gas mileage in a TI

[dorkunderfire]

i'm considering buying a 318ti, probably a '98, but i'm a little hesitant to let go of the gas mileage on my civic. however, i want air bags, and the sweet ride-feel of the BMW...plus there's so many standardized things i'd have to install aftermarket on my car, it would just be a mess. [power locks, power windows, air conditioning, better shocks..and i couldn't even add power steering if i wanted to]

i'm wondering what things i can do mod-wise to improve the gas mileage. i read up on the cold air intake, and cat-back exhaust...brands would be helpful, and i'm not looking to make my car sound like a cheap-ass ricer. i also read something about the M3 light-weight flywheel...i dunno man. also my sister has a 2004 toyota matrix XRS, with the 6-speed, and it handles, feels, and accelerates beautifully...and matrix's have decent MPG. i wouldn't mind having that in my TI.

thanks for your help!



- Sean

[96cali]

I don't think we've ever discussed ways to improve fuel economy! Our ti's get around 32 highway, 26 city which is not quite a civic but good. A cold air intake will use colder (and denser) air so more fuel will combine with it for more power but less economy. I would think narower, firmer tires would be a good start. Sounds like you could go Japanese too and be happier.

[michaelhofastcar]

When it comes down to performance upgrade, you are doing the opposite to fuel economy. A stock ti is already very fuel efficient, I see no reason to improve it. I had a Honda Civic and Nissan Sentra before. I can tell you a BMW is no comparison to any Japanese economy cars. It is of a several class above Civic.

[twomato]

I commute 80 miles round trip with my '95 ti auto @ 75 MPH and I am averaging 28 MPG.

[bmwracerchick]

I average about 350 miles on a full tank in the city...and I live in a very congested area. A civic probably does average better but at least you have a quality car and not a car that can break on you at any second.....unfortunetly if the ti does have a problem you are paying 3x more then you would pay to fix the civic. If you feel you can afford the upkeep of the car and drive nice and not like a maniac then the MPG should be what you need. Good luck, let us know if you do get the ti.

[Tyler]

I get about 390 miles to the tank,but that is all highway miles. I drive 500+ miles a week on my ti 20,xxx since last october/november.

[CirrusSR22]

I get 32 MPG, if I keep it under 70 MPH (113 KMH) on the freeway.

[not2fast]

What do you see if you go 80mph?

[Tyler]

What do you see if you go 80mph?

If you drive 80mph i get about 30 miles to a gallon,but evryone's car is different.

[GREX1969]

I get 34-36MPG out of mine and I hardly drive it like a granny :biggrin:

[sparkchaser]

I get 34-36MPG out of mine and I hardly drive it like a granny :biggrin:

Interesting. I am getting 23 in the city (driving like a granny) and around 31 hwy (going about 80).

[maxt]

if your thinking of going from civic to BMW, you will definitely LOVE the luxury feel of the BMW.

I just did 2 2,000 mile road trip and averaged about 31-33 mpg highway with premium. crappier gas lowers my MPG by about 3-4 mpg.

[AlaskaBlue]

I went to did a about a three and a half hour drive from my house to Columbus Ohio over the summer. My crusing speed was around 75-80 mph and I averaged 35 mpg by the car computer.

[bmwpwr]

I just checked mine. I got 33.4 MPG on my last tank of gas which was regualr day to day driving. Not bad!

[weezer]

Since I live IN DC, city milage is very poor.
I get about 20mpg in the city, and last I went to Cleveland (about 375 miles) I didn't have to refill along the way and lasted an extra 45 miles. So I calculated I got 30-31 mpg on the highway driving about 75-80 avg.

[Tyler]

I just checked mine. I got 33.4 MPG on my last tank of gas which was regualr day to day driving. Not bad!


You know you have to reset it every time you get gas to get the most accurate reading. I always reset mine on the highway so it tells you ur highway mileage. I never check it when driving in the city,i only drive maybee 10 miles in the city per week.

[sparkchaser]

Not to threadjack but I have an extremely n00bish question: where is the sweet spot for max mpg? I should know this but I do not.

[usnidc]

We made a couple trips from VA to PA this summer and a trip to WV recently and we average 33-34 on the highway and about 30 in the city. We run 89 octane.

MPG tricks:

keep tires inflated to max rating(never more).
Keep the air filter clean
Keep spark plugs clean
Change oil regularly
Keep the revs down, once you get much above 3500 rpms, your mpg will really suffer.

[aceyx]

Not to threadjack but I have an extremely n00bish question: where is the sweet spot for max mpg? I should know this but I do not.
~65mph in 5th, but it depends a great deal on conditions (wind, angle of the road, etc).

to find the sweet spot, just press on the pedal. there is a friction point you will reach about 3/4 of the way down where afterwards it is *slightly* harder to press. it's actually much easier to floor it, then let off to find that point.

those germans think of everything don't they? (except cupholders until about '92!)

[GREX1969]

Are all these figures without Aircon on? I rarely use the air-con as we don't exactly have a long enough summer here :frown:

[usnidc]

Are all these figures without Aircon on? I rarely use the air-con as we don't exactly have a long enough summer here :frown:

We average 30-32 with ac on in mixed highway/city driving.