Anyway to increase MPG??

[fatalsports]

Hey,

I posted here before about wanting to sell our EX35...we ended up taking it to Carmax and being negative about 10k .

So, obviously we are going to keep the car...I'm going to try and sell my car (sports car) and drive the EX35 from now on since my wife just had the baby and will be staying home.

I reviewed her average mpg and it was around 16-17mpg. Im going to be driving this about 120 miles a day so I was trying to see if anyone had any tips/mods to get better fuel efficiency.

I know with a few previous cars, you could buy a handheld programmer that already has a tune pre-loaded and from past experience...the mpg did increase somewhat.

Just wanted to hear anyone else opinion on the matter.

Thanks

[lybrian1]

just dont accelerate too much and too fast. i know its hard on a car like this but limit yourself and drive less aggressively

[googleman]

Actually the highway mileage of EX is not that bad. I get about 26-27mpg on the highway at 70-75 mph. The city mileage is a whole different story though, I feel lucky if I get above 12mpg!

[cjre1]

I hear that. I am averaging about 23 MPG for both city and highway, especially if you hit all the red lights. These V6 engines love to drink the gas.

[RioD007]

pump up your tires to 38psi cold

[driveforfun]

As others have written, you will experience much better MPG with the highway miles. I average around 23 overall, but do in the 26-28 range on highway trips.

My best suggestion when driving in the gas conservation mode is to keep the rpm's under 3,000. It is actually quite easy to do, and will not compromise your ability to accelerate adequately. Obviously though, it will diminish the fun factor (bummer!), but you can do pretty darn well in managing your gas mileage if you keep the rpm's below 3,000.

Then every once in awhile just get out and drive for fun!!

[RCHarris]

My opinion? Fuggetaboutit!!

Rant on:This EX35 is a fuel pig, plain and simple. I've tried everything to better my fuel consumption over the past 14 months and I mean everything. The sad fact is Infiniti simply built a gas hog of a motor and no amount of finessing is going to bring your mileage up to an acceptable level.

I do not believe posters on this forum that claim 23+ combined mileage. The BEST I have been able to record was 17.5 mpg and that was with 80% freeway driving at 65mph.

Numerous conversations with my dealer's service tech have confirmed what I am saying, owners are reporting 15-18 mpg. Possibly RWD only cars do a bit better. My AWD EX is a pig and I drive it sparingly, using my wife's Prius instead for almost all family outings.

I am so sick of being told that this is a high performance car and should be accepted as such. That is so much hooey! If Infiniti REALLY wants to sell their cars here, they better figure out a way to bring their "high performance" cars into compliance with today's fuel consumption requirements. Hell if a 400 hp Corvette can do 25, surely Infiniti can too. I mean, this ain't 1995! Rant off.

[gloa2000]

I get what you mean, here is what i try to get the most MPG on my EX.

Keep your tire pressure above 32 psi. (I get a better handling this way as well.)No A/C when not needed. (Good for your Health too)Drive like my grandma, easy on gas. (This is the hardest thing to do when i drive my EX.)Fixed my direct gas to brake driving style. I hardly use my brakes when not needed.

My driving is mainly local about 90%, i am managing about 18.9 mpg on my computer, i constantly get above 24 mpg on highways. mine is 2WD.

I still dont understand these newer cars with newer technology doing only 20 mpg or even less for most of EX owners, when my dad's Tahoe does 24 mpg HWY!! and I dont think 7 spd transmission will make any huge differences in MPG. I think its time for them to bring in SVT trannies from Nissan!!!

[gloa2000]

I do not believe posters on this forum that claim 23+ combined mileage. The BEST I have been able to record was 17.5 mpg and that was with 80% freeway driving at 65mph.

RCHarris,

By any chance, do you have overall larger diameter rims with rubbers than stocks? 17.5 MPG really does not ring my bell. Eventhough you have an AWD, still it will be 2WD on highways or above some point in speeds.

when i had my maxima i put 18s with low profile rubbers causing me loosing about 4-5 MPH at 80 MPH (When i was cruising 80MPH on my Speedo, my GPS was telling me i was going 75-6MPH) with that funny rims, my computer was claiming my MPG was 28!! which is about 3 MPG higher than its whole lifetime MPG. If you brought the car to Infiniti dealer, I bet they might of already pointed that out but just checking.

[kamiguy]

Your car and mine are similar, AWD and fully loaded and as such, they weigh 100-150 lbs more than the base 2WD models. That alone incurs a small MPG penalty there. I agree the mileage isn't great. My figures,even though I am in Canada are converted to US. City averages 16MPG but where I live has elevation changes of about 1600 ft and I drive that regularily so that throws the city figures off. I have achieved 22MPG on the highway, again at around 65MPH, but,again, there are some passes there that mess with the figures. Hopefully, the people reporting higher figures than we are live in a very flat area that achieves optimal fuel economy. Just try to enjoy the car for what it is, whether labelled a performance or crossover, and stick your foot into it once in awhile!!

[driveforfun]

It's fair to say that owners are experiencing different gas mileage, as the postings on this site have shown. My experience has been quite good, considering the size of the engine, and I can certainly verify the 23 MPG average in the 3 months I have owned the vehicle and just attained a 27 MPG average for an out of state trip. Part of my experience no doubt has to do with the vehicle being RWD, but the other variables between different vehicles and drivers are probably too numerous to cite.

Best wishes to all EX owners.

[RCHarris]

To answer some of the questions above:My car is wearing standard issue 17" wheels. I keep my tires at 32-34 lbs. I drive with authority but not overly aggressive. In other words, I drive in the middle or left lane most of the time. I love the feeling of power with this car and do occasionally let her rip. I also live at the top of a steep hill and I suppose some of the mileage loss could be due to this. Due to severe pollin allergies, I also drive with air on at all times. I asked the service tech about this and he said that it shouldn't affect mileage to any significant degree. Modern cars such as ours are barely affected by air conditioning.

I appreciate those of you who post great mileage numbers - mostly I'm just jealous :>) Hey, I still love the beast and thoroughly enjoy driving it. I only wish it didn't need a weekly fill up of premium to keep it happy.CheersRandy

[G35 Toronto]

i am on my 3rd full tank of gas.... I am using 91 Octane. AWD Model.

I have averaged the following on 3 tanks: 14.4, 14.2, 14.3

so...averaged out that is 14.3L per 100km.

if my conversion is right, 19.57 MPG.

Please note that the last 14.3 was done on my new 20" tires and rims (overall diameter = the stock 18" setup)

I would not say I am being gentle with the car, but it as it was in the break in period. do about 60 highway, 40 city.

My current tank (1/3 used up) is currently at an average of 13.9 L/100km, a bit more hwy than usual.
Modified by G35 Toronto at 12:22 PM 6/4/2009

[MI3]

They use US gallon so it'll be 16.6mpg for 14.3L/100km.

[specialist23]

Actually the highway mileage of EX is not that bad. I get about 26-27mpg on the highway at 70-75 mph. The city mileage is a whole different story though, I feel lucky if I get above 12mpg!

even if you reset the mileage upon getting on the freeway, i haven't ever been close to 26-27 mpg at 70-75 mph. sure on a very short burst down hill i could see it, but nothing for over 50 miles.

unless it's a very big hill.

[302@12psi]

My AWD constantly gets 22-24 MPG on my weekly commute which is mostly highway. The highest I've seen is I think 28 coming back from a trip up to the mountains.

That IMHO is rather steller considering the engine and weight of the vehicle.

For those who are getting 16-17 are you doing the correct math?

I fill up with 93 octane and do not drive the car hard. I will say that my speed on my way to work is above 65. I noticed a decent improvement when I did try to drive 60 for a week to and from work.

I go off of the CPU telling me what my average MPG is and I reset it every fill up. I do the math once in awhile to make sure it's in check and the math always pans out.

Even in all city driving I do not think I've got lower then 19.

[specialist23]

My AWD constantly gets 22-24 MPG on my weekly commute which is mostly highway. The highest I've seen is I think 28 coming back from a trip up to the mountains.

That IMHO is rather steller considering the engine and weight of the vehicle.

For those who are getting 16-17 are you doing the correct math?

I fill up with 93 octane and do not drive the car hard. I will say that my speed on my way to work is above 65. I noticed a decent improvement when I did try to drive 60 for a week to and from work.

I go off of the CPU telling me what my average MPG is and I reset it every fill up. I do the math once in awhile to make sure it's in check and the math always pans out.

Even in all city driving I do not think I've got lower then 19.

22-24 i could see if you're paying close attention to it and driving it carefully but 26-27 at 70 to 75 mph, well what am i doing wrong?

[googleman]

@specialist23

Like you said, I reset the mileage on the highway, and then drove about 100 miles at 70-75mph and checked the indicator. I didn't change my driving habits while doing that. If I used the cruise control at 65mph and stayed at the right lane, I would imagine it could even be better. But that would be quite boring

[G35 Toronto]

They use US gallon so it'll be 16.6mpg for 14.3L/100km.

Thank you for the clarification.

[302@12psi]

22-24 i could see if you're paying close attention to it and driving it carefully but 26-27 at 70 to 75 mph, well what am i doing wrong?

The higher numbers were coming down the mountain obviously so the throttle was very little to none for a good bit of the trip.

My average numbers (22-24) are me driving normally with traffic. Hardly anyone beats me off a light and I drive at fast lane speeds (in Baltimore usually 70-80mph).

I have always got good milage out of my cars through. I was able to get 26 out of my 2006 WRX which was unheard of on a regular bases and I was able to get 24-27 out of my 2007 STI.

[tondraj]

My AWD EX has about 2200 miles on it and I get around 22.5 mpg with a 70/30 hwy/city mix. I tend to take it to about 4-5000rpm when accelerating from a stop and it's pretty flat here in WNY. I drive around 75mph on the highway.The first road trip we took was with the A/C on and I got 24mpg (car had 1500 miles on it).

As a side note, I calculate my MPG by hand every time I fill up.

[RioD007]

Never Better then 17.1 ( As per the OBC)

[AWGD8]

- Check Tire Pressure. Replace Air filter if needed.

- Remove unecessary weight in the car. (e.g. tools, child seat- when not in use. etc.)

- Remove rear seats / replace all seat with Recaro racing seat.

- Anticipate breaking when coming to stop or light. (You can just cruise instead of gas).

- Easy on the gas when accelerating from stop.

- Avoid hard turns (this might cause engine breaking causing wasted fuel).

- Avoid Hard breaking.

- Get a light weight Rims/tires, battery, ETC. Don`t use

bug deflector- causes more drag...

- Use A/C on the highway than window down.

- Only use D (Drive) no Manual/DS mode.

- Check car alignment if needed and also tire balance.

- Cruise when going downhill and just tap the gas when needed.

Optional:

- Try to lose weight if you have 25+ BMI

- avoid hills and Mountain - LOL!

- Tailgate a speeding SEMI (like an Indy car "DRAFTING")

- Don`t let any wife, kids, friends to go with you. Just drive alone.

- Eat light

- always keep half tank full (less weight).

- Don`t stop just roll on stop signs when no cop is on sight.

(just be careful on right hand turn on stop light due to traffic camera cop).

- Disengage STABILITY CONTROL on dry road.

- Wait a minute? Would you rather sell the car and buy a Prius!

Where`s the FUN? !!!


Modified by AWGD8 at 9:45 PM 6/4/2009

[kamiguy]

[cjre1]

[D.I.E.S.E.L]

[jmess]

If I just drive my 2wd I get 17-18 commuting and 22-23 traveling in the fast lane. If I try and light foot it those numbers change by 1 or 2 MPG.

So 1000 miles at 20 MPG = 50 gallons x $3 = $150 1000 miles at 22 MPG = 45.4 gallons x $3 = $136.36

Just driving my 05 Corvette I got 16-17 commuting and 20-22 in the really fast lane. The C6 weighs about 600lbs less than a 2wd EX and has less air drag. On the Corvette forums you will also find people complaining about the MPG they get.

2 MPG or $14 dollars in not worth the hassle to me. I just drive.

Modified by jmess at 1:02 PM 1/12/2010
Modified by jmess at 1:02 PM 1/12/2010

[Jason Tucker]

The wife steers...you push.

[D.I.E.S.E.L]

i hope mpg is better in the spring. its no good as of now. I use Shell Premium only

[luvEX35]

Simply remove the large 3.5 L V6 and replace with a 1.8L 4 cylinder, shave 1,500 lbs. off vehicle. If you are really ambitious you can add a battery pack to trunk and make it a hybrid. Or just go out and buy a Prius.......