Stueck

anyone know any ways to increase gas mileage? i know less weight...header yadda yadda.... im just trying to get the best MPG possible.

kargoboy

Driving like an old lady might help (shifting at lower RPM, driving in 5th gear when you're going 35mph, don't accelerate hard from a full stop), but as you've probably read here in the past,
Proteges are not known for great mpg because of the way it's geared.
But on the other hand, that's part of what makes them more fun to drive.
I'll take my 26-28 mpg average and drive the way I like, rather than trying to bleed out a couple more mpg.

goldstar

1. Switch from mineral to synthetic engine and transmission oil. This will reduce internal friction in these two components.

2. Switch to tires with a larger rolling diameter than stock. This will effectively raise (lower numerically) your overall gear ratio.

3. Install a vacuum gauge and try to maintain the highest possible vacuum reading throughout all driving modes.

4. Wherever possible, reduce weight (including your own body weight). For example, switch to really light (forged) alloy rims in preference to cast alloy or steel wheels.

5. Keep your car highly waxed at all times to reduce aerodynamic drag.

Happy Motoring!

juddz

1. Keep the AC off
2. Maintain proper air pressure in your tires
3. Maintain the engine properly (keep oil topped off, make sure you are using a clean air filter, obey regular maintenance intervals, etc)
4. Avoid jack rabbit starts and high speeds
5. As Kargoboy mentioned, keep it in a higher gear when just cruising at a constant speed
6. Don't warm up the car for long periods before driving it

Stueck

check check and check. this is everything? i am quite a granny driver...first til 10, second til 20, etc. and thats when im trying to get up to speed (45mph+)

HopefulFred

You can be a little more agressive than you might think with the tire pressure. Harder tires (higher pressure and harder compound) and narrower tires will roll with less friction. If the total vehicle weight is not much above what it came like from the factory, consider going to as high as 90% of the max recommended on the sidewall. Be aware of the handling changes that will result in before you go crazy with it though. It makes things harder riding, less grippy, and can change the understeer/oversteer characteristics pretty dramatically.

Also, the windows can contribute significantly to aerodynamic drag when open at highway speeds. At that speed, most of the energy you use is overcoming friction/drag. Aerodynamic drag increases with the square of velocity, so keeping your highway speed down can help a lot (if you do a lot of highway driving). If you have a luggage rack on the roof, take off whatever can be reasonable removed and stored. There's a significant amount of drag there too (at highway speeds).

What fuel economy are you getting? My wife's 03 P5 gets just onder 30 MPG average (29.5+ MPG), but she does almost exclusively highway driving. On the other hand, she probably sticks to 75 MPH too.

Da P-Funk!

skip shift. It is easy in our cars to go from 3rd to 5th.

ditto all the above.

P5ChemDood

After taking everyone's great advice on the P5 30k mile service, I took to my own to change the oil/filter, spark plugs, and air filter. Then it was time to check for any performance or mpg improvements. I filled my tank before starting my drive from Philly to State College and after driving 197 miles to my destination (gas guage needle still read above half-tank) I filled up again. Took 5 gallons to top off. Now, doing that math, I come up with about 39 mpg To me, this number seems pretty high and almost bogus, but those are the miles I drove, and the gas I used. I usually maintain ~75 on the highway (no a/c). But there were serveral truck passes that were 80+ mph, and 15 minutes in 5 mph traffic.

Stueck

i think i get about 32 mpg if math is correct

Da P-Funk!

34 on recent trip from Knoxville to DC. (Downhill)

(And lest ye think i was weazin' it - i got popped for going 91 in a 65 ! )

Yeah. I drive the speed limit now. And for the next three years...

MyZmZm

Your A/C automatically comes on whenever you're in defrost or floor modes, so doing the above doesn't really help if you're like me and generally have it at one of those settings. The best thing to do is the A/C mod so that it will only come on when you actually turn on the A/C.

I normally average about 28-29 mpg city driving - and I don't drive like a granny by any means - but when I checked at my last fill-up (after doing the above mod), my mileage was 32. Maybe just a fluke, but I'm going to monitor it for the next few tanks just to make sure. And if it isn't a fluke,

MC

i am one of them people who never let the tank go below 1/4 LOL.... i aint seen that fuel low warning light since i got my car hehehe...

iget about 550 to 600km a tank depending on where i drive and how i drive... i do tend to acccelerate hard from lights and through corners... but yeh hehe :P

i found this car is quite good with fuel economy compares to some of the other cars in this class.....

if u want fuel economy go for a toyota prius or somfin hehe... 1000km to a tank...

juddz

...if you have a P5, lose the roof rack. This adds aerodynamic drag. It is easily removed, and just as easily put back into place when needed.

KrayzieFox

After reading this I decided that I'd finally try and actually remove the roof rack, cuz it finally gave me reason to do it besides the fact that I always thought it would look better. Now when you said "it is easily removed" I didn't know that required ripping appart half of the interior to get the whole rack off, so I just put back all the little plastic pieces I took off the rack and called it a night ... Oh well, it was worth a shot.

Saint-beast

does the amount of octane like 95 and 91 effect of MPG?