When I first bought my car from my friend in november of 06 (just over a year ago) I was getting 28-30, it has slowly dropped, and now I am only getting 18-20 if I am lucky. I do mostly driving at 55-75.

I have a 95 accord AT, I dont floor it or anything, I notice it usually shifts around 3000-3500rpm.

Also I have noticed when in park or at a red light a really heavy exhaust smell, more than ever before, do you think that might have something to do with it?

When I noticed I was only getting 18-20 I added a Short Ram Intake, which has helped a little, but maybe 2-3mpg at most.

I just recently also had some work done to it...

New Spark Plugs
New Cap and Rotor
New Ignition Wiring
Tranny Drain and Refill
New front motor mount


What do you guys think could be the problem? I don't drive like a teenager, I have kept my car in good shape.. Im not sure what to do!

 

Check for hole(s) in the exhaust.

 

i doubt if a hole in the exhaust would be what he really needs to check for. if his car hasn't increased in exhaust noise, no point. over time your gas mileage may drop a bit the older your car gets. your maintenance and care is what determines how much of a drop. full tune up, gaskets and seals are a few to looking into. cleaning out components on the intake manifold are other option. i know the egr is one and i believe the iavc or something like that is another to look into. there are several threads around here on the topic though.

 

my wife's car does this, it's because she never floors it, your car is going to act how you treat it. Run some fuel cleaner through it and drive the **** out of it, it'll clean out your valves and your exhaust. It's a good idea to drive your car hard from time to time in order to clean it out.

Changing your PCV valve can increase gas mileage, as well as the O2 sensor, make sure to replace with Honda OEM brand, I've heard of Bosche and Honda not playing nice.

This is purely personal experience though, your situation may be different.

 

Hmm. Ill have to take it to my mechanic, and have him look at it or something.

 

check your 02 sensors AFTER you check for proper t-stat operation. You mentioned highwer than normal shift points and this is caused when the car is in warm up mode (ie the car has not reached proper operating temp)

Are your highway RPMS higher than normal? at 70mph a 5th gen LX accord will be at 2800 indicated on the tach. (same generation of car that you have) for the I4. V6 should be under 2500. IF they are it means your car is not allowing the torque coverter to lock up and again this is caused by car not being fully warmed up

 

You might want to check the adjustment of the

 

antifreeze piston valves?

 

On the freeways, going about 70, Im up near 3500-4000rpms.

It only gets to like 40-50 here in the mornings, I usually let it set for a minute or two, and drive it like an old lady until I see that it warms up.

Do I need to let the car warm up more in the mornings and at nights?

And someone also said they change the fuel mixture for the winter at most gas stations to help the enviorment or something, is that true?

 

the fuel mixture won't change much.
How long does it take for you car to warm up?
Also, If you turn your heater on full blast and drive does your cars temp drop a good amount?
I recently changed my thermostat and that fixed a few issues.
I bet the fact that you're running at that high of RPMs at 70 is the reason your mileage sucks, but now we have to find out why you're running that high.
Even in my car when it didn't warm up I ran at a max of 3000 at 70mph.
It takes me about 85-90mph to get to 4000rpm
Do you burn much oil?
A good idea would probably be to clean out your car and perform some maintanance jobs.

 

From when I turn my car and start driving, its about 2-3 minutes til gets to the usual temp.

I have never really used my heater, so I wouldnt know...

And I have no idea if I am burning alot of oil or not, how do I check? I get it changed every 3k

 

Well, it's a good idea to check the oil on a car between oil changes. There is a dipstick that you pull out that isually has an indicator.
Basically anything between the 2 holes at the bottom of the dipstick. It should be the same as mine.
The stick is to the right of the engine, and it has a little orange or yellow loop that can be pulled out.
If your oil is below what it should be you either have a leak or are burning oil.

Also, can you explain the exhaust smell a little better?

 

I just checked and its about 3/4 up between the two dots, and its a light brownish color, I need it to be changed in about 1k according to the little sticker from the dealer.

And the exaust smell is kinda like a gas smell almost, its hard to explain, but its pretty rank.

 

If it smells like gasoline you might have an issue somewhere in your fuel line. It's hard to say but at least rev your car directly on the throttle under the hood. Not from the pedal. If there was a leak youd probably smell it without reving it, but try to see if you smell gas.
Also do you ever run fuel system cleaner through your car? You don't have to do it all the time but it helps to every once and a while.

 

I would appear that your trans is slippin' in 4th since if TQ converter does not lock up you would only be at most about 500 rpms higher....

Check o2 sensor and do a fuel system pressure test and see how long it holds pressure after you turn the car off.

when my tstat quit my car was about 200 rpms higher than normal at highway speeds in the winter time. Once I replaced my t-stat my tq converter started locking up again and my milage went from 23 around town back up to 25 and highway milage went back up to 34 from about 31mpg

 

I just checked, and last night, on the freeway going about 70, my rpms were only 3200ish, so I must have been wrong, but those are still a little high. I am going to run fuel cleaner through it today.

 

I take it from the other thread that you replaced your t-stat?

 

my thermostat? No. Should I? Is it hard to do, I dont know much about cars.

I bought some STP fuel cleaner today, filled up my tank and put it in.

 

in your case I would replace it and see if it resolves your problem or milage improves. could also be a faulty Water temp sensor.....but most of the time it is the t-stat

 

yeah, even if your not sure it's broken, if you can do it yourself, its worth doing because it isn't that hard and the thermostat is really cheap.

 

I drive a 95 Accord LX as well and I'm taking my car to the mechanic as well tomorrow. I noticed that I had a full tank last Monday and now its Wednesday... a little below the half tank mark (about 1/4 left of gas) and I measured it at 166miles only. Thats not normal is it? Should I change the thermostat as well? I changed the spark plugs and did an oil change, but I didnt change the oil filter (I forgot to buy one as I was filling in the oil).

 

Thats about what I am getting. I also noticed the little thing doesnt move from FULL until about 60-70 miles then it starts to drop, and I mean drop.


So how do I replace my t-stat, and where would I get a new one? Checker or autozone right?

 

you said you smell gas? with that, and your fuel mileage sucking, you might wanna check to make sure you don't have a shitty injector. happened to me in my truck before i bought my honda. made a ton of difference.

 

if it's a gas smell it wouldnt be the injector. That wouldn't cause the car to smell, just be dysfunctional.
Genuine Honda thermostats are probably the best and not much more expensive.
If you need to know how to do it, search on the forum or look for a DIY somewhere. I'm not to sure where one is but I bet there is one.
Easier said than done but you only have to undo about 4 bolts. Only 2 that actually hold the thermostat in.
You don't have to drain the coolant but be prepared for a good amount to leak out, cause you don't want it getting everywhere. Also make sure you refill what you lost. Fill the reservoir up all the way and by the time you drive it around for a bit it will be at the max fluid needed line if you look in the inside.
***make sure coolant isn't hot, and let your car cooldown before you do this or youll lose an eye***

 

Hmm sounds kinda complicated, ill just take it to my dealer, if he wants more than like 50 to do it then f that ill just have my buddy do it.

ill have the dealer check everything out just to be safe.

And what exactly does the fuel cleaner do? My car started up quicker this morning at like 4am when it usually takes a few cranks, it started up immedietly, does the cleaner have anything to do with that?