Mileage Issue

6286 Views 26 Replies 18 Participants Last post by 08versailles, May 29, 2013

sandtech

Discussion Starter · Jan 29, 2013

Bought new Versa 2013 base model automatic, only been three months we drove 4500miles so far on the car. car won't get passed 29mpg 95% of our drive is highway

We called dealer first said you have to drive 3000 miles
then 4000miles

now they saying we have to drive up to 9000 miles before the engine can break in and we can get correct mileage.

I am confused with this so people have to drive a full year before they get what mileage suppose to be?

1 - 20 of 27 Posts

robj80

· #2 · Jan 29, 2013

How fast are you driving? I'm only getting about 32mpg lately. I don't warm my car up, do a little less highway driving then you (80/20), and drive between 65-75mph. I have an 09 1.6 with a 5spd. Which is the same engine as you if you have a sedan. If you have a hatchback with the 1.8 then you are getting great mileage.

While your mileage isn't the greatest if it's a sedan, for the temps and conditions we have been having in CT it's not going to get much better even after a break in period.

sandtech

Discussion Starter · #3 · Jan 29, 2013

we warm the car for about fifteen minutes in the morning before heading the road. its a sedan. Drive at 65 to 70mph average.

Not sure how is there a break in period, so people have to drive there car for a full year before getting the correct mileage, so its better to buy the car used?

robj80

· #4 · Jan 29, 2013

if your only getting 29 now you won't get 40mpg (epa listed highway rating) even after any so called break in. Unless your driving habits and the weather change.

Are you calculating by miles driven divided by gallons to refill?

Also that warm up time is killing you. 15 minutes of 0mpg with the fuel trims set to rich because of the cold temps. When I'm caring about mpg warm up is a NO NO. If I just want to be comfortable and don't care about mpg's I might let her warm up. Funny thing about these tiny engines are they don't get very warm just idling. At least my 1.6 doesn't.

robj80

· #5 · Jan 29, 2013

forgot to mention also check and set your tire pressure. I go a few lbs over recommended if trying to get great mpgs. Nothing extreme that will trip the light.

6mt

· #6 · Jan 29, 2013

The mileage with this engine is very highly dependant upon the way your right foot behaves. Temperature outside & tire pressures will enter into the equation as well. Also, check the air filter.

08versailles

· #7 · Jan 29, 2013

change fifteen minutes to fifteen seconds...if you got oil, you're good to go

iluvmyVersa08

· #8 · Jan 29, 2013

^08V is right ... Literally turn the key and go, don't let it idle that long to "warm up".

JVersa

· #9 · Jan 29, 2013 (Edited)

Like you said its a new car, so the engine needs to be broken in before you will see the approprte gas mileage.

alonsorules8

· #10 · Jan 30, 2013

Break in period is only 1500 miles after that it all up to how hard you accelerate anything over 3k rpm's equals less fuel mileage. as for tire pressure all 4 tires should be at minimum 33psi max 40psi but 40 is pressing your luck.

I have a 2008 Versa SL 1.8 best mileage was 41mpg on flat I10 between Jacksonville FL and Alexandria LA. avg over 117000 miles has be 33.2 worst 28.6 in city driving. best tank 426 miles worst 274miles.

VinnieVersa

· #11 · Jan 30, 2013

Yes..... we had -4F the other day. Got in the V and just started driving. It does take a long time to reach operating temp. I would say a good 1.5 miles at 40 mph to reach the 188 F range. I have a scan gauge installed and the blue temp light goes off at 130F like clock work. I think the thermostat is 195F as on a normal day with temps in the 50-60's it stays in the 190-194F range. Never goes above 195F.

racin4ds

· #12 · Mar 14, 2013

I have a '13 sedan and average 37mpg with only 1500miles on the new motor... Ive seen as high 41mpg trying to hypermile on the interstate. The Automatic is killing you some as its not rated near as high as the manual or CVT. And you do NOT need to let it warm up that long! Thats killing your average!!

robj80

· #13 · Mar 14, 2013

I agree. It's your warmup and 4AT that's hurting you. Also we are still using winter blended gas in CT. If you read the signs at the pump they usually say when the summer blend starts.

08versailles

· #14 · Mar 14, 2013

robj80 said:
I agree. It's your warmup and 4AT that's hurting you. Also we are still using winter blended gas in CT. If you read the signs at the pump they usually say when the summer blend starts.

That's awesome, I wish we had that. I have to rely on mpg calculation, when the efficiency jumps, we're back on summer fuel:coolgleamA:

robj80

· #15 · Mar 14, 2013

It's not all pumps that have it. And by sign I mean a tiny sticker

. But sure enough I see one at about half the stations I go to.

SilverV

· #16 · Mar 16, 2013

I agree with others about warm up time and the 4AT. My 13 with CVT always gets 36+ mostly in town driving even when it was brand new with barely any miles at one point I hit 39 city under the break in period. This morning I got gas and calculated 38 mpg.

I only let my car idle a few seconds before taking off, 30 seconds or less and I love to coast when possible like down hills or approaching red lights to get maximum 99 mpg it adds up for sure.

peps&liliversa

· #17 · Mar 19, 2013

we just got our versa and averaging 34 mpg and the car only has 1000 miles on it, hope mpgs improve on you.

thehardway

· #18 · Mar 19, 2013

I have gone through 2 tanks on my brand new 1.8 M6 '12 hatchcback now. First tank averaged 34.18 MPG. Second tank averaged 30.58. First tank was about 80/20 highway/backroads. Second tank was 50/50 highway back roads. Second tank was driven in a lot of windy conditions as well. We live in the Piedmont so rolling hills are the norm. Not much level ground. I tend to stay with flow of traffic. No crazy acceleration or braking. I haven't run it over 4500 RPM yet. We now have just a little over 750mi. on it
Taking a road trip to Savannah soon and will see what it does.

I am keeping pretty close records of mileage, driving habits, types of accessories being used (A/C, wipers, headlights, radio, accessories etc) as well as where I got gas. Also number of passengers and weight of cargo. I am going to look for correlations as I go. I think where you get your gas can have a significant effect on MPG and performance and it is not always intuitive.

I am going to try a couple ethanol free fill ups and see how that effects mileage as well.

Your mileage seems a little low to me. Do you always get your gas at the same place? If so try a different place. Things I would check are: tire pressure, fluid levels (especially trans), fuel pressure, fuel filter, air filter, spark gap, coil output.

Ask your dealer if you can test drive another car of same make, model and equip. See if it seems to perform with the same amount of power, shift points etc. If it does then its probably just your driving style, if it behaves differently then I would search deeper for the cause. There are a lot of things that might be defective and cause it to run less efficiently.

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2013Versa

· #19 · Apr 2, 2013

My 2013 S model sedan doesn't have a tach, so I can't give you a number, but I sit and let it idle and listen. The cold-start fast idle will slow down a bit after 30 seconds, that's my prompt to put it in 1st and let out the clutch. No problems with driveability or stumbling and it's putting out enough heat in 5 minutes to turn the temp knob to a cooler setting. I'm averaging 35 mpg in 50/50 highway/city with my top speed being 60 mph. I also hypermile in the city by coasting in neutral whenever possible, timing stoplights, and following the upshift speed recommendations in the owner's manual.

One other thought: Is it possible the original poster is keeping the defroster on all the time? That engages the a/c compressor and uses extra fuel - but I agree, that 15 minute cold-start warm-up uses a half-gallon of fuel right there, each and every time he does it.

gapperguy

· #20 · Apr 3, 2013

My Versa gets much different gas mileage based on where I buy gas. If I buy it at Marathon, I get about 8-10 mpg less than Shell. I figure it may be the difference in the mixture or octane.

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