Official: What are your real world MPG Numbers

[dvn]

I did the 2k thing for a week, didn't seem worth it. Do yourself a favor, and let it rip to 2500.

Yeah, I just can't seem to stick with the "granny" driving style. Lately, I've been shifting in the 2500-3500 rpm range. I've decided that I'll spend a few more dollars at fill up and have fun driving the car. After all, that's why I bought it!

 

[donovan1983]

I've found that the DIC reports a higher number when I drive it a bit more aggressively than when I try to drive conservatively. It might be because the engine is still breaking in. I certainly can't complain about that since the 1.8L is quite rev happy and when it hits just over 3K RPM the fun really starts.

This current tank of gas (mid-grade 87-octane E10) has been resulting in notably poorer economy compared to the past few tanks, according to the DIC. I've found the DIC to be within a MPG or two and right now it's reporting 27MPG after about 2/3 of that tank. Might be bad gas, though. Conoco gas has always been hit or miss for me on various cars. On my old Buick I had the best luck with 91 octane Sinclair gas, even though it's not top-tier and was often rather inexpensive. Then again, the stations I went to were always busy which might be why it worked well since I was always getting fresh gas. Although the Sonic only requires regular, I've been trying different grades since it is a high-compression engine and I think the premium Sinclair gas will be next.

 

[Eric Smit]

MPG: 52.3
Miles: 474.0
Gallons: 9.063
Price: $4.009/Gallon
Total: $36.334


-Eric Smit

 

[AndrewGS]

MPG: 52.3
Miles: 474.0
Gallons: 9.063
Price: $4.009/Gallon
Total: $36.334


-Eric Smit

 

[AxelRipper]

Dang you people in your flat, warm states with gas pumped straight from the refinery to your tank!

I'm back to commuting again. I slowed down to around 70 (the speed limit) and my last few tanks have been hovering between 35-36 mpg.

I decided to see how much I could eek out driving across Ontario (the Canadian one) and managed to get the display to read out 46.5 mpg ave. That was 60-65 behind a semi for a few hours. Never got official numbers on that though, because for the last 150 miles of that tank I was blasting around town like an idiot.

 

[RichieRocket]

MPG: 52.3
Miles: 474.0
Gallons: 9.063
Price: $4.009/Gallon
Total: $36.334


-Eric Smit

Wow! Are you getting out and pushing the car around?

I just filled up last night, 35.5 mpg calculated average (I am happy with that, hoping it gets 2-3 mpg better as it warms up). I've been trying to drive reasonably and short shift.

Of course, drive cycle makes a big difference. My 10.5 mile commute with 13 lights and 8 stop signs is not optimized for mpg

 

[dvn]

MPG: 52.3
Miles: 474.0
Gallons: 9.063
Price: $4.009/Gallon
Total: $36.334


-Eric Smit

I can't imagine how slow you have to drive to achieve those numbers. Must be a lot of angry horn blowers behind you!

 

[omniman]

50 mph no traffic 56mpg average 1.8 auto. Dam traffic. Life time mpg 28 95% city average speed 27 mph.Auto start sucks the fuel down lucky its warm now.

 

[Eric Smit]

I drive the speed limit, which is a max of 60.


-Eric Smit

 

[SteveSonic]

Wow! Are you getting out and pushing the car around?

I just filled up last night, 35.5 mpg calculated average (I am happy with that, hoping it gets 2-3 mpg better as it warms up). I've been trying to drive reasonably and short shift.

Of course, drive cycle makes a big difference. My 10.5 mile commute with 13 lights and 8 stop signs is not optimized for mpg

I think you're doing really well to get that mileage in hilly Connecticut. I grew up in Litchfield county and know.

 

[d.p]

Fuelly says my overall avg is 30.5 lol

then again I have been trying to race everyone and there moms lol

lost to a new v6 mustang...never happened before in my life and I KILLLLLLED a prancer lol...in mexico of course.

 

[pushy7202]

1.4L Turbo
37.7 mpg average
Took it on a road trip. 44 mpg highway with a tank. Almost as good as my bike

 

[d.p]

I wish I had a 6 spd :/

 

[Snappy Punkin]

40 +

I took a road trip, reset after we got off the interstate. After 125 miles, on secondary roads, using the cruise as much as possible and seldom over 60 mph.

1.8, 5 speed.
40.4, if the picture doesn't display, computer.

 

[itsphil]

I've got a Sonic with a 1.8 w/auto and it's got just under 2500miles on it and I drive with the cruise control on most of the time. I get 27.7 miles so far and I expect that to change .

 

[corprimo]

4th fill up today - mostly highway keeping between 60-65, some city, 38.3mpg - best so far. 1.4 6 spd, dry roads, temps 30-50 degrees, a few hills.

 

[saleswood]

After Broke in 8K miles

After driving for 2 months and putting on 5500 miles on my LTZ 1.4L Turbo 6sp Manual. I now get 44 Average Miles Per Gallon!!

 

[dvn]

Mine does seem to be getting better with time. Still just under 1k mis. My car seems to prefer 91 oct. I filled up the other day and reset the DIC. After 30 highway miles with the cruise set at 65, I was at 47 mpg on the display. Oh, and this was with my MTB on the back! At first, I thought this car will never get 40 mpg on the highway but now looks pretty promising!

 

[JayDude132]

Note: i accidentally posted this in a different thread last night!

This is my first post on the forums here, and i wanted to share my trip information. I just picked up the car last wednesday and I took it on a trip this last saturday and the dash readout said i averaged 46.1mpg. I was very happy to see that on the car since it only had about 6-700 miles on it and will only get better from here. I did the manual calculation as well and it came out to be 43.3mpg. I had expected the readout to be a little optimistic, but I can definitely live with these numbers! That trip was all highway, but there were lots of variations in elevation during the trip. Now that i am doing my normal back road driving (100% back roads, no highway), I am very pleased to see my dash reading around 38mpg. I assume this will end up being a true 35mpg. I can't believe these great numbers from a non-hybrid vehicle. This is great, as i traded in my 92 Lexus SC400 which averaged about 13mpg in the winter and approximately 16mpg in the summer AND it took premium!

My Sonic:
LT
1.4T
6 Speed Manual
Inferno Orange Metallic

On another note, have people been seeing their numbers improve slightly as their vehicle racks up more miles? And has anyone pumped up their tires to the max PSI to see if they get even better mileage yet? I know sometimes when you get new cars the tires are not always inflated to what they should be. I still have to check mine.
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[SteveSonic]

The fuel economy of the broken-in 1.4T 6MT Sonics is just becoming known because we're all coming out of the winter temperatures, which kills fuel efficiency. The Eco Cruzes have a year's worth of history and they're proving that break-in efficiency is several MPGs higher then when new. The Eco's can deliver over 50 MPG average.

I have 3,600 miles on my 1.4T 6MT LTZ HB, everything stock, and my Fuelly average is about 39 MPG but I'm seeing my numbers starting to climb as the morning air temperatures climb. I'm usually running 93 Shell, have my tires at about 38 psi, and average 20/80 City/Highway in slightly hilly central Virginia. I also just changed over to Amsoil full synthetic.