After almost 3 years with my 06, I'm still a bit disappointed with my mileage...anyone else ?

[guitarspaz]

Is there something about 06's compared to previous year models that took the mileage figures down a bit, maybe emissions requirements changed ? I have a buddy that has an 03 FWD auto, and he consistently gets 34 mpg with about 30% small town driving, and 70% hwy, and he gets 38 mpg plus on strictly highway trips. In my 06, the absolute BEST I have EVER gotten on a strictly HWY/interstate is 31.5 MPG. In our small town, with a very short daily commute, I top out at about 24 MPG in the summer, and probably closer to 21/22 in coldest months of winter. The Car is an 06, FWD, 17 inch wheels, ABS, moonroof, Monsoon, etc. I love the car, and the mileage is not bad enough for someone to say it has an actual problem. Curious if anyone else has questionable mileage that they have addresses/fixed, or if it's just the nature of that year model. Is there any particular item or system I can have checked ? Thanks in advance.

[northvibe]

hmm for real world mileage, nothing was changed but drive by wire so your mileage compared to a 07, 05, 04 etc. should be similar. sounds like you should check on tire pressure, clean the MAF sensor, run some fuel injector cleaner through and maybe have the Cat back converters checked if that can be done. When cats are going bad or are bad they can give you some craptastic mileage. sensors as well, although it should throw a cel if they do... my 04 fwd base was getting 35 on the hwy pretty easily. You dont have a GT do you?

[guitarspaz]

It's not a GT. It's due for an oil change. I may just have my local trusted mechanic give it a once over at the next one.

[lovemyraffe]

21/22 seems really low. The lowest I've ever had in my '05 Base auto was 27. I usually get around 31 with 90% city driving. I wish it got better, but 31 is better than what my wife's Jetta gets.

[prathman]

We also have an '06 base model. When we got the car we immediately (next day) set out on a 9000 mile sightseeing trip and averaged just over 40 mpg - but that included long stretches of driving pretty slow through National Parks and other scenic areas. Recently we drove from WI to CA at higher speeds and averaged 38 mpg. So I'm surprised that you've never seen better all-highway mileage and it does seem like it would be worth checking out the sensors mentioned (MAF, O2), air filter, plugs, tires, etc.

[Kamikaze]

Finally.... someone else with my same MPG's...My last tank, 50/50 city/hwy.... 21.4mpg...My absolute best... 34mpg...06 Vibe Base, FWD, auto, 17" factory, 18" a.f. wheels, ABS Leather, etc...If you come up with anything... (maybe the catalytic converter?) please let me know too...

[jake75]

Quote, originally posted by guitarspaz »Is there something about 06's compared to previous year models that took the mileage figures down a bit, maybe emissions requirements changed ? I have a buddy that has an 03 FWD auto, and he consistently gets 34 mpg with about 30% small town driving, and 70% hwy, and he gets 38 mpg plus on strictly highway trips. In my 06, the absolute BEST I have EVER gotten on a strictly HWY/interstate is 31.5 MPG. In our small town, with a very short daily commute, I top out at about 24 MPG in the summer, and probably closer to 21/22 in coldest months of winter. The Car is an 06, FWD, 17 inch wheels, ABS, moonroof, Monsoon, etc. I love the car, and the mileage is not bad enough for someone to say it has an actual problem. Curious if anyone else has questionable mileage that they have addresses/fixed, or if it's just the nature of that year model. Is there any particular item or system I can have checked ? Thanks in advance.Your numbers track with my 2003 Vibe Base Automatic Transmission expereince.I still think GM/Toyota needs to look at those Vibes reported to get 38-40 mpg and see what they screwed up int he manufacturing process to get that kind of mileage!

[guitarspaz]

I just called my dealer, (who I don't have a lot of faith in based on previous experiences). What I got from them is basically that they'll throw it on the machine, and if it's not throwing any codes or doesn't show any issues with a "visual" inspection, the 100 dollar diagnostic fee will be on my dime (I'm about 500 miles from being out of warranty). My "trusted" mechanic at local shop says that if the "check engine" light isn't coming on, it's not likely to be throwing any codes. He said he would check for service bulletins and some other resources to see if he could get any info/things to check. He's solved some pretty strange intermittent problems before on other vehicles for me, so I have faith that if there's info out there, he'll find it. I'll let you know if I come up with anything.

[Daox]

Would your buddy be willing to trade cars with you for a tank of gas? Just to see what he gets in your car and vise versa.

[northvibe]

see if the local mechanic can look at your car under warranty...i hear its possible to do that. Just being it in saying, (removed) it drives funny, or makes a noise or shifts funny. Thats actually what i did right before my warranty was up and they looked over the whole car and found nothing wrong of course There were some bad cats on the 03's but I never heard of later models having issues but these are mechanical wonders, so anything could be possible. You can call or go into a dealer with your vin to have them check for any updates/tsb's/ recalls but there would almost be none to do.... Hmmm wonder if some 06 trixes have the same issue....

[Kamikaze]

I might have some time to stop by the dealership in the next few days.. I can try to see what mine has to say... I still have about 8k miles before i hit 36k... and till January 09...

[northvibe]

whats the window sticker say mileage should be on those? if its below that tell them to fix that crap! hahha

[Kamikaze]

window sticker is in the car... along with tracking every fill up since brand new....I can show them the documented MPG's for every tank.

[Renthorin]

Could not be happier with mine.Took a 300 or so mile trip on Sunday to the drag track. 65-70 mph most of the way....had the AC on the way home...Filled up when I got off the freeway and 38.5mpg for the trip.I are pleased....

[Kamikaze]

Rub it in our faces....Renthorin, is your's a 06 FWD base w/ Auto?

[bull77]

Quote, originally posted by Kamikaze »Finally.... someone else with my same MPG's...My last tank, 50/50 city/hwy.... 21.4mpg...My absolute best... 34mpg...If you come up with anything... (maybe the catalytic converter?) please let me know too... similiar numbers with my base 06 -- best i ever got from one tank was 570kms/355 miles

[keithvibe]

The best MPG i have ever gotten with my 06 AWD was just this past weekend i put 1400miles on the car and I got 35.34mpg doing 75-80mph the entire time.This was all Highway miles. In town with is a mix of mostly 40-50mph driving i get 26-28mpg.Needless to say I am a happy camper with my AWD and getting 35mpg on the highway.

[guitarspaz]

Man, I wonder what gives. Quite a bit of variation. I've never done the whole "clear the brain" deal, i.e. pull the batter cable off for a bit (is there anything else to do), to see if that helps. Should I try, or is it just asking for problems ? I wonder if I have a marginal Catalytic Converter ? Over the life of the car, I've smelled twinges of the rotten egg smell maybe like 4 times in 2 1/2 years. Think that is significant ? I wonder if a tech an measure inlet and outlet flow pressure around the converter and determine if it's marginal.

[isaaclud]

I hear you guitarspaz......I've NEVER EVER done better then 28 mpg....I think i am averaging around25 or so....which is honestly a little disappointing...Now, granted, I'm pushin the 5-speed and I dontupshift til 3500 rpm or so.....and sometimes I downshift instead of actually hitting the brakesto slow down.....but still, I'm disappointed withthe mileage on my 06 base too.....

[wyatt89]

Dude, there has to be something going on, Do as north said and clean your MAF with some brakleen or similar, run some injector cleaner, and check your air filter. Make sure your tires are right, alignment can REALLY jack up your mileage too so that's my 2 cents.

[02csnow]

06 Base auto50/50 city/hwy everyday - I get 30 mpg consistentlyThe highest I have ever gotten is 41 during a drive back from Michigan. I do think there is one time I did get 28 mpg during the everyday use.

[cycleb]

Just to say, I just got 37.699/gal pulling a trailer. This in an '08 automatic.

[coldmm803]

my mileage is varried, for city i get 20-24 and highway i normally get 30-34 (with occasional passing and going 70-75mph) BUT if i set the cruise to 68mph and dont pass anyone i can hit 38-41mpg. i've only hit 38-41 three or four times over the 3 years that i've had it...i'm only at 24k miles tho, college kept me to busy to drive a lot. i've noticed that mine is very sensitive to how i accel, i love the sound of these engines and do get on it a fair amount.i agree with Daox, try switching cars with your buddy for a tank or 2

[rsaxman]

I have yet to do a hwy trip with mine (I just bought it 2 months ago) but I get 30-31 consistently with almost all city driving. I hop on the interstate here and there around town, but just for a few miles at a time. Can someone tell me where the MAF is and how to clean it?

[guitarspaz]

Well, hearing the 20 to 24 makes me feel a bit better. I changed the air filter and ran fuel injector cleaner on the last tank. This tank was all start and stop city driving. I drive 3 miles to work one way, with about 5 stops. I got 22 on the last tank. I pulled the MAF sensor and checked it when I got home today. The temp bulb and MAF sensor were pretty clean, but I hit em with cleaner anyway. Wonder if the wider tracjk 17 inch tires bring the mileage down ? The sticker for it said 26/31. I guess I shouldn't complain, because I can get the 31. I haven't had the alignment checked, but it tracks straight as an arrow, and shows no abnormal or uneven tire wear. I keep em right at 32 PSI each like it says on the door sticker. Maybe it's as good as it gets. Still a great car, and 22 to 24 mpg cirt and 28 to 31 highway is better than many vehicles. All of these stellar mileage reports make me jealous I guess. Especially with Gas prices being like they are.

[TraySeeLea]

I have about 37k on my 06 base...and I was averaging 33 or 34 mpg....but I've changed the way I drive a lot....rarely ever going over 65-70.

[harryyiii]

I am disappointed with my milage on my 05 manual Vibe. With 50-50 city highway, I am 27-28. This would not seem so bad if GM/Toyota had not gamed the EPA test to get a dishonest 30 MPG city. The difference between 27 and 30 is not that much money, but the principle annoys me.

[schroeder]

06 Matrix 2wd Auto31,000 milesJust got back from a 655 mile fishing trip17.5 gals = 37.42 avg round tripSpeeds include some in town and hwy from 60 -75 mpg.Lots of Holiday traffic Memorial Day Weekend.Worst winter mileage was 24Since Spring arrived 30-32 around town.

[guitarspaz]

So are any of you folks reporting averages of 30 mpg or greater running 17 factory wheels and tires ? I'm looking to add credence to my theory that the larger rims and more specifically wider rubber where it meets the road adversely effects the mileage as compared to the smaller standard 16 inch wheels/tires. Is 32 PSI as recommended on the car door sticker a good pressure ?

[coldmm803]

for the heck of stating, i have an excel sheet to keep tract of my mileage and have an overall avg of 27.5 cause most of my driving was city for college.the 17's could have an effect on mileage but imo only if the overall weight of the rim and tire was more than with the 16's with tires. if i remember correctly, the stock 16" rim weights 22-24lbs and my current tires are 23lbs (tire weight is according to tirerack.com). so if the 17's with tires weights more that 47lbs than there could be some affect but it shouldn't be too much...depending on the difference. more weight means the engine has to do more work to turn the wheels and your burning more fuel. also, terrain would have a big effect on mileage, if majority of the people seeing greater mileage have flatter terrain and dont have a lot of hills to deal with then its fairly obvious that they would have higher fuel economy.

[schroeder]

My tires 215 55 16 goodyear assurance@ 35 psi year roundMobil 1 5w-20

[prathman]

Quote, originally posted by guitarspaz »So are any of you folks reporting averages of 30 mpg or greater running 17 factory wheels and tires ? I'm looking to add credence to my theory that the larger rims and more specifically wider rubber where it meets the road adversely effects the mileage as compared to the smaller standard 16 inch wheels/tires. Is 32 PSI as recommended on the car door sticker a good pressure ?We're running the stock 16" wheels/Goodyear tires, but I wouldn't expect much of a difference with 17" wheels - the differences in width and weight are pretty small. The 32 psi recommendation is presumably a good compromise between fuel economy, ride comfort, tire life, and handling. But people trying to get optimum fuel economy generally run much higher pressures - up to the stated maximum on the tire or even beyond that. In principle that should lead to premature wear of the center of the tread, but reports on some fuel economy forums indicate that they're seeing good tire life and even wear with pressures in the 40 - 50 psi range. I'd check the tire sidewall and stay under the listed maximum to be on the safe side. Also find a safe place where you can take the car around some sharp turns and evaluate how the handling is affected.

[Renthorin]

Kamikaze - no rubbing intended...just pleased with my little car :-)I am an 08 manual tranny so I should get better than an auto awd.I run the stock 16" steel wheels and have them at 44psi.Will

[vibecrxsi240sxse]

22mpg like clockwork since new... all city/stop and go ( Houston, Tx. traffic ).04 base vibe with factory 17" wheels. Tires are General Exclaim UHP 235/45/17 IIRC, I run a few pounds over recommended to help decrease rolling resistance. It's my wife's car and she doesn't have a heavy foot.I've done all the maintanence myself and run synthetic Pennzoil. I had to do a quick 150 mile r/t from HOuston to College Station and checked all hwy mileage... Drove about 70 mph with no a/c because it was in November. My mileage??....A whopping 31 mpg.

[Kamikaze]

Quote, originally posted by Renthorin »Kamikaze - no rubbing intended...just pleased with my little car :-)I am an 08 manual tranny so I should get better than an auto awd.I run the stock 16" steel wheels and have them at 44psi.It's all good! I guess I could try changing my PSI in my tires... I won't do it on my 18's, but on the 17's I was running 38psi, I couldn't se 6psi in the tires making a huge difference... also my 18's are about the same weight as my 17's, so again it shouldn't change mpg too much...(and it hasn't if I look at my mpg's from last year, and this year, they are about the same)

[Kamikaze]

Quote, originally posted by vibecrxsi240sxse »22mpg like clockwork since new... all city/stop and go ( Houston, Tx. traffic ).04 base vibe with factory 17" wheels. Tires are General Exclaim UHP 235/45/17 IIRC, I run a few pounds over recommended to help decrease rolling resistance. It's my wife's car and she doesn't have a heavy foot.See, now to me this is interesting... you have an 04 with 17's and getting about the same mpg's as me... but there are quite a few people that also have 04's (not sure if they have the 17's) but are getting almost always 30mpg or more...maybe I need to try putting some 16's on and seeing if I get 15 more mpg's.... if so, maybe it's worth it...

[isaaclud]

reading this thread makes me sick....im getting new tires on tommorrow.....(SIGMA REGENTS...90 bucks a pop...I am satisfied...i dont need a sporty tire)and maybe that will make a diff.....my car is kept very well.....i even changedthe break-in oil at 1,000 miles just to be safe...but still, reading something like 35mpg makesme want to throw up....my god

[guitarspaz]

I hear ya man. I feel the same way. Got 22.6 on the last tank after running fuel injector cleaner through the previous tank and changing the air filter. I'm thinking no matter what I do, I'll see 31 highway tops based on my history. I drive like an old lady, do all maintenance on time, and I cleaned my MAF sensor and temperature sensor bulb yesterday, but they were already very clean to begin with. Not near as dirty as some of the pictures I've seen here. I haven't tried cranking up the tire pressure beyond the recommended 32, so I'll do that next. I'm not expecting any miracles though. Maybe the factory just put some trannys and engines together a little tighter than others and we weren't lucky. The car runs like a top, nice and smooth, no hiccups. Always has. I've just NEVER seen the miraculous mileage everyone else has. It's very frustrating for me as well. It's been like this from day one. I figure as long as the window sticker said 31 highway, and I can on occaision get 31 on the highway, I can't "officially" complain to the dealer.

[Daox]

Well I can tell you why your getting the crappy mileage. 3 mile commute! Does your car even warm up by the time your there? Short trips are killers of good mileage.I'll also add that heavier tires and wider tires will decrease mileage.I run maximum sidewall pressure on my tires to decrease rolling resistance.

[northvibe]

my 2004 had 16" stock rims.

[satur9]

i used to get 30/35 or better in my 03 5 speed. but lately its been 25/30. ive cleaned my short ram/maf ran injector cleaner(even though i only use shell v-power 93) oil change the works. i think the gas stations may be sticking ethanol in because of the high prices. otherwise i cant explain it.i was getting better mileage in the winter than im getting now.i did try bp for one tank but same deal.ps. the good mileage was with intake jp header/midpipe thermal exhaust unichip 225/40 18's and me driving the snot out my car as usual.. ti didnt even gradually get worse i have scanguage so i check my mileage one tank good next tank not so much. thats whats making me think ethanol is the culprit

[moongdss]

Since the gas hike, I've been using some hypermiling techniques and have upped my avg mpg last few tanks to 37mpg. This current tank (with the help of my handy new scangauge) is clocking in at 40mpg. Main things I changed:increased all wheels to 35psipop into neutral to coast down hills when in the cityon highway I travel between 55-62mph wherever possible. (I-95 speed limit is 65)I varied my work schedule so I'm not stuck in rush-hour traffic on beltwaytake off from stops slooooowly coast into red lights.drive up the tailpipes of mack trucks when I can (exagerating slightly here lolz)I have zero mods on my engine. (yes, I'm sad like that.)car specs in sig

[guitarspaz]

I upped the tire pressure to 40 psi today. Max listed on the sidewall is 44. Was running about 36. We'll see if it makes any difference.

[Renthorin]

I run mine at 44 and I suspect they are around 50 when hot after running on the road for a while. So far (8k miles) no adverse wear patterns.

[sloth]

Quote, originally posted by guitarspaz »So are any of you folks reporting averages of 30 mpg or greater running 17 factory wheels and tires ? I'm looking to add credence to my theory that the larger rims and more specifically wider rubber where it meets the road adversely effects the mileage as compared to the smaller standard 16 inch wheels/tires. Is 32 PSI as recommended on the car door sticker a good pressure ?I have an 03 GT with 17s. I don't have the stock tires though as poor alignment from the factory tore those up quick. I run about 35psi, and get on average between 28-30mpg. Last 2 tanks have been 33+ though. Even with my snow tires on I avg better than 27mpg.

[altimar]

Daox is right about short trips. I have a ScangaugeII and you can see it runs rich (probably close to 50% more fuel) when cold. I believe my car takes 2-3 miles to warm up. Down here in south Louisiana at this time of year, it's already 80 degrees out when I leave at 7AM. It'll probably take longer in colder climes. Watch the temp gauge, when it gets close to horizontal the fuel rate should be normal. It is not, however, worth it to warm up the car. Start it and take off, very lightly though, until it is warmed.Moongdss had some good tips as well. Obviously though, drafting is very dangerous and not endorsed by *anybody*. It kinda gives hypermilers a bad rep. Side-drafting is ok if you're not blocking the roadway. I have my tires at 40PSI on the 16" alloys, but I haven't done this long enough to tell you it's absolutely no problem. In my experience with my previous car, I had to increase pressure by about 6PSI just to keep the tire wear even, so I have no qualms being +8 in the Vibe. Handling still seems fine. Pretty much everyone at cleanmpg.com runs 10-20 PSI over spec and they generally report BETTER wear and handling in addition to the mileage.Some of my own observations: I have an auto, which is a bit of a handicap, but you can still do a few things. The most efficient speed is right around 28-30MPH when you can catch 4th gear. It's good for about 50-55MPG. I find it's best to accelerate moderately, not too slowly, to about 30, then abruptly lift the gas to force the shift, then resume the gas to hold that speed or increase it a little bit. I think you can go down to about 26 or so before it downshifts on you. Watch the tach, it should be around 1200-1300RPM, if not, increase speed and try to force the shift.At about 40MPH is another good speed, because that's when (I presume) the torque converter locks up. 40 is about good for 45-50MPG. Watch for the tach to drop from 2000ish to around 1700ish. As you go faster than 40-45, the efficiency starts dropping off due to the exponential growth of air resistance.Anticipating stops in city driving is a big deal. Watch as far ahead as possible and get off the gas if you're going to have to stop. If there's a chance the light may turn before you get there, slow down more at first so you can carry a higher speed by the time you get there. If you're going pretty fast and have to slow down a lot for a light that just changed, you can take advantage of fuel cutoff (0GPH vs ~.25GPH idle), by downshifting as you brake. I usually hit the OD off button let it slow me down a bit, then shift into 2nd. The only thing about this is I suppose it may not be totally healthy for the tranny... Anybody have advice?If you are stopped at a light, I have noticed that the car burns (10-25%) less fuel in neutral than in gear, fighting the brake. Any chance I get to go neutral vs idling, I use neutral. The exception is when the engine is still cold, it burns more in neutral than in gear. After the temp gauge is horizontal, use neutral. If you can stand it, turn AC off when just idle, it burns twice as much gas. Cleanmpg says it takes six seconds of fuel to start a car so if you'll be stopped longer than that, it's worth it to turn off the engine, though it is more wear on the starter. I'll do this for train crossing stops, but I don't bother for long traffic lights. Before I started doing all this, my '07 auto (5k miles) was getting about 27.5MPG doing 90% city and once got about 30MPG for a mostly highway tank. I've been doing all the above for a tank or two and my last tank (90% city) I got 31MPG. I believe it could have been better, but that tank included a rather frantic trip to see if my brother-in-law was still alive after being hit by a car while on his bicycle. (He ended up spending 5 days in the hospital: cracked collarbone, rib, vertebral "wing", bad shoulder laceration. Unfortunately his beloved bike died; I think he was more upset over that.)

[guitarspaz]

Well, the latest is this. I upped my pressure from 32 to 40 psi. Didn't change anything else. Upped my city only mileage from 21.5 to 22.5. I'm pretty sure it's accurate as I fill to the cap and use the same island at the same station every time. As stated before, My commute is 3 miles one way. In my town, it's rare for me to get to travel more than 1 mile without sitting at a stop light. It's hot as heck, so I ALWAYS run my AC. Maybe this is as good as it gets. I'm not doing anything special otherwise. Is it worth changing to synthetic oil ? Can I realistically expect to see any gains there ? My mechanic checked and there weren't any TSBs specifically related to mileage on 06s. As stated before, the car runs like a top. No performance issues. Based on the fact that I did on occaision get 31mpg average going 70 mph on the interstate at 32 psi, I suspect that if I was in a larger normal city, with some longer nonstop intervals, I might hit the window sticker mark of 26/31 mpg city/hwy. Also, I'm certain that the fuel I'm putting in now is 10% ethanol and that doesn't help either.Thanks to all for their comments and inputs thus far. I'll post again after I get a good hwy trip.

[coldmm803]

switching to synthetic could allow the engine to warm up quicker but since your in TN i'm not sure since you normaly have warmer weather than here in PA. I"m running synthetic and in the winter when its 30F mine will be warm within a mile and by the 2nd mile i'm turning the heat down because its too hot in the car.

[prathman]

Quote, originally posted by guitarspaz »Is it worth changing to synthetic oil ? Can I realistically expect to see any gains there ?I'd try some 0W-30 or even 0W-20 synthetic (at least in the winter). With your short commute the engine is hardly getting up to normal operating temperature and the '0W' oils will flow better while the engine is cold.

[ClunkClunk]

I calculated the mileage on my girlfriend's '07 last night. She did 30.8mpg, with about 50%/50% city/highway.She's fairly religious about not using the AC unless she has to, and generally has a light foot, but I think her Vibe is doing quite nicely.