RX-8 Zoomster

Sky,

Good post.

Well I partly agree with you. There definately is no need for the name calling. There seems to be some bashing, however, its not all because of one speaking out on the RX-8 deficiencies. It's more specific then your "blanket statement". On this thread it's the constant bitchin of some people receiving lower than expected gas mileage and voicing almost a regret in purchasing this auto. I and others do not consider the MPG that the RX-8 is getting a deficiency. I know this is a sports car, not an economy car. I know how it easy it is to drive hard. I know how much fun is to drive in the "aspirated" mode. I live in the city. I expected to have lower MPG's because of these factors and expected to never reach the EPA rating in my scenario. I knew this before I purchased the vehicle, yet I still bought it. The ones that are now complaining should have known that, yet they still bought it. I and others are just tired of this almost "buyer's remorse" attitude from a few just because of their lower than expected gas mileage.

We have averaged about 1-2 MPG at worst since we owned the car. Because of that reason, I doubt there is a widespread mechanical or emissions problem causing people's extremely poor gas mileage. I believe it is driving conditions and techniques. And with that point you quoted.....

With this I totally agree with you. I posted this statement in another thread - When my wife relayed the MPG's we were getting, and they were about 1-2 miles lower then the EPA, she reminded me that we have never reached the optimal EPA rating on any of the 12+ vehicles we've owned. And then proceeded to tell me economy mileage is not why we bought this vehicle in the first place.

We do not always drive in perfect conditions or roads, nor do we drive like robots to always achieve that "mystical" EPA. If one comes to gripes with that, then one shouldn't be overly disappointed when the MPG is lower than expected.

rotarymagic

Thank you Skyline. That is exactly the point of all this nonsense. I stated the horrible gas mileage that I'm getting and people start saying that it's immpossible to get 13 mpg if I'm driving the way I say I am.

All I wanted were opinions. That is what is happening. Instead, I get people saying that I'm may be lying, or that I calculated my gas mileage incorrectly.

Maybe, I went too far with my responses, but I do not understand why certain people responded the way they did tp the original comment of. "I'm getting 13 MPG"!?? Shifting at an average of 5000 rpm.

rotarymagic

OK, this is true to a certain degree. Though, if a person (such as myself), posts a thread stating what gas mileage they are getting and they try to get answers as to why it's happening, I think it is legitimate.


My mileage of 13mpg is not meeting the epa estimates, 18 city, 24 highway. I'm OK with that. But, what I'm concerned about is that in the bottom of the left corner of the window sticker it states that "results reported to the epa indicate that the majority of wehicles with these estimates will achieve between 15 and 21 mpg in the city.


Now, my gas mileage is still 2 mpg worse than that. Again, I'm shifting at an average of 5000 RPM, I don't think that it is unreasonable to expect at 15 mpg, that is why I posted this thread originally. If a person wants to critisize me or deny this is happening the way that I am saying it is, then "I don't know what to say". Help me, or don't; the choice is yours.

pelucidor

Your experience seems to be way off the norm considering how you say you are driving. I suggest you need to lodge a serious complaint with your dealer - perhaps do a swap with their demo car for 100 miles or so (borrow overnight) to check the fuel economy in that car compared to yours.

RX-8 Zoomster

Well rotarymagic, I don't know what to tell you. I don't have all the answers. The fact is that the majority of owners are getting the "results reported to the epa indicate that the majority of wehicles with these estimates will achieve between 15 and 21 mpg in the city" rating for which you speak.

It's not impossible that you may have a vehicle that has a problem. I do think, however, and it is my opinion, that those 13 MPGs, are more of a result of driving technique and conditons. Maybe more than you realize. Since I don't know when, where & how often you shift, and how many stop & goes you encounter, it's hard to say how you can improve with your driving technique.

In your case, I hope your MPG's improve as the car gets a little more broken-in.

RX-8 Zoomster

Exactly! It's not impossible as I stated before, that rotarymagic may have an isolated problem with his car. You have a good idea pelucidor for him to lodge a complaint and compare another vehicle, by driving one. That should isolate whether it is the MPG problem is unique to his car, or caused by his driving technique and conditions.

mikeb

I am getting around 13 to 15mpg and my check engine light came on and dealer checked my car out and said their was no leaks or anything that would be causing bad gas mileage

Sputnik

Yeah, but your dealer also said that your subs caused the CEL to come on, so I wouldn't put any worth on what they said.

---jps

mikeb

point taken

onix527

Hi guys and gals,

Do you guys with under 15 mpg drive with the A/c on all the time?? I've notice with my first two tanks I got about 200 miles give or take, thats while sprinting from light to light shifting btw 4-7k and Having my a/c on. But with this last tank I'm at 195 and still have a quarter tank of gas left mind it was 30% highway and the rest city, but i believe I got better milelage because I didnt turn on my A/C every single minute. I would sat 50% of the time it was on. I still drive it hard and since I'm past 600 mile mark I rev it even higher.

mikeb

I use a/c about 50% of the time

rotarymagic

I drive with the a/c on about 75%-85% of the time

rotarymagic

How about your windows? How often do you drive with them open?

I drive with my windows, front only, open about 90% of the time. Sometimes with both the a/c on and the windows open.

Wing

a/c on and windows open? Do you do this in your home? That is silly. One or the other man!

Mitch Strickler

I have about 1,150 miles on my automatic, and have been breaking it in very carefully -- light throttle, low revs. Worst mileage, under 16, best, around 19 with 2/3 of tank on the road. This is my first rotary, so I thought that was bad, because the EPA is 18-25. Reading other posts, it seems it's par for the course, and may not imrove after full breakin. The car's more than worth it, but I still think it ought to give 25 on a full tank of road driving. Every other car I've owned has made the EPA highway figure (last one, Integra GS-R, 31), because I drive smoothly, though fairly fast.
Mitch
Silver, w/$3,500 package, cloth, and those gorgeous aluminum pedals.

onix527

Whne i dont have ac on I have my window open 75% of the time.

Racer X-8

Y'all doin much showin? I must have shown my 8 at least 8 times by now & each time I do, I fire it up to let them know how a rotary sounds, with a little revving & letting it idle while they're looking at (what they can see of) the engine.

That's 0.0 mpg run time. That's gotta hurt overall mpg by at least a little. Might be negligible.

Just a thought...

edit: I've been using an Excel (.xls) file to log my gas info since June 2000, when I bought my Infiniti. I have just started a separate new one for my 8.

You enter the date, total miles, miles since last fillup, gallons & cost of fillup. (Since I always pay at the pump & make sure I get a receipt for my debit card info, I use it & write down the two mileages on it & zero the trip odometer. When I get home, I enter it into my checkbook & my Excel file. Then you can throw away the receipt.)

It automatically calculates mpg, price per gallon & extended miles per year for just that fillup, total combined mpg & average miles per year. It also charts your MPG, Total Miles & Gas Pricing.

If anybody wants a copy, pm me with an email address.

Mitch Strickler

To A6s owner. My auto can't shift into fifth because it's a four-speed. Mazda apparently couldn't afford a new tranny, because they used what they officially described as a "tried and true" old one, gussied up with paddle shifters (I like them) and electronics that are supposed to be smart (put you in third for engine braking on some downhills, not upshift too soon on some uphills). I calculated the gearing, and it's set for smoothness and economy, compared with the 6-speed. That's why the auto EPA road is 25, not 24. I calculated the miles/hr per 1,000 rpm as 23.5 for the auto, based on Mazda's published gear ratios for both cars and Road & Tracks figure of 19.4 for the 6-speed.
Mitch
Silver auto w/$3,500 upgrade, cloth, aluminum pedal facings.

pelucidor

Hercules made a good point about fuel economy in another thread - he suggested that you should always open the rear windows if the fronts are open to improve drag (economy) and noise.

I drive with windows always closed and aircon on 100% of the time (its Houston!). Still getting over 17mpg whilst hitting 8000-9000rpm several times a day.

rotarymagic

It is just so humid here sometimes 100% humidity (the other day there was a dewpoint of 75), that opening the windows doesn't do much to help the heat/humidity, so I turn on the a/c as well. I like driving with the windows open in the summer. Think about it, with around 7 months of winter, where nobody opens their windows, opening them in the summer is a must for me. I know I probably shouldn't as far as gas mileage goes.

RX-8 Zoomster

Are you serious? Or are you being sarcastic? If you are serious, no wonder you are getting 13 MPG's. And I felt sorry for you in the fact that you might have had a problem with your car that was contributing to your lousy mileage. If you would have told us earlier in this thread that you drove around all day with your windows down and your AC on, then no one would have accused you of being a liar when you said you got lousy MPG's. They would have instead just called you a fool.

TJRX8

Easy my brother! This car shouldn't get that bad mileage (13mpg)even if we were towing a jet ski!

Easy on the magic man, he is one of us you know.

eccles

I also drive windows-down, AC-on. I like the fresh air, but I also like a cool breeze. After 6 tanks so far, I'm averaging 16.2mpg around town. After my next fill, I'm going to try winding the windows up to see what, if any, difference it makes to the mileage.

RX-8 Zoomster

I wasn't that hard on him. I don't know, Tom. He didn't tell us before he was driving around with his windows down & his AC on. Maybe he didn't tell us he was hauling around a jet ski either.

A 6s Owner

Oh yes..that's right. I forgot the RX-8 AT was only 4 speed. The Mazda 6 ATs are 5 speed (220hp version) and I must have gotten these two confused.

By the way, thank you very much for your responses.

Now all I have to do is pretend I didn't see the $1.89 per galon sticker for premium gas in my local gas station tonight, and I'll be that much closer to wanting an 8.