Is gas mileage rating a scam? My new Odyssey is not what they said...?

Question

I just bought a Honda Odyssey becase I need to carpool. It has a 20/28 gas mileage sticker. A big factor in my decision to buy it was how good that was. I have had it a week, with only skinny small children in it (and after dropping them off, only me!) My driving is semi-rural suburban, where I drive on back roads going about 45 mph with occasional stopsigns or lights. Definitely NOT city driving! Well, I got around 17 mpg, which isn't much better than a Hummer! Who is lying?????? Has anyone else had this experience?????

Answer 1

I own a 2005 Honda Odyssey and can tell you that the mileage you're getting is about right. Your van has a 4 speed transmission and if you're going 45, you're not getting into 4th gear very often, which would explain the lower mileage. I'd say I average about 18 mpg around town, but on the highway, I get an easy 25 mpg with a van full of people and luggage, cruising at 75 mph the whole way. A lot depends on where and how you drive as well. If you're stopping and starting and accelerate hard, that's going to take lots of fuel. Going around curves on rural roads wastes gas as well.

You're also going to see a slight rise in mpg as the van gets broken in, but it won't be more than 1 or 2 mpg.

My Mazda listed 24/31 and gets about 22/29 regularly.

No vehicle actually gets the mpg listed on the EPA sticker, which is why the gov't is looking at revamping the testing criteria. The car mfr's don't want to go there, because they need their mpg numbers to meet CAFE requirements and if the numbers drop, they'll all fall below the limits. The tests are conducted in labs and under straight line conditions.

From Car and Driver: The problem with the current mpg estimates is that they are based on the standard federal smog-emissions test (Federal Test Procedure 1975) for the city figure and the Highway Fuel Economy Test for the highway figure. These test cycles date back to the ’60s and ’70s. As a result, the city FTP75 has an average speed of 21.2 mph, uses a “cold” start of a balmy 75 degrees, and is conducted with the heating and air-conditioning system turned off and not drawing any power. Meanwhile, HFET calculations are derived at an average speed of 48.3 mph and involve only mild accelerations — no harder than an 18-second 0-to-60 run. In other words, both tests are far less demanding than are modern driving conditions.

The link below will take you to the whole article which discusses the new estimating tests. Mileage numbers will be lower by 12-25%.

Keep in mind, that Hummer would be getting about 8 mpg for the same drive you're doing now.

Answer 2

Most mileage ratings are under ideal conditions. If you use air conditioning, or have frequent stops your gas mileage will not be as good.

Still, I would think you should do better than 17 mpg. I would have the vehicle checked out mechanically. Also, make sure your odometer is giving you accurate readings.

Good luck, and congratulations on your decision to save gas. By the way my PT Cruiser is giving me between 22 to 27 mpg and it's a pretty nice vehicle.

Answer 3

Sounds like a problem. Take it back to the dealer and state that the fuel mileage is poor....Be sure your method of calculating is accurate. At fill up record your mileage. At the next fill up record the mileage. Take the second mileage deduct the first mileage and divide that figure by the number of gallons it took to fill it up. Do this for 2 or 3 fillups. If you figure is accurate then it sounds like there could be a problem.

Answer 4

It gets 17 because your tank is under half full. Those tests are performed on a full tanks avg.Plus they are averaged on a different city course.And lastly Hummers are more like 12/18 ..You will eventually see the 20/28 that seduced you , be patient with your lover..

Answer 5

the mpg ratings should net be taken at face valus. they are done to make the car look as god as possible, and as such, are done in perfect fuel economy scenarios (no wind or sometimes a tail wind, no stopping, top gear running at optimal revs, better combusting fuel (higher octane etc), better engine oil, etc, etc). But the numbers arent useless, they are good for comparing cars, as u can assume that they all bend the rules to a similar extent.

there are some fuel saving tips that i have found make my car more economic. (mainly for manual cars),
1) Clutch coast AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE - whenever you can, push that clutch to the floor, as long as you arent losing speed, keep it in, and you will keep going and your car will be using the absolute minimum petrol to stay on. it will depend on your car as to what slope you need to be on to not lose speed.
2) drive in the highest gear that you can without stalling the car - the engine turns at a a number of revs, and the difference in fuel consumption of the same number of revs in different gears is very small, so if it is a choice of doing 4000 revs in 4th or 2000 revs in 5th, then go with 5th gear.
3) if you dont need the air-con, heater, etc, dont use them - this one is pretty duh!,

These may sound like tiny measures, but they all add up. I live in Australia, so our fuel economy is in Litres per 100 kilometres travelled. My first tank of fuel i calculated to be used at over 13L/100km (that is very bad), but using these measures, i was able to get it down to around 10.3 L/100km. So try these out and see how low you can get it

Lobsta Out

Answer 6

There are too many variables involved. Gas mileage ratings are calculated using controlled conditions.

Your mileage may vary.

Answer 7

Call the Honda company and complain.

Answer 8

it will get better as the car gets miles...but did u really believe the car salesman...lol