[F348]

I always thought this was just something people said to make themselves feel better or something dealers said as an excuse... but... I am actually starting to get better numbers. I have 2300 kms on the clock. Anyone else?


Sent from my Autoguide iPhone app

 

[Dr Bob]

It's not a myth, in my opinion but the improvement is slight. Most owners wouldn't run a meaningful economy test on a very new engine, since constant speeds aren't recommended.

Here are my results for our 2011 Cerato 2.0 auto (converted to Miles/US Gallon):

32.6 (1000)
33.2 (1500)
33.9 (2000)
34.9 (2500)
34.6 (3000)

Figure in brackets is approximate cumulative miles travelled by the time of each fill. I have not listed some fills that included city driving.

This is all highway driving at 60/70 mph.

 

[GALVYANK]

Today engines are assembled to close tolerances, and motor oil have greatly improve. Break in periods are no longer required. However, engines still tend to loosen up a bit after few 1000 miles. Improvements in gas mileage are usually negligible. My 1.6L seems to rev more freely after 4000 miles.

 

[demonr6]

Improved mileage = b*crap. I am about to turn 2k miles and my average is an abysmal 31.5. I track my mileage on the EPG website based on the number of gallons & mileage on the trip odometer so it's not the car telling me "Oh boy you are doing great!" I drive at or under the speed limit, using cruise whenever possible and ECO mode is on when I am not on the highway but even the two tanks I ran with it on highway, it did nothing noticeable. I fill up at Shell or Mobil so it's not the sub-par gas either. The mileage quoted for this car is about as reliable as a politician.. it makes a great front but in reality it is as bogus as they come. This is my only complaint about this car, the EPA posted fuel economy is a lie and could not be farther from the truth. The only way this car will get those numbers is if I manage to draft behind a Porsche.

 

[Dr Bob]

The EPA figures for the RIO (30/40 MPG) don't seem too unrealistic, so it must be disappointing if the car doesn't get these results in practice, especially when you consider that the Cerato/Forte EPA (25/35 MPG) is very close to what is observed.

I agree that the dealer's spin on "improved mileage when broken in" is a bit fanciful.

 

[ATXRio5]

I haven't been clocking my miles driven vs $ spent so I cannot tell you exactly. However I can tell you that each tank seemed to go further and further. I just turned 2,600miles and its seemed to stable out on a rough estimate of 35mpg mixed. This is just quick math using approx numbers of miles driven vs gallons put in on last fill up. I'm not too upset with the gas mileage is it is substantially better than my last vehicle. I just wish the tank was a bit bigger to allow for further travel on one tank.

 

[joesyah]

Improved mileage = b*crap. I am about to turn 2k miles and my average is an abysmal 31.5. I track my mileage on the EPG website based on the number of gallons & mileage on the trip odometer so it's not the car telling me "Oh boy you are doing great!" I drive at or under the speed limit, using cruise whenever possible and ECO mode is on when I am not on the highway but even the two tanks I ran with it on highway, it did nothing noticeable. I fill up at Shell or Mobil so it's not the sub-par gas either. The mileage quoted for this car is about as reliable as a politician.. it makes a great front but in reality it is as bogus as they come. This is my only complaint about this car, the EPA posted fuel economy is a lie and could not be farther from the truth. The only way this car will get those numbers is if I manage to draft behind a Porsche.

Something must be wrong ...between fill ups /mileage calculations or by the trip computer, 37.5 mpg is my average over the last 3 days of driving. It has gotten as high as 39 mpg. I drove 225 plus miles in those 3 days on the highway, some city driving not accounted for in the 225 miles and it took 6.5 gallons to fill the tank from the last refuel on Sunday evening. My highway speed averages 70 mph, back roads 60 mph. I don't quite have 1400 miles on the car.

 

[GregsKia]

The key to getting good gas mileage is this: fasten a raw egg to your gas pedal. Drive so that you do not break the egg. Do not go over 55 MPH. I absolutely GUARANTEE you will hit 40 MPG on the highway.

 

[joesyah]

The key to getting good gas mileage is this: fasten a raw egg to your gas pedal. Drive so that you do not break the egg. Works every time.

LOL..yeah hard acceleration kills gas mileage for sure.. There's definitely an art to getting the most out of a tank.

 

[marleyfan61]

The key to getting good gas mileage is this: fasten a raw egg to your gas pedal. Drive so that you do not break the egg. Do not go over 55 MPH. I absolutely GUARANTEE you will hit 40 MPG on the highway.

Oops. I accidentally put it on my brake pedal. Took me 4 miles to stop.

 

[b18c5rodney]

i have not seen better numbers from increased mileage. car has 7600 now, and i get the same mileage as when it was new. i wish it had a bigger tank though...

 

[RioBravo]

I'm over 14,600 miles and my mileage hasn't changed any.

 

[ecobox]

mine hasnt changed any. but does vary randomly. Like today, i was on the highway doing 100km/h with a slight cross wind and gauge told me i was getting 5.9l/100km average for the trip. and thats awesome. Im happy with that. Reset it again in town and i got even better than that with careful driving. 5.7l/100km

calculated it today and the computer readout is absolutely correct

 

[xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxbeto2k7]

My rio said 12.2L/100Km when I got it from the dealer. I've already put 415 miles on it and just hit 9.5l/100Km. I certainly hope it keeps improving a bit more.

 

[Dr Bob]

My rio said 12.2L/100Km when I got it from the dealer. I've already put 415 miles on it and just hit 9.5l/100Km. I certainly hope it keeps improving a bit more.

That will just be the running average. You need to reset.

 

[xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxbeto2k7]

That will just be the running average. You need to reset.

I reset it at every fill up.

 

[marleyfan61]

Just over 300km on mine. Was at 12.3 l/100km when I picked it up. Currenly indicates 9.7 l/100km. No resets, still on first tank. Way too soon to tell what to expect. Not even really sure why I make this post. I just felt like saying something I guess.

 

[brianl]

Funny, my average fuel economy gauge resets on it's own every fill-up.

I drive 110km one-way to work, 99% highway. I have 6600km on the car, and am averaging 7l/100km. Best is 6.4, worst is 8.1. The 6.4 number is an average over 450km, the 8.1 over 225km. It's been trending downwards, but has probably plateaued. These are calculated numbers (Android app called My Cars), the rating from the cluster is generally .2-.5l/100km optimistic.

I generally drive around 120km/h(limit is 100), if I'm being particularly patient I drive around 110km/h(probably when I hit 6.4l/100km). There are occasional (fuel sucking) bursts up to perhaps 140km/h (Interesting tidbit, getting caught driving 50km/h over the limit in Ontario, Canada will net you a 7-day roadside (i.e. - immediate, they tow the car) vehicle impoundment and license suspension).

On the highway, your gas mileage is going to be mostly effected by your speed - wind resistance increases at the square of speed, so the faster you go, the harder it is to punch a hole in the air.

In town, the best thing to do is watch traffic ahead and try and engage the Deceleration Fuel Cut-Off (DFCO) as much as possible. If the car is rolling at a sufficient speed in gear, and the throttle is closed, the injectors don't fire. So if you're rolling down a hill at a stop light, just close the throttle completely and you won't be using any gas.

I've definitely noticed the motor doesn't seem as reluctant to revving to higher RPM's as the kilometers have accumulated.

Thanks,

Brian

 

[Mysticality]

In town, the best thing to do is watch traffic ahead and try and engage the Deceleration Fuel Cut-Off (DFCO) as much as possible. If the car is rolling at a sufficient speed in gear, and the throttle is closed, the injectors don't fire. So if you're rolling down a hill at a stop light, just close the throttle completely and you won't be using any gas.

In a manual, on a long hill just go to top gear until you're cruising nicely, then downshift if you need to brake.

In the auto, same thing, just with the tiptronic.

There's a long slow hill around here between two towns. Its around 2-3km long.
I use 0.0 the entire way. Its great!