Gas mileage?

[Mrmike]

No complaints here!

I just took my '23 OBX (1.5) on a 1000 + trip from Syracuse, NY to Cincinnati, Ohio and back. I have a K & N filter and use Mobil 1 full synthetic oil. Tire pressure 35 all around. Driving between 62 and 70 utilizing the adaptive cruise control. Goat mode in normal. Minimal air conditioner use. I filled up 3 times and averaged 34.7, 36.4, and 34.9 MPG. Car ran perfectly with plenty of power on the highway. Extremely happy with my OBX!

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[Nosmo Rex]

MY '23 OBX has a bit over 3000 miles, and I've been averaging about 25 MPG for my daily 12 mile commute. Some of that can be a bit stop and go. Until recently it had been around 22. A recent road trip to the coast was upwards of 32 MPG. I stopped using ECO mode as it really didn't seem to help gas mileage and was a significant performance hit.

 

[Wild Bronc]

I am very pleased with the gas mileage on my 1.5 liter powered 2023 BS Big Bend . I am getting 32.5 mpg on mostly highway driving at 60 -65 mph.

 

[Jumbo1953]

2021 Badlands with 24,000 miles on it. My worst tanks are 25mpg. My best tanks are 29mpg. I’m very happy with my mpg.

 

[KidWiff]

Interesting experience with gas mileage on my BS with the 1.5 using 87 Octane exclusively, right around 3k miles at this point.

For the first 2700 miles or so, i was averaging 27.5 mpg (per the lifetime avg. displayed by the computer) slightly less when calculated by hand.

At my last fill up (a station i visit occasionally, Citgo Top-Tier) I noticed mileage was noticeably down based on the trip computer.... like into the 23 mpg range, and lifetime mpg avg. was down to 27.1 mpg.

However, decreased mileage also coincided with cooler weather and use of the climate control system.

New fill up the other day, at the station i normally visit (Shell, top tier) and my mileage is back up to 27/28 mpg. The little 1.5 also seems to be running more smoothly as well.

So, I've got a couple of variables here. I'll be curious to sort out answers in the re-fills ahead.

1. Did i just get a lousy tank of fuel? My most recent refuel was with less than 1/4 tank remaining of the "old" fuel so, the vast majority of the fuel in the BS is the "newer" fuel.

2. Does the climate control system have that significant of an effect on MPG ? It seems unlikely that simply using the cabin heater would result in that much of a decrease in MPG but then again, it is a pretty tiny 3 cylinder engine so... who knows? (i would expect a/c would have a more detrimental effect.

I'm leaning strongly towards a bad tank of fuel, but can't rule out the climate control variable until i get through a few more tanks of fuel.

 

[Mark S.]

So, I've got a couple of variables here. I'll be curious to sort out answers in the re-fills ahead.

1. Did i just get a lousy tank of fuel? My most recent refuel was with less than 1/4 tank remaining of the "old" fuel so, the vast majority of the fuel in the BS is the "newer" fuel.

2. Does the climate control system have that significant of an effect on MPG ? It seems unlikely that simply using the cabin heater would result in that much of a decrease in MPG but then again, it is a pretty tiny 3 cylinder engine so... who knows? (i would expect a/c would have a more detrimental effect.

I don't think it's either. The use of climate control is not why colder weather results in lower fuel economy. It's because the engine runs richer (uses more fuel) while the engine is cold, and in cold weather the engine takes longer to warm up. That means the engine runs richer for a larger percentage of total operating time.

Don't rely on data from a single fill up. There are too many variables to get accurate data from a single tank of gas. Average your mileage over three tanks to account for variables like ambient temperature, winds, pump handles that click off at different times, different use cases, etc. I've seen differences of two-three gallons per mile from one tank to the next, but the overall average stays pretty much in the ball park. You can view my running fuel economy log here.

 

[KidWiff]

I don't think it's either. The use of climate control is not why colder weather results in lower fuel economy. It's because the engine runs richer (uses more fuel) while the engine is cold, and in cold weather the engine takes longer to warm up. That means the engine runs richer for a larger percentage of total operating time.

Don't rely on data from a single fill up. There are too many variables to get accurate data from a single tank of gas. Average your mileage over three tanks to account for variables like ambient temperature, winds, pump handles that click off at different times, different use cases, etc. I've seen differences of two-three gallons per mile from one tank to the next, but the overall average stays pretty much in the ball park. You can view my running fuel economy log here.

Definitely won't rely on a single fill up.... I'm going to be tracking pretty much every fill up over the next couple of months and make note of temp, type of driving (commute, longer trips, etc.) we'll see what happens. I'll check out your fuel log as well. thanks.

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