Oil just changed, car is a former rental with NO negative history. Also, gas gauge does not work properly i.e., at 200 miles on full fueling gauge is at empty. Serious inquiries please e-mail me at lcpllang0331@yahoo.com. All answers are greatly appreciated.
2006-11-19 07:56:34 · 7 answers · asked by lcpllang0331 1 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Car Makes ➔ Dodge
Oil just changed, car is a former rental with NO negative history. Also, gas gauge does not work properly i.e., at 200 miles on full fueling gauge is at empty. I drive on highway all the time. I know the sticker is 50-50, but 28.5 is way off of 36. Taking it to dealer is too much a pain. Serious inquiries please e-mail me at lcpllang0331@yahoo.com. All answers are greatly appreciated.
2006-11-19 08:15:15 · update #1
I drive on the highway the whole time. I know the sticker is 50-50, but 28.5 is way off of 36. Taking it to dealer is too much a pain.
2006-11-19 08:16:03 · update #2
28.5 is okay, but not great. You say it's mostly highway, do you drive aggressively? If so, then you shouldn't expect to do better than 29 mpg. If you don't then there may be a minor problem. An '04 should not need a real tuneup.
Running STP may clear up an injector or water in the tank problem. Also in the winter most locales mandate adding ethanol to the gas, which will reduce your mileage by 1-3 mpg.
As far as the gas gauge, do you know what the actual capacity of the tank is? If you are getting 28.5 mpg and the gauge reads empty at 200 miles, then your gauge thinks your tank only holds about 7 gallons, which can't be true. Have you ever run it till the light comes on?
You should never buy a rental-I may have driven it!!!
To all the peoples that are saying you need a tune up-your vehicle is rated to go 100k without a tune up, and your mileage just isn't that far out of spec. Back in the day a "tune up" involved gapping the plugs, checking valve tolerance, changing anitfreeze, checking the timing and points. I can guarantee that your plugs (basically new), ignition (digital), valves (hydraulic self-adjusting), and anti freeze (modern 100k formula) are fine. You do not need a tune up. Change your oil, run some stp, try to run your tank ~300 miles w/o refilling it while driving as smooth as possible, preferably on straight flat highways. You may crack into the 30 mpgs. Either way, 28.5 is on the high side of what a standard gasoline engine is currently capable of.
2006-11-19 09:45:11 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I own (have owned) four Neons: '95 Sport, '01 & '02 R/Ts, and an '05 SRT-4 - all purchased new. Since the first fill up we have always recorded the mpg on all our cars. The '95 was an automatic, the rest are sticks. My family's driving is mainly in suburbia, is spirited, but is not abusive. All have been meticulously maintained. So far all mpg claims have been examples of fiction not fact.
So after all those qualifications, The '95, '01 and '02 have averaged 24mpg combined mileage during their service life. The '05 is averaging 22mpg, but has never been on a road trip. The best I have ever experienced on a road trip is 29mpg. Over the years, I have noticed that hot weather (with the power robbing A/C running all the time) very cold weather (greater internal engine friction and rolling resistance, I assume) collapse the mileage around town. Based upon our experience, your mpg is on the higher side. Obviously, maintenance is very important, but nothing you can reasonably do will result in 36mpg! Sorry!
2006-11-20 15:33:17 · answer #2 · answered by db79300 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
you actually believe the sticker? thats kinda funny and sad at the same time, the miles per gallon thing doesnt really work and if you are getting close to thirty you shouldnt be worrying about it too much but your fuel gauge being bad should be repaired if you do a lot of intown driving you should expect lower fuel
mileage
2006-11-19 16:05:13 · answer #3 · answered by wrenchbender19 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
tune up is the best answer here the plugs plug wires, air filter, fuel filter, and one of the most forgotten things even in shop o2 sensor when it starts to read wrong the ecm will try to adjust the fuel and if it can not it will go to open loop which mean bad gas mileage the gas gauge might be in the wiring
2006-11-19 17:46:06 · answer #4 · answered by william b 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
NO negative history?? the fact that it was a rental car IS negative history. that car has had the crap ran out of it...there are probably grooves down the cylinder walls from where people ran it w/ super low oil...it's probably losing compression. this is why it gets bad mpg.
2006-11-21 00:47:01 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
i own a repair shop,and these cars don't do as good as there supposed to on fuel,but you might try a good tune up ,that might help it a lot,but they never get what they say they will,i have worked on a lot of them,and about the best i can get out one is about 32-35 miles per gallon,but if you get that id be satisfied,there good little cars though and will last forever seems like,but try tuning it up,it may help it a lot,,good luck,i hope this help,s,,PS and make sure you change the air filter on it.
2006-11-19 16:07:16 · answer #6 · answered by dodge man 7 · 0⤊ 2⤋
The mileage a car is quoted at getting is only an estimate. And it is only under perfect circumstances. If you watch t.v. commercials they will always say "Your mileage may vary".
2006-11-19 16:06:07 · answer #7 · answered by jare bare 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋