Getting better mileage

[Offshore1]

I was really disappointed w/ the mileage at first on my V.The last tank I got 32.X MPG and today I filled up and got 33.019 MPG!I drive about 80% highway and the rest is city.

The first tank really threw me for a loop cause it was like 23 mpg. I guess now that I have more miles (about 1300) on the car, it is getting broken in.

I can live w/ 32 - 33 MPG on a automatic!! Now if only the steeering wheel would telescope!

[Rand0m0sityxX]

yeah your first few tanks wont be good..

It about 1500 when it really starts breaking in, i think.. I know thats when mine did..

[fjwagner]

33.019 MPG!

.019!!!! Now that is precise.

[superskunk]

what do you have to say about this? this is the best i have ever gotten... i dont know what it is, maybe the cold air intake or the combonation of the intake + i just switched to 89 octane.... what do you guys think? I will let you guys know the total miles of this tank... with a pic of course...

[frankoV]

I'm usually about 155mi (250 or so km) when I hit that spot . . . and it's steadily downhill from there -- 100 km (60 mi) or so each "quarter" [why didn't tey divide into actual quaters?].

But indeed . . . I'm curious!

[superskunk]

now im really curious to see what this tank is going to be... i just had my engine flushed this morning and full synthetic oil change with synthetic oil filter... so im hoping that i will see 400 miles on this tank... hopefully!

[Scuba Steve]

now im really curious to see what this tank is going to be... i just had my engine flushed this morning and full synthetic oil change with synthetic oil filter... so im hoping that i will see 400 miles on this tank... hopefully!

I bet you'll be lucky to get 330 miles per tank! Let us know!!

[fjwagner]

now im really curious to see what this tank is going to be... i just had my engine flushed this morning and full synthetic oil change with synthetic oil filter... so im hoping that i will see 400 miles on this tank... hopefully!

What is a synthetic oil filter???

Our lubes guys at ExxonMobil tell me that there is an ~ max 2% increase in mileage with synthetic. You will not notice it tank to tank, but it will save you money over the long haul. It is within those three significant digits I was teasing the OP about. Fred

[alex_btl]

I just found out after 4 fillups, why it is giving less,

Mine is a CVT SL and I always put 89 Octane Ethanol mixed (Cheapest). First tank gave me 26 mpg, my fuel light came in 195 miles and I kept driving till 300 and filled gas, but it was not 13.2 gallons (Full capacity) as the owners manual stated, it was 11.3 gal,so at the rate of 26 mpg I could have easily driven another 60 miles i.e (350).

Second tank gave me 370, I drove the car with the fuel indicator light on, for another 20 more miles with confidence this time.

when I filled my third tank it filled only 12.4 which is approximately 1 gallon less(atleast 20 miles).

So, it should be 390 miles

4th tank, I made sure I filled it all the way up to the neck of the fuel tank( I could able to touch the gas with my fingers)This time it filled 13.4 (Surprise!!!)

This time my fuel indicator light came on, only at 340 miles and I kept driving till 410 before I filled gas(I could have easily driven another 20 miles)

So the technique is, fill gas as much as the tank holds all the way up to the neck (Try 3 or 4 times even after you hear the first tick noise at the pump)and drive it, it would definitely give good milage.(29 ish)

[frankoV]

mind you, that's kms . . . so just about 225 mi . . . and next time I put the key in the ignition it'll read different.

[Scuba Steve]

At half tank I usually get 330KM in summer. I have 6spd.
Modified by Scuba Steve at 5:13 PM 9/2/2008

[frankoV]

gotta admit we'd be wildly happy if that were miles and not fake miles.

[brainguyus]

I just found out after 4 fillups, why it is giving less,

Mine is a CVT SL and I always put 89 Octane Ethanol mixed (Cheapest). First tank gave me 26 mpg, my fuel light came in 195 miles and I kept driving till 300 and filled gas, but it was not 13.2 gallons (Full capacity) as the owners manual stated, it was 11.3 gal,so at the rate of 26 mpg I could have easily driven another 60 miles i.e (350).

Second tank gave me 370, I drove the car with the fuel indicator light on, for another 20 more miles with confidence this time.

when I filled my third tank it filled only 12.4 which is approximately 1 gallon less(atleast 20 miles).

So, it should be 390 miles

4th tank, I made sure I filled it all the way up to the neck of the fuel tank( I could able to touch the gas with my fingers)This time it filled 13.4 (Surprise!!!)

This time my fuel indicator light came on, only at 340 miles and I kept driving till 410 before I filled gas(I could have easily driven another 20 miles)

So the technique is, fill gas as much as the tank holds all the way up to the neck (Try 3 or 4 times even after you hear the first tick noise at the pump)and drive it, it would definitely give good milage.(29 ish)

You shouldn't fill to the neck. Overfilling your tank will cause gas to flow into the evaporation recovery system. sooner or later you're going to throw a "check engine soon" light.

[alex_btl]

Thanks for the advice, I am not a Pro,Next time I make sure I won't fill more than the maximum capacity stated in owners manual.

NISSAN should have tested this maximum capacity, I guess

[Rockhound]

I just found out after 4 fillups, why it is giving less...So the technique is, fill gas as much as the tank holds all the way up to the neck (Try 3 or 4 times even after you hear the first tick noise at the pump)and drive it, it would definitely give good milage.(29 ish)

I'm confused, are you saying that over-filling the tank is providing better gas mileage? Sure, the more gas in the tank, the farther you'll be able to go prior to filling up, but if you're calculating things right, your miles per gallon should be similar on a half tank to a full tank.

You shouldn't drive till (nearly) empty and divide by the tank's capacity - you should just divide the number of miles driven by the gallons you used. And you should only be filling up to the first click, too.

[#1Tango]

for me, the best i got out of my tank was 363 miles. but, i was babying the car so much it was ridiculous. i get about 150 miles for half a tank... is that about normal-ish? i wish i got a lil more

[alex_btl]

For some reason as frankohabs states its downhill after half tank, I really don't know why, so we really can't come to any conclusion with half tank.I get somewhere between 175 or 230 with half tank and then there is a drastic fall.

Ideally 230 at half tank should give 460 full tank (13.2) but thats not the case.

May be I should carry a gallon of fuel with me and drive the car until last drop to see how much exactly it gives

I have never driven over 60 mph since I bought the car 2 months ago.

[kc5f]

As has been mentioned before, the tank is not symmetrical, so seeing the needle halfway down is not the same as having 6.6 gallons of gas left. It's just an estimate from an analog sensor. I'm sure they could calibrate it and make it more accurate, but we did buy an entry-level vehicle, after all.