2nd tank of gas - Impressive fuel economy for GT AWD

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thegrapeguy

Member
:
2013 Mazda CX5 GT
I have the CX5 GT AWD. I bought it out of state because of the better value of my trade in ('10 Honda Odyssey) plus I combined the purchase of the CX5 with a week long boys vacation in Cape Hatteras. My first tank of gas was the dealer-filled tank and from Delaware to Syracuse I got 26.7 MPG. I was a little bummed but looking back I realized that my car was packed to the brim with all the belongings stowed in the Odyssey which included all kinds of sports gear, music gear, coolers, etc. Also the ride home was against a "side on" headwind out of the NorthWest of about 15mph. It was however mostly highway.

When I got home I took it to my local Mazda dealer for the NYState inspection and mentioned the mileage and the service manager said that often times dealer gas is poor quality, low octane and could affect gas mileage as well. So on the second tank I drove 336 miles of exactly the type of miles I will be doing. That includes my commute which is 15 miles one-way of some highway and some city (but more "go 3 miles hit a stoplight country road stuff"). It also includes daily jaunts with my Dad and daughter to local eateries and parks. It includes using air-conditioning periodically as well.

I knew right away when the bars got exactly to halfway point that I was going to get better than the first tank but I did not know by how much. It took 11.7 gallons of gas to fill it up and that was with a couple extra "squirts" to top it off. So my mileage was 28.71 MPG on the 2nd tank. Since that is my normal driving habit and the fact that it may improve with time is IMPRESSIVE. However a few more fill ups will be more conclusive.

My goal in making the switch from the Odyssey was to obtain 30 MPG combined. The Odyssey got about 21 MPH in my normal driving routine. "Combined" driving in my neck of the woods means little true "city" miles and more spread out stop lights and 40-60 MPH type driving.
 
The engine needs about 5,000 miles break-in to get the best mileage. Another comment. DO NOT give the gas filler nozzle a few extra squirts. You will mess up the evaporation system by loading the charcoal canister with gas and maybe foul the valve that controls the recirulation vent (Not sure of the valve termanology). Ed
 
Just filled my next tank and got 28.53 mpg on the last tank. I theorize the difference between this and the last is I didn't quirt any extra gas at the end of the pump. I also drove up a big hill and my wife stomped on it several times while driving it saying "This thing needs some balls"!!!
 
^ Let your wife know how to downshift manually and keep the revs up while climbing big hills (it helps considerably).
 
thegrapeguy said:
Just filled my next tank and got 28.53 mpg on the last tank. I theorize the difference between this and the last is I didn't quirt any extra gas at the end of the pump. I also drove up a big hill and my wife stomped on it several times while driving it saying "This thing needs some balls"!!!
Click to expand...

LOL!!

Just let the auto do what its programmed to do, conserve fuel.
 
Do keep us posted of your fuel economy, I am particularly interested in what the GT AWD models get MPG wise.

Thanks!
 
26.7 mpg hand-calculated in first 3000 miles of heavy traffic commuting and suburban mixed (including about 300 miles of extended freeway driving at 70-80mph). Mine is GT awd purchased in mid-March.
 
3rd tank yielded 28.37 this week. Same gas station, same pump, not topping it off. I tried using the info button and it said I got 28.9 mpg but my method of calculating mileage is the normal way (miles driven divided by gallons needed to fill). This time I drained the tank to "E" and refilled. Didn't do anything differently this past week except use more AC.
 
Got 28.93 mpg this week. Included was a 100 mile highway jaunt that I normally wouldn't do which is why this is my best mpg to date (I think).
 
^ Sounds similar to one of my best tanks at 28.1 mpg, mostly suburban/city traffic including 150 miles of freeway driving on weekend.
 
Have had a few more fill ups and my best mileage was 29.5 mpg calculated the old fashioned way (total miles divided by gallons needed at fill up). Seems like the fuel economy has improved as I have reached 4000 miles with the most recent being 28.77 mpg and the previous being the 29.5 mpg mostly suburban driving averaging about 38 mph. No change in my driving habits, no trips or extended highway usage recently. The few times I have done highway adventures my mileage was so so... I think that's due to the fact that when I travel I load up the car with weight and drive 75 mph.

I pay no attention to the "average mpg" displayed by the car's "info" gauge. It is always higher than my calculated results. It's showing 30.3 mpg now. After the first 2000 miles it was showing 29.5 mpg. So the upward trend in my gas mileage seems to be true. People speak about the gas mileage improving after a good break in. I don't find .8 mpg earth shattering after 4000 miles. But there has been an improvement and that's welcome.
 
I dont get what happened, but my first tank of gas was really the best tank i ever got. My habits really havent changed. :(
 
I've had mine for 1500 miles now. When I filled up, my trip computer said I got 27 mpg but I calculated it at 23, which is very disappointing considering 75% of that tank was highway and the highest the computer said was 30mpg.

Also, when I had two notches left on the fuel gauge, I only fit 13.4 gallons in (filled up to first click and topped off to the next dollar), then today I had one notch left and the pump stopped at 12.6 gallons.

On my fill up today after driving 340 miles all interstate (at 70-75mph) I only got 24mpg? I am not at all impressed with my fuel economy in this thing or the accuracy of the trip computer.


I've got a GT-AWD also
 
I also have the GT, AWD and am getting 26.3 as per Fuelly after 2000 miles. However, the car reads 27.4 (note: we have not reset it since buying the vehicle). As I see it, there is no way the car can know exactly how much gas you are actually putting in the tank...only an approximate. As long as it stays within 1 MPG, I'm good. Besides, Fuelly is my main tracker. The last two tanks returned 27.5 and 27.3, respectively.

Before we bought the car, I guessed that this car would return a 28 MPG average for our family. Mainly due to my wife's lead foot. She tends to want to go a little faster than me...and often does!! LOL. We are quite happy so far. I calculated that we will save somewhere in the neighborhood of $70/mo over our last vehicle (CX-7 Touring) in gas!! That's great!!
 
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se7en - Welcome to mazdas247. Your reported actual mileage and MPG reading on dash is very close to what I've recorded over last 6000 miles (26.4 actual, 27.5 on dash). I'm driving with a pretty heavy foot in a lot of dense commute traffic, so gas mileage is close to expectations given EPA rating (28 combined assumes 55% city, 45% highway) for awd. My savings in gas per month exceeds $100 since CX-5 replaced a Ford Explorer.
 
CX-SV said:
My savings in gas per month exceeds $100 since CX-5 replaced a Ford Explorer.
Click to expand...
An Exploder!! Good choice to trade in on the Mazda. This is my wife's car...I drive a lifted '09 Tacoma 4-door, 4x4 TRD Sport. Fulley = 18.2 MPG. My other two rides are a 2007 Honda CBR600RR and a 2011 Kawasaki Ninja 1000. The CBR is a track bike so MPG doesn't play, but the Ninja is a commuter. Fuelly on that one is 42.8.
 
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<se7en> said:
An Exploder!! Good choice to trade in on the Mazda. This is my wife's car...I drive a lifted '09 Tacoma 4-door, 4x4 TRD Sport. Fulley = 18.2 MPG. My other two rides are a 2007 Honda CBR600RR and a 2011 Kawasaki Ninja 1000. The CBR is a track bike so MPG doesn't play, but the Ninja is a commuter. Fuelly on that one is 42.8.
Click to expand...

You bet, 07 Exploder SOHC V8/6 speed, had mid-50K miles, 14-15mpg consistently. Didn't want to wait for exhaust manifold leak to develop (too common), spark plug replacement (tend to break plugs as they get seized-up with carbon if you wait for recommended interval), climate control module had started squeaking so it would crap out soon enough, replacement of original brakes.

Other 2 cars are much quicker sport sedans.
 
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