off. Don't ask me why, it's dumb as shit, but it just does.

[SoonP5ismine]

ac kicks on in Feet only mode. Sit outside the car one time, you'll hear the compressor going on and off. Don't ask me why, it's dumb as shit, but it just does.
ya its true. ac goes on in 3 settings. windshield, windshield feet and feet. anyone know how to stop the ac from going without taking apart the fan speed switch. somone told me you have to disconnect some connection in there. i leave my setting on vent/feet that way the floor gets dry and blows some heat in the car too.

[i12drivemyMP5]

ya its true. ac goes on in 3 settings. windshield, windshield feet and feet. anyone know how to stop the ac from going without taking apart the fan speed switch. somone told me you have to disconnect some connection in there. i leave my setting on vent/feet that way the floor gets dry and blows some heat in the car too.

Do a search. There is a how-to in here somewhere about disabling the auto ac function where the compressor will only run when the ac button is pushed. It involves cutting 2 pathways on the climate control circuit board with an exacto knife or razor blade. Simple to do, not quite as simple to get to.

[dupa12345]

thats weird .. but ok .. i've seen the how to on that before as well

but as to my best winter gas mileage ever .. I WENT 305 miles before my reserve light came on .. or somewhere there .. dont quite remember .. i do know for a fact though .. that .. i had 314.2 on my trip A when i stopped at a gas station and filled it up with 12.476 gallons of fuel

that makes for a 25.2MPG WINTER (estimated 75% city) in my stick P5 .. if you really try and smile to grannies that pass by flashing fast right by you .. thx for their support in this experiment

[dupa12345]

also my wheel diameter is slightly bigger so i cover a little more ground

[ejb2112]

I get a pretty consistent 25 MPG on my all-stock '02 P5 (just hit 50K miles last week). Funny thing tho: replaced the factory Dunlops a couple years ago with Falkens (and slightly plus-sized to 205/50/16's) and immediately lost 2.5 MPG. Pretty significant difference. And the Dunlops rode slightly better, too.

[CTt3P5]

Just filled up this morning and mpg were just under 24. Lost one from last week but did more city driving...Seems like I am going to average 24 to 25 for the winter...still hoping to hit 30 (or higher) come summertime.

[bazooka joe]

just filled up sat. and calculated the mpg @ 25, mostly highway..the car is boosted, could be tuned better, so i think i can get a few more miles out of it...i dumping more fuel than i need to when in boost, so maybe i can get another 2 or 3 miles per gallon???

[flynP5]

Just did a long highway run and got: 23.69 miles per US gallon / 9.93 litres per 100 km.

I've seen 9 litres on SUV's, WTF is going on, I drove the speed limit the whole way, never pushed it.

[MazdaPam]

...anyways i pretty much mastered shifts at 0/10/20/30/40 and coasting to my target ..for example from say 42mph i can coast about at least qtr of a mile to redlight without disrupting traffic

as im doing all city driving .. the biggest skill is anticipating red lights and best speed for approaching them to prevent stoping and starting again from first .. so i usually let it costs somewhere in the 30's to be able to pick up in 4th and right back to 5th...

I am inspired and will be working on this strategy myself.

Good thread, this.

[bazooka joe]

got my fuel issue squared away now...27 mpg

[ZOOMit]

Winter or not, 5spd or auto. Our car suck. And are slow, that's why I have to rev my auto up to 4 or 5k to get the hell outta traffic. And that's why I'm getting shitty mileage. I get between 22-26 city....Prob will be looking for something that gets better mileage after tax season.

*edit* I dont coast at all. Can't coast when going to work, 70+mph on the backroads baby! woot!

[bazooka joe]

so you say, i didn't buy my car for the gas milegae anyway!(yes)

[StealthWyvern]

Eh I always get 24-26mpg depending no how much my foot is in it with 80 city/20hwy roughly.

[2slow2go]

I bought my P5 about 3 months ago, but only recenly picked it up from storage (I left it in the Dealer showroom until the snow melted).
I was getting pretty nervous reading all these "poor gas mileage" comments!

Well, I've had mine on the road now for 2 weeks, and I think I get great mileage per tank.
My P5 is a 2002, Manual, with 170,000 kms on it. Bone stock except for K&N drop in filter. Last fillup I did exactly 620 kms when I stopped at the station to fill her back up. Thats 385 miles per tank!
Drive her daily, never have the defrost on, unless absolutely needed, and rarely drive past 125 kph (78 mph) on the highway.

[jad0110]

One of thing to consider with fuel economy is excess weight, especially in a lighter car like the MP5. Empty your car of any excess crap that isn't needed. You'll get a bit more pep too.

Also, I use the cruise whenever possible, and I drive 60 in a 55. As the link below discusses, fuel economy usually decreases dramatically at speeds above 60. I used to drive 64 on my way to work, and by slowing to 60 my average fuel economy went up by 2 to 3 mpg. Now, I don't advocate doing 60 in a 75 zone, that's just dangerous. Keeping the tires at proper air pressure has many benefits (better mileage, better tire wear, etc). It all adds up. My MP5 manual averages 31 to 32 MPG. I've seen as high as 34 on a couple of occaisions.

Here's a few more tips:

http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/driveHabits.shtml

I wonder if those that are getting really crappy mileage (20 or less) have bad O2 sensors?

[Lord_Zath]

One of thing to consider with fuel economy is excess weight, especially in a lighter car like the MP5. Empty your car of any excess crap that isn't needed. You'll get a bit more pep too.

Also, I use the cruise whenever possible, and I drive 60 in a 55. As the link below discusses, fuel economy usually increases dramatically at speeds above 60. I used to drive 64 on my way to work, and by slowing to 60 my average fuel economy went up by 2 to 3 mpg. Now, I don't advocate doing 60 in a 75 zone, that's just dangerous. Keeping the tires at proper air pressure has many benefits (better mileage, better tire wear, etc). It all adds up. My MP5 manual averages 31 to 32 MPG. I've seen as high as 34 on a couple of occaisions.

Here's a few more tips:

http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/driveHabits.shtml

I wonder if those that are getting really crappy mileage (20 or less) have bad O2 sensors?

Don't you mean that fuel economy DECEASES at speeds above 60?

And yeah I'm the same way. Driving 75 home from college took me about 2 hours, 30 minutes. I set the cruise control to 60 once to see the difference. Took me 2 hours, 45 minutes. Big deal!

[jad0110]

Don't you mean that fuel economy DECEASES at speeds above 60?

Oops ... fixed! (crazy) Good catch.

[Valk]

well. i havent done any real milage tests on my ride, but it sucks <_< I go through on average $30/week. Even if i drive like a whiteman

[ElJimmyStrappo]

My wife and I just drove from Idaho to California. We got about 350 miles per tank and averaged 29-30 mpg. I thought it would be a lot more than that. My bro-in-law reported that they got 38 mpg. I don't know if that was a mistake or not, it seems like an awful lot. My inlaws have a Honda Hybrid and they are getting in the 40's, so 38 mpg on a non-Hybrid seems a bit odd.

[StealthWyvern]

My wife and I just drove from Idaho to California. We got about 350 miles per tank and averaged 29-30 mpg. I thought it would be a lot more than that. My bro-in-law reported that they got 38 mpg. I don't know if that was a mistake or not, it seems like an awful lot. My inlaws have a Honda Hybrid and they are getting in the 40's, so 38 mpg on a non-Hybrid seems a bit odd.

It's possable to get 38mpg on a non hybrid but it depends on the car and if its all hwy. I used to get that in my old ford aspire... now thats a car that has no power but good gas milage.


threadjack...
Check out this car... 800hp bio rocket impala
http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070420/FREE/70418005/1029


According to the May 7 2007 autoweek mag page 14...
They could decrease the power to only 400hp and get est 48mpg.
end threadjack

[HawkBat]

Well my trip from Chicago and back I was getting an average of about 30mpg and I was going 70-75 most the way. I am enjoying the gas mileage on it when I don't drive like speed racer and such, but even so gas mileage is far better then the old MPV i used to drive.

[Not Jo3L]

so switching back to my stock air intake from a CAI will make my car suck warmer air which in turn makes the car dump less fuel and my mpg will go back to "normal"?

[CTt3P5]

It's possable to get 38mpg on a non hybrid but it depends on the car and if its all hwy. I used to get that in my old ford aspire... now thats a car that has no power but good gas milage.

LOL...I used to avg 35-36 with my aspire. When I first bought it a fill up from empty was about $7. P5 has worse mileage but more power and better looks.

This winter I avg 22-23 for the season and roughly 250-270 miles per tank. I did have a couple of tanks exceed 300 miles.

[Tom03es]

My sedan with a sport auto typically gets 25 mpgs per tank. Doesn't seem to matter what the weather is like or which tires I have on (winter 195/55-15 and summer 215/45-17).

I've drained several tankfulls with non-stop interstate driving at 75-85 mph and got roughly 22-23 mpgs. Usually fighting a head or cross wind at the time too.

[StealthWyvern]

LOL...I used to avg 35-36 with my aspire. When I first bought it a fill up from empty was about $7. P5 has worse mileage but more power and better looks.

This winter I avg 22-23 for the season and roughly 250-270 miles per tank. I did have a couple of tanks exceed 300 miles.

Yeah tell me about it those aspires were ugly cars but you cant beat the deal I got on mine 75 bucks and it looked like a damn easter egg! However it ran good. It was a purplish pink color.



My sedan with a sport auto typically gets 25 mpgs per tank. Doesn't seem to matter what the weather is like or which tires I have on (winter 195/55-15 and summer 215/45-17).

I've drained several tankfulls with non-stop interstate driving at 75-85 mph and got roughly 22-23 mpgs. Usually fighting a head or cross wind at the time too.

Same her doesn't matter if im on my stock rims with stock size or my aftermarket rims.