Really poor gas mileage

~tc~ · Fri Dec 14, 2012 2:13 am

Hadn't checked my tire pressure in a while. On a long business trip, stopped for gas - calculated 23 MPG. Pressure was low 30 psi or so. Filled up the tires to 40 (warm) and got 28 on the return trip.

Tue Jan 15, 2013 1:42 pm

Warmer weather this past week yielded a much better mpg number.....347 miles/12.67 gallons=27.39mpg on one tank of Sunoco regular. Driving style remained the same as well as the usual trips to/from work. So that's up nearly 2.5 mpg from the much colder temps of the previous tank. Tire pressure at 40psi. HUD claimed 45 miles remaining on the tank which was not really accurate (there would be more based on the numbers).

ipaqxman · Tue Jan 15, 2013 9:40 pm

Ron can I ask you what the average speed is on your digital dash

fjroman2 · Tue Jan 15, 2013 10:35 pm

I have only run through 2 tanks of gas in my car, but I am not getting very good mileage either.

24.2 mpg - avg speed 40mph
23.0 mpg - avg speed 30mph

My daily commute is about 13 miles...only 3 lights, mostly on a back country road. My Mazda 3s got at least 25 mpg with the same conditions.

Note 1:
Haven't used AWD at all...
Note2: Bought the car with 1600 miles...so, is it possible the previous owners (dealers) driving style has been "learned" by the car and is affecting my mileage?

murcod · Wed Jan 16, 2013 12:41 am

The Mazda 3 was probably lighter and fitted with a smaller engine? The Kizashi might improve with more time to allow the engine to free up.

By the way, those figures match up fairly well with the official specs given here: http://www.suzukiauto.com/kizashi/specs/?r=left#-all

City / Highway AWD CVT Models — 22 / 29

PS: From Google I got weight figures of around 2830lb for the Mazda 3s GTS vs 3241lb for the Kizashi SLS AWD.

jimmerz · Wed Jan 16, 2013 1:29 am

fjroman2 wrote:I have only run through 2 tanks of gas in my car, but I am not getting very good mileage either.

24.2 mpg - avg speed 40mph
23.0 mpg - avg speed 30mph

My daily commute is about 13 miles...only 3 lights, mostly on a back country road. My Mazda 3s got at least 25 mpg with the same conditions.

Note 1:
Haven't used AWD at all...
Note2: Bought the car with 1600 miles...so, is it possible the previous owners (dealers) driving style has been "learned" by the car and is affecting my mileage?

Nah, these cars just SUCK on MPG for a 4cyl. I dont care what people tell you, I had mine for 3 years and drive it very smooth and light like an old man. I keep my rpm under 2,000 as much as I can and cruise along never really in a hurry to get anywhere (Especially work!) I get 19-22mpg no matter what! AWD or not. I still thoroughly enjoyed owning this car and it had NO problems with it. I will be finished soon, since I lease and I fell in LOVE with the KIA Optima. I might be leaning that way. No big trade up in MPG for me, but I like everything about the Optima.

murcod · Wed Jan 16, 2013 3:42 am

The CVT might be to blame. My manual is very good on fuel, even compared to my last vehicle which was ~300kg lighter and had a smaller capacity engine. The Kizashi matches it around town on the same routes.

Wed Jan 16, 2013 2:17 pm

ipaqxman wrote:Ron can I ask you what the average speed is on your digital dash

35...it's ALWAYS 35. Even though most of my ride to work is 40-50 mph. Yeah, I putz along quite a bit, but 35 ain't right.

I reset it occasionally and it seems accurate for a little while...I forget about it, switch over to look at it again and it's 35. I put zero faith in it unless I reset it and look at it immediately.

BTW, I forgot to mention in the earlier post the HUD was reporting 29.8 mpg on that last tank.

Wed Jan 16, 2013 2:50 pm

jimmerz wrote: Nah, these cars just SUCK on MPG for a 4cyl. I dont care what people tell you, I had mine for 3 years and drive it very smooth and light like an old man. I keep my rpm under 2,000 as much as I can and cruise along never really in a hurry to get anywhere (Especially work!) I get 19-22mpg no matter what! AWD or not.

If you drive as you say, your style is the same as mine. Your car has issues, what they are, who knows, but there's something not right. Chances are you're not driving as light and "old man" like as you think you are. But yeah, to drive the car in a carefree, normal manner, the mileage sucks. I can easily drop down to 23-24mpg when not paying attention to what my right foot is doing. Add the 'have fun driving the car' factor in, then it's even worse.

EDIT: just saw in another post you're from Pittsburgh....lots of hills....I retract my statement that there's something wrong w/ your car. Hills, even slight ones, are the worst mpg killer in a Kizashi.

fjroman2 · Wed Jan 16, 2013 3:00 pm

Ron...what do you normally average? Or is the 27 mpg about what you usually get?

I am going to track this for 10 to 20 tanks of gas to see if it changes. I am sure the cold doesn't help too much...but I was pretty much expecting the same mileage as the Mazda. The specs on the Mazda were exactly the same as the Kizashi (for MPG - 22 city and 29 hwy). Like I said, I averaged at least 25...I am just hoping it gets a little better. http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/bymake/Mazda2007.shtml

As for right now, I feel like I am really driving slow and getting off the gas, more than usual. I am looking at the avg mpg continuously...lol. I have to stop! Anyway...I still love the car, just hoping for some better mileage.