Pictures of LT Hatch and Sedan, LTZ Sedan at Michigan Dealership

[buddy97]

buddy97, I agree with you about beating the rated mileage. My '98 civic LX 4-dr is rated on fueleconomy.gov at 34 mpg hwy. I have gotten as high as 39-40 on long highway trips, setting the cruise at 75 mph and A/C on. This is actual data, not 'guestimates'. I have been tracking my fuel mileage for the last 5 years, 90,000 miles. I can send you my spread sheet.

So if I apply roughly that same improvement over the ratings to the Sonic 1.8L 5-spd manual, it should get 40+ mpg real-world.

I am anticipating the 1.4T 6-spd manual getting mid-40's real-world mileage.

problem is (and im trying to be as objective as i can) it really seems like honda and toyota have always had a strong reputation for consistently beating the crap out of epa estimates while domestic makes have struggled just to meet them in the real world.

under the new rating system that was implemented in 2008 it should be very easy to beat epa estimates (i averaged over 41 mpg in my 35 mpg rated corolla and over 43 in my 40 rated accent).

.....i dont understand why no epa numbers have been released this close to the sonic 1.4 coming out.

 

[piro216]

There were no EPA numbers for the 1.8 until it was on dealers lots either.

 

[RichieRocket]

problem is (and im trying to be as objective as i can) it really seems like honda and toyota have always had a strong reputation for consistently beating the crap out of epa estimates while domestic makes have struggled just to meet them in the real world.

under the new rating system that was implemented in 2008 it should be very easy to beat epa estimates (i averaged over 41 mpg in my 35 mpg rated corolla and over 43 in my 40 rated accent).

.....i dont understand why no epa numbers have been released this close to the sonic 1.4 coming out.

Yes, I understand the changes in the EPA mpg ratings system. The actual sticker that was on the civic back in '98 said 37 mpg hwy, but now fueleconomy.gov has 34 mpg hwy, which is adjusted to the new tests. So, agree, it is yery easy to beat the rated mpg.

I guess we'll see when we get real-world sonic data.

As you probably already know, you must consider the 'placebo effect' on data reported by people. The mileages reported on fuelly or fueleconomy.gov are by people who actually care about maximizing mpg. So a person anticipating a good mpg would accelerate at a slower rate and drive a slower speed without realizing it.
This may not represent a real world, average driver...