I searched, but I couldn't find what I was looking for. I know that as an AT owner I need to get the rotary above 6k rpm every other day according to a FAQ I read. But what about daily driving and gas mileage? I was trying out the manumatic and I can cruise around town and up to speed 40-45 by shifting @ 2k 2.5k rpms. Since I keep hearing the engine is rev happy...is this a bad way of shifting?

 

Even with an auto I'd shift between 4K-4.5K. Shifting at such low rpms can put unnecessary load on the engine. Like you said, rotaries love to rev. Many people also claim they barely notice a difference in mpgs between driving like a grandma and driving like they stole the car.

 

There will be a difference in mpg depending what your definition of "driving like they stole the car" is. I redline a lot in this car, and I usually get around 16 mpg city which is right at the expected city mpg.

 

Unless the engine is noticeably lugging or pinging under load at low rpm, there should be no issue, and the A/T programming will not allow you to lug the engine significantly even in manual mode. Your personal shift points really depend on how much load and how much acceleration you are putting on it in a given gear. As long as you open it up and rev it on some regular basis to keep the carbon cleared out, you should be fine.

Yes, the fuel mileage appears to be quite sensitive to driving style, more so than a lot of other cars. I have a scangauge on mine to monitor various function readouts. I can squeeze out a 28 mpg average on the highway, but with a minor change in speed, driving style, temperature, wind, etc., the mileage can go down dramatically. For speed, a significant threshold appears to be somewhere around 70-75 mph.

 

See I really need to get a scangauge myself for many reasons, but seeing the mpg would a big help. I don't know how accurate it is but its just reading info the car gives it so it should be pretty spot on. However if it does it like my old car did then it was only accurate on the mpg once I drove at least a few days after resetting the mpg on it.