Vue Mpg

[DMK's Vue]

I am concerned and need advice
I have a 4 FWD Sport Model Vue

Currently I am getting approx 20.8 mpg for my city driving (DC metro area)

23 for the highway on the long trip going about 72mph.

I am wondering what suggestions you may having for increasing mpg. Do I get a higher grade gas? I currently us regular unleaded at Shell most times.

Do I ?

Any suggestions would be helpful.

Must input... happy to see more Vues out this way. People in them are usually nice a wave. The Saturn community is strong.

Thanks,
DMK's Vue

[ricksLS1]

How many miles on the car? Mat take a few thousand to break in. You have the defroster on? That runs the A/C compressor. Tires have right pressure? Check when cold.

[mr weather]

I agree with the mileage aspect. You may not see any improvement for a while until everything breaks in.

About the windshield defroster/defogger.... does the a/c compressor come on? I'm used to see the a/c light up automatically when switching the mode to defrost, but on my Vue the "snowflake" doesn't. Manually pushing the button makes it light up but not when I switch to defrost.

[ricksLS1]

Not sure on this. I guess one way is to put in defrost and see if the A/C compressor kicks in

[NASS_VUE]

When the defroster is on (either two positions) the compressor comes on automatically. No way to stop that.

I drive a rural/city type route and I am typically getting 28mpg. It is less now that the roof rack is on with all my bike trays. It used to be 29-30mpg before I put the rack on, but I use the rack all the time, so there is nothing I can do. It is also less when I go up north and have two or three bikes up there (on the order of 23mpg).

I second the other's comments about improvements. Are you idling a lot? that ****s gas without going miles! Good luck with that!

Nass.

P.S. The Shell regular gas is usually a grade below regular 87 octane. I am not sure if that has anything to do with it though...

[radioouman]

This isn't related to mileage, but it is related to defrost....

On my 95 SW2, the compressor NEVER came on when I moved the slider to defrost. I always had to press the A/C to get it to come on. Seemed that the slider did nothing other than direct the air to different vents.
On my 00 SW2, turning the knob to defrost SOMETIMES makes the compressor come on. Many mornings I'll turn it to defrost and it won't clear the windows until I press the A/C button. However, other times it runs the compressor with defrost on... I know that compressor won't run below about 40 degrees F so they don't freeze, but it hasn't been that cold here yet.

[OhioVueBoy]

That sounds right under what I am getting from my VUE.. I would estimate I get 21 in the city with it.
~D.J.~

[Hodado]

i thought the Vue was suppost to get better than that.What does the AWD 4 cylinder get??

[DMK's Vue]

The Vue has close to 8,000 miles on it. I have not checked the air in the tires, but will do that this weekend. It really does not idle a whole lot. i would say my commute to and from work is about 22 miles and it usually takes me about thirty minutes to get there (give or take a small amount of time). Yes i leave early in the AM to try to miss most of the traffic

I do not leave the defrost on when driving, yes I can tell the AC comes on when I place the defrost on as the window get consendsation on it.

I have tried testing this MPG with no ac and just straight driving in both city and highway. I am pretty disappointed in the MPG. Any other suggestions as to wha I could be doing or could do to improve this.



Thanks again for the suggestions...
DMK's Vue

[mr weather]

Just finished putting 200 miles on my recently acquired (5 days ago) Vue. Filled it last night and calculated the mileage at 18-19 mpg. I would be more upset except that:

1) It only has 200 miles on the drivetrain
2) It's a V6 AWD
3) It was mostly city driving

I'll keep an eye on it over the next few months. I fully expect it to improve as the engine and tranny loosen up a bit.

[yogi115]

We have AWD4 VTi with 6K on it and we get 21-22 around town (have gotten as bad as 19 during extended stop & go yard sale circuit). On trips we've gotten almost 25 at 75+ on Interstates.

I've talked to tire company engineers & they suggest keeping your tire pressure at the maximum recommended pressure. It will ride a bit harsher, but mileage can increase up to 1-2 mpg.

Taking it easy on acceleration is something almost nobody does & it helps mileage a lot.

[92saturnsl2]

What in the world does A/C running w/ defrost accomplish?

I'm used to using hot air to defog windows (works real well lol), someone know why A/C compressor is engaged?

[ssicarman]

The AC running acts as a dehumidifier. Less moisture in the car and the windows defog faster.

[Gerry Proctor]

Fuel economy has a lot of components and writing that you get 23 mpg driving 72 mph isn't necessarily indicative of any problem at all. It would depend on how hilly or curvey the road is, how many times you have to make speed changes due to other traffic, your driving habits, and other things.

I've ridden with people who have no ability to modulate the throttle, even on the highway. They press down to speed up, then let off the gas to slow down. All of this is to attempt to drive at a constant speed with no other influences. It's maddening but there are a lot of folks who compain about their crappy economy and blame the car.

I have only 700 miles on my AWD V6 and have two fuel economy inputs. So far, with just commuting which for me is essentially city driving with very little idle time, I averaged 19 mpg on my first tank and 18.8 on my second. I don't consider that bad at all.

You might try airing up the tires a bit as recommended and switch to synthetic oil. I picked up two mpg in my LW2 just by using Mobil 1. I'll be making the Mobil 1 switch at my VUE's first oil change.

[DMK's Vue]

Well,
For the most part I think the milage is just a factor of the Vue.
I have close to 8.500 miles on it and the milage really has gotten worse not better. Remember this is a 4 cyl not a 6.

The air pressure was fine, so I am at a real loss for explanation.

Thanks for the insights!!

[OhioVueBoy]

Originally posted by DMK's Vue
Well,
For the most part I think the milage is just a factor of the Vue.
I have close to 8.500 miles on it and the milage really has gotten worse not better. Remember this is a 4 cyl not a 6.

The air pressure was fine, so I am at a real loss for explanation.

Thanks for the insights!!

Mine seems to be too, I drove 1000 miles last week in 5... well 6 days, and went through 3 tanks of gas. On the 3rd, it seemed to be doing much better though.
~D.J.~

[skijay]

What are the RPMs at 70 MPH with the VUE 5 speed? Do you have the roof rack?

[DMK's Vue]

at 70 the RPM is a little above 3200. (think that is the correct way to lable RPM).

No roof rack.

Still confused.

[OhioVueBoy]

Originally posted by DMK's Vue
at 70 the RPM is a little above 3200. (think that is the correct way to lable RPM).

No roof rack.

Still confused.

At 70 MPH I am turning 3175 RPM, no racks or exterior accessories either.
~D.J.~

[skijay]

The RPM's at the range in 5th gear explains why the fuel economy is not as expected. The tranny is geared like the L series, in other words there is power at speeds above 70mph. My L100 is at 3000 - 3100 RPMS @70 mph.

My L can move from 65mph to 80mph very quickly, and I think it surprises many people who are following to closely in the left lane, as I punch it and it will go.

I did not have the opportunity to drive @ 70mph with the VUE.
I bet the VUE has pep at speeds above 65mph.

For comparison the 97 SL2 automatic is about 2800 rpms @ 70.