ACURA MDX . ORG
www.acuramdx.org ACURA MDX . ORG Archive > General > Fuel, Octane, Mileage, Etc.
 
gas mileage - Click HERE for Original Thread
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moonman
My wife's new 05 MDX is getting about 15.7 miles per gallon.She doesn't put the pedal down too hard. Is it true the gas mileage gets better as you 'break in' the car?.This is pretty bad MPG IMO.Thoughts?
Sinecure
Premium or regular gas?

Is the e-brake on? I know its a stupid question, but you never know.

Does she brake with her left foot? If so, check to see if she keeps her foot resting on the gas pedal at lights.

Is she a lousy driver? Accel/Decel all the time? I let a girlfriend drive my car a few weeks ago. I nearly went nuts with all her on/off the gas on the freeway. Needless to say, our mileage sucked for that trip.

My city mileage is down in that range on my '01. Freeway/mixed driving mileage between 19 and 21 avg.
tulsamurph
Our 2001 MDX gets about 16 - 17 mpg in mostly in-town driving. Turning the A/C off seems to help a bit, if it is not turned off the climate control runs the compressor and the mileage seems to be closer to 16 or a little under, with it off, 17 or a little over seems to be the norm. The A/C should be run from time to time in the winter to keep the refridgerant oil mixed up and the seals lubricated, and sometimes it is necessary to clear a fogged windshield, but turning it off when it is not used might help a little bit. We have not taken a long trip in this car yet, but I have heard it should deliver around 23 - 24 on the road. I was surprised at the not so good mileage for a mid-sized V-6, but it seems to be common.
Sinecure
Oh yeah. AC off makes a huge difference. I forgot that. I always have mine off unless it summer and really hot (never gets real hot wherre I live) or in winter if I need to dry out the car.

My climate control is always set to a certain temp, and then I go in and turn AC off. I do think the manual wants you to run the AC periodically, but you can do that easily by pressing the "full auto" climate control button and leaving it that way for a few minutes once in a while.
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frostyra
My '01 gets 15-16 in mostly in-town driving; 17 in mixed driving; and 23-25 in 70-75mph all-day driving on an interstate. My A/C is always on, mainly for dehumidifying.

Hint: watch your instantaneous mpg indicator (the "crescent") from time to time. Just accelerating from a stop, it takes several seconds before the instantaneous figure gets up as high as 15. Acceleration is the mpg killer.
01MBMDX76
I'm getting 18 mpg mixed, 22-24 freeway and just city alone it's 15-16 even if watching instaneous mpg indicator. Once I reset the indicator when my gas tank was half full and the indicator gave me a reading of 30-34 mpg??? After I filled up the history indicator read 26 mpg. Hasn't happened since. It's been cosistent at 18 mpg mixed.
Hmmm ot since the crude oil price has been breaking records it sure didn't take long for the gas companies to raise gas prices. Saw an ARCo on the news in San Francisco with $3.49 for Supreme. Forseeable future for spring/summer driving? Someone is making the big $$$. Isn't the hybrid coming out soon for Acura? Sorry for off topic.
benpenjr
I have a 2001 X with 60T miles on it, i get average of 24mpg in the city, it suffers with highway driving, drove from Virginia to Oklahoma, average of 20.9mpg, i use normal 91 octane
gw4mdx
I got 27.2 mpg today on a 70 miles strictly highway trip. I kept the speed most of the time at 65. AC was set at 70 deg but ambient temperature was 50.

In city I get between 14 to 16 mpg.
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G. COLTON
quote:
Originally posted by tulsamurph
Our 2001 MDX gets about 16 - 17 mpg in mostly in-town driving. Turning the A/C off seems to help a bit, if it is not turned off the climate control runs the compressor and the mileage seems to be closer to 16 or a little under, with it off, 17 or a little over seems to be the norm. The A/C should be run from time to time in the winter to keep the refridgerant oil mixed up and the seals lubricated, and sometimes it is necessary to clear a fogged windshield, but turning it off when it is not used might help a little bit. We have not taken a long trip in this car yet, but I have heard it should deliver around 23 - 24 on the road. I was surprised at the not so good mileage for a mid-sized V-6, but it seems to be common.


The only time I see 23-24 is if I keep the speed down to the mid 60's. At freeway speeds of 75 I only get 20 to possibly 21 if the wind is blowing correctly. If I drop the speed down into the upper 50's I can get 24 to 25.

"In town" driving in mostly a small town area I get around 17mpg for an average.

G
komondor
I think if you have the trip computer you need to post the average speed it shows also I am getting between 19 and 20 on my 2004 with the AC on all the time Colorado sun will get the car hot when it is 45 degrees out and I never ride with the windows down. My average speed is usually around 33 MPH. I drive mostly side roads at 55-65 with some highway and no real city stop and go. I am curious what other people have for average speed
johnh123
We do mostly city driving with our 04 MDX. We are lucky to get 14 MPG. Where is that hybrid!
01MBMDX76
john123,
You meant the ACURA MDX hybrid, right?
Besides the ones out or soon to be out all have waiting lists and as far as reliablilty that's still to be seen. The EV1 has been so successful that company wants it back so it can be destroyed. You know the all electric one with the big batteries. Methinks when ACURA does come out with the hybrid it will be like when the MDX came out late to the party but well equipped until the thud/slush/tranny/weepy things started to surface. JMHO:rolleyes:
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XLover
Intitialy when i bought my X, I was getting 14.7, 15.4 consistently while driving on city roads and but the mileage was shooting up to 19 and 20 on free ways. Now on city roads it is showing 19.4 and 20.

Cool

X
mgtr
I have an '04, just turned up 15,000 miles. From the beginning, I have gotten just about 20 MPG in mixed driving (75% interstate). I drive 75-80 when traffic allows, AC on (ie, worst conditions). I am not a hot-rodder, but I don't soft-pedal it either. I enjoy being able to pass someone quickly on a two-lane road. So far, I am totally pleased with the MDX.
G. COLTON
I just got back from a 12xx mile trip. Going down 19.9mpg with a/c and coming back 21.5 w/o a/c. Driving 76-77 both ways while on interstate which was all but 60 miles each way.

G
DaleB
quote:
Originally posted by G. COLTON
I just got back from a 12xx mile trip. Going down 19.9mpg with a/c and coming back 21.5 w/o a/c. Driving 76-77 both ways while on interstate which was all but 60 miles each way.

G



It only gets better, after it's broken in! :cool:
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mgtr
G. Colton-
Sounds as if the two of us are on the same page with respect to gas mileage.
jjrom
My new x (05; 1000 miles) has been getting about 16mpg in City driving, which I am resigned to accept as normal for this size SUV. I have yet to determine highway mileage alone but I would expect about 23mpg.
XStatic
Worst mileage I get is 15, normally average about 17.

Drove almost 2K in the last couple weeks. Interstate driving using over a tank of gas around 80MPH, with a fairly loaded vehicle but nothing on the roof I maxed out at 20.8 avg for a tank.
frainc
I now have about 7,800 miles on my X and around town I get about 14 - 15 miles per gal. Going to Atlantic City I got 22 mpg.

I use 93 in my X.
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KES
I have keep careful records of my gas usage so this is based on fill ups and not the computer.

2002 MDX -48K miles to date - mix of city and highway -no roof rack -use 93 octane 95% of the time - average mileage 18.7

- Goodyear Integrity tires in the non-snow months (average mileage 19.1 mpg)
- Mastercraft Snows in the winter months (average mileage 16.9)

As you can see the cold weather, more aggressive tires and the winter fuel used in CT is a 2.2 MPG hit to the mileage or 11%.

City driving will send the mileage in the 17's while long highway trips will hit 21 MPG.

Results have been consistent over my three years of ownership.
LoyalMDXer
I am very curious if everyone is calculating the gas mileage by means of division? The mileage accumulated from the last fill divided by the number of gallon's you just fueled or are you going by the calculations your vehicle projects for you?

:roadtrip:
G. COLTON
quote:
Originally posted by LoyalMDXer
I am very curious if everyone is calculating the gas mileage by means of division? The mileage accumulated from the last fill divided by the number of gallon's you just fueled or are you going by the calculations your vehicle projects for you?

:roadtrip:



You need to periodically check te accuracy of the vehicle calculations by using your own calculations. Do this over 3 tankfulls of gas to minimize transit conditions and differences at fillup.

G
komondor
I have the trip computer and for the history it also shows average speed which always amazes me I reconded 20.1 mpg with an avergae speed of 40 mph. I believe if people will post these 2 numbers aong with hoiw many miles are on the X it will be more meaningful to other people. I ahve 22K on my '04
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LoyalMDXer
quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by LoyalMDXer
I am very curious if everyone is calculating the gas mileage by means of division? The mileage accumulated from the last fill divided by the number of gallon's you just fueled or are you going by the calculations your vehicle projects for you?


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



You need to periodically check te accuracy of the vehicle calculations by using your own calculations. Do this over 3 tankfulls of gas to minimize transit conditions and differences at fillup.

G


That's my point exactly. You need to do your own calculations and not rely on your vehicle's calculations.
:yesyes:
mgrattan
2005 MDX w/ Touring, NAV, RES, roof rack.
Currently have about 8000 miles on the odometer. Averaging about 15.2 MPG in mixed driving according to trip computer; average speed on trip computer is consistently at 26-28 mph. Most of the roads I drive during my commute are 45-55 mph side roads with about 4-5 stoplights during a 10 mile long, 15 minute commute daily.

Drove round-trip from Salinas to San Jose (about 70 miles each way) over the weekend averaging 68-75 mph and got 18.4 mpg (a few stop and gos on the freeway in San Jose). Longer trips on a fresh tank of gas usually average 21-24 mpg driving at 75 mph.

Using 91 octane fuel (that's the best available in this area). Will a better air filter help? I've got a K&N that I haven't yet installed; that's another topic for discussion though......

Mike
042005
I'll offer the following: I've kept records for every tank-full since getting my MDX Touring, on April 20. I use an Excel spreadsheet where I enter odometer mileage, number of gallons, and total cost for each fill-up; the computer calculates miles traveled and miles per gallon between fill-ups, and cumulative miles per gallon (latest odometer reading divided by total gallons put in since day one). I've entered 19 fill-ups so far.

Running up and down I-95 between Washington DC and West Palm Beach, I get a lot of tanks that are fully highway driving. I've put almost 6000 miles on it in 2 months. My ave. speed on the interstate is around 75.

The calculated MPG ranges from a low of 15.2 for purely city driving, to a high of 22 for one of the purely interstate runs. Most of the city runs are in the 15.5 - 16.5 range; most of the highway runs are in the 20-21 range.

To date, total calculated cumulative MPG is 19.4.

The Trip Computer shows total MPG of 20.1 for the last 1350 miles (which includes my last trip to Florida, plus about 400 city miles).
erictiger
My 04 MDX with 8000 miles has a mpg 18.4 for the last 3000 miles. We live in Chicago suburb and no interstate driving in those 3000 miles. We are very satisfied with the mpg.
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vtpcgeek
2004 with 15K, get about 15mpg. Mostly 55-60 mph driving, but in Birmingham and the surrounding areas we have a lot of elevation change and all my driving seems to be uphill some how.

Not too unhappy, considering the 265 ponies. :-)

Usually get 20-22 mpg on the roadie from B'ham to Raleigh.
jayadi
quote:
Originally posted by G. COLTON
I just got back from a 12xx mile trip. Going down 19.9mpg with a/c and coming back 21.5 w/o a/c. Driving 76-77 both ways while on interstate which was all but 60 miles each way.

G



Hello,

I just want to ask about fuel octane ratings.

The recommendation in Australia is that it should use Premium Unleaded (95RON) fuel. However, is it OK to use normal Unleaded (90RON) fuel? I am afraid of doing some damage from knocking. Is there some kind of know sensor in the MDX engine to back off the compression ratio?

If it is OK, is it more economical to run 95RON fuel? I heard that you get better with mileage with higher RON fuel, but then again it is also more expensive. So which would give you better mileage for the dollar?

Thanks in advance.:2:
042005
Jayadi: since my MDX is new, I won't use non-premium fuel until I'm convinced it won't cause problems. But some folks have posted messages here to say they routinely use it (just examine earlier threads in this forum).

On fuel economy, I traded in a 2003 Honda CR-V EX (4 cylinders) for the MDX in April this year. The CR-V only required regular unleaded (about Octane 87 where I live), but last October I put in a tank of premium (Octane 93) just to "clean out the injectors." I noticed what appeared to be a jump in MPG, so I started using premium all the time just to see.

I keep good records of every tank-full and the resulting MPG and costs: using premium all the time, I appeared to get about a 2 MPG increase. I began getting numbers in the 27's (and as high as 28.7 MPG) on interstate runs, whereas in the 18 months before that I had been getting numbers in the 25 MPG range on trips.

The cumulative MPG for the CR-V (total odometer mileage divided by total gallons used since the first mile) had been static at around 21MPG for the prior 12 months; last October it started a steady climb and was 22.5 by April (that's a significant increase in that statistic given the timeframe involved, IMO).

Can't say for sure that the exact inverse would happen from using regular gas in the MDX, but based on my experience I believe MPG would suffer. I also don't know how the cost per mile numbers would change on the MDX as a result of switching. On the CR-V, my cost per mile stayed steady at .08 even after switching to premium, but that was probably because premium gas was cheaper than regular most places south of the Washington DC area, and I was doing a lot of highway miles to Florida starting last October.
mgrattan
quote:
Originally posted by jayadi


Hello,

I just want to ask about fuel octane ratings.

The recommendation in Australia is that it should use Premium Unleaded (95RON) fuel. However, is it OK to use normal Unleaded (90RON) fuel? I am afraid of doing some damage from knocking. Is there some kind of know sensor in the MDX engine to back off the compression ratio?

If it is OK, is it more economical to run 95RON fuel? I heard that you get better with mileage with higher RON fuel, but then again it is also more expensive. So which would give you better mileage for the dollar?

Thanks in advance.:2:



It's always best to follow the manufacturer's recommended octane ratings for fuel. Typically, high output engines (such as multi-valve aluminum head engines, turbo charged, super-charged, etc.) require 90+ octane. You can get by with a lower octane rating and the engine management control will compensate by retarding the timing and/or adjusting the air-fuel mixture; however, you will get typically get lower gas mileage and less horsepower.
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mm1923
I just bought my wife a 2002 MDX. We get 17 city and 23 Hwy. Recently we got 24-27 going from Maryland to North Carolina. I set the cruise to about 70-75. I was shocked when I saw we got 27.
jjrom
I have owned by 05 MDX for about two months now. In mainly city driving, i am averaging in the 16s, which seems to be fairly consistent with other threads here.
mdxious
Only 300 miles 05 mdx.
high way 15.x mpg
city 10.x mpg:mad:
do I have a bad luck?:confused:
edit: been using premium gas
Dr. Ken
we just finished a 4400 mile trip through the SW and averaged 20.8 mpg overall. However, I noticed a definite decline when going above 70. So do you want good mpg or do you want to get there in a reasonable time?

I think that we did our trip at the right time (late June), with the price range for premium anywhere from $2.39 to $2.89.
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Dog
quote:
Originally posted by mdxious
Only 300 miles 05 mdx.
high way 15.x mpg
city 10.x mpg:mad:
do I have a bad luck?:confused:
edit: been using premium gas



My '05 mileage was almost as poor as yours when it was new. Now that it has 1,000 miles on it, the mileage has gone up appreciably - 20-22mpg on the highway.
Sooner in FL
Just leased my MDX on August 11
Drive type (85 % highway 15% city)
First Tank 18 mpg (1/4 tank $42.00 yikes 93 Octane)
Second Tank 19 mpg (1/2 tank $24.00 93 Octane)
jp1450
Has anyone seen a change in mileage after changing to a thinner oil and/or changing to synthetic oil? Does synthetic oil really make a difference in gas mileage?
martinjc
I live in the UK and we shipped our MDX from Australia.
The car is just 2 years old now and we have got a reading of 15.9mpg consantly on the gauge. Our driving is English country lanes into the city on and off the pedal. We use 97 RON (super unleaded) where we can and feel this gives a much smoother running with Mobil 1 oil. Mileage is now 23,450 with US gals being less that UK imperial gals this give is a UK MPG of arround 21.5 mpg. For a 3.5 V6 wagon that would equal a Range Rover for comfort, ride and userbillity this is good, but what do I replace it with!!
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martinjc
PS our gas price in the UK is $6.50 USD per US Gal!!!!!
ScoobyT
@MARTINJC
Love that plate. =) Is it "U 2", or "Jew 2"? Either way, pretty cool:cool:
P.S. I am Jewish and love U-2.
Shemp
With our 2005 MDX, we got an average of 21.9 MPG on our recent 2300 mile trip. This average included some (less than 100 miles) "city" driving and two lengthy stop-and-go traffic jams in the Chicago area. Our typical cruising speed was approximately 75 MPH.

At the start of the trip, our MDX had around 1800 miles on it. Overall, I was quite pleased with the milage.
QRTLOW
[QUOTE]Originally posted by martinjc
[B]I live in the UK and we shipped our MDX from Australia.
The car is just 2 years old now and we have got a reading of 15.9mpg consantly on the gauge.

Help me out here. Have I had too much amber beverage? or is that an "H" on that MDX? Forgive me for my ignorance on imports, Why doesn't Australia use an "A"?

Sorry for the tangent...About the mileage..What is the octane grade of the gas you use? My brother-in-law has a 2004 MDX and drives a routine commute of 60 miles round trip daily of mixed city/highway. Gas got expensive here in the US lately and he switched from 91 octane to 87. Exact same driving conditions and habits withstanding, he dropped from 19.1MPG to 16.8MPG. He switched back to 91 and it went back to 19MPG.

QRTLOW
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w00tw00t
quote:
Originally posted by QRTLOW

Help me out here. Have I had too much amber beverage? or is that an "H" on that MDX? Forgive me for my ignorance on imports, Why doesn't Australia use an "A"?QRTLOW [/B]


First post and yes, that is an "H". Quite possibly the Acura MDX is sold under the Honda brand in other countries as, to my knowledge, Acura is only a US/Canada brand. Same thing for the Acura RSX being a Honda overseas and such :)
DaleB
quote:
Originally posted by jp1450
Has anyone seen a change in mileage after changing to a thinner oil and/or changing to synthetic oil? Does synthetic oil really make a difference in gas mileage?


Changing to synthetic would be safer than changing to a thinner oil than what is recommended.

Some claim to have seen a small improvement with syn.
I think most buy it for same added protection, which likely will never be needed.
DaleB
quote:
Originally posted by mgrattan


It's always best to follow the manufacturer's recommended octane ratings for fuel. Typically, high output engines (such as multi-valve aluminum head engines, turbo charged, super-charged, etc.) require 90+ octane. You can get by with a lower octane rating and the engine management control will compensate by retarding the timing and/or adjusting the air-fuel mixture; however, you will get typically get lower gas mileage and less horsepower.



A couple of ambitious readers did timing curve plots of their MDX on different fuels.
The only significant difference was at wide open throttle where a some improvement would be seen with prem.
Most of us would not do hard runs or tow with regular gas.
I use 89 most of the time and have not felt or seen anything different in response or mileage from when I used 91 all the time. I do dump a bottle of Techron in the tank with each oil change. Something I have always done regardless of fuel grade.
The Honda Pilot still recommends regular. So if running premium is better, I would think the difference is quite small, and it is safe running regular for everyday use.
Sooner in FL
Last week a put in mid grade (89) and the funny thing is that my Trip computer was showing the milage range of 288. I thought, gees...how smart is this SUV to know that it went from 93 to 89 octane? I ran the gas to the single digits for miles and it was actually 373 miles on 19.155 gallons (not too bad). I filled it up with 93 and the trip computer is showing that I can go 388 miles.

I did notice a little delay on the acceleration on the 89 than 93. Let's see...approx 10 cents difference for 89 than 93 .:rolleyes: The fuel tank can hold 20 gallons. Therefore, a whopping whole $2.00 a week difference. $2 per week times 52 weeks (that's if I drive it everyday) equals a whole $104 a year difference.:eek: I think I will fill my X with 93:2:
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jp1450
OK guys and gals......

We have had our MDX for about six weeks now and the mileage is at around 18.5 combined city and highway (according to the trip computer). We have literally split the time between the city and highway, so I think we are right on target, given the newness and all. We have primarily been using mid-grade (89 octane) fuel. We have just over 2000 miles on the new chariot, and I anticipate changing the oil in the next month or so. That begs the question: Has anyone seen a change in mileage when using synthetic oil? To take it one step further, has anyone seen a difference in 5W20 as compared to 0W20 or 0W30? Just curious.......
QRTLOW
RE:

First post and yes, that is an "H". Quite possibly the Acura MDX is sold under the Honda brand in other countries as, to my knowledge, Acura is only a US/Canada brand.

Okay that's all good but look at the lower bumper. That's Pilot all the way. What kinda morph do we got here?

QRTLOW
Tuan
Regular 10w40 oil for me. I get 16-17mpg city driving and 20-22 hwy and mix driving around 19-20. I use 87 gas and a/c on all the time.

I do notice a bit of an increase in gas mileage when using 92 gas on all of my cars. I also get an increase of mpg when using a fuel injection cleaner, which is normally Chevron's Techron FI cleaner. As soon as I stop using it, mpg drops back to normal.
newmdx2005
I purchased my 2005 Touring on 6/30, and I just put my 7th tank of gas in it. It has 2055 miles on it, and my driving is mixed (highway rush hour and some errands). I usually drive about 60-65 on freeway with A/C on -- it is Arizona after all! I have only used 91 octane (the highest you can get here) since I bought it.

I have been seeing great increases in MPG with each tank, starting at 16.78 for the first tank and going up to 18.74 with the second to last tank. Today, I filled up (had about 1/4 tank left) and my gas mileage program on my Palm now says 12.63 for this 7th tank!

With no significant changes in driving habits (other than leaving A/C off in the cool mornings) are there any logical explanations for a 6 MPG drop? Or is this part of the break-in period?

Thanks for any ideas!
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pianoman41
quote:
Originally posted by Tuan
Regular 10w40 oil for me. I get 16-17mpg city driving and 20-22 hwy and mix driving around 19-20. I use 87 gas and a/c on all the time.

I do notice a bit of an increase in gas mileage when using 92 gas on all of my cars. I also get an increase of mpg when using a fuel injection cleaner, which is normally Chevron's Techron FI cleaner. As soon as I stop using it, mpg drops back to normal.



You're running 10W-40 in a 2002?? That seems awfully heavy oil. I'm pretty sure Acura went to 5W-20 across the board in 2002. 5W-30 would be okay but I wouldn't want to run anything heavier than that.
frainc
quote:
Originally posted by Sooner in FL
Last week a put in mid grade (89) and the funny thing is that my Trip computer was showing the milage range of 288. I thought, gees...how smart is this SUV to know that it went from 93 to 89 octane? I ran the gas to the single digits for miles and it was actually 373 miles on 19.155 gallons (not too bad). I filled it up with 93 and the trip computer is showing that I can go 388 miles.

I did notice a little delay on the acceleration on the 89 than 93. Let's see...approx 10 cents difference for 89 than 93 .:rolleyes: The fuel tank can hold 20 gallons. Therefore, a whopping whole $2.00 a week difference. $2 per week times 52 weeks (that's if I drive it everyday) equals a whole $104 a year difference.:eek: I think I will fill my X with 93:2:



Maybe in Fl. the difference is only 10 cents, but here it's anywhere from 20 to 30 cents difference. And I drive everyday so I fill up my tank twice a week, not once like you. So if I go by your numbers then I will be paying about an extra $416 per year using a price of 25 cents more per gal. than 89 grade gas. But then I have been using 87 which is a difference of 30 to 40 cents per gal, now I'm saving (using 35 cents cost from 87 to 93) $624 from what you pay.

If it was only $104 per year, a no brainier to fill with 93, but start taking over $600, then I'll go with 87.
eRauL
quote:
Originally posted by QRTLOW
RE:

First post and yes, that is an "H". Quite possibly the Acura MDX is sold under the Honda brand in other countries as, to my knowledge, Acura is only a US/Canada brand.
...
QRTLOW



I know they have it as Honda MDX in Australia since 2003.

I also saw Honda MDX and Toyota Harrier (Lexus RX) while I was in Singapore in April 2005.
042005
OK -- after 11,000 miles driven over the past six months (got my MDX on April 22), I want to share a few observations.
I've kept a spreadsheet with records of gas used and type of driving (city, highway, or mixed) for each tankfull to calculate the MPG.

Statistics (38 tanks):

CITY..........2492 miles, ave MPG 16.1
MIXED.......2314 miles, ave MPG 19.7
HIGHWAY..6131 miles, ave MPG 21.7
TOTAL.......10937 miles, 557 gallons, ave MPG 19.6
LOWEST RESULT: 15.2 MPG
HIGHEST RESULT: 25.5 MPG
LONGEST DISTANCE ON ONE TANK: 481 miles

Obviously I'm doing mostly highway cruising, running back and forth between Washington DC and West Palm Beach, staying a month in each place.

Here's what I've learned. There's nothing really new here -- just confirmation of suggestions from others on this board:

- The action that best improved MPG, at least on the highway, was turning off the A/C. On two different occasions where I kept the A/C off between fill-ups during a long trip, I got over 25 MPG for that tankful; otherwise, the best I've ever done was 23.4.

- Next was keeping the top speed down on the highway. If I run 75 to 80 on the interstates, which I did for the first 4 months, I got between 20 and 22 MPG. If I hold cruising speed to 65-70, which I did for the last 2 months, I got more like 22-23.

- Next was "gentle driving" in the city. Since I learned to keep the revs at 2500 and under when pulling away from stoplights, I've seen my general city MPG go from 15 to 16.5 (I finally found a useful function for a tachometer on a car with automatic transmission).

About the trip computer:
- My trip computer doesn't seem too far off in it's average MPG figure, compared to my calculations based on actual fuel used, IF it is looking at a "substantial" number of miles. My overall cumulative MPG is 19.6. When I let the trip computer run for 2000 miles of city/highway/mixed driving, it showed 19.4 average.

- I believe the trip computer average MPG can be misleading when the reading is based on low mileage or a short elapsed time. This happens when you first buy the car (mine showed 6 MPG when it was in the showroom), or if you look at it after only a few jaunts to the grocery store with no driving at speed -- mine might show only 11 or 12 MPG average, whereas in city-only driving I've never done worse than 15.2 on calculated MPG over a whole tankfull.

Sorry for the ramble, I just wanted to put that spreadsheet to some use....
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ByeByeChrysler
Finally after 3+ years I decided to look at my MPG.
Mine is set to L/100km so I temporarily switched it over so I can report my findings.

Its all based on maintenance, driving habits, and split between highway and city driving.

I drive 65% highway and 35% city.

My MPG was reading 18 MPG combined.

:cool:
jab
We bought our Acura Certified 2002MDX Touring a month ago from Marin Acura and have at best achieved 17mpg. Most of our miles are in San Francisco, and our average in-city MPG is around 10.

I'm taking acceleration and braking very easy since my wife tends to have car sickness, and I'm not a speed freak. We've tried different gas stations, and always used 91 octane. This just seems so far below our worst expectation, and the dealer has yet to determine what, if anything is wrong.

Anyone have any thoughts on how to improve this, or what to ask them to check? They have already checked all fluids and injectors, which were clean. The tire pressure is correct. The emmisions are good. What good is is ULEV when the vehicle is as bad as a Hummer or M-Benz in MPG?

Help?
bayoun1
I purchased my MDX almost two moths ago and have tried both 93 and 87... it seems I can tell a real difference in better acceleration w/93. My average is (since delivery) 22.4 MPG. I do mostly highway driving as you can tell. I hate to pay the price ($2.85) for high octane but don't want to mess with a good thing. My X runs strong and I get great gas mileage using 93. I think I will stay w/93 for a while longer.:D
mgrattan
jab,

The best advice I can give is to coast whenever possible. In the city I try to let off the gas as soon as I see that traffic ahead is stopping. Now, if you're in bumper-to-bumper traffic there's not much you can do except be gentle on the accelerator. Other than that type of traffic, however, you should be able to up your mileage to 15-17 just by coasting as much as possible.
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bayoun1
jab,

Is your X equipped with the "instantaneous MPG feed-back indicator"? Those of us w/o navigation have this (for the lack of a better word) graphic bar that constantly expands and contracts as your X travels over the road surface relative to the amount of gas applied to the engine. I have come to find this indicator most helpful and have refined my "egg foot" (or as some say balloon foot) sensitivity. You simply press on the gas as though you had an egg placed between your foot and the gas pedal. This feedback indicator really helped me modify my tendency to push on the gas any harder then absolutely necessary to reach the speed required. Good luck.

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