I do not want to talk about the MPG of the car but - seeing this is discussed quite a bit over here, I think this is an interesting find:

fueleconomy.gov site

So - it seems like it is NOT the other way around - that Mazda gives the car to EPA and they have the sole responsibility for coming up with numbers.

Interesting huh?

 

Actually, it gets better:

So - EPA actually LOWERS the numbers given to them by the manufacturer to make it more "real life".

 

Something you might find interesting is that manfacturers don't have to post EPA numbers, just nothing higher than EPA numbers. They can post lower numbers if they think the higher EPA numbers are misleading.

 

Not really. It doesn't matter who conducts the actual test - the test cycle itself is very tightly specified and controlled by the EPA. Whether Mazda conducts the EPA test cycle or the EPA conducts the EPA test cycle, it's STILL the EPA test cycle, and not any real world mileage test.

Regards,
Gordon

 

It says that the EPA retests 10% of them...

Maybe if enough people complained, they're retest the 8.

john

 

Butt dyno, what you aren't considering is that they can retest it a million times, but the way they test will remain the same, and the results will likely also be the same.

The TEST itself is the problem, not the car, and not who is doing the test. They all have to adhere to the method that the test describes.

 

I agree with Gord. Doesn't matter who actually performs the test, EPA still controls it.

 

The point isn't who tests the car, it's what cars Mazda tested -- and whether they deliberately sold us something less than what they tested.

The tests were on pre-production cars. The U.S. production cars sat at port cities for a long time, when Mazda as well as us pre-order owners would have liked to send them to dealers. Why did they wait? Certainly the most logical explanation anyone has come up with is that they panicked about cat converter 120,000 mile life, and reflashed the cars in a way that hurt power and mileage.

I'm not one to see conspiracies everywhere, but I find it damning that Mazda -- which surely knows about this accusation -- never denies it (at least nowhere I've seen).

So, yes, Mazda apologists, the plain facts show that Mazda is at fault. It boasted in its own fancy printed materials about the totally new and improved economy, tested cars that met their boasts, and (whether from reflash or some other reason) sold us earlly-VIN buyers cars that don't.

BTW, the M reflash gave me back one of the three mpg I'd been missing.

Mitch

 

Mitch, please look at the sticker that was on your car's window. At the bottom, it clearly shows the EPA range for mileage. For in city, it says on avg, this car can be as low as 15. I get 17-18. Far as I can tell, there is nothing misleading about the EPA results.

There are a few people who have claimed 10-12 mpg range, but they seem to be the earlier build cars, and are far from the norm.

 

Why does the AT get the same EPA rating as the MT even though the AT has 20% less HP? The AT 350Z EPA is only 2 mpg worse than the MT.

 

I did not buy the 8 based the the mpg numbers so it does not bother me, I would be mad however if I bought one of the hybrids and paid extra for it, from what I understand nobody is getting anywhere near the MPG in real world driving. Most average about 40 mpg which is great but you can almost get that from a normal Civic for a lot less money.

 

Right, right and right! It's the EPA methodology that is at fault, and they always add the disclaimer "your mileage may vary." Damn right it does! The EPA tests were created after the 1973 oil crisis, which most people here weren't even around to see.

Believe it or not, the current method is an improvement over the one EPA first adopted: before, 500 cubic inch Cadillac DeVilles got as much as 24 on the highway with that one. Of course, no one took that seriously, and you shouldn't take the current EPA guidelines seriously either. I don't know why so many people take it as gospel when they aren't right for any car, much less the RX-8. They've been a joke for over 30 years.

 

I was averaging about 17m/g. After a full day at Sebring at full throttle averaging about 7m/g, I drove home. The highway drive home was 25m/g. Since then I have been getting 18m/g city and 24 m/g hwy. I belive those are the published numbers. I am not sure what happened but I have noticed a significant chang since that day. My car is showroom stock.

John

 

maybe thats why I'm getting BETTER mpg then whats on the sticker... interesting huh?