Gas Mileage ???

[jskins11]

Just bought a 2010 Kia Soul. The advertised mileage was 24 city/30 hwy. I just went on a trip today out of town and got about 21 mpg (all highway driving). I seriously just bought the car a few weeks ago.

Would there be a reason for this? Can car companies lie about the gas mileage? Pretty pissed.

[Sticksboi05]

Reported mileage is usually overdone because EPA tests in perfect conditions.

However, our Civic Hybrid does in fact get 50 MPG highway.

[twa]

Just bought a 2010 Kia Soul. The advertised mileage was 24 city/30 hwy. I just went on a trip today out of town and got about 21 mpg (all highway driving). I seriously just bought the car a few weeks ago.

Would there be a reason for this? Can car companies lie about the gas mileage? Pretty pissed.

Driving in hills and driving style effect it,but if it keeps it up I would definitely complain.

[AsburySkinsFan]

Reported mileage is usually overdone because EPA tests in perfect conditions.

Exactly, the averages are calculated in perfect conditions real world situations are much different. What's more is that unless jskins11 actually started out on the highway then not all of the driving was done on the highway at highway speeds.

[fullnelson9999]

Not sure. I routinely average 33 on the highway in my 2006 Pontiac G6, but estimates online usually have it in the 20s.

Im not gonna complain.

[I_Bleed_B&G]

maybe the engine and tranny need to break in.

[styx491]

My Yaris was advertised as around 34/38 (city/hwy). The last fillup I had got me around 36 mpg, and it was around 70 percent highway and 30 percent city. I've had the car for 3 years and its been consistent like that, sometimes even going up to 40 or 41 mpg when I take long trips that are all highways.

Since your car is new, it should be pretty good in terms of its engine quality and gas tank wear. I'd suggest using a fuel injector cleaner (that has increased the mpg on some other cars my family has) but you JUST bought the car, so it doesn't really need that. Sounds like you're stuck with the mileage you have now, unless Kia's get better with age. Call the dealership? Maybe you can pull the "hey theres definitely something wrong with THIS specific car and I did JUST buy it, whats up?"

[NewRegime]

People need to remember that optimum gas usage is around 60mph. When you start going 70+mph, you are burning more gas and subsequently getting worse mileage.

[NewRegime]

Not sure. I routinely average 33 on the highway in my 2006 Pontiac G6, but estimates online usually have it in the 20s.

Im not gonna complain.

According to this site, you should be averaging 33mpg on the highway and 23 in the city.

Sounds like you aren't getting as great of a bargain as you might of thought.

http://www.automotive.com/2006/12/pontiac/g6/specifications/index.html

[Springfield]

The real answer here...

The fuel economy on new cars is much closer to "as advertised" than it used to be. As of 2006 ('07 or 08' maybe) the testing has become more stringent and closer to actual conditions than tests of 10 years ago. Before the new testing, the vehicles were run in completely optimal conditions that people very rarely had the opportunity to drive in. Now the tests try to mimic real driving to a better extent.

So. If your car is new, you should get a MPG that is fairly close to the estimate on the sticker. The low end may be a bit lower and the high end may be a bit higher, but overall the actual MPG should be pretty close.

As to the OP. If your car is brand new, you won't get the best MPG. The vehicle still needs to "break in" before you will realize normal MPG. Break in normally happens the first 1,000 miles or so of a vehicle's life. Your fuel economy should improve.

[aszumilo]

A lot also depends on the way you drive and the road conditions. If you are going uphill, you will put more of a load on the engine, causing it to require more gas to overcome the load. Same if you put you foot in it and drive it hard. While the estimates are closer than they were, they are still only estimates.

[Springfield]

While the estimates are closer than they were, they are still only estimates.

Precisely.

My car is rated 22/29. I normally get around 21 MPG but I do mostly city driving. My car doesn't reach operating temperature on either my drive to work or my drive to the local supermarket. That is the majority of my driving.

[Bostic Hog]

Cars get much worse gas milegae in colder weather. I'm sure that's your answer.

[Springfield]

Cars get much worse gas milegae in colder weather. I'm sure that's your answer.

Only a very marginal part of the answer.

[Bostic Hog]

Only a very marginal part of the answer.

I would say I get 5 mpg less when it's winter.

[Fan since a Fetus]

Like others have said, maybe it needs to be broken in. My wife and I bought a Prius and it took a couple of months before we hit that sweet spot.

[NewRegime]

I would say I get 5 mpg less when it's winter.

Might want to check your tire pressure just to help.

[Mr. S]

As already mentioned, the posted mpg is more accurate starting around 2006 or 2007. They are not tested in optimal driving conditions anymore.

I've also heard that the build of an engine matters too. A luxury car engine will tend to achieve higher mpg than a regular car. Can anyone explain that? User reviews have people saying they get as much as 5 miles over the highway mpg rating when driving on the highways. I don't see those kinds of reviews for the non-luxury brand of cars.

[Springfield]

I've also heard that the build of an engine matters too. A luxury car engine will tend to achieve higher mpg than a regular car. Can anyone explain that? User reviews have people saying they get as much as 5 miles over the highway mpg rating when driving on the highways. I don't see those kinds of reviews for the non-luxury brand of cars.

The law of physics says three things about cars. The best way to make a car to get the most MPG can happen one of three ways.

1.

Make the car weigh less. The less a vehicle weighs, the better fuel economy it will get. The easier it is to push (or pull) an object, the less gas you have to burn in order to move it. Better fuel economy.

2.

Make the car more aerodynamic. If the vehicle doesn't cause as much drag. If the vehicle doesn't act against the air it is displacing with as much force it will be easier to move it against said air. Simply said, better fuel economy.

3.

Easiest way to get better fuel economy, burn less gas. The easiest way to eliminate the fuel you burn is the eliminate the cylinders a vehicle runs on. This is, easily put, the reason why light (sometimes hybrid) vehicles get better fuel economy than heavy eight cylinder trucks. Best way to get the most fuel economy from a vehicle.

[jskins11]

Thanks for the comments. It just seems weird that it is sooooo low. My first couple fill ups I was getting around 19-20 mpg. It was mostly city driving though. Then I went on this trip today and was thinking I would get good mileage. Didn't happen. I have less than 1/8 of a tank left and I only have 250 miles this fill-up. I would say 90% of this fill-up was highway driving.

My last car was a 99 Saturn SL-1 and I got close to 400 miles per fill-up on the highway.

Both engines are similar. Yes the Kia Soul is slightly bigger, but I should not be getting 120 miles less per fill-up. Gas tanks are the same size.

The Kia site even says 30 mpg highway. If I'm getting 22-23mpg, that's a bit too low, isn't it? I do drive a tad fast (75mph in a 70 speed limit) but still.

[SkinnedAussie]

Just bought a 2010 Kia Soul. The advertised mileage was 24 city/30 hwy. I just went on a trip today out of town and got about 21 mpg (all highway driving). I seriously just bought the car a few weeks ago.

Would there be a reason for this? Can car companies lie about the gas mileage? Pretty pissed.

Those types of tests are generally done by professional drivers in perfectly optimal weather and driving conditions.

I'd suspect none of the above is relevant to you.

[aszumilo]

I've also heard that the build of an engine matters too. A luxury car engine will tend to achieve higher mpg than a regular car. Can anyone explain that?

Luxury cars usually have different gearing in the transmission and/or rearend. A sports car will have higher (numerically) gear ratio, while a luxury car will have a lower one. That is why a sports car will accelerate faster than a luxury car with the same engine. Certainly there are more differences between the cars, such as aerodynamics, engine specs, etc., but, I am sure you get the drift of it.

The higher (numerically) the gear ratios the faster the acceleration, lower results in a slower acceleration, but, a smoother power band. Gear ratios will also affect the rpm of an engine, which also will affect mileage.

[aszumilo]

3.

Easiest way to get better fuel economy, burn less gas. The easiest way to eliminate the fuel you burn is the eliminate the cylinders a vehicle runs on. This is, easily put, the reason why light (sometimes hybrid) vehicles get better fuel economy than heavy eight cylinder trucks. Best way to get the most fuel economy from a vehicle.

Not necessarily true. If you take the same truck with a 6 cylinder engine and an 8 cylinder engine, the mileage would not be drastically different. In my truck, a 2004 Dodge 1500 w/ hemi engine, the mileage is not drastically different than with the smaller V-8 engine or the 6 cylinder engine.

2004 Ram 1500 5.7L Hemi 14/18

2004 Ram 1500 4.7L V-8 12/15

2004 Ram 1500 3.7L V-6 15/21

All things being equal with the trucks, as far as transmission type and ratios, weight, options, etc. the V-6 does not get significantly better mileage. So your theory of less cylinders equals better mileage is not entirely correct. The smaller engine has to work harder to get the truck moving, therefore, has to use more gas to achieve the same result as the bigger engine. The only real way to achieve better mileage with the smaller engine would be through gearing and weight reduction.

Hybrids get better economy because they run on the electric motor most times and use the gasoline powered engine to charge the batteries, under heavy loads, or for highway cruising. The gasoline motor is not utilized full time as in non-hybrid cars.

A Chevy Silverado hybrid truck gets an estimated 21/22 mileage. Not a huge difference from my Hemi Dodge. I average about 15 mpg city and close to 22-23 on the highway, even though the estimates are a bit lower.

[DButz65]

^^ yea but in my 05 magnum v8, it has a MDS engine (multi displacement system), it cuts to 4 cylinders at highway cruzing speeds. Once the car is going at a steady speed, its gets better gas milage.. i only notice better milage on long trips though and not in the city areas. Do the MDS's uses more milage when it changes from 8 cylinders to 4?

[SkinnedAussie]

A hemi engine burns fuel more efficiently, so that would explain the better mileage.

As per the above example, a 6 cylinder also has to work harder to maintain highway speeds.