jondao08 Posted October 9, 2007 Posted October 9, 2007 I've heard other people complain about some poor gas mileage they're getting, and I'm one of the victims. I just filled my tank with about 13 gallons after driving only 200 miles (all in the city). That's just a little over 15. Shouldn't I be getting about 18? I don't push my car too much either, and drive conservatively most of the time. Any suggestions for what's wrong?
heyoceanfloor Posted October 9, 2007 Posted October 9, 2007 I've heard that cleaning the MAF sensor and resetting the ECU and then driving gently for a while will significantly up your MPG. There might be some other suggestions though
smooth1 Posted October 10, 2007 Posted October 10, 2007 I wouldn't be to concerned with the mileage for one tank. It's more about the average mileage over say a few tankfuls. You may have had a heavey traffic week and sat at lights idling more than normal. and you may have had some conversations with someone while the car ran, etc. etc. I know once in awhile it seems that the novus star aligns with Pluto and all the cars seem to decide to stack up on my trip back and fourth to work, and even the short cuts for the short cuts are packed with slow moving cars. heyoceanfloor pretty much hit the points that can be easily remedied for the mileage woes. Of course, if you really want to get good gas mileage then you can put a turbo on it.
IS3_FTW Posted October 12, 2007 Posted October 12, 2007 I get about 16-18 mpg when my tires are fully inflated, changed my oil with Mobil 1 Fully Synthetic and also dont WOP on every street light. Just drive like Driving Miss Daisy and your MPG should rise, but not significantly. But IS' are gas hogs due to the Straight 6 motor we have in it. Are you using 91 octane and above?
jondao08 Posted October 12, 2007 Author Posted October 12, 2007 Yea, I'm using 91 octane. I've reset my ECU by unplugging the battery, so we'll see how that goes.
rondoggnuts Posted October 14, 2007 Posted October 14, 2007 I have a 2003 5-spd and last couple tanks I averaged over 23 mpg mixed city/hwy. Tires are inflated to ~37psi and using a fuel additive that costs me ~ $0.70 per tank if purchased by the gallon. I actually save money because I buy cheap gas since the additives are what make "top-tier" gas different. Before the additive I averaged 20-21 mpg MAX with identical driving habits/conditions. I agree that driving habits contribute most to poor gas mileage in most cases. However, NOT ALL fuel additives are snake oil, even though most definitely are. Slightly over-inflate tires, change driving habits, perhaps clean fuel injection system with a good product like Techron concentrate, Gumout Regane, or Redline-SI-1. MAF and air filter clean then maybe consider a good additive to maintain cleanliness while buying cheap gas. Your mileage will improve!
bartkat Posted October 15, 2007 Posted October 15, 2007 I have a 2003 5-spd and last couple tanks I averaged over 23 mpg mixed city/hwy. Tires are inflated to ~37psi and using a fuel additive that costs me ~ $0.70 per tank if purchased by the gallon. I actually save money because I buy cheap gas since the additives are what make "top-tier" gas different. Before the additive I averaged 20-21 mpg MAX with identical driving habits/conditions. I agree that driving habits contribute most to poor gas mileage in most cases. However, NOT ALL fuel additives are snake oil, even though most definitely are. Slightly over-inflate tires, change driving habits, perhaps clean fuel injection system with a good product like Techron concentrate, Gumout Regane, or Redline-SI-1. MAF and air filter clean then maybe consider a good additive to maintain cleanliness while buying cheap gas. Your mileage will improve! What is the name of the additive you use Mr. Doggnuts. :D
rondoggnuts Posted October 15, 2007 Posted October 15, 2007 I have a 2003 5-spd and last couple tanks I averaged over 23 mpg mixed city/hwy. Tires are inflated to ~37psi and using a fuel additive that costs me ~ $0.70 per tank if purchased by the gallon. I actually save money because I buy cheap gas since the additives are what make "top-tier" gas different. Before the additive I averaged 20-21 mpg MAX with identical driving habits/conditions. I agree that driving habits contribute most to poor gas mileage in most cases. However, NOT ALL fuel additives are snake oil, even though most definitely are. Slightly over-inflate tires, change driving habits, perhaps clean fuel injection system with a good product like Techron concentrate, Gumout Regane, or Redline-SI-1. MAF and air filter clean then maybe consider a good additive to maintain cleanliness while buying cheap gas. Your mileage will improve! What is the name of the additive you use Mr. Doggnuts. :D I guess I could've included that in my first post, huh? :silly: It is called FP Plus made by LCD Inc. Can be purchased here: http://lcdinc.zoovy.com/ You can get more info about it from the fanatics at BITOG (Bob is the oil guy) forums here: http://theoildrop.server101.com/forums/ubbthreads.php At ~$50 for a gallon, seems expensive but is worth it if you consider we only need 1.5 oz per tank (if filling with 15 gallons). If you are not sure, you can try 1 quart for half that cost (not as good a deal). I just bought a gallon since so many people had good things to say about it. Just to summarize for you, here is a basic breakdown of what it is/does: -contains solvents to clean deposits (mildly I believe) -acts as upper cylinder lubricant (like Lucas UCL) -fuel stabilizer (keeps fuel fresh longer for storage, like STA-BIL) Basically, I recommended that you first use a good fuel system cleaner (I like Gumout Regane *in CLEAR BOTTLE* at walmart for ~$5) and the FP Plus will basically maintain cleanliness/perform mild additional cleaning. I only have ~27,000 miles on my IS and it must have been dirty because I definitely noticed a difference in acceleration after using the Gumout. I also had the car since new and NEVER averaged 23 mpg until I used FP. Normally, I would never buy something like this as I thought they were all a scam to get our money. But after plenty of research, I finally forked over the dough. I am certainly glad I did.
bartkat Posted October 15, 2007 Posted October 15, 2007 Thanks. When I wasn't driving my Firebird much I put Stabil in the gas. Later on when I drove it it seemed to have more power. I think the Stabil might have cleaned then injectors or something.
smooth1 Posted October 17, 2007 Posted October 17, 2007 and also, just cleaning or replacing your 02 sensors can increase your gas mileage. Or should I say having bad or dirty 02 sensors can hurt your gas mileage as they could be sending an incorrect message to the ecu to make the af mix richer, thus burning more fuel.
jondao08 Posted October 22, 2007 Author Posted October 22, 2007 Does anyone have a picture tutorial for cleaning out the 02 sensors? My gas mileage for the latest tank isn't looking too good again...
heyoceanfloor Posted October 23, 2007 Posted October 23, 2007 http://www.isfanatics.com/forums/showthread.php?t=93 i think that may be what you're looking for
jondao08 Posted October 24, 2007 Author Posted October 24, 2007 http://www.isfanatics.com/forums/showthread.php?t=93i think that may be what you're looking for Thanks a lot. I'll try doing the cleaning this weekend and see how it goes.
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