StageLeft
No Lifer
- Sep 29, 2000
- 70,150
- 5
- 0
AC will hurt mileage but not 5 mpg worth. Chances are the car is fine and you're getting bad mileage as a combination of AC (a small amount), driving too hard (that can destroy your mileage), and the octane you're putting in.
If the manual says the engine performs best with 91 octane give it 91 octane. There was a report I saw and somebody used a few different cars and found that those which asked for 91 but were given 87 would get not only less performance (naturally), but also worse gas mileage. The loss in MPG was not as great as the saved money but even if you have great knock sensors to handle the lower octane when you consider that you're robbing your car of power (so less power when you need it) and it's making less efficient use of any given volume of gasoline in the tank you'll find that you are not saving much money by going from 91 to 87.
Those three factors are almost certainly to blame for your noticed and very poor gas mileage. Our 2000 maxima has 222 horsepower (5 speed) and even though the AC is on almost all the time we're getting low 20's in the city. I always give it premium but I drive it gently most of the time as well.
If a car says it works fine under 87 you're throwing money away giving it any more than that, but if the engine was designed to work optimally with a higher octane gasoline then by not giving it that the car loses power. And thus naturally to move the car the same distance and with the same acceleration as before the lower efficiency rate in turn requires the engine to go through more volume of gasoline.
If the manual says the engine performs best with 91 octane give it 91 octane. There was a report I saw and somebody used a few different cars and found that those which asked for 91 but were given 87 would get not only less performance (naturally), but also worse gas mileage. The loss in MPG was not as great as the saved money but even if you have great knock sensors to handle the lower octane when you consider that you're robbing your car of power (so less power when you need it) and it's making less efficient use of any given volume of gasoline in the tank you'll find that you are not saving much money by going from 91 to 87.
Those three factors are almost certainly to blame for your noticed and very poor gas mileage. Our 2000 maxima has 222 horsepower (5 speed) and even though the AC is on almost all the time we're getting low 20's in the city. I always give it premium but I drive it gently most of the time as well.
If a car says it works fine under 87 you're throwing money away giving it any more than that, but if the engine was designed to work optimally with a higher octane gasoline then by not giving it that the car loses power. And thus naturally to move the car the same distance and with the same acceleration as before the lower efficiency rate in turn requires the engine to go through more volume of gasoline.
just to let you know, I'm in California as well There is a 10MPG difference :Q seems too much if you ask me.
Facebook
Twitter