New EPA Fuel Economy revisions

[TJinPgh]

The EPA has revised it's Fuel Economy testing and reporting methods. Apparently, to better reflect today's driving style.They now rate the 03-07 Vibe at 27mpg combined, versus the 31 they had it at via the old method.This falls more in line with what I've actually been getting with my 03.

[VivaVibe]

For me the old numbers are good. With my '04 base auto, mixed driving (city/highway) I've been getting 30 mpg average. That's pretty close to the old EPA numbers. I've not yet done a real road trip to get those numbers, but I expect somewhere around 35 mpg.Even with their new numbers, it's pretty good for this mini-wagon-hatchback. It's a fine ride with lots of versitility.

[TJinPgh]

Quote, originally posted by 13Vibe03 »I see ~27 mpg with mixed driving. Plus, most of my mileage ismy 6-7 minute drive to and from work where the engine doesn't have time to warm up.Mine are a little longer than this, but not much. 90% of my driving is about 10 miles or less.Quote »What bothers me is that it was initially rated higher which is misleading. Maybe my car doesn't have the magical combination of parts. You can read about my trouble in locating a quality O2 sensor in other threads but I've never gotten more than 29 mpg, even on extended trips 90% highway. Far from the ~36 mpg that it was rated!They've revised the Highway mileage down to about 31 for the all years. Down from 33 for the 03 and 34 on the 04+ (for automatics).I really enjoy driving my Vibe. I love the style and interior space... the look and feel of it. But, I have to admit, I've been disappointed in the fuel economy.As I've said before, I expected a letdown. I was driving a 5sp Ford Aspire before this that regularly got over 40mpg. So, I knew I wasn't going to get anywhere near that with an automatic Vibe. But, I was hoping for better than I'm getting.They've now revised the combined average down to lower than the original expectation for in town. While it would appear it's more realistic, if I'd known it was going to be as low as it is, I may have opted for an xA instead.I'm trying very hard not to judge my economy too harshly at the moment. Winter is always the worst time of year to judge mpg. Once it warms up and I'm able to change the tranny fluid and check a few other things, I should have a better idea of what I'm actually getting.If I don't see a decent level of improvement, I'm not sure I'll keep the Vibe much more than a couple of years.Keep in mind, I'm the type of guy who normally drives a car until it calls Dr. Kevorkian. So, actually trading in a car is a rarity for me.That's not to say I wouldn't consider an 08 Matrix/Vibe (or, whatever they're going to call them) if there's an improvement in fuel economy. Like I said, I like the Vibe otherwise.For those who'd like to see how other cars they own compare with the old versus new method, here's the link...http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg...r.jspI'm assuming that all 08 and above models will be judged by the new test method. Ought to be interesting to see sales people try to explain that to perspective buyers."Yes, I know it got 38 mpg last year and only 35 this year. But, really, it's the same."If people aren't aware of the change in testing, they'll probably think the salesman is lying to them.

[TJinPgh]

For those who may be curious about how this change affected hybrids, the Prius (2006 used for the sake of an example) saw what I consider to be a HUGE drop.The previous EPA ratings were 51/60/55 (H/C/Comb)The new EPA ratings are 45/48/46That's a 9 mpg drop in the expected combined average... and a whopping 12 mpg drop in the city.I have to say that if I went out and bought a $25k car based on expecting to get 60mpg and find that I am only getting 48 under normal driving conditions, I'd be ticked to no end.I mean, why else would somebody BUY a Prius. Certainly not for looks.The 07 Civic Hybrid saw a big drop as well. Not quite as big as the Prius, but still bigger than the 4-6 mpg that most conventional cars that I've checked so far seem to be dropping.Incidentally, the EPA comes by these new combined averages based on 55% city driving and 45% highway.As of yet, there is no way to change that breakdown as you can in the original charts.

[TJinPgh]

The Yaris estimates were reduced from 40/34/37 to 36/29/32 for the 5 speed.So, basically they're saying the Yaris is now what they told us the Vibe was then. Seems to be keeping in line with the 4-5mpg drop for the conventional engines I've looked at thus far.I didn't mind the look of the Yaris "liftback." Thought it was kind of nice, in fact. But, I had the opportunity to drive both a 2-door and 4-door hatchback before I bought the Vibe (had both a Ford Festiva and Aspire) and really grew to appreciate the extra set of doors.It's one of the things that turned me away from the Accent hatch.I compared the xA interior to the Vibe. The xA actually has more legroom in the rear than the Vibe. About the same up front. And, the xA actually has more head room. The xA has a little more rear hip room... the Vibe has a little more rear shoulder room (how that's possible I'm not quite sure).The only thing the Vibe has substantially more of is room behind the rear seat... more than double at 24.6 versus 11.7.I rarely wanted for more space in my Aspire. The only thing I wished it had that it didn't was a 60/40 rear seat, which both the Vibe and xA have. So, I'm not sure I'd really miss that extra space. And, parking the xA would be a lot easier.I'm really curious what the fuel economy of the 08 xD is going to be, since it will esentially be sporting the Vibe drivetrain. the xD should be lighter than the Corolla. So, I see no reason why it shouldn't be comparable, at least. Hopefully better.

[joatmon]

http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=27298

Attached files

[TJinPgh]

Ahh, admittedly, I didn't see it.In my defense, I DID do a search before I posted. I guess I just searched for the wrong thing. What I find odd, though, is if I do a search for mpg (which is what I did), even now, when there are posts in this thread that have it, they don't show up in the search.Any idea what I'm doing wrong?

[joatmon]

Quote, originally posted by TJinPgh »What I find odd, though, is if I do a search for mpg (which is what I did), even now, when there are posts in this thread that have it, they don't show up in the search.Any idea what I'm doing wrong?nope, no idea, but whatever you are doing wrong, I must be doing the same thing, because a search for mpg in post bodies should turn up this thread, but it doesn't. Doesn't turn up any threads with mpg in it since mid november, there should be a bunch. maybe something changed mid november to the search indexing routiine, it stopped looking for mpg? really though, it's odd, I have no idea why.

[TJinPgh]

Ok, so then it wasn't just me.Not only does a post and title (thorough) search not show anything since November, it doesn't even show the more recent ones that has mpg in the title that the title only search shows up.Really weird.Anyway, I don't feel so bad now.

[VivaVibe]

I suspect you have some real issues with the operation of your 04 Vibe. If you indeed have brake, cat and 02 problems those could account for much of the loss in mpg. I presume you've paid to have a complete analysis.Certainly you know what mileage you've gotten out of your 95 Escort. Even though EPA ratings for it were only 30/38/33 old and 26/34/29 new, you seem to have done better.I would not discount the affects of 100's of pounds more when it comes to mpg. I'd also consider the Escort as one size down from the Vibe; and the Aspire as two sizes down. I'm not sure it's a fair comparison.

[VivaVibe]

Well, I've heard the xA is being discontinued after the 07 model; although that doesn't negate it's current efficiency. Here again I would classify the xA and Yaris as a size down from the Vibe. So, one shouldn't expect the same mpg. I too looked at those when considering vehicles, but chose the Vibe over them as the larger size, comfort and untility seemed worth the mpg difference.

[TJinPgh]

Quote, originally posted by VivaVibe »Well, I've heard the xA is being discontinued after the 07 model; although that doesn't negate it's current efficiency. Here again I would classify the xA and Yaris as a size down from the Vibe. So, one shouldn't expect the same mpg. I too looked at those when considering vehicles, but chose the Vibe over them as the larger size, comfort and untility seemed worth the mpg difference.The xA finished up it's production as a 2006 model in December. No 2007 models will be produced.It is being replaced by the xD toward the end of this summer. It's still based on the Yaris, size-wise. But, the drive train is based on the Corolla/Matrix/Vibe. Instead of the 1.5 that's in the Yaris (and was in the xA), it will now be getting an updated 1.8 that is supposed to produce an extra horsepower or two over the current 1.8 while getting better fuel economy.From the early release stuff I've seen over on scionlife, it's apparently expected to get a mpg or two less on the highway than the Corolla, but a mpg or two more in the city.That will put it a good 6-7 mpg more than the current Vibe in the city, where the bulk of my driving is done.It's smaller, from the 2nd seat back. From the rear seat up, it's about the same as the Vibe.There's no denying the Vibe has more cargo space. And, if that's a necessity, then the xD may not suit one's needs. Buyers will need to decide what they need more... more space or more fuel efficiency.