Poor Gas Mileage on an L300?

Discussion in 'Saturn L-series' started by WGRG3, Apr 27, 2004.

  1. WGRG3

    WGRG3 Guest

    Well at least I think it is poor! This is a 2004 L300 with about 2,000
    miles on it, and yes it is the V6 model. Well since we bought the car we
    have only been averaging 18-19 mpg, combo Freeway, and City driving!
    This seems pretty low to me, and with gas prices as high as they are I
    would really like to get some better gas mileage. The only decent gas
    mileage we got was on a weekend trip--mostly Freeway- and we got around
    24 mpg! Does all of this sound like a problem to anyone, and is there
    any way to increase the gas mileage we are getting? I really like this
    car, but the low Gas Mleage is starting to bug me!! :-( Thanks in
    advance for any help on this!
     
    WGRG3, Apr 27, 2004
    #1
  2. The engine is still breaking in a little, and will likely improve somewhat
    over the next few thousand miles. However, my 2002 LW300 has never gotten
    over 27 mpg on the highway. It averages about 22-24 mpg with mostly highway
    miles, so I wouldn't expect yours to improve a lot. Make sure your tires are
    inflated properly. I get slightly better mileage if I bump up the octane a
    little.

    Dana
     
    Dana Rohleder, Apr 28, 2004
    #2
  3. WGRG3

    Oppie Guest

    I've been getting about 24mpg on my '01 lw300 (44K miles) in town and
    driving with a light foot. sort of hard to control the testosterone since
    stomping the gas pedal is sooo darn exhilarating! On a recent highway trip,
    doing 65-75mph for the most part, topped off the tank and had 3/4 tank after
    130 miles. that's roughly 30mpg. (iirc the tank is 15 gallons)
    Not the most scientific measure of mileage but in any event, it's not too
    shabby. Been using regular grade gas and throw a can of injector cleaner in
    every few months just for gits and shiggles.

    Oppie
     
    Oppie, Apr 28, 2004
    #3
  4. WGRG3

    Blah blah Guest

    Bumping up the octane wont do anything because of its mild compression.
    He will still get the same gas mileage, power, and in turn he will spend
    more money. As oppie post its a 15gal tank. I say someones calculations
    are off.
     
    Blah blah, Apr 28, 2004
    #4
  5. WGRG3

    WGRG3 Guest

    I am pretty sure I got the mileage calculations right I always subtract
    the miles from my present fill up to my previous fill up, and divide
    that by the number of gallons I got. I think that is the way to do it
    right? Of course I can't do it exact like 1667.6 because for some reason
    this gauge rounds off to the nearest mile. So I only get something like
    1667 or 1668. And I always use reg gas, so that is not a factor. Some
    weeks I can get 19-20 miles to the gallon, and other weeks I only get
    around 18. I know the AC and Heater can eat up a lot of gas! So when do
    you think all of this should level off, and I can get some consistantly
    good gas mileage out of this car? Thanks!
     
    WGRG3, Apr 28, 2004
    #5
  6. I will agree with the appreciation of power, but 3 years of mileage records
    clearly show about a 5% increase in gas mileage with my car by bumping up a
    grade. I nearly always buy Sunoco. But most of the time I just run 87 octane
    because the increased cost usually negated the mild mileage increase. Actual
    results may vary....

    Dana
     
    Dana Rohleder, Apr 29, 2004
    #6
  7. Why don't you just reset your trip odometer at every fill-up? You are right,
    I do find quite a difference with my LW300 when the a/c and even a strong
    electrical load (rear defroster/mirror heaters, seat heaters, etc) are added
    to the mix. Again, check those tire pressures. BTW, the wider the tire, the
    less fuel economy - are yours really wide?
     
    Dana Rohleder, Apr 29, 2004
    #7
  8. WGRG3

    Blah blah Guest

    Doesnt your trip gage show 10th's of a mile? Not that you need to be
    that accurate. The ac doesnt eat up as much these days and it only runs
    when you are defrosting the windsheild with the heat on. You got to
    remember that the epa rates everything on a treadmill. Only lil ol'
    ladies get close to the epa ratings. You might be a lead foot like most
    of us. If 1600 is your current mileage i say you have some ways to go
    before everything is broken in. Try not to push it to hard until you're
    next oil change. I cant remember if saturn puts synthetic in from the
    factory now but if they do it will take longer for the rings to seat.
     
    Blah blah, Apr 29, 2004
    #8
  9. WGRG3

    WGRG3 Guest

    My Tires are the factory tires, I think they are 17", And I keep them
    all at 30 lbs just like it says on the door. Funny thing was the best
    mileage I got was on that weekend trip, and I had the AC on the entire
    time!
     
    WGRG3, Apr 30, 2004
    #9
  10. WGRG3

    WGRG3 Guest

    Re: Poor Gas Mileage on an L300?

    Group: rec.autos.makers.saturn Date: Thu, Apr 29, 2004, 7:40pm (PDT+7)
    From: (Blah blah)
    I am pretty sure I got the mileage calculations right I always subtract
    the miles from my present fill up to my previous fill up, and divide
    that by the number of gallons I got. I think that is the way to do it
    right? Of course I can't do it exact like 1667.6 because for some reason
    this gauge rounds off to the nearest mile. So I only get something like
    1667 or 1668. And I always use reg gas, so that is not a factor. Some
    weeks I can get 19-20 miles to the gallon, and other weeks I only get
    around 18. I know the AC and Heater can eat up a lot of gas! So when do
    you think all of this should level off, and I can get some consistantly
    good gas mileage out of this car? Thanks!
      
    Doesnt your trip gage show 10th's of a mile? Not that you need to be
    that accurate. The ac doesnt eat up as much these days and it only runs
    when you are defrosting the windsheild with the heat on. You got to
    remember that the epa rates everything on a treadmill. Only lil ol'
    ladies get close to the epa ratings. You might be a lead foot like most
    of us. If 1600 is your current mileage i say you have some ways to go
    before everything is broken in. Try not to push it to hard until you're
    next oil change. I cant remember if saturn puts synthetic in from the
    factory now but if they do it will take longer for the rings to seat.
    -----------------------------------------------------------
    No it has a digital read out now, and it only reads in whole numbers. So
    it is pretty hard to get an acurate reading, as far as gas mileage goes!
    My old 96 SL2 had the regular gage, and I got great gas mileage on that
    car. Maybe this car being a V6 just sucks up more gas. I hope you are
    right about getting better mileage after it breaks in. I do not think I
    will ever get used to 18-19 MPG! Thanks
     
    WGRG3, Apr 30, 2004
    #10
  11. Do you drive with the windows open when the a/c isn't on? That'll cost you
    some mileage too.

    Only your odometer should read in whole miles. If you press the little
    thingy sticking out of the odometer area, you will see the trip meter which
    does read in tenths of a mile. If you press it and hold it, it will reset to
    "0.0" That's what I do when I fill up, so I don't have to calculate total
    miles driven - the trip meter tells me. Then just divide the total miles by
    the number of gallons you used to fill up (to the top), and you have your
    MPG.

    Dana
     
    Dana Rohleder, May 1, 2004
    #11
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