WillMartin Posted July 10, 2019 Share Posted July 10, 2019 We talk about it sometimes, but I don't remember if there's an official thread. If there is, sue me. So far, the best mileage I have gotten is exactly 30 mpg. It was a long, slow trip, nearly all on cruise control set at 55 or 65 miles per hour. Worst so far is 20 mpg in a mix of stop and go and stop and more stop. I haven't got it down to 16 or 17 like Fifty150 yet, but it will happen sometime. For comparison purposes mine is a 2010 with cheapo Firestone tires on it for now. Tires and inflation make a difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beta Don Posted July 10, 2019 Share Posted July 10, 2019 My best is 30 also - Under similar conditions to those you mentioned. My worst was 24, but that was pulling a trailer. We don't use the TC as a daily driver, so there are no around town miles on ours - We have electric cars for that duty Don Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donuts Posted July 10, 2019 Share Posted July 10, 2019 My '17 LWB XL van is used only around town in my handyman business. I bought it new early May 2018 and right now July 2019 It has a mere 5300 miles on it even though I drive it 7 days a week. I haven't checked the fuel economy in some time but my base info screen usually shows something like 275-300 miles/tank. Tomorrow we're headed off on a trip cross country from the north edge of Tucson to go see our families back on the east coast. Round trip miles will be 6000-7000. Heading east across the south - I-10 to I-20 so I'll be able to enjoy the 80 MPH speed limits in West Texas tomorrow. I'll do my best to keep track of miles covered and how much fuel I put in at each fill up. Oil is fresh Mobil 1 synthetic 5w20 at 5000 miles. Tires are original and all properly inflated. I'd say we have a medium load of "stuff" going on this trip, only a fraction of the tools I normally carry. Joe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifty150 Posted July 11, 2019 Share Posted July 11, 2019 Your road trip should get good mileage. You'll be on the open road. Freeway driving is really good for 2nd generation Transit Connect. I've seen great mileage the few times where I was able to drive continuously at freeway speed, and cover enough miles to actually use several gallons of fuel. It's the stop & go city driving, where you are stopped and idling, that really hurts fuel economy. My best tank was 27.1 MPG. That was with a couple of longer trips mixed in with my daily driving. herb 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donuts Posted July 12, 2019 Share Posted July 12, 2019 Day 1 done. 735.8 miles, 33 gallons of gas for 22.3 mpg. It's was close to or above 100 degrees outside for the entire trip. For a really long time the outside temp seemed stuck on 102. Air was on max inside. Speeds were fast since I was on i-10 and then i-20 which was 80 speed limit most of the time. There was a 10+ mile section of traffic that was under 15 mph. There was also section of heavy rain for maybe 10 miles. Each fill up was within couple tenths mpg. Maybe I should remove my roof cross bars... Overall though the van handles the high speed, winds, rain, trucks, etc very well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifty150 Posted July 12, 2019 Share Posted July 12, 2019 Removing cross bars are not going to give you any significant gain. At least not in the way of getting 30 MPG like some members claim. It could help.....maybe 1/2 MPG. For the record, if someone says that they are getting close to 30 MPG - I believe it. Driving style, fuel type, road conditions, gross vehicle weight......many factors involved here. Donuts, if you turn off the air conditioning, set your cruise control at 55 MPH, keep the windows rolled up, remove all of your passengers, cargo, seating, interior - basically anything & everything to lighten the load, install tires with the least rolling resistance, tie your dog to the rear bumper, tie grandma to a rocking chair onto the roof.....or just slam your fingers in the car door repeatedly..... 22.3 MPG is good mileage for the driving conditions which you described. Believe me. I've seen lows of 15 & 16 MPG. Now share some of those crazy road trip stories. What did you see alongside the road? Post some pics of those roadside attractions. Stop at a truck stop for a shower. Tell us about the hitchhikers you picked up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donuts Posted July 13, 2019 Share Posted July 13, 2019 Ha Ha, no crazy road trip stories Fifty, and nothing too interested seen on the road yet. Just missed a 5 gallon bucket go rolling across the interstate when I was going 85 or so in West Texas yesterday. Other interesting thing was temp drop from 102 to 70 in a matter of minutes during rain storm yesterday, also in West Texas. Day 2 done. 669.5 miles, 29.191 gallons of gas for 22.94 mpg. It's was in the 90s today, as high as 99 but not for long. Air was switched between max cold and one click above (w/outside air) as needed. Speeds were 5-15 mph slower today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifty150 Posted July 13, 2019 Share Posted July 13, 2019 (edited) When I lived in El Paso, summer lightning storms over the desert were bad enough to interfere with air travel. 22.94 is good mileage for what you are describing. Especially with a full load, air conditioning running, and higher speeds with higher RPMs. I have partial records for fuel usage. Odometer miles, amount of fuel, and cost. I can see that my MPG low was 14, and high was 27.3. Edited July 13, 2019 by Fifty150 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifty150 Posted July 13, 2019 Share Posted July 13, 2019 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WillMartin Posted July 13, 2019 Author Share Posted July 13, 2019 18 mpg in California traffic doesn't surprise me a bit. Even less wouldn't surprise me. And the 30 mpg I got was with the van empty except for me and my wife (who isn't very big), and going painfully slowly. It's unlikely to happen that way very often. There's a big difference between 60 mph and 75 mph. The rock hard tires are awful in most ways, but seem to roll pretty well. 22 mpg to 24 mpg is more normal. It will get worse than 20 mpg sometime for sure, because Seattle traffic is getting California-like over time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donuts Posted July 14, 2019 Share Posted July 14, 2019 Day 3 done. 606.3 miles, 24.684 gallons of gas for 24.56mpg. It's was in the 80s today and not much sun as we travelled from Jackson MS to Gastonia NC. We're just ahead of the hurricane. Speeds were 99% below 80 with some slow construction zones. I'd say the average was 74mph. Speed seems to be the biggest impact on the MPGs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
desert_connect Posted July 14, 2019 Share Posted July 14, 2019 1 hour ago, donuts said: Day 3 done. 606.3 miles, 24.684 gallons of gas for 24.56mpg. It's was in the 80s today and not much sun as we travelled from Jackson MS to Gastonia NC. We're just ahead of the hurricane. Speeds were 99% below 80 with some slow construction zones. I'd say the average was 74mph. Speed seems to be the biggest impact on the MPGs You are really covering some ground! Like you I too have found that speed was the biggest mpg killer, also wind is very similar. Anything above above 70 mph I can see a drop in milage. Have a great trip back east! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Double Nickels Posted July 14, 2019 Share Posted July 14, 2019 Wow! You're really moving out there. my MPG is lousy! 17! you all will notice that ambient temp is @ five-five for the double nickel i was beginning to think that everyone was get 27 for better, and I got a lemon I'm using the free version of Torque Lite. Haven't been able to read transmission temp. Is anyone able to see their granny with Torque Lite or Torque Pro? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donuts Posted July 14, 2019 Share Posted July 14, 2019 The long days are coming to a close. Should be under 500 miles today, heading up to DE via the bay bridge tunnel. Then no more (really) long days until the trip back west to AZ in the middle of August. I forgot my OBD adapter so I can test the tranny temp etc. Nickels - around town (my normal driving) I get 17 or so. This trip will more than double the miles I had on my 17 TC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G B L Posted July 15, 2019 Share Posted July 15, 2019 The speed and wind drag has always been the most important factor in fuel mileage . It is nice to see that the physics has not changed even if the world seems to have come off the rails. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eddy Kilowatt Posted July 15, 2019 Share Posted July 15, 2019 2015 with the 2.5, here's my stats for this year. Approx equal mix of town, country, and freeway driving; I set the cruise to 70 on the freeway. Like GBL says, the laws of physics are not subject to the whims of fashion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Double Nickels Posted July 15, 2019 Share Posted July 15, 2019 That's incredible. Your mileage stays above 25. Mine is consistently under. My E250 company car, with a 4.6L V8, gets 15 - 17 consistently. When I first got a Transit Connect, I was really disappointed. But I also understand that short trips, city traffic, and extended idling to keep the air conditioning running kills my mileage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eddy Kilowatt Posted July 15, 2019 Share Posted July 15, 2019 1 hour ago, Double Nickels said: short trips, city traffic, and extended idling to keep the air conditioning running Yeah, I don't do #1 or #3 at all, and not to much of #2. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herb Posted July 16, 2019 Share Posted July 16, 2019 On 7/11/2019 at 4:41 AM, Fifty150 said: Your road trip should get good mileage. You'll be on the open road. Freeway driving is really good for 2nd generation Transit Connect. I've seen great mileage the few times where I was able to drive continuously at freeway speed, and cover enough miles to actually use several gallons of fuel. It's the stop & go city driving, where you are stopped and idling, that really hurts fuel economy. My best tank was 27.1 MPG. That was with a couple of longer trips mixed in with my daily driving. I love how the TC generation II performs on the highway , no issues passing anybody with ease, super smooth and super comfortable . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al W. Posted July 17, 2019 Share Posted July 17, 2019 I just bought a 2018 TC Cargo LWB XLT from a dealer in NC. It was their curtesy car. It had 2k miles on it when I bought it a month ago . It now has near 5k from going up and down the east coast from Northern NJ to Western NC. I've never gotten less than 27.2 mpg according to the onboard system. Briefly was up to 27.8 and thought I was going to get that last .2 , but it never happened. The load I had on the way down was considerable on the way back near nothing. Milage was only a fraction different. I've been impressed with the vehicle so far. The noise is pretty high though , so I'm looking to do some sound deadening . Apart from that its still honeymoon time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifty150 Posted July 17, 2019 Share Posted July 17, 2019 Don't trust the onboard system in any car. Real world miles between fillups is the only accurate information. I saw a Dodge Ram reporting 18 MPG, but it really got 12 - 14, like every other 1/2 ton truck. Torque Lite says that My Transit Connect gets 35. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Almo Posted July 18, 2019 Share Posted July 18, 2019 My 2007 TDCi with the 1753cc engine has proved to be more economical than I expected. Back in March I had a 1800km drive home after some motorcycle racing. Over that distance with the bike in the back and all the riding gear etc I averaged 6 liters/100km which converts to 39 mpg (US). I was taking it easy at 55-60mph as there was no rush and we dont have motorways/interstates here. So very pleased with that figure indeed. I've just put a bottle of fuel system cleaner in the tank in it encase it needs it, hard to know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifty150 Posted July 19, 2019 Share Posted July 19, 2019 That is excellent mileage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G B L Posted July 20, 2019 Share Posted July 20, 2019 Small diesel engine and not in a hurry. The perfect combo for great mileage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Double Nickels Posted July 20, 2019 Share Posted July 20, 2019 Many advantages to diesel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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