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Thread: Why an mpg improvement in yr 2?

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    Why an mpg improvement in yr 2?

    I have a 2020 Manual ES Hatchback. 5 speed. Purchased new / took delivery December 2020.

    The first year, my FE was best in Hot weather; no surprise there, but my best recorded mpg last year was 49.9, so I never joined the 50 club, not even once for year one.

    This Summer, the mpg just kept going up each tank after we got hot weather until I reached around the 52 mpg mark for a tank and has stayed high. My last 8 tanks or so have been 51.5 to almost 53. My trip meter error as compared to a GPS hasn't changed; I've checked it. I've noticed that the usual +3 mpg vehicle calculated optimistic reading is usually now like 4 mpg optimistic compared to the hand calculation. I've noticed this also in my F150. The higher the actual mpg, the higher the optimistic error, even as a percentage basis.

    Anyway, could be power train break-in I guess, but I'm leaning towards lower tire resistance, as the main difference from year one. Driving style and routes and speeds haven't changed. I probably unconsciously hypermile more than I used to just because I'm so used to the vehicle behavoir, aka can drive it better than last year, but only slightly. The tires now have some tread wear. I've been doing hand calculations a long time, and don't buy all the talk about pump metering and fill variations, because I have such consistent and expected results for so many years in so many vehicles. I've noticed hand calculation error or pump variations as a possible variable only a time or two in ten years in my experiences.



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    I know you already mentioned trip meter inaccuracies, but lets say hypothetically you started with 10/32nd tread and now you are at 4/32nd of an inch. stock tires have a diameter of 22.4 inches.If we calculate the circumference difference as a ratio new vs old: "(22*3.1415)/(22.4*3.1415)=0.982" we can conclude you are traveling 1.8% slower and not as far as with new tires.

    Just fun to think about.

    Lots of other factors to think about, i usually get horrible fuel economy because i do short trips and the engine has enrichment while cold: https://mirageforum.com/forum/showth...ment-when-cold but on a longer drive i can get great fuel economy numbers.
    please consider checking out my Mirage related youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6c...IEViRFw/videos

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    My fuel economy in yr 3 continues to go down. I'm sure the Kumho Solus get worse MPG then Dunlop Enasaves but I get pretty horrendous MPG even for that. Any trip uphill or with slight traffic kills the MPG into the low-mid 30s. I could set it in cruise at 50MPH and not get 50MPG on a flat road to begin with maybe that would get 45MPG. Might be some of my past alignment incidents affecting this also and keep in mind this is pumped to max sidewall PSI. Then I randomly get a magic tank of gas or the right conditions and sometimes able to get me 5MPG higher than normal.

    Who knows, I have stopped tracking it because it seems so out of my control. I am pretty envious of the results of some people on here though...

    With normal slight speeding to keep up with NJ traffic on the highway, and AC blasting, I get around 38MPG on the dash, and it's somewhat depressing considering my folks CR-V reads 37MPG on the highway with no special driving and it's a much bigger vehicle.
    Last edited by Mirageman38; 08-20-2022 at 03:08 PM.

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2019 Mirage ES 1.2 automatic: 38.8 mpg (US) ... 16.5 km/L ... 6.1 L/100 km ... 46.5 mpg (Imp)


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    There has been a lot of hot weather in these parts this year, and the hotter it gets, the better the mpg.
    From June until today, there has not been more than three nights with temps lower than 25°C. Every single day since then was at least 35°C, and the last month or so was not less than 40°C each day. In this moment it is 43°C. The climate change in these parts has been overwhelming. The crops in the fields have all withered and the river Rhine is so low it can be crossed by foot in multiple areas. Nobody can be that blonde as to suggest there is no climate change.
    Because of all that heat, the car gets better economy. My "B" indicator which I never reset says 3.8 L/100km. Probably better than 60mpg/US or so.

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    I don't believe it wise to compare CRV to Mirage for the MPG alone under the same commuting circumstances.

    I commute both heavy city and nearly highway. When I for example limit myself to short trips with A/C on and NOT hypermilling, I get low to mid 30 especially when it just 10 minutes of use. I also notice that when my commute time is 15 minutes, it get to 40's territory with very little amount of stopping. The SUV won't even beat that in the similar circumstance unless it a hybrid which fetches 2-3x more $ than the Mirage.

    I always tell myself to take the long route to help reach that MPG goal and it always make me feel good.

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    Quote Originally Posted by gregsfc View Post
    I have a 2020 Manual ES Hatchback. 5 speed. Purchased new / took delivery December 2020.
    You and I are on very similar tracks. I have the same car, took delivery late October 2019. Except mine is WAY better, cause it's blue!

    Quote Originally Posted by gregsfc View Post
    Anyway, could be power train break-in I guess, but I'm leaning towards lower tire resistance, as the main difference from year one.
    I'm going to have to guesstimate that basically everything you mentioned is true / correct / accurate. And probably all are contributing. Including your better skill with driving the car over time getting intimately familiar with it.

    I've noticed for me that, if I shift at 2,500 rpm, it will do really good mpg numbers. But I tend to only do that when there's noone behind me. Yeah ... it's way slow. But I don't much care, I still get where I'm going just the same. My driving conditions are not close to ideal, so I'm never going to be the mpg leader 'up in here.' I am averaging 43 mpg, sans the Lil' Tow Rig experiments.

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2020 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 42.4 mpg (US) ... 18.0 km/L ... 5.6 L/100 km ... 50.9 mpg (Imp)


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    Quote Originally Posted by defensivetackle88 View Post
    I don't believe it wise to compare CRV to Mirage for the MPG alone under the same commuting circumstances.

    I commute both heavy city and nearly highway. When I for example limit myself to short trips with A/C on and NOT hypermilling, I get low to mid 30 especially when it just 10 minutes of use. I also notice that when my commute time is 15 minutes, it get to 40's territory with very little amount of stopping. The SUV won't even beat that in the similar circumstance unless it a hybrid which fetches 2-3x more $ than the Mirage.

    I always tell myself to take the long route to help reach that MPG goal and it always make me feel good.
    Over the past 5 summers I have used

    4 Dunlop Enasave tires
    2 Dunlop Enasave & 2 Federal SS657
    2 Dunlop Enasave & 2 Nexen N'Priz AH5
    2 Nexen N'Priz AH5 & 2 Kumho Solus TA31

    The Federal tires were used up faster than the Dunlops, because I was using them year round (up front summer months and on the rear during the winter months). Nokian Nordman 7 have been my front tires the past 5 winters.

    I haven't noticed any great differences in my mpg calculations during the summer months. The well worn out Dunlop & Federal tires may have been slightly better than the newer Nexen & Kumho tires. I suspect the Nexen & Kumho will get slightly better once they are worn more, too. In that respect, however, the Kumho & Nexen tires are wearing better (60,000 & 50,000 mile warranty tires). I got 50.5 mpg on one tank recently, but that's a bit higher than normal for me. That tank was very little A/C and lots of highway miles going 60 mph or so.

    Two of my factory Dunlop tires did better than I expected in the end, but @ $180-190/tire they don't interest me.

    I do 40-42 psi (measuring somewhat cold tires at home in the morning).

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    Quote Originally Posted by Mark View Post
    I suspect the Nexen & Kumho will get slightly better once they are worn more, too. In that respect, however, the Kumho & Nexen tires are wearing better (60,000 & 50,000 mile warranty tires). I got 50.5 mpg on one tank recently, but that's a bit higher than normal for me. That tank was very little A/C and lots of highway miles going 60 mph or so.
    .
    Holy heck, how do you handle going 60 in what must be at least a 65 and with no AC in the summer. I'm all for the savings, but I'm not a masochist!

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2019 Mirage ES 1.2 automatic: 38.8 mpg (US) ... 16.5 km/L ... 6.1 L/100 km ... 46.5 mpg (Imp)


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    Quote Originally Posted by Mirageman38 View Post
    Holy heck, how do you handle going 60 in what must be at least a 65 and with no AC in the summer. I'm all for the savings, but I'm not a masochist!
    I don't follow you? I don't do any of this for savings. If staying within 5 mph of the speed limits makes me a masochist, I guess that's me. I am a driving instructor, and I also have my commercial driving license. I do place value in avoiding traffic tickets I guess. My clean driving record is of value to me. If I am driving on a 65 mph highway, I am doing 70 mph with my Mirage. If I am driving across North Dakota and the speed limit is 75 mph, I am doing 80 mph. Do I go above that at times? Maybe? I don't have cruise, & I am not perfect.

    I don't live anywhere near a 4-lane highway. All the roads in my area are 55 mph. I have to drive more than an hour just to find a round about intersection for my driving students to practice on.

    When I drive to my parents (from SW Wisconsin to NE Wisconsin) 4 hours away, I drive 120 miles/2.5 hours/55 mph maximum speed limit (according to google maps) before I even hit a 4-lane highway (70 mph highway) in Oshkosh. Thus, I would be going about 60 mph for most of that first 120 miles. I could make the entire trip on 55 mph highways, but I don't go out of my way to do that. I may avoid Green Bay on a Packer game Sunday, however.

    As far as A/C is concerned, it's not uncommon to have mild weather for a week or two at a time. I seldom use A/C in my Mirage, but I have used it more this summer. I prefer driving with the windows open on most days. If the temperatures are in the 60s or 70s, I surely don't need A/C to feel comfortable.

    I'm not saying I get 50.5 mpg on every tank in the summer. That's surely above average for me, but using a tank of gas @ mostly 60 mph without A/C doesn't seem strange to me.

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    You made it sound like you were going 5 under, not 5 over. Not aware of many 55MPH "highways". Try only going 5 over in the NJ-NY-CT tri-state and you will get flashed at, honked at, flipped off on i95 5 under and I bet someone would run you off the road.

    If it's in the 70s out I think it's in the 80s in the car. I need th AC personally.


        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2019 Mirage ES 1.2 automatic: 38.8 mpg (US) ... 16.5 km/L ... 6.1 L/100 km ... 46.5 mpg (Imp)


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