leungwingkei

I have a 2002 auto P5. I mostly drive in city traffic with a moderate amount of stop and go. I get about 470km on a 47L fillup. Is this about right?

The 470km translates to about 293 miles. And the 47L equals 11.75 gallons. The MPG is about 25. Is this normal for the car?

Any feedback is appreciated.

cjb200

25 MPG in city traffic with an automatic. That actually is pretty damn good for this car. Be happy with it.

Sir Nuke

I personally would say its BETTER than average....you/your car is doing just fine.

JoeT

You are doing fine - right on the money for mostly city driving, leungwingkei.

I got 400 miles out of a 14.5 gallon tank of gas (of course the fuel light was on at the end), in mostly highway driving. This works out to 27.6 MPG.

The trick is to drive at 60-65 MPH, and/or keep the car below 3000 RPM most of the time on the highway. This can be maddening if you like to drive fast.

I think that most of these Civic, Corolla high fuel economies are accomplished under ideal conditions as well - 55-60 MPH, level surfaces at sea level, etc.

bazooka joe

i've got an auto also and i get low 20's, so you're doing real well!

MackDaddy

I consistantly get ~ 22-23 mpg mixed city/highway (daily driving.)

Coming home from Carlisle Compact Nats (75-85 mph) I got 28mpg (not nearly as good as I'd hoped.)

Tom Slick

with my auto i usually get about 29 mpg. i don't drive in traffic and my commute is a fairly constant 60 mph.

mecarey1

I don't understand why so many P5 owners get such bad fuel economy. I have had my 02 P5 for about 1.5 years now (21 K miles). My average fuel economy for the entire life has been 32 mpg. Over the last couple of months, I have been getting 34-35 mpg. It is a standard tranny and mostly rural roads and interstate driving but I can't see mid 20's being normal for this car.

cjb200

mecarey1, the automatic trannys in these cars really hurt the mileage. Also, stop and go city driving makes a huuuuge difference. I've gotten as low at 18 and as high as 30 (I also have an auto).

leungwingkei

Can anyone post a pic with what connection to remove to reset the ECU. I did a search and know its the negative terminal, but I still need additional guidance since I don't want to remove the positive one and fry the ECU.

Can anyone provide some additional advice with a pic?

And does the two trip meters and the radio station and stereo settings reset also?

Protege52003

I have had city driving ranging from 21-25 MPG, usually more toward the 25 end and highway driving ranging from 30-33 (driving between 70 and 80 MPH). When I do a mix of city/highway driving I average 27-28. Not that bad, but I could get much better because I drive kind of hard in stop and go driving and keep the RPM's up.

I think you are fine......

-R

00117064

I make 25 MPG with my 2.0l protege with a stick...
For the power this car make, I dont understand this poor fuel economy. The reason that the car rev high on the highway is not the reason.
My last car was a high rev. on the highway (3500rpm at 60mph, 4cyl, 1.8L 8V, golf 1989) and I was doing exactly 36 MPG when crusing at 4000rpm(70mph)...

Something is not going right in our car... On paper a honda accord with the 240 HP engine have a better fuel economy than our car.

Whats the reason?

ProtegeMaster

I've been very unhappy with the fuel economy of the Protege. I was, however, perhaps spoiled by the exemplary economy delivered by my previous car, a ’91 Nissan Sentra XE (GA16DE). I would routinely secure over 40 mpg on the highway. Totally excellent efficiency that continues to this day (for the folks who bought it from me).

Mazda never quite manages to deliver engines that render characteristics above that of the other leading Japanese auto makes. They get close, and they offer excellent reliability, but it should come as no secret to anyone how many posts we see about how underpowered the FS-DE appears, and how mediocre the fuel economy is. For the naysayers, if it wasn’t a real issue we wouldn’t see complaints about it so often. I personally am quite happy with the power (being no rice/racer), but the fuel economy is something that I’m bothered by every time I fill up: It doesn’t deliver the performance/efficiency so capably shown by Toyota, for instance. Corolla’s engine offers similar performance/power yet graces 40+ mpg on the highway. THAT’S what the Protege should offer, but doesn’t, and I resent that. I believe Honda and Toyota just build better engines-- This is a long standing predication of mine.

Now, for all of you who are going to get all hot and bothered by my opinion that Mazda’s engines are inferior (not including the rotaries, which no one else makes, anyway), bear in mind that it’s common for auto makers to have individual talents. I’d say Honda and Toyota make better engines-- That’s what they excel in. On the same token, I’d say Mazda’s stock handling performance is above that of their other main Japanese competitors. I’d also say that Mazda exterior styling is unmatched by others.

In a perfect world, I’d take Honda or Toyota’s engine technology, BMW’s simultaneous ability to deliver performance AND ride comfort, VW’s interior design, and Mazda’s exterior design and put them into one small car. Then I’d have the quiet, comfortable ride I want, the performance I appreciate, the styling I laud, the efficiency I expect, and the reliability I unequivocally demand.

leungwingkei

Here we go again...

ProtegeMaster

You brought it up.