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Will the real gas mileage numbers please step forward

Discussion in 'General Truck Info' started by Shrimp Daddy, May 29, 2009.

  1. Shrimp Daddy

    Shrimp Daddy Member

    It has been a month of driving and I have finally refilled the tank on the 99 Suzi. It has a 2 inch lift with 23 inch all trail tires and a limited slip front differential. I calculated gas mileage at 22.95 mpg after converting from kilometers on the ODO. After getting it home I checked the oil and put in a can of Seafoam and filled it up with about 8 gallons of 85 octane. Most of my driving consists of 40-70 kph running about 5-8 miles per trip.

    I noticed that the fuel guage will not go to Empty but will hover just above empty when on fumes. The truck sputtered a bit this morning when starting so I put in about a quart to get me to the gas station.

    I will replace all fluids with synthetic and run another can of Seafoam and give gas mileage results in the future.

    As a side note I had someone ask about mileage today. I said it gets about 23 mpg. She was suprised because she was yet another under the impression that they got 60 mpg.
     
    Last edited: May 29, 2009
  2. greg0187

    greg0187 Moderator Staff Member

    Sounds correct to me.
     
  3. TRAX and HORNS

    TRAX and HORNS Well-Known Member

    Ive only checked one truck out of about 40/45 and if my calculations from kms to mph were right I got apox. 27 mpg. That was putting around the ranch never reaching 4 th. gear. I drove about 90 miles that 3 day weekend. 30 miles was down the county road at one time. The truck was a Daihatsu 660cc 1997. So with that I would say 27 to 35 mpg depending on how you were driving. I think 35 maybe a tiny bit more would be safe to say if running in 4 th or 5 th and keeping speed at 40 mph+-. That 45 to 50 mpg is BS.
     
  4. starpuss

    starpuss Member

    um i know some one thats has a 1990 hijet , i think 2wd and he gets 45mpg at best, and most of the time 30-35 city
     
  5. Stuff99

    Stuff99 Moderator Staff Member

    hmm.. im not sure what my liteace gets but 250km cost me 18$ of diesel @ 89.9 cents/liter

    so 20L for 250km = 12.5km/liter
    so 156.25 miles and about 5.25 gallons(us) = 29.75 mpg highway? slight headwind and doing about 110 km/hr.
     
  6. cabinmini

    cabinmini Member

    GasMileage

    Hi Shrimp Daddy
    I have been keeping track of the mileage on my Suzuki since February. It is a 4 speed, mostly highway driving at 90km/hr (55mph) on stock size tires so keep that in mind. There are also some wicked winds and long hills around southwestern Alberta and we all know how your foot goes to the floor in these types of conditions! I've had nine fills so far. Here are the results;

    Distance travelled
    2093km = 1300.5902 miles

    Fuel used
    194.071 litres = 42.69526 imp gallons = 51.268 us gal

    Average Mileage
    30.46 mpg imperial = 25.36 mpg us

    I've also used both premium and regular gas and found no difference in the mileage or noticable difference in the operation of the vehicle (but I've been told more than once that I may not be the most observant hubby :rolleyes:). The mileage has varied from a low of 27.18mpg imp (22.63 us) to a high of 35.32mpg imp (29.41 us).
    Jim
     
  7. Ravk

    Ravk Member

    mpg tables

    On my 89 Honda Acty here is the stats:

    total distance: 3977 km (2471.193 miles)
    total fuel: 75.34 gal us
    average economy: 32.8 mpg

    lowest mpg 21.19
    highest mpg 33.76

    I have done one tank of "hypermileing" (google it, no time to explain here) and had a tank at 55 mpg, but it is not too practical.

    Also remember, the Acty is an AWD so it has a little more driveline drag.

    The next inquiry shoud be questions/km :rolleyes:
     
  8. oldsnowman

    oldsnowman Member

    Hi
    i get 30-35mpg on the highway (depending on wind) and 40-45mpg in town (depending on how hard i drive it). our gallons are bigger in Canada then in the US os we can go farther on a gallon. no i don't have this backwards...the engine is reving at 6600rpm at 100kph o burns more fuel :D

    wyatt
     
  9. o8k

    o8k Member

    No mention of this in the posts, but just curious. How are the Mileage readings being taken? From Odometer? Anyone verify w/ GPS how "off" their Odometers are due to; Larger tires, lifts, std error, etc.
     
  10. rmay635703

    rmay635703 New Member

    My 1970 subaru 360 gets around 50mpg in town, it varies significantly from tank to tank (I have a fuel leak) but my lowest was 29mpg and my highest around 55mpg, fixed up I might be able to get 60mpg in town.
     
  11. Archer-Andy

    Archer-Andy Member

    I also have a 99' Suzuki. It is a 5 speed with 4wd Hi/ Low, 2wd High. I run 175/70/13 wheels. Naturally my speedometer is off a bit now. I do not have a lift. After converting everything from Kph to Mph, I am consistently getting 28 mpg based on stock tires and factory calibrated odometer/speedometer. The larger tires and wheels give me more distance traveled per revolution and I have no noticeable loss of power. By using an online tire size calculator, I have estimated the amount of speed gained from up sizing from the stock 145/12 tires to the new size 13" tire/wheel combo to be almost a 12 percent increase. This equates to a speed gain of about 7 mph over stock. With that being said, my fuel economy should have increased at a similar gain. I am not sure how to know for sure without filling up my gas tank completely, then using a GPS unit to record the true distance traveled until empty, and then divide the total distance traveled by the gallons of fuel used to refill the tank again. This would be the most accurate, but I don't have a GPS. It would be a cool day trip sometime. I drive it at 55 mph on the highway most everywhere I go, so my calculations are based on this as well. When I bought my truck, I too was under the illusion that these trucks would get 45 mpg or more. Every mini truck dealer says so. I don't see how this is possible, at least with my truck anyway. I think that I am closer to 31 mpg actual fuel economy with the truck running faster at the same engine RPM. A win-win for highway driving in my opinion. My 06' 4x4 crew cab Silverado gets 17 mpg on average, so I drive my mini truck quite a bit and leave my full size in the garage most of the time. It's more fun to drive the mini truck anyway.:D
     
  12. o8k

    o8k Member

    Over sized tires will cause your odometer to under-estimate your mileage. simple way to correct is. 20" tire to 25" tire == 25/20 = 1.25, Or 25% increase. If you say you added 12% simply add 12% mileage back onto the Odometer. then do the Miles/Gal from there. It actually works out where you can just take your MPG and add in 12% to make it easier. so if you are doing 55mph your really doing 55*1.12 = 62mph.

    I would guess that the Drag forces and poor torque of little motors makes for poo-poo mpg at 62 vs 55. IF you wanna "really" drive 55 drive 49. Add your 12% miles at the end of your tank and you have more accurate values.

    Many people put on bigger tires on a vehicle then complain about the fuel econ. In many cases (not all) their doing the math off a smaller "miles" number than they should and thus assume, Lift == poor mileage. Not totally true.

    More accurately said: Lift == worse drag coefficient. Worse drag coefficient worsened by the fact that they are driving around faster than they normally would b/c their speedometer is off (bad, and made worse by the drag forces being stronger cuz of the lift) and the fact that they are using a smaller miles number that what is real.

    Long story short. Once you realize this; drive x% slower based on the calibrated # (from gps or mile marker calibration) and add x% miles back at fill time.
     
  13. Windmill

    Windmill Member

    I usually get around 37 mpg give or take a few miles
     
  14. confuzed

    confuzed Member

    1990 subaru stock tires about 30mpg (can) in town lots of stop signs no traffic lights small town stop sign on every second street lol and 30 mpr is a suggestion the way i drive lol and driving highway 110 kph all the way edmonton home and 80 - 90 kpr up about a 2 hour trip 35 mpg (can) did not really notice a difference in dropping the highway speed milage wise used the speedo as the source for milage but i know it is out 1/10 k for every 5 k driven according to the "test your odometer" signs on the highway and as far as using premium fuel i agree no difference in milage or performance that would justify the extra cost and the premium fuel is a bad choice for canadian winters as it makes it harder to start on cold mornings esecially if not plugged in and it is more fun to drive than the old one ton but the ford does command more resect on the road
     
  15. Archer-Andy

    Archer-Andy Member

    Thanks o8K. I agree with everything that you are saying. Thanks for your help.
     
  16. occupant

    occupant New Member

    This is an excellent thread and really hits home for me, debunking the myth that the trucks do better than 40mpg. I can get 35-40mpg out of a 4-cylinder Cummins and a 5-speed in a compact pickup (30-32 in a full size pickup). That would be street legal no matter what (even in Commiefornia you can file a Form 256 something or other and get your motive power changed on the title from gas to diesel).

    I still would love one of these for around town use. I plan to buy up all the vacant lots in town, load cheap mobiles on them, and rent them out. This will allow the boarded up shacks around town to be torn down or fixed or replaced with mfd homes, and I can be the landlord/maintenance guy. We only have 300 people living here, but the condition of some of these rental houses is astonishing!!!

    But then again our town is only 3/4 of a mile in any direction. I could use a golf cart just as easily. Or walk! But walking with an 80lb toolbox is not very fun.
     
  17. Stuff99

    Stuff99 Moderator Staff Member

    they are defiantly better on fuel then most land yachts, but i think its the 'cool' factor that makes us like them so much.
     
  18. o8k

    o8k Member

    Agreed. Real world MPG threads like this really tell a good story. I had a 600CC honda motorcycle for years (when i was in LA). Wanted to show a relative comparison. I think 28-34mpg avg real world for these trucks is great.

    Dimension..................Bike..........Truck.............%diff
    ---------------------------------------------------
    Displacement.............600cc.......660cc............+10%
    Weight.....................450lbs......1400lbs...........+300%
    Drag coeff................decent......terrible...........relative <-- No imperical data avai
    Drive train................chain........2/4wd............relative <--Drive train loss
    Best........................80mpg......50mpg?..........relative <-- 35-40mph ish, flat, no wind.
    Hwy........................45mpg.......28mpg............-62%
    Town.......................50mpg....~35?..............-70%
    lbs-miles/gal(best)......36,000.....70,000...........+51%
    lbs-miles/gal(hwy)......20,250......39,200...........+51%
    lbs-miles/gal(town).....22,500...~49,000.........+46%


    Explaining lbs-miles/gal dimension:

    number of pounds of weight hauled in one mile on one gallon of fuel. so 20,000lbs-miles/gal is 20k lbs hauled 1 mile on 1 gallon. Using this as a mark of effficency rather than just mpg to further the story.

    So which has better fuel econ? Well if you only care to "haul yourself" then the motorcycle is the better choice, if you care to haul "other stuff too" the truck will probably work out in your favor. Which equates to. Use raw MPG (only care to haul self) vs use lbs-miles/gal (use to include hauling 'things') Safety is not amertized into these calculations. However if it was ( i would prefer having 1400 lbs of metal armor vs zero).
     
    Last edited: Jun 2, 2009
  19. Stuff99

    Stuff99 Moderator Staff Member

    Okay, did a 450km round trip today. I only have the results of the first half because its 3:30 am and nowhere in town has diesel atm so i can figure out second half..

    anyhow, 252km on this fill. 200km is to regina, 52 is heavy city driving. lots of stop and go etc. took 25.5L of diesel.

    252km - 156.5miles
    25.5L - 6.75 US gallons

    so 9.8km/liter or 23mpg. ya its not great but i had the hammer down. doing 115-120km/hr and passed about 5 cars and 2 semi. the second leg wont be much better. i kept it right at 100km/hr the whole way home but i hit a nasty headwind about 30mins into the trip...

    also this is on my bigger and heavier toyota litace... i now know i need to get some butt cushions for those long drives.. i still feel it... all 450km of it..
     
  20. rmay635703

    rmay635703 New Member

    You will find your truck fares much better around 40mph as does my little subaru, you will also find a vacuum guage can help you find the sweet spot when accelerating (or a scamguage if you have OBDII) If you can hookup a scanguage (AKA your truck is a 96 or better) you can find out what speed your truck gets the best MPG or in your case liters per km.

    Something easy to try is to shift to neutral and shut the engine off when you need to come to a stop, clutch start in 3rd or 4th, stop and take off in 1st.

    I found engine off coasting can gain you 10-15mpg when tooting around town and these little 2 cycles start easily.

    These trucks can do much better than most are getting here, but not without effort and more attentive driving.

    Cheers
    Ryan
     
  21. mcbride68camaro

    mcbride68camaro New Member

    We have had around 10 trucks that we have ran consistent and have always ranged from 37-48 mpg. I have noticed if you run them hard on the roads the mileage drops down. 42 MPG has been pretty normal mpg for us running around the country roads and around the farm.

    The FI vs. carb trucks don't seem to show a great deal of difference which is surprising!
     
    Juju1187 likes this.
  22. rmay635703

    rmay635703 New Member

    That seems more reasonable, my guess is many here are not running the correct size tires and probably don't inflate them correctly, a body lift certainly doesn't help either in the MPG department.

    My Subaru takes 145x10's and my Daihatsu takes 145x13's, I would assume many here are running larger and crapping out FE.
     
  23. zardoz

    zardoz Member

    Something I tried yesterday on my trip home from Mahone Bay to Windsor area.... It might sound silly... but I folded my mirrors flat against the door windows (visibility in my 93 zuki is great with the only blind spot right over my right shoulder). I saved approximately 2 dollars... making the same trip worth 7 bucks mirrors out (like Prince Charles an his big ol ears hangin out there in the wind) versus 5 bucks with mirrors tucked in.

    An added bonus is the GREATLY reduced wind "buffeting" noise inside the cab when in windows down mode.

    Try it... and let's see if this is a real "bonus" or did I just have an exceptionally good drive home?


    z
     
  24. oldsnowman

    oldsnowman Member

    we have a speed camera in our small town and going past it my speedo matchs the speed posted. my highway mpg has gone down a little bit since i put my wide tires on (165/55VR-14). my new tire are the same height as stock its just there a lot wider, but i still get 30mpg on the highway :), have not tryed in town yet but its not a big concern for me, the fun i have out weighs the gas mileage :D

    wyatt
     
  25. Stuff99

    Stuff99 Moderator Staff Member

    ya, second half mileage report.

    210km - 23.5liters
    130.5miles - 6.20 gallons US

    so 8.9km/liter, 21mpg..

    kept it even at 100km/hr but i had bad wind from an incoming storm...
     
  26. starpuss

    starpuss Member

    Ok. I got ****ed over to night play with my truck! Driving it like a race car offroading (got back home 30min ago)

    150kms city driving no more then 50kph
    50 km mud hills and trail rides no faster then 30kph
    and 200km's on the highway at 90-100kph

    and then i ran out of gas! out of cell phone range... in the Eucken pissing rain!! And having to take a **** so bad!! I thought i was going to have to drop one on the side of the highway! (I was 45kms from home....) so I passed 4 gas bars on my way home!!!! All where closed before 10:00!!! wtf???

    So after I got out in the pissing rain after pissing I got cell range to call my dad to help lol :(


    So this time I got 26 mpg over all city/highway … witch is still better then my old truck witch got 6-12 …
     
  27. Mighty Milt

    Mighty Milt Active Member

    with my daihatsu 660 EFI on the hiway at 120-140kph i got 20-22mpg - driving on the streets back and forth to work at about 80kph i got around 30mpg. they were never astonishing numbers and my old toyota 22RE got more consistent mpg with a much better ride and more conveniences. at the time i had my daihatsu it was an alternate vehicle to my full size quad cab dodge that got about 15mpg. like wyatt i passed many speed cameras near the school zones and my speedo was typically spot on. i kept my tires at the recommended pressure and was always in search of the best MPG possible. but here in phoenix if you aren't doing 60mph on the street and close to 80mph on the hiway you will get run over. so i chose speed over fuel efficiency.
     
  28. tyfyeq

    tyfyeq Member

    i agree with milt. i am running on 95 and the turn pike here in pa everyday. some people think i am nuts because it is my only vehicle but i fell in love with her at first sight. seems to get about 20-25 mpg when your beating the crap out of it. but just cruising around i get about 30-35. the carlisle all trails are not helping very much.
     
  29. JOrange

    JOrange New Member

    I just bought a 91 Sumbar with 34,000 km on it and was looking all forward to the 21 km/L or 50mpg that I had read I would get. See link:

    Fuel Economy

    Unfortunatly it looks like I am getting closer to 9 km/L which as about the same as a regular full sized pick-up truck. I am disapointed witht he fuel economy, However, I really do like my new vehicle.
     
  30. Coast Steve

    Coast Steve Member

    89 Mitubishi Canter 1500kg

    4 cyl 5 speed diesel, with dualies


    I get a max of 500 kms for 48 liters with almost every tank

    OR

    310 miles for 11 gallons


    Both is around 28-30mpg, pretty darn good for such a big heavy truck.

    It's going up the hills that eats the fuel on my truck.
     

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