[SkepticDave]

Hi. I bought a used 2002 Elantra GT, and I'm getting a low 19.6 mpg in city driving (36 highway). Is this what other people are getting, or should I take it to the dealer and ask them to fix the problem?

Thanks.

-- Dave

 

[2GTS]

Depending on you driving style that is not a bad number for city driving. The car is rated at 24-26 mpg city and those epa numbers are usully a little high compared to real world conditions.

 

[Steve]

Try resetting the ECU. Someone else will have to fill in the proper amount of time, but it's just a matter of disconnecting the negative battery terminal, letting the car sit for awhile, or pushing the brake down for a little while, a minute I think. That will drain any stored power and then you can reconnect the battery. That should help. Also consider a CAI, it will improve both mpg and performance.

 

[evil247]

5-10 minutes should be good for the ECU reset.

 

[hyunelan2]

Reset the ECU, make sure tires are properly inflated, and don't floor it all the time - those are my suggestions for improving that gas mileage. Also, being used, check the air filter and make sure it's not full of crap.

 

[Leviathant]

On a drive from Cleveland, OH to York, PA (central PA) I did 75-80mph rather steadily and got nearly 35mpg As far as city driving goes, drive nicely to get better mileage.

There was a great thread on Slashdot about Hybrid car mileage that has lots of good tips for getting better mileage in any car, check it out here. Set the filter to 4 or 5 and change the threading to "Nested" for best results

 

[SkepticDave]

Thanks very much for all the responses. Can someone tell me what mileage I *should* be getting in city driving? About 22 mpg? I don't drive it hard at all. Also, what are these terms "ECU" and "CAI"?

Thansk very much.

-- Dave

 

[Steve]

ECU is the main computer, by restting it, you cause it to forget the fuel maps it had stored and relearn them based on your driving style. And CAI is a cold air intake, it replaces you're entire factory air intake system with mandrel bent pipe and a cone filter in the driver's front fenderwell (just behind the front bumper)

 

[DragoZERO]

oh, and another fact is once you break 55 mph you will consume more gas. so don't speed - its expensive. the best i've gotten is like 28, i just trip it and calculate. i don't do the city/highway thing. but 28 is good i guess.

and CAI is said to improve all of that, but a lot of people say you'd have to do the whole nine to get a large difference, which is a lot of money. its all up to you.

 

[WytchDctr]

I bumped my milage up.. my exhaust improved city and the UDP helped alot with highway.

 

[SGTFelix]

On a drive from Cleveland, OH to York, PA (central PA) I did 75-80mph rather steadily and got nearly 35mpg As far as city driving goes, drive nicely to get better mileage.

There was a great thread on Slashdot about Hybrid car mileage that has lots of good tips for getting better mileage in any car, check it out here. Set the filter to 4 or 5 and change the threading to "Nested" for best results

Hey,
Did you get those same numbers going to Philly that day?....LOL
J/K Whats up how has it been?
BTW I find myself wanting to push the gas pedal hard on my elantra...just the feeling of going BYE BYE against somebody else, I just love it. I don't drive very far anymore so I guess I don't notice it.

 

[watson80]

I did CAI, full exhaust 2.25", header, powerchip ECU flash, and lightweight crank pulley. Even with all of those mods if I stay out of the throttle on a trip to my aunts about 125 miles 39mpg in a 5 speed!

 

[RonnieSan]

All of those mods will increase your gas mileage. They make the engine work more efficiently, thus improving gas mileage. One suggestion would be the 2.25" exhaust with an Aero Turbine. Just that on my car increased my mileage about 4-5 miles per gallon.

 

[jameswing]

oh, and another fact is once you break 55 mph you will consume more gas. so don't speed - its expensive.

I did an experiment when I first got the car. I was driving down to LA and had lots of room, I drove 10 miles at 5 MPH intervals with cruise on, and reset the computer at each speed change. at first I found that between 65 and 90 you loose 1.5 MPG for every 5 MPH, but then I reset to 75MPH, and was getting 34MPG,(This was on a very slight slope from Bakersfield to the grapevine).

I'm going to experiment again and write things down when I go this weekend. I'll try to have a chart for you next week.

I can't really start from 55 b/c I'll get run over. the Speed Limit on Hwy 99 is 70.

 

[Birdman]

I envy you I want a speed limit of that .. I haven't acctually done the math but I do a lot of highway travel alot with no trafic and I average between 65-80 and with a/c running some of the time 12 gals usually gets me 300 miles which going from a mercury sable 93 I am not going to complain and I did a short air intake which helped on city

 

[BlackElantraGT]

I probably do about 60%City,40% highway and I get about 23-24 mpg on a 5 speed hatch.

 

[babygurl]

all of my driving is city. For thefirst 3000 miles I got about 27 mpg. Now I'm over 5000 miles and getting about 28.5 mpg. I try not to reset for at least 1000 miles so I get quite a mix of easy driving and a little bit of hard driving. I hVE an auto. so my hard driving is letting it shift about 5000 rpm's.

 

[Roydjt]

I envy you I want a speed limit of that .. I haven't acctually done the math but I do a lot of highway travel alot with no trafic and I average between 65-80 and with a/c running some of the time 12 gals usually gets me 300 miles which going from a mercury sable 93 I am not going to complain and I did a short air intake which helped on city

How do you fit 12 gals in a 93 Sable? Heck, how do you fill your car up with gals in the first place? I'd take one cute one in my passenger seat, but a carfull would be a blast for sure!:multiples

-Roy

 

[jpeskoff]

Does adding a CAI void the warranty?

I've got a 04 Elantra (auto trans) with 800 miles on it. On a long trip to PA, it got 26 mpg with A/C on. That trip had some traffic delays that likely killed the mileage a bit. On my wife's commute to work, which is 20 miles each way by crowded highway, she's only getting 17-18 mpg.

 

[dragonfighter60]

If you took it for service work you would probobaly have to switch back to the stock setup for them to even consider doing any work under warrenty.