RE: Real Gas Mileage with automatic

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RE: Real Gas Mileage with automatic - 11/21/2006 8:11:15 AM    Hog54 Posts: 50 Joined: 10/25/2006 Status: offline Like i said before,I drove from boston,ma to daytona florida and it cost me about $100 each way.Thats good enough gas mileage for me. _____________________________ 2007 RT AWD Inferno Red 2.4 Liter 173 hp CVT Auto 18 inch stock aluminum wheels All the other goodies http://img132.imageshack.us/img132/3816/caliberqd9.jpg (in reply to Flying Fossil) Post #: 61

RE: Real Gas Mileage with automatic - 1/11/2007 3:34:27 AM    KimBo K.   Posts: 333 Joined: 6/1/2004 From: St.Egidien, Saxony, Germany Status: offline combined city/highway/freeway 20mpg actually with the 2.0 SXT autostick _____________________________ GRAB LIFE BY THE HORNs .:: Schusto Page ::. (in reply to Hog54) Post #: 62

RE: Real Gas Mileage with automatic - 2/2/2007 4:22:40 PM    Jib01 Posts: 41 Joined: 2/2/2007 Status: offline Ok, I am the new owner of a Dodge Caliber SXT and am concerned about gas mileage.  I have gone only 196 miles before I filled the tank just to see how things were going.  My average agrees pretty much with everyone elses at this stage of ownership.  I got 24mpg with a combo of Town and freeway driving.  I'm sure I need to get a few more miles before I will notice any change. As for why I bought the Caliber, I went to all the dealers especially Toyota looking for a 30mpg car.  I owned a 1991 Mazda Miata before and only got 30mpg with continuous freeway driving with a stick.  Normal around town driving was more like 24-25mpg. I think for the money, room, features, the Caliber beats the lot.  The Yaris interior was crap.  I own a 96 Dodge 1500 truck and it is great.  I think that Mercedes technology is rubbing off on Chrysler and we will see some nice stuff in the future. Back again after more miles and service.... Regards William Jibby (in reply to floorslayer1) Post #: 63

RE: Real Gas Mileage with automatic - 2/3/2007 6:39:55 PM    litesong   Posts: 78 Joined: 10/23/2006 Status: offline Hi Jib01...You should get top mileage from the get-go. My 2 liter SE Caliber w/CVT gave 33+MPG on a  slow country drive on its first tank. However, the Caliber is stingy about giving good MPG especially with the CVT trannie. If you drive fast, the Caliber will take away quite a few MPG because the Caliber is heavy & has a bad drag coefficient. If you accelerate fast(or even moderately), the Caliber will take away lots of  MPG. If you yo-yo your speed on the highway, the Caliber will take away MPG. In short, if you drive like most other people(keeping up with everyone else), you will see 30MPG seldom, specially in a cold winter or hot summer with the A/C on. Yes, the CVT computer is always seeking the gear that will give best MPG, but it will not tolerate non-economical driving.   (in reply to Jib01) Post #: 64

RE: Real Gas Mileage with automatic - 2/4/2007 11:09:20 AM    Jib01 Posts: 41 Joined: 2/2/2007 Status: offline It all depends on how you drive the car.  In looking at the RPM gauge it looks like 2000rpm is the optimum to get good mileage from.  I wish we could ge a hold of the Dodge Caliber graphs of RPM vs Gas Mileage and acceleration charts.   I know they exist.  I don't know why they are not available directly from Dodge.  It would sure help us all. Still the best value out there bar none. Regards Jib01/02 _____________________________ 2007 Caliber SXT, CVT, 2.0L, 9 Speaker Stereo 1996 Dodge 1500 3.5l V8 Longbed 1993 Mercury Villager LS 1996 Mercury Villager LS Custom (in reply to litesong) Post #: 65

RE: Real Gas Mileage with automatic - 2/4/2007 11:55:13 PM    litesong   Posts: 78 Joined: 10/23/2006 Status: offline Hi Jib01...Agree with you about the 2000 RPM range being the most economical. Don't know anything about RPM vs. MPG charts tho. In the Dodge Caliber brochure(should be at the dealers), possibly the next best graphs are available for the 3 Caliber engine sizes. It is the HP & torque curves vs. RPMs. For the 2 liter w/CVT the torque rises till 2800RPMs. At that point the torque drops a bit. Not till the RPMs reach well into the 4000 RPM range does the torque once more reach & pass the 2800 RPM level. If I interpret the chart right, accelerating at over 2800 RPM  should not be economical. Keeping acceleration below 2800 RPMs should be your best bet for economy. (in reply to Jib01) Post #: 66

RE: Real Gas Mileage with automatic - 2/15/2007 12:23:29 AM    Jib01 Posts: 41 Joined: 2/2/2007 Status: offline Ok I drove using the 2000rpm rule and got 25.075mpg combined.  this next tank I will have my foot in it a lot more to see how it accelerates.  I found it gets off the line better if you use low and then switch to drive later.  Getting off the line with just drive is not as fast.  Still testing every tank. Regards Jib01 _____________________________ 2007 Caliber SXT, CVT, 2.0L, 9 Speaker Stereo 1996 Dodge 1500 3.5l V8 Longbed 1993 Mercury Villager LS 1996 Mercury Villager LS Custom (in reply to litesong) Post #: 67

RE: Real Gas Mileage with automatic - 2/20/2007 6:51:05 PM    david3921   Posts: 2 Joined: 12/10/2006 Status: offline Hi, thought I would weigh in on my experiance with mpg. First the specs; I bought my Caliber last spring with the auto trans and 2.0 motor. I drove it to work a few times (to show it off) and some highway driving. I checked the mpg the few times I filled it up and was getting around 24 mpg. When I took it to Missouri (about a 650 mile trip) to see my first grandchild, it had 530 miles on it. I checked the mileage everytime I filled up on the way there. As the motor was getting broke in the mpg was going up. At the last fill up before I left, I averaged 30 mpg. This was both highway and city driving in Missouri with the A/C on. Driving all highway on the way back (at about 75 mph) with also the A/C on, I averaged 32 mpg. (in reply to Jib01) Post #: 68

RE: Real Gas Mileage with automatic - 3/30/2007 9:40:02 PM    ezhemi Posts: 85 Joined: 2/4/2004 From: United States Status: offline I have a R/T AWD with about 6000 miles on it. I only get about 17 - 18 mpg. For a little 4 banger that (in my opinion) sucks. I actually bought that thing for my son, but I was going to drive it until he turns 16. I'm starting a job in Pheonix, AZ and I would be driving back and forth for the next year. I hope this "break in" period changes the mileage, but I doubt it. _____________________________ 2003 1500 4x4 Hemi 3" body lift Sky Jacker 6" 38s on a set of 20s Ram Air Hood Open mouth grill Three 9.5" Light Force Lights behind grill Paxton Novi Super Charger ~ I FINISHED IT AND SOLD IT ~ (in reply to Hog54) Post #: 69

RE: Real Gas Mileage with automatic - 4/1/2007 1:09:52 AM    Jib01 Posts: 41 Joined: 2/2/2007 Status: offline 1400 miles and still getting 25+ overall with Freeway and City driving.  Seems to be pretty stable.  I checked on one small tank after freeway driving and I got 27mpg.  Still not 30mpg yet.... Regards Jib01 _____________________________ 2007 Caliber SXT, CVT, 2.0L, 9 Speaker Stereo 1996 Dodge 1500 3.5l V8 Longbed 1993 Mercury Villager LS 1996 Mercury Villager LS Custom (in reply to ezhemi) Post #: 70

RE: Real Gas Mileage with automatic - 4/12/2007 2:08:06 PM    Jib01 Posts: 41 Joined: 2/2/2007 Status: offline I'm beginning to wonder it the car knows if it is in town or on the freeway.  I did a lot of freeway driving on this last tank and it only got 24.5mpg.  I'm beginning to think I'll never get 30mpg with this car.  I look forward to a long drive.  If I don't get 30mpg with this car I will probably dump it.  Some newer cars have come out that really get that mileage.  I like the car but want the freeway mileage.... Regards Jib01 2.0 SXT with Automatic. (in reply to Jib01) Post #: 71

RE: Real Gas Mileage with automatic - 4/19/2007 6:15:16 PM    litesong   Posts: 78 Joined: 10/23/2006 Status: offline Ya have to featherfoot the Caliber w/CVT. My initial surprisingly hi 30MPG average was nice. One of my flat highway runs was 34.9 MPG...more nice. Even better nice was the 32 MPG going over 4000 foot mountains from sealevel. But as the winter got cold & long, my average MPG dropped to 28.4 MPG. But with the coming of spring, the weather warmed & winter mix gas was replaced by higher energy summer mix gas. My average MPG began climbing again. One trip over those 4000 foot mountains netted my highest mountain mileage of 33.7 MPG. My overall average has risen to 29.4 MPG. I think I will net between 30 & 31 MPG in my first year of ownership that ends late September 2007. We will see. I should have gotten higher MPG if I'd bot one of the smaller econo cars w/manual trannie. But the Dodge Caliber w/CVT is so elegantly smooth as to be like a magic carpet, that it would not have been worth it.   (in reply to Jib01) Post #: 72

RE: Real Gas Mileage with automatic - 4/19/2007 8:48:25 PM    Jib01 Posts: 41 Joined: 2/2/2007 Status: offline Ok, litesong, we need some information because this seems a little abnormal. What were your speeds during these trips ?  Did you have air on ?  How many miles do you have on the car ? Regards Jib01 (in reply to litesong) Post #: 73

RE: Real Gas Mileage with automatic - 4/21/2007 2:34:01 AM    litesong   Posts: 78 Joined: 10/23/2006 Status: offline Yes, it is abnormal. More abnormal is I love the Earth, love to Drive, & love not to Pollute...three very jealous lovers. I featherfoot like crazy, so my lovers don't drive me crazy. Previous econocars I've owned I got 42 & 45MPG average. I used to have a motorcycle. Traveling around America, I got 75MPG. On one 8000 mile trip, I used 120 gallons of fuel...& that while going over 10,000 foot mountain passes. I really work to stress my machines as little as possible. I live in Washington State, where the air is clean & I'll try my best to keep it clean. Try to use a/c little. I see that my Caliber is running especially good compared to other Calibers. MPG has been good from the beginning & I have 8500 miles on Caliber now. Altho I try to keep speed down, I ain't giving heart attacks to those behind me. But I don't care if pretend auto racers have to slow down to the speed limit. The Dodge CVT seems especially prone to guzzling gas when driven even moderately hard. Tho the Caliber CVT was advertised to give 5 to 7 percent better MPG than 4 speed automatic transmissions, that percentage is only available to real real careful ffeeaatthheerrffooootteerrss! At the same time, if driven with very careful featherfooting, it'll start giving "abnormally good" MPG. Here's some tips. & remember, Caliber CVT responds best to these gas saving tips. Keep tires at recommended pressures. Low tires kill MPG. Europe loses 2 billion gallons of gas a year just from low pressured tires. Try keeping pressures 1 to 2 pounds per square inch over recommended levels, but no higher. Higher pressures make braking distances long...& dangerous. As mentioned, slow down. Many freeway cars run well over the speedlimit, so slowing to the speed limit may be dangerous. But slowing 1 to 3 mph will also save gas. For those highways where possible, slowing to the speed limit (or heaven forbid, even lower) can really save the gas. The Caliber w/CVT has a high drag shape. Slowing down really really adds to MPG. Accelerate slowly. Remember, for Caliber CVTs, accelerate v.v. slowly. Accelerating like all the cars around you will dump lots of MPG. Don't yo-yo your velocities. This activity takes lots of MPG away from you. The number one gas guzzler technique is to accelerate uphill with the a/c on. This triple whammy of gas guzzling will immediately put your MPG in the dumpster. As you approach the hill, turn off your a/c. As best you can, accelerate BEFORE coming to a hill(& let your speed reach a bit higher than your normal speed) without having to press the gas pedal really hard. As you ascend the hill, gradually let your speed fall till your speed is 1 to 3 MPH below your normal as you reach hilltop level. Once on the level(& only AFTER you reach the level), slowly bring your car up to the speed you normally run at. You are in effect, stretching the hill out &  making it a shallower hill & more climbable with less engine effort. Most of all, concentrate on saving gas. Your car continually uses gas. Continually think to save gas. Your planet will thank you....so will your pocketbook. Let those who would scoff at you waste their own money. Don't let other gas guzzlers waste your money too.        < Message edited by litesong -- 4/21/2007 4:40:05 PM > (in reply to Jib01) Post #: 74

RE: Real Gas Mileage with automatic - 4/21/2007 10:09:51 AM    Jib01 Posts: 41 Joined: 2/2/2007 Status: offline Ok, now we need a definition of what YOU mean by Featherfooting.  It means different things to different people.  As I said above, 2000rpm seems to be the rpm you want to not go over until you are on the freeway.  Just maintaining that is featherfooting it to me. Also, it sounds like you travel below normal freeway speeds.  What about around town and coming up to stoplights, how do you handle that ? Every little bit of information helps to get more MPG out of our Caliber. Regards Jib01 (in reply to litesong) Post #: 75

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