OFFICIAL Fuel Mileage Discussion Thread

[Em-squared]

In our effort to keep things concise, all posts concerning fuel mileage will be posted here. I apologize for the elimination of the other thread; it is archived for your reference (combined with steering wheel peeling thread).

To summarize what many of us have discovered in our discussions on fuel mileage:

Fuel mileage is a common complaint on this subforum, and can vary depending upon geographical location, outside temperature, wind speed, elevation changes, personal driving habits, type of road, etc. Many members claim that fuel quality also affects mpg.

The 40-mpg claim is a projection for freeway driving. Your overall tank average is that of all your driving, so unless you only drive gently on perfectly flat freeway, it will be HIGHLY unlikely that you will get a combined tank average of 40 mpg.

The read-out on your dashboard may not reflect perfect accuracy, so it is recommended that you still manually calculate your own fuel mileage if you prefer a more accurate readout.

Most of you seasoned members already know this, but for anyone new to the Elantra and/or to the forum, please post all your questions here before starting a new thread on the topic. Thanks a bunch!

[markjenn]

I'd encourage those closely tracking fuel mileage to create an account on fuelly.com and to enter the data for their driving. This is a great resource to keep track of your own mileage and to compare to others. It's free and easy to use.

- Mark

[dmlexpert]

One other point to add to any fuel economy thread - Hyundai odometers read "low", not recording all the miles you drive. So if you prefer the "hand calculated method" of dividing miles on your trip odometer by gallons counted on the pump, be aware that the displayed "miles" is too low, and that means your calculated mpg will be lower than actual. In the Elantra, only 96.6 miles out of every 100 driven are being counted, although that number varies slightly based on which tire/wheel combo you have on your Elantra.

If you don't want to fuss with correcting the pessimistic odometer, just take your hand calculated mpg and multiply it by 1.035 to get the corrected mpg.

Example:
309 miles shown on Trip "A" is actually 319.8 miles.
The pump says 8.0 gallons added.
Hand calculated: Trip "A" divided by gallons added = 309 / 8, or 38.625mpg
Corrected: (Trip "A" x 1.035) / 8 = 39.977

Alternate: 309 / 8 = 38.625 - hand calculated mpg. And then correct it - 38.625 x 1.035 is 39.977

[Em-squared]

Wow! Thanks dmlexpert, never knew! So does that mean that our cars actually have more miles on them than they say they do? Rather bothersome, IMO...

[dmlexpert]

Yes, actually. Your 100,000 mile powertrain warranty lasts an actual 103,500 miles. When correcting the distance, the dashboard mpg meter is actually closer than people realize. It's still not on target, and it can be thrown off by wild variations in city/highway driving mix, but it is closer than you think.

[g_arneson]

IMG_20120725_221525.jpg Taken a couple of weeks ago... Over the course of six days, mostly highway miles obviously. But still, I'm happy with my mileage This is no fluke, either, as my display currently reads 44.2 mpg avg. after 1/2 tank of fuel. It's been around 40 avg. all summer for me! Admittedly though, my grandpa thinks I drive like a grandpa... haha

[markjenn]

Originally Posted by dmlexpert

One other point to add to any fuel economy thread - Hyundai odometers read "low", not recording all the miles you drive.

What is your source for this?

Most odometers are fairly accurate to within +/- 2% or so. They have to be because vehicle certification regulations require it. I'd be surprised if Hyundais are any different, especially since it would lengthen their warranties and under-estimate their gas mileage.

- Mark

[ravenspilot]

The few times I calculated by hand, my MPG numbers came out to within a tenth of what the trip computer was telling me, so now I'm content to go with its figures.

I've put 11,000 miles on my 2012 Elantra GLS Preferred since I bought it last October, and currently I'm getting between 30-33 combined MPG and 37-38 MPG on the highway, in hundred-degree Midwestern heat and with MAX-A/C running almost constantly. Which I'd say is pretty good. No complaints here about my mileage.

With decent (ethanol-free) gas in the tank and cooler spring temperatures, I've hit the magical forty MPG mark in spirited highway driving. OTOH, last winter, between letting the car idle to warm up and slow driving on slick roads, I had a couple of tankfuls where I averaged 25-26 mpg.

Like they say: Your mileage may vary.

There's a guy on another forum who's been kidding me about my Elantra's "inflated" mileage figures. He has a Prius and a new 2012 Ford Focus, and drives the Ford when he feels like taking a spin in an actual car and not an appliance. He claims an average of 33 mpg with the Focus.

He's also had to take the Focus back to the dealership within the first couple of months he's owned it, with a suspension problem. Something about the front struts and springs needing replacement.

And meanwhile my little black raven just keeps chugging along...

[OkieRich]

Admittedly though, my grandpa thinks I drive like a grandpa... haha

I'm a grandpa, what's wrong with that? 

I have no complaints with my mileage. Not only do I get great mileage, IMO, but I get it driving around town "in style!" 

[g_arneson]

Originally Posted by OkieRich

I'm a grandpa, what's wrong with that? 


hahaha absolutely nothing, I just wanted to make it clear that I do have to "work" to get the kind of mileage I get... although, a majority of my summer driving is done @ 60 mph with the A/C on and/or windows open (yes, both haha), so it could be even better yet. Speaking of that, has anyone noticed a huge difference in mpg with the A/C on or windows open? It only seems to hurt my mileage by 1 or maybe 2 mpg... pretty insignificant and certainly not worth sweating over IMO.