I've had it with this horrible Gas Mileage! Idea's?

[Numba1goalie]

Alright. So 13.6 MPG is just not cutting for me. I have tried a lot of different methods of curing this problem like SeaFoam, Acetone, cleaning my EGR Valve and throttle body.

So now I am here, asking for help. Any ideas how to cure this? If I can fix it though I am gonna have to sell this beauty.

Thanks guys!

[nocturnalVX]

No worries...
Sell the Heep & get a economy car to use as a daily driver. I ride motorcycles as much as possible, and (with that gas mileage @ 35 - 40 mpg) it evens out nicely.

[psychos2]

have you checked your intake gaskets ? shawn

[Amnesia]

I know what you mean about the mileage. Mine is like a spoiled little kid. It gets what it wants, when it wants.

When I first got my VX it had around 36K on it and I was pleased as it seemed that I always got at least 17-18mpg... really close to 19 oftentimes. Then it just got worse. It has just under 100K on it now and I've tried everything I can think of except the intake gasket. In the past 10K miles, I've gotten anywhere from 13mpg to a best of about 16.9. At its worst I was stone dry at 220 miles. At best, I've gone a little over 370 on a tank, without having to walk.

It's in the shop right now w/ TOD problems & it's getting the valve cover gaskets replaced (under warranty - warrantybynet.com... hopefully this solves my oil comsumption problem), so when I get it back I'm going to check for vacuum leaks around the intake. You might check your brake calipers. In the past 10K miles I've had to replace 3 out of 4 of my stock calipers, due to sticking. You could smell and feel the heat coming off the rotors after you drove only a few miles. I picked up one of those non-contact, point & shoot digital thermometers and found that the offending calipers had rotors on them that were in the 600'F - 800'F range... as opposed to one on a good side that was only around 94'F on the same trip.

Best of luck!
Shawn

[VehiGAZ]

Good suggestion on checking the brakes!! Basically, anything that's dragging unnecessarily or not properly lubed will reduce your mileage, too. I'd suggest you have them change all drivetrain fluids (transfer case, differential, etc) and repack the bearings while they're at it, too. Good luck!!

[thedutchguy]

HEAVY RIGHT FOOT ?

[blacksambo]

I don't know if you've changed your air filter to something more exotic than the OEM, But believe it not that seems to make a difference. We have two '99 VX's with similar miles (70K+). One has a K&N the other OEM. OEM gets better mileage but doesn't sound so throaty or have the quick throttle response. Somebody once said on this sight that performance=lower mileage. They were right. Get back to original specs and you can get 20 mpg. It works for us.

[bulldog]

have you checked your intake gaskets ? shawn

sorry to be dumb but how do i check the intake gaskets??

[Numba1goalie]

Take that engine cover off the top and look to see if there is any black film coming from around the seems of the intake manifold.

[Ruflyf]

And, yes I have locking hubs on the front of mine, however I hardly ever unlock them making it 2wd.

Joe, is there a way to check the canister for functionality/damage to see if it needs replacing?

[VehiGAZ]

And here I go again - Goalie, before you go ordering parts, please - finish the mileage experiment. Don't do any math with the fuel gauge - it's only accurate to maybe +/- a quarter of a tank of gas, and you even said in a previous post that itt was showing only an eighth of a tank left, but only 11 gallons went in.

If you don't have the patience to wait until you finish this tank of gas, then go ahead and fill up now just like you did the last time when you reset the trip odometer and DO THE MATH... divide the number of miles showing on your odo by the number of gallons you just put in your tank, and that will tell you your true mileage. By the numbers you yourself posted before, you are getting over 19 mpg! (210 miles on 11 gallons of gas... 210/11 = 19.09).

Make sure you have a problem before you try to fix it. Problems that aren't really there have an annoying way of not responding to fixes.

Good luck!

[nater]

You know, have you changed your driving style/ route/ schedule lately? Bad traffic, lots of starts and stops, even aggressive driving can affect your mileage.

I noticed when I worked late for a week that I got better mileage. (The drive home had almost no traffic).

Nate

[Joe_Black]

^^^^ Heed what VehiGAZ is saying, good advice! ^^^^

[Numba1goalie]

I notice real bad fuel economy mostly on the highways over 70 mph. which is about 2800-3000 rpms.

I am still following your advice though, I am just giving it a few tanks to get the average number. I feel like im in a Math class again. lol.

[SPAZZ]

I installed my new Fuel pressure reg yesterday. Pathetic how small that thing is. My idle is more regular now instead of so high and it seems to start easier.

Hopefully my mileage will gain from the new one.