Help out a newbie!

I just got the car last week and have only filled the tank once. It has 153k miles on it and is completely stock. I have less than 375 miles on this tank and the guage is showing empty. Those miles have all been highway and I have not been over-revving the engine.

I know that mpg is a pretty subjective thing but with the VX rated at 47/56, I expected better. I'm just looking for things to check out.

Any and all help is appreciated.

Jim

 

Man, I wish I got anywhere close to 35 MPG. Consider yourself lucky.

 

I get 28 and I only have I/E

 

I get only 28-30 out of my hatch.

 

your car is old ? i suggest you get a new oil change with some zmax

 

i get about 30 mpg on my doch b18c1 with alot of mods.

 

wow you got 4 replies with no help at all.


the needle maybe lying. I have a 94 CX and i drove it till it was darn near E, i put in 3 gallons and it went a bit over half way (5 gallons) so maybe the E means it has 2 gallons left or ~84 more miles

 

also... fill the car completely up till the first click of the nozzle,drive until you are about 1/4 left full. fill the car completely up till the first click. see how many gallons you put in, and use that in this equation

miles driven/(divided by)gallons put in

hope that helps

 

35 is pretty good dude
civics have like 11 gallon tanks so 375 on a tank is good.
i get about 30mpg with my hybrid b16. im happy.

god its gonna suck to get 15mpg when i get a truck.....

 

run some fuel injection cleaner through it, with wear on the engine we should probably be getting high 30s instead of the miraculous 45mpg from honda . Also check your air filter, alot of clean air is good for the combustion process and clean nozzles mean cleaner running.

 

lol. you would only see a post bitchin about 35mpg on a honda board...i love it!

 

lol I prolly get like 18MPG ah! I fill this SOB every 3-4 days. Its this damn turbo, sucks up gas like crazy. I wish I could see 35MPG

 

how long have you been driving a stick?
have done a valve adjustment?
drain tanny fluid?
drain radiator fluid?

the most i have gone with my si is a whopping 382miles on a full tank(i dont know how)...

 

your problem is problably your cat, get a new one installed, they are only god for about 100k, they will last longer without throwing a code, but usually start losing thier flow around 100k

 

Your gas gauge is f*ed up or something. Run a few tanks of gas through it before hitting the panic button...

 

35 dosent sound too bad to me. thats about what I get on average in my CX, tho I have been able to nail over 40 when I feel like it. I wouldn't really pay any attention to the gas guage anyway. just go by miles on the odometer. I reset at every fill up. so everytime I fill up I know my milage. once I know what milage *I* get with the car it's a simple matter to figure out max miles on a tank (11Gallons) then just add in a little for safty. I usually start thinking about filling up when I hit 200 miles on a tank out of habit (freaking gas hog Sable) but you can go for much longer than that.

the only time I use my gasguage is if for some reason it reads low when it shouldn't, like when I've only run 200 miles and it says bone dry. I got really bad milage the last time my ECU got reset. but I dont judge my routine fill ups by the guage at all

 

ur lucky u get 35! i have a 93 vx and **** i get about 10 mpg (feels like anyway...) but mines turbo'ed

 

I've got a VX too. TO get that great gas mileage, you have to shift when the ight comes. I don't and routinely get 35-40 mpg in town.

Change your fluids, plugs, cap/rotor, and check tire pressure.

 

Update:

I just filled the tank again this morning.

376 miles divided by 7.976 gallons equals 47.14 mpg. This is right on the EPA rating for city driving for this car and the reason why I bought a VX.

I think philmagnavox is correct when he says there are about 2 gallons left when the guage reads 'E' since the car only took about 8 gallons. I probably could have gone for another 100 miles. All of the replies suggesting maintenance are well received as I do need to have the timing belt and oil & filter changed along with some other general maintence done. I think madhatch also has a point as it seems the exhaust is on its last legs.

I find it odd, however, that those with different trim levels or VX models with modified engines would think it reasonable to compare their fuel economy to mine. The VX's claim to fame is its amazingly high mpg rating so for a stock vehicle why shouldn't I expect to get 47/56 unless there was something mechanically wrong?

Jim

 

Yes, I understand about the upshift light. It seems to me though that sometimes it comes on way too soon though. Do you agree? I'm supposed to go to 5th gear at 40mph? Can't always do that on the hills of NJ.

Jim