Gas Mileage Advice

[Nehkara]

Originally Posted by ricosuave

you could have also gotten some bad fuel, and ran it through causing that.

when was the last time the fuel filter was changed?

It's possible but I get my fuel from the same place every time (Beddington Co-op) and it has persisted over the last 2 tanks of fuel.

I do not know when my fuel filter was last changed.

[ken0042]

I seem to recall that if you get bad fuel and it bungs up your filter, it won't get better until the filter is changed.

[REDVAN]

I keep track of my fuel economy in an excel spreadsheet. This is the graph of fuel economy since I got my car, and I get regular maintenance and oil changes, and all that recommended stuff. As you see, economy goes down in winter, and up in summer.

[return to the red]

Originally Posted by REDVAN

I keep track of my fuel economy in an excel spreadsheet. This is the graph of fuel economy since I got my car, and I get regular maintenance and oil changes, and all that recommended stuff. As you see, economy goes down in winter, and up in summer.

LOL, seriously who does this

JK you are a man with either

1) some serious ambition
2) way to much time on his hands

[REDVAN]

Originally Posted by return to the red

LOL, seriously who does this

JK you are a man with either

1) some serious ambition
2) way to much time on his hands

I started this project when i got my car, figured I'd be good in case I did run into some problems down the road. But to answer your question, it's number 2.

[4X4]

Originally Posted by Nehkara

That would make sense as I noticed a few times recently that my exhaust had a gas-smell to it.

I will look into those things. How do you think I should proceed? Get it tested somewhere?

Here's what I usually do when I'm not entirely sure what the problem is... First call a place like Auto Value and describe the problem. The guy will probably have an idea what it is. Then call part source and do the same thing. Then call a different auto value and a different part source. Once you've got a pretty good concensus about what the problem likely is, start calling mechanics and asking how much to fix the problem. Tell them what you think it is and the reasons why.
The mechanic will likely engage in a small amount of banter about what else it could be, but he'll acknowledge that you know what you're talking about and reciprocate with useful info.
Do this with a couple more mechanics until you're almost 100% sure what the problem is.
Chances are that you'll have a list of possibilities. You will also have an order of cheapest to most expensive. Start with what you can do yourself and take it from there.

If you just start calling mechanics and telling them that your gas mileage sucks, they'll just tell you to bring it in. They'll likely find something expensive to fix on it.
Always have an idea about the problem before bringing in a car unless you know the mechanic.

edit** and don't necessarily stick to AV and PS. There are plenty of good part stores with knowledgable staff. Bumper to Bumper, Kingsway Automotive is the cheapest part store in the city, Crappy Tire sometimes has a knowledgable guy, Napa... Lots of places you can call.
Spend an hour and just call a bunch of places. If you're lucky you'll encounter a person that had the same problem on the same car.