A year later, still averaging 20 MPG on 2018 GT AWD Mazda CX-5. Is that normal?

I

INeverFreeze

Member
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Mazda CX-5 GT AWD 2018
Hi guys.

I've had my 2018 CX-5 GT AWD for a full year now, and i'm still just averaging 20 MPG (mostly city driving). Is that normal? considering that the official Mazda specs say MPG: 24 City / 30 Hwy.

I know there can be some discrepancy between cars but at 20 MPG i might as well be driving a full size truck. lol

Just wondering if anyone else is getting low MPGs and if there's something i should do to help improve that.

would pumping premium gas help?
 
Yeah that doesn't sound right. You might see a slight increase with premium. I have the same year/model as you and I typically average around 23-24 in the city. 27-28 when it's a mix of highway and city. Do you have a roof rack of any kind? I recently put a rhino rack with ski holders on and my average dropped about 3mpg.
 
I dont have a roof rack. Basically no add ons or changes besides back up sensors (which are a waste of money, don't get them lol )

If i take a long highway trip i''ll get awesome milage but once im back to normal work / gym / home driving, it really drops to 20mpg .. right now im at 19.8MPG after filling up the tank two days ago.
 
I have a 2017 and it mostly gets the stated numbers. Maybe off 1 MPG give or take.

It could be a number of various factors for your car. Try to eliminate the obvious causes first:

1) Check to see that all your tires a properly inflated as per the door jam rating
2) Try "babying" the car. Drive like a grandmother and avoid any aggressive driving (hard acceleration or slamming on brakes) Not saying that you do - but helpful in eliminating the human factor
3) Being in California I can't imagine you let the car warm up or idle too long. But that can be a common cause of low fuel mileage.

The uncommon factors:

4) Check your fuel filter and o2 sensors. The oxygen sensors help keep the proper mixture of air and fuel, and having this off balance can be inefficient.
5) Check your spark plugs. If they misfire, or are working poorly, this can affect your gas mileage in a negative way.
6) Check the type of oil you put in the car. Make sure it is synthetic and the recommended weight.

That's all I can think of for now. I hope that helps!
 
INeverFreeze said:
I dont have a roof rack. Basically no add ons or changes besides back up sensors (which are a waste of money, don't get them lol )

If i take a long highway trip i''ll get awesome milage but once im back to normal work / gym / home driving, it really drops to 20mpg .. right now im at 19.8MPG after filling up the tank two days ago.
Click to expand...

Are you just reporting the mileage as it shows on the infotainment system? Maybe if you calculate the average mileage based on range traveled per fill up, over the course of 3 or 4 fill ups, your actual mileage may be different? I try not to rely on the system's calculator as it hasn't been accurate in other vehicles I own.

It could also be due to your driving habits and the length of your commutes. If you're a lead-footed driver, mileage will suffer. If your trips are too short for the engine to get to operating temp, that could be another culprit.
 
INeverFreeze said:
Hi guys.

I've had my 2018 CX-5 GT AWD for a full year now, and i'm still just averaging 20 MPG (mostly city driving). Is that normal? considering that the official Mazda specs say MPG: 24 City / 30 Hwy.

I know there can be some discrepancy between cars but at 20 MPG i might as well be driving a full size truck. lol

Just wondering if anyone else is getting low MPGs and if there's something i should do to help improve that.

would pumping premium gas help?
Click to expand...

Here's a question. I also do city driving, but it's about 15 miles one way and a 30-45 minute trip. I average about 25 MPG for that.

Is your driving like that, or is it very short trips where the engine doesn't even warm up all the way? If that's the case then the MPG is normal.
 
I have a 2018 touring. I'm not sure the cylinder deactivation helps much either, and I would say it hovers around 24 mpg. city/ It doesn't seem much better than the new turbo that has a lot more power, I think they get around 22 mpg. city.
 
sm1ke said:
Are you just reporting the mileage as it shows on the infotainment system? Maybe if you calculate the average mileage based on range traveled per fill up, over the course of 3 or 4 fill ups, your actual mileage may be different?
Click to expand...

This is exactly what I was about to say. I bet he/she is going off computer estimate which might be low with mostly city driving.
 
ColoradoDriver said:
Here's a question. I also do city driving, but it's about 15 miles one way and a 30-45 minute trip. I average about 25 MPG for that.

Is your driving like that, or is it very short trips where the engine doesn't even warm up all the way? If that's the case then the MPG is normal.
Click to expand...

Agree 100%. Mine is like that when making only short trips.
How far are your typical trips?
 
I guess it might have to do with the short trips, because my commutes are normally 11mi - 15mi . I'll have to do the manual calculation when i fill up the tank to see if it is any different.
 
Short trips are notoroiusly bad for fuel economy.

And yes, redo the calcs manually.

That said, increasing tyre pressures by 4psi over the recommended pressure as per the label is the best way to improve fuel economy and tire life.
 
short trips and slow traffic with many stops usually contributes to low mpg.
Sometimes I get around 15-16mpg on 5-6 miles trips with lots of traffic lights or stops. Plus when the car is still cold and cant get to proper operational temperature in short trips its even worse.
 
Its the short trips. My wife gets only 22 mpg tops on our 2013 2.0L when doing short hop city driving. Doesnt go more than 8-10 miles and shuts the car off 4-6 times a day on average. She also doesnt coast much. I get 31-33 on the highway with it.
 
INeverFreeze said:
I guess it might have to do with the short trips, because my commutes are normally 11mi - 15mi . I'll have to do the manual calculation when i fill up the tank to see if it is any different.
Click to expand...
You're not the first person to think you should be getting good mileage....in a very short trip. Trying going 30 miles and see what you get it.
 
Im getting about 17-18 with 2019 GTR in the same type of driving (mostly short trips in the city) so yes, that sounds about right.
 
INeverFreeze said:
I guess it might have to do with the short trips, because my commutes are normally 11mi - 15mi . I'll have to do the manual calculation when i fill up the tank to see if it is any different.
Click to expand...


How many miles are we talking about in those 11-15 minutes?
 
Of course, after I say that I noticed I got 23 on a 6 minute 4 Mile drive last night.
#TooManyVariables
But notice when you first start driving...this is what mine did last night
7, 11, 15, 21, 23....notice when you first start driving it's very low.
A good rule of thumb is that you won't be accurate until you've used a gallon of gas.
 
Op did not state how many miles is his city driving commute. I mean if you drive 1 mile per day in stop in go city driving you will average like 16mpgs lol.
 
CX-5um said:
Op did not state how many miles is his city driving commute. I mean if you drive 1 mile per day in stop in go city driving you will average like 16mpgs lol.
Click to expand...

That's generous. We're currently averaging 14.5mpg's. :)
 
Yep. those red lights really screw with your mileage. Getting 22.5 on 30min drives in a crowded city.
 
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