Good way to figure out gas mileage

[eddiec]

Hi,probably a real simple (and possibly dumb) question.I was wondering if anyone knew a good and easy to figure out the average gas mileage on the vibe?

[PBFlash]

1. Fill your tank.2. Reset the trip odometer.3. Drive until almost empty.4. Refill tank and note how many gallons it takes to refill.5. Divide the number of miles from the trip odometer by the number of gallons it took to refill the tank.

[eddiec]

Thanks - sounds like a good, straight forward way to do it.

[camthecanuck]

Method indicated is quite valid but if you really want accuracy track your results through several fill-ups. I really like the fact that the Vibe has two auxiliary trip meters. Set one for oil change, use one to check gas mileage or trip distance.

[ragingfish]

If you wanna get really serious, years ago I created an excel spreadsheet where you input the # of gallons filled, and the trip odometer reading, and it gives you both an immediate MPG rating, and a running average based on all the fills...But I soon learned I didn't care THAT much...lol...I just check it every now and then...Just got back from Boston, got 31 MPG!

[2fatty]

you don't really have to drive until the tank is almost empty.Although I would imagine the car gets better milage as the tank get emptier.

[eddiec]

what would you suggest if you don't drive it down towards empty?

[2fatty]

1. Fill car up to top2. drive car 3. fill car back updevide Km/Miles driven in step 2 by Liters/Gallons need to refill the tank for step 3. All I'm saying is that you don't have to empty your tank to find out your milage (unless i'm missing something). You can figure out your milage if you've only used 1/4 tank or even less.

[ragingfish]

You can figure out your mileage at any point, even 3/4 tank...but you shouldn't run too much below 1/4 tank...I read somewhere it's bad for the FI system to run it much lower than that.

[esjones]

quote:I really like the fact that the Vibe has two auxiliary trip meters. Set one for oil change, use one to check gas mileage or trip distance.My Vibe has the DVD Nav system, which has a menu of maintenance reminders, each of which you can set for its own mileage value... Oil, Filter, Coolant, Tire Rotation, Wiper Blades, etc. etc. etc. The nav system tracks the miles you drive (not connected with the Odometer, as far as I can tell) and alerts you at the prescribed mileage.As for using a Trip Odometer for Oil Change... I just used to use simple 3rd grade division. If I wanted to change every 5K miles, for example, it is real easy to recognize the intervals as they come up... 5,000; 10,000; 15,000; etc. etc. etc. - Earl

[ragingfish]

I just use that handy dandy sticker the oil change place sticks on the upper left corner of the window each time i change it out.

[camthecanuck]

quote:I really like the fact that the Vibe has two auxiliary trip meters. Set one for oil change, use one to check gas mileage or trip distance.My Vibe has the DVD Nav system, which has a menu of maintenance reminders, each of which you can set for its own mileage value... Oil, Filter, Coolant, Tire Rotation, Wiper Blades, etc. etc. etc. The nav system tracks the miles you drive (not connected with the Odometer, as far as I can tell) and alerts you at the prescribed mileage.As for using a Trip Odometer for Oil Change... I just used to use simple 3rd grade division. If I wanted to change every 5K miles, for example, it is real easy to recognize the intervals as they come up... 5,000; 10,000; 15,000; etc. etc. etc. - EarlThe DVD system sounds neat. Maybe some day when I am rich and famous.. (as in never, darn it!)

[Mr. Poopypants]

Isn't that really the only way to figure out gas mileage?

[esjones]

quote:Isn't that really the only way to figure out gas mileage?Well, let's see. You could completely drain the gas tank, measure exactly one gallon of gas and pour it into the tank. Then drive in your normal manner until the car stops running. Then, with a pedometer on your belt, walk back to your starting point. At that time, read the pedometer. The number shown on the pedometer would be the number of miles per gallon you got on your most recent gallon of gas.Hey, you asked. I'm sure there are more, even LESS efficient ways.

[ragingfish]

rofl...i would expect such a response from the king of controversy, not just anyone! hehe. just kidding dude. touché my friend!

[dmitri]

when you go to the pump, fill it to full, set trip odometer, then when u go back for more gas whenever look how much you put in, its right on the pump or on the reciept.

[ragingfish]

One thing we should mention, if you want an accurate reading, don't top off the tank. Doing so will skew your results to return higher mpg ratings...Not topping off will give you more consistent accuracy...but then again, topping off is like second nature.

[joatmon]

There are a lot of variable s that affect how many miles/kilometers you can get on any tank of gas. I need to fill up every 2 or 3 days, and have so far pushed about 600 gallons into my vibe. I see a big variation on each individual tank's miles per gallon, so I like to average it . Here's what kind of mileage I've been getting. The graph shows some sharp variations from tank to tank, and I attribute them mostly to variations in pump - when it shut off and whether or not I put is some extra after the pump shut off. Almost all of this gas is from the same station.

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