what's up with my gas mileage?

[Nelsonmd]

could be worse he could be using a f-350 turbo power super stoke ultra diesel to go and get his groceries, lol , i see that all the time where i live, soccer moms driving these planet mover behemoths to go pick up little jimmy from soccer practice or to haul their ultra light river boat the 5 miles down to the water, kind of funny imo.....

That's true. I don't see much of that up here in NE, but out west I sure did. I think the same thing when I see a super clean and shiny dually driving around town with nothing in it.

I actually feel sorry for the vehicle. It's like a dog living in the city that doesn't get to leave the apartment except to crap on the sidewalk outside. That aint life.

 

[theizzardking]

That's true. I don't see much of that up here in NE, but out west I sure did. I think the same thing when I see a super clean and shiny dually driving around town with nothing in it.

I actually feel sorry for the vehicle. It's like a dog living in the city that doesn't get to leave the apartment except to crap on the sidewalk outside. That aint life.

couldn't agree more, lol

i live out in the country here and almost every other car is some huge lifted super duty "penis truck" as my wife call it, because 98% of the people who drive them obviously don't need them and are compensating for something small somewhere else, lol

i mean i get it if you got horses and rv's to pull around or need it for your job but to buy one to increase your hill billy cred is just ridiculous...

 

[bigwebb83]

for all you guys bashing the idea of letting a vehicle warm up, you should never do a cold start and immediately start driving. This is where most of the engine wear happens because the oil hasn't lubricated everything yet. I'm not saying you have to let your truck sit in the driveway until its nice and toasty, but you should let the engine warm up a bit before driving to properly lubricate the moving parts before it's under load.

 

[02SE]

I disagree with this. I have a SGII and often watch the engine temp rise in the morning and how that compares to the in-dash gauge. The dash gauge consistently passes the lowest mark on the gauge at 150° and rests at the middle at 190°. Every time. I was pretty surprised how consistent it was. I have noticed it rise just above center when it went up to 210°.

Frankly, the biggest contributors to fuel economy are driving speed, aggressiveness, tire pressure (which drops when it gets cold, so check your tires), driving in 4WD, etc. Yeah the engine temps takes longer when it's cold (duh) but it is not much longer on the scale of how long you are driving it, so unless you are leaving it for 15 minutes or more, or just driving a short distance every time you let it warm up, you aren't going to notice that much in your overall mpg's. And referring to "centistokes" is just scientific name-dropping.

I also have one, and I watched it yesterday to confirm what I had said in this thread. At least with my '97, the in-dash gauge is up to it's 'normal' position by 158° F, and stays there unwavering at least to 205° F, which is the highest temp I've seen while climbing a steep grade on a hot day.

Maybe later model in-dash gauges are a bit more representative of actual temps.

As far as using the word Centistokes goes when referring to viscosity, it is correct. My only point was that fuel usage can be analyzed in minute detail if so desired. Sorry if you are offended by that.

 

[theizzardking]

for all you guys bashing the idea of letting a vehicle warm up, you should never do a cold start and immediately start driving. This is where most of the engine wear happens because the oil hasn't lubricated everything yet. I'm not saying you have to let your truck sit in the driveway until its nice and toasty, but you should let the engine warm up a bit before driving to properly lubricate the moving parts before it's under load.

we already touched on that it takes all of about 30seconds for the oil to make it through the engine and to become properly lubricated, not arguing that a car should be warmed up but it should be done so by driving slowly for the first few miles as opposed to idling, these are modern engines things have changed a bit.

 

[theizzardking]

My only point was that fuel usage can be analyzed in minute detail if so desired. Sorry if you are offended by that.

i don't think he was offended, i think he was saying it doesn't matter, that level of resolution on gas consumption is mute essentially. but i'll let him speak for himself.

basically a 190hp engine isn't going to notice much drag if any due to thicker fluids....


let me rephrase this,

how much of a mpg increase would you see by running a slightly thinner oil?
is it enough to really even mention? maybe we should all switch to thinner oil
so we can get better mpg's...... not being a jerk, just pointing out that thicker fluids and cold components don't have any real world effect on mpg's in the short term as they are only thicker and colder for such a short time it's pretty much negligible....

so yes in engineering details your are correct, but it doesn't matter, i deal with this sort of thing from aircraft engineers every day, over analyzing .....

maybe over 50 tanks or 100 tanks of gas you'll start seeing numbers that matter but seriously your talking fractions of a cent in the end.......

 

[Qyota]

Hehe, you drive a 4runner dude. None of us are saving the planet or reducing our consumption of fossil fuels.

The obvious response to this is "duh", but I do what I can to save fuel while still having a 4x4 vehicle in the fleet. Saying "it's already a gas guzzler, so I might as well waste even more fuel" is ignorant, and unfortunately, the mindset of many Americans.

 

[Nelsonmd]

IAs far as using the word Centistokes goes when referring to viscosity, it is correct. My only point was that fuel usage can be analyzed in minute detail if so desired. Sorry if you are offended by that.

Don't worry, I wasn't offended. It is just unnatural to say it that way. We know that viscosity will be measured in units of viscosity.

Anyway, to the original point. It still stands that idling for a short time isn't going to cost you many if any noticeable mpg's. The bigger factors still remain the same as in the summer.

BTW, I didn't notice this before, but the OP gets 200 miles after the light turns on? That is well over half the tank? I maxed out at 80, but haven't run out of gas yet, so don't know the real limit. Sounds like there is something even more wrong than the design flaw.