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ok so this has been the first tank of gas I have had in the "real" winter with tons of snow. I have put 109 miles on the car and am already below half

So that makes about 10MPG maybe 12 MPG tops. What happened?!?
I was getting minmum 18 before and if i babied i could squeeze 20ish out of it.

Could leaking intake gaskets have anything to do with this?
That is the only thing wrong with the car.
All spark plugs looked good and are gapped correctly.

Letting your car warm up before driving decreases your mileage.

yeah i figured that much but its not like I let it warm up for an hour or anything
anything i can do to improve mileage?

I got 18.5 mpg last tank, and I park inside (50*F) at night.

well how long do let it warm up in the winter? also do you drive slower due to weather(I.E. do 35 in a 55)? those two reasons equate to the poor milage we northern states have in the winter months

Did you refill and divide the mileage by how many gallons you put in?

That is the most accurate way.

Monitor your coolant level if you think you're leaking.

There's a few factors that will affect your mileage in the winter. The biggest impact is probably coming from gas. I know here in MN almost all the gas is a 15% ethanol mix. So when weather starts to get 30* or less my mileage starts to tank, usually 3-5 MPG a tank.

That and it's winter blend.

I couldn't get above 20mpg cruising on the freeway when it was -17f one morning last week, normally I can do 28-30 at the same speeds. Cold air is denser needing more fuel, granted you should in theory have less throttle input, but it dosen't seem to work that way.

00Beast wrote:That and it's winter blend.

post whore.

BonneMe wrote:

00Beast wrote:That and it's winter blend.

post whore.

I can get 12mpg driving leadfooted in the city doing short trips in cold weather on winter blend.

It all adds up...

its really tough to tell your actually milage by looking at the needle at half tank, the only way to get correct milage is to do what Cody said a couple post above.

Yes I divide mileage by number of gallons.

And also no I don't drive any slower in the winter. I drive just the same as if there was no snow

Bad tires will hurt the mileage in very snowy conditions. Lets say your odometer says 100 miles, but 25 of those were due to wheel spin. That dropped the mileage by 25%.

I am getting around 13-14.5 mpg atm -I am running w/o an SC belt so my motor is working even harder.
So, yes, the winter time is a bad time of year to expect even decent fuel economy. Not that it matters for me -I have seen 30 mpg very rarely, and without varying my driving and no changes to the car I most commonly see 15-20 mpg, regardless of the weather.


Jason -I've quarantined the post-whore. Now how do we roast him in another thread?

smellbird wrote:There's a few factors that will affect your mileage in the winter. The biggest impact is probably coming from gas. I know here in MN almost all the gas is a 15% ethanol mix. So when weather starts to get 30* or less my mileage starts to tank, usually 3-5 MPG a tank.

I get 10-15 city in the Zilla in SUMMER time!


(but it gets 32 highway at 70-75).

There are freaks out there, and this one is my fault I'm thinking......

willwren wrote:I get 10-15 city in the Zilla in SUMMER time!

That's due to the excessive plantation of your right foot..

I've got almost brand new tires on my car

94SilverSSEi wrote:ok so this has been the first tank of gas I have had in the "real" winter with tons of snow. I have put 109 miles on the car and am already below half

Im not a math major, but im sure there is a math equation that would explain the added friction of snow as comapred to dry pavement....maybe willwren can help out with that

GoldenBullet wrote:

BonneMe wrote:

00Beast wrote:That and it's winter blend.

post whore.

Which car are we talking about? You have several in your profile.