Car Fuel Consumption Anomoly

You have a co-worker that is messing with you.
They are adding gas to your tank until you have bragged ferociously about your amazing gas mileage.
Then they are going to start siphoning a little bit of gas each day until you are devastated by your horrible gas mileage.
At least that's what I did and it worked perfectly.

As an aside.

Mrs H's much beloved 2005 Ford Escape hybrid "4WD" was averaging 31.2 mpg at the time it was put out to pasture in July (with 246k miles).

Her new 2013 Honda CR-V "AWD" (non-hybrid), a larger, heavier, more powerful and altogether nicer vehicle, as of this writing is averaging 30.1 mpg

Both of these, I think, are pretty impressive for modest yet still fairly capable vehicles for Northern New England. The latter figure reflects, I suppose, the true progress in performance that's been effected in automobiles even in the past decade or so.

I hear ya man, but think of it like this. When you drink a soda with a straw, your sucking from the bottom, so anything that may be floating in it has to wait until your low on soda to get sucked up. Would not the same philosophy work for gas tanks ?

Now granted, you have small particles of junk in the tank, and bigger ones, rust that sits on the bottom that may get jarred lose just from vibrations and bumps in the road too. The idea is to not let the tank get low enough to suck up what was floating in it, just like the soda analogy. Obviously you can't avoid all the junk in the tank.

What jerks my chain is that too many car makers are now putting the filters inside the gas tanks so you have to drop the tank to change it. I'm thinking they did this to put the filter before the pump instead of after like the inline filters of years ago. Still, the design is piss poor and they make it that way so the average joe can't work on their cars themselves anymore.

I think the running the tank low and ruining the fuel pump is a thing of the past. I'm not sure about all manufacturers, but vw/Audi/Porsche/bmw/Mercedes to name a few use what's known as a surge tank, which is essentially a small compartment of fuel that houses the pump. This compartment is always full of fuel around the pump, this also prevents air in the lines and fuel starvation when the fuel tank is low, and when the fuel is sloshing around in the tank (i.e. Cornering). I guess unless you like to run out of fuel all the time.


I run my golf to the fuel light every week. Going on 80,000 km with no issues.

Little bit of a drift here but, I have problems with some of the middle eastern owned gas stations. I always use BP that's known to me just around the corner from me. I sometimes make it a point to speak to the tanker drivers that make deliveries to stations. Next time you see one, just ask the driver what some of their experiences have been with these dealers! I won't say anything more. Here in Illinois it's very common for a dealer to be indicted for tax evasion.

kevhed72 wrote: »

While I have no mileage data to back up my observations....my fuel gauge finally hit a quarter of a tank today. I actually thought perhaps the gauge was broke and worried I was going to run out of gas somewhere. I was sure to fill up at the same station and same pump, on low speed, to see what happens with this tank. Perhaps a drop in the humidity has an effect on turbocharged engines....

Cooler drier air is better for all engines, boosted engines see this more though. When it is cooler, it's denser, so the oxygen concerned traction is increased, resulting in a more efficient burn. Humidity is a higher content of water vapor, which will displace oxygen as well as other gases in the air, so lower humidity will help as well. The reason people believe cold air intakes make such a huge difference, but most fail to install them in a way where you get cooler air over the stock intake, or run it right against or near hot components. This will result in minor decreases in power and mileage. I have a 93 escort wagon, and driving g like a young kids around do ventura county, I average about 22, on the gas from the exchange or arco, but when I road trip to Seattle, on the 5, I can get it to damn near 40. I usually buy a chevron during the road trip, and choose my grade basedo on how much they are charging in the area. It seems to run best on mid grade, but if I bought low grade because of how much fuel was at my last stop, I'll put premium in around a quarter tank, and try to keep it balanced. I notice that around 70-75 mph, I get awesome mileage, 80 or more, it starts dropping quick. My engine fan also doesn't work, so I have to run the ac to keep it on, but my ac doesn't work either, the compressor won't kick on. I also replaced my clutch, which helped a lot, and new, good tires help too. I rebuilt my head last February and have the made the trip yet, but I'm looking forward to seeing how clean valves, good gaskets(head leaked, exhaust leaked), a working thermostat, new belts, new ignition system (coil pack, control module, plugs, leads) coolant flush, clean cylinders, new fuel filter, and vacuum leak fixed. I feel it should yield some positive results. I'm rebuilding my suspension in the next couple months which should help a little too, as a rear spring is broken. May drop my fuel tank and clean it out. Make sure you guys keep your air filter clean and your oil changed at regular intervals, helps a lot with fuel consumption.

When my fuel light comes on I go another 50 miles. Only then do I stop to refuel.
The last fuel pump I replaced was a 1967 Pontiac Catalina....lol.

motorhead43026 wrote: »

When my fuel light comes on I go another 50 miles. Only then do I stop to refuel.
The last fuel pump I replaced was a 1967 Pontiac Catalina....lol.

Hey, I had one of those too. Great dependable car I bought for 800 bucks. Built like a tank too and went thru snow like a 4 wheel drive vehicle. Man, I miss those late 60's cars.