Fuel Consumption Concerns? - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

dbirchum · 02-08-2010, 07:57 AM

Greetings all - fairly new to the board. I purchased a 2010 Toyota Corolla CE (manual transmission) in late November. Discovered this board and have been using it as a resource ever since.

I have a question about fuel consumption. I have been tracking the number of km's I get per tank of gas with my CE and it is a lot lower than I expected. I have a Civic prior to this, and I was getting a LOT more Km's per tank of gas (granted, I don't really know how the size of the tanks compare).

I live in Canada, have 4 snow tires on it and only drive in the City (VERY few highway km's). I know fuel consumption has a lot to do with driving patterns, etc, but I drive VERY conservative and drive and take the same route to work as I did with my Civic.

Regardless, out of the last 4 tanks of gas I have had, I am only getting on average between 370 and 380 kms with a full tank. (With my 1998 Honda Civic EX, I was getting at least 500km's per tank).

Is this the norm? Something I should be concerned about? Anyone having similar consumption patterns? Is this the norm with the Corolla CEs?

Thanks,

sinnaever · 02-08-2010, 08:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dbirchum

Greetings all - fairly new to the board. I purchased a 2010 Toyota Corolla CE (manual transmission) in late November. Discovered this board and have been using it as a resource ever since.

I have a question about fuel consumption. I have been tracking the number of km's I get per tank of gas with my CE and it is a lot lower than I expected. I have a Civic prior to this, and I was getting a LOT more Km's per tank of gas (granted, I don't really know how the size of the tanks compare).

I live in Canada, have 4 snow tires on it and only drive in the City (VERY few highway km's). I know fuel consumption has a lot to do with driving patterns, etc, but I drive VERY conservative and drive and take the same route to work as I did with my Civic.

Regardless, out of the last 4 tanks of gas I have had, I am only getting on average between 370 and 380 kms with a full tank. (With my 1998 Honda Civic EX, I was getting at least 500km's per tank).

Is this the norm? Something I should be concerned about? Anyone having similar consumption patterns? Is this the norm with the Corolla CEs?

Thanks,

My first question to you is... were you basing your Civic's consumption based on the same conditions?

-4 Snow Tires
-Winter climate
-Winter Gas
-More idling to warm the car up
-I am assuming that you have your Windshield defogger on Full blast for a bit too (that uses up extra gas)...

Second... Yes it is normal for consumption to be low during the winter months. You will see it get better once you have Summer rubber on and the temps are higher.

Also driving habits have ALOT to do with fuel consumption. I'm not saying you jack-rabbit every start, but constant Stop and Go in the city will affect your MPG.

Wait till May and then see if it improves.

cutipie19 · 02-08-2010, 09:34 AM

Just so your aware the Civic and the Rolla should have almost exactly the same size gas tank.... the new civic (basing this on an 08) and the 09 Corolla have the same size tank... I have a friend who has a 08 Civic base model which is manual and we compared what the manuals said because we too were curious if it would be the same.

Sinnaever is correct in saying wait till the spring and summer months, I too was also concerned about this last year when i purchased my car but saw my gas mileage get much better over the spring and summer months (April to mid November when I put the snows on)

tapanpatel88 · 02-08-2010, 09:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dbirchum

Greetings all - fairly new to the board. I purchased a 2010 Toyota Corolla CE (manual transmission) in late November. Discovered this board and have been using it as a resource ever since.

I have a question about fuel consumption. I have been tracking the number of km's I get per tank of gas with my CE and it is a lot lower than I expected. I have a Civic prior to this, and I was getting a LOT more Km's per tank of gas (granted, I don't really know how the size of the tanks compare).

I live in Canada, have 4 snow tires on it and only drive in the City (VERY few highway km's). I know fuel consumption has a lot to do with driving patterns, etc, but I drive VERY conservative and drive and take the same route to work as I did with my Civic.

Regardless, out of the last 4 tanks of gas I have had, I am only getting on average between 370 and 380 kms with a full tank. (With my 1998 Honda Civic EX, I was getting at least 500km's per tank).

Is this the norm? Something I should be concerned about? Anyone having similar consumption patterns? Is this the norm with the Corolla CEs?

Thanks,

Hi. I am from Toronto as well (Mississauga actually) and I own the same car but in an automatic tranny. I get about 500 km on a full tank with pure city driving in winter. I know that you are worried about your fuel mileage; however, you must know that winter gas (which has extra additives to keep your fuel from freezing) plays a big role in fuel consumption.

Although your fuel number is pretty low even for winter conditions, just make sure your defroster/defogger isn't on constantly, you are driving with a light foot, and that you aren't making very short trips. A high number of short trips (<10km) affects your mileage as well as there is a lot more fuel that is consumed during engine startups and frequent braking and acceleration.

cutipie19 · 02-08-2010, 09:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tapanpatel88

Hi. I am from Toronto as well (Mississauga actually) and I own the same car but in an automatic tranny. I get about 500 km on a full tank with pure city driving in winter. I know that you are worried about your fuel mileage; however, you must know that winter gas (which has extra additives to keep your fuel from freezing) plays a big role in fuel consumption.

Although your fuel number is pretty low even for winter conditions, just make sure your defroster/defogger isn't on constantly, you are driving with a light foot, and that you aren't making very short trips. A high number of short trips (<10km) affects your mileage as well as there is a lot more fuel that is consumed during engine startups and frequent braking and acceleration.

I agree with you on the small trips and defrost/defogger... not as many people know that running your defrost/defogger all the time is just like running your AC in the summer which is using tons of gas... it is odd that the OP is only getting 300-350 I believe they said gas in the winter considering that I have a heavy foot and I am able to get 500+ kms and I do almost all city driving with the exception of trips to visit my boyfriend (from Hamilton to Mississauga on the QEW a couple times a week). The majority is all in city with trips to school and work.

OP: do you have subs or any extra mods you've done that are taking a lot of power resulting in more gas used?

LeanBurn · 02-08-2010, 10:51 AM

Also be aware that your engine will 'break-in' over time and fuel economy should increase.

thestone11 · 02-08-2010, 11:00 AM

I am from Edmonton, AB, Canada. I am able to get about 560kms with one full tank. What is the trip computer said about your range after you filled your tank?

kevinnz · 02-08-2010, 10:51 PM

mine is just as bad, i'm not a crazy driver, nor a grandma driver. i have to fill up at around every 230 miles with a full tank (370km), if you find a fix let me know.

Elusivellama · 02-08-2010, 11:28 PM

FYI Even though you may use more gas running the defogger or A/C during winter, you should do it at least once every two weeks for 10 min to help maintain the system.

dbirchum · 02-09-2010, 12:30 PM

Hey all -

Thanks so much for your responses. I greatly appreciate it. Just to answer a few points:

- I am basing my fuel consumption on the exact same varibales as my Civic. I used my Civic until I bought my Corolla in late Nov. I live in the same house, drive the same route to work, drive the same way, mainy do city driving (90% of the time). So the only thing that has changed, is my vehicle.

- Again, I am not comparing the Civic to the Corolla, as I am sure there are differences that affect the gas consumption between the two vehicles, I just thought that it is weird to only be getting less than 400km per fill up. (I know the tires on my Civic were 14" and on the Corolla, they are 15"s).

- It is the winter, so the heater is on quite a bit and the read defogger, but I turn that off, as soon as my rear window is clear.

- I don't have any other mods, etc, done to the car that would affect gas consumption.

- I do make a huge number of short trips (less than 5K), but that hasn't changed since I had my Civic.

- I know that the engine should "break-in" and that I will also get better milage in the summer months, but it really makes me nervous that I am not getting 400 Km/per tank of gas. And, when others that posted on this thread are getting 500kms and 560kms, it makes me concerned that there is something up with the car. Should I get this looked into?? What are other people getting out of a tank (how many kms?). I would be curious to know...

- For example, I filled up my car this morning. It took 45.172 litres. I got 391.6Km out of my last tank (which seems to be the most to date, but I was VERY empty).

- I want to keep better track of this. Does anyone have a Excel spreadsheet template that I could use? (not an online calculator, an actual tracking spreadsheet).

thestone11: Which setting on computer should I check?

Thanks again!

ToxicBanana · 02-09-2010, 12:46 PM

I got:
364.80 km
with 40.847 litres

This was my first refill, (from 20km to 384.80km odometer)

Will let you know the new numbers next time.
EDIT: I for got to mention my car is a 2010 Corolla XRS

LeanBurn · 02-09-2010, 12:56 PM

So the summer/fall distance per tank for the Civic was at least 500km/tank. What was your winter distance/tank in the Civic? Unless you are comparing winter distances between the two cars, its not a fair comparo.

TACO_KID · 02-09-2010, 03:10 PM

switch to 0w20 full synth and get your tires to about 38psi. this will help some. my 10 XRS computer calc (which seems to be right on with actual calc) gets 32.0 mpg (mostly hwy driving)

LeanBurn · 02-09-2010, 03:21 PM

Another note: Since you make an extraordinary number of short trips (anything under 10kms), your car will fit in the severe service category. Your oil seldom gets up to proper operating temperature (oil temperature is different than coolant temperature gauge your dash reads), so a full synthetic oil is a necessity and for once I agree with the 0w20.

Try to take it out once a week and put 30-40 kms on it if you can. This brings the oil up to operating temperature and burns off the fuel and condensation that accumulates with the short trip regime you are practicing. Otherwise your oil is going to get contaminated a lot faster and can lead to premature wear. If you can't get out for the longer trips, the other alternative to combat this you requires shorter oil change intervals...even with synthetic. For further information check out Bob is the Oil Guy, search short trip.

penguindude · 02-09-2010, 07:03 PM

Yea, my 2010 corolla is just as bad. In addition to the poor mileage, mine also drifts left and right on the highway. At first i thought it's the wind, but now since the news and various other complaints received, i really think its the car and not the wind. I knew i should have gotten the 2010 Mazda 3 instead. What a bad first car.