jib Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 I easily get 31-32 mpg highway in my Saab 9-5 wagon, a bigger car with a more powerful turbo motor AWD vs. FWD - big difference in (parasitic transmission) drag. Think about all of the extra parts spinning on an AWD powertrain. You have to pay to play. Jack Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bjwirth Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 AWD vs. FWD I think it's more than that- people have compared the CRV and volvo xc-something- cars that have roughly similar weights, hp, and all have awd, and the sub comes up short. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookie Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 my 99 Forester 5 speed seems to usually give me around 24-25 MPG combined city and highway in the SF area. I got 27.75 on a trip through Big Sur which was my best tank ever. It drops on high speed highway use because of the brick shape and my heavy foot. In the winter I drop down to around 22 on the oxegenated fuel. I'm running Mobil 1 15-50 oil and I don't see much if any difference in the mileage. With the 4wd and the poor areodynamics I don't think this car will ever do much better. It replaced my Jeep which got 15-17 mpg so I look at this as an improvement. The important part is that complete sailing gear fits, Home Depot holds no fear for me, and it turns easily and scoots and parks in the city. A Honda Insight would get better mileage but would fall down on the Home Depot and hauling stuff part.I don't think I would feel as confident in a Christmas snow trip or on a muddy back road either. You get to pay a bit for the 4WD and boxy shape. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jib Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 I believe the biggest part is AWD vs. FWD, but technology plays a big factor too. I own both a 2001 Subie 5-speed Legacy GT wagon and a AWD 2005 Volvo XC90 2.5 liter, 5 cylinder turbo. Both engines are 2.5 liter engines, although the turbo give the Volvo about 20% more power. The Volvo weighs 4,500 pounds (versus about 3,500 for the Subie) and the XC90 forum tells me that my mileage will continue to rise until about 10k miles. My realtor/soccer mom wife drives the Volvo and is pushing 17 mpg with 3,500 miles on it, so it’s not even fully broken in. I’ve been told we’ll end up in the very low 20’s for a normal city/highway average. So, . . . . we agree. The subie should do better. Conversely, we paid almost twice the cost of the Subie for the Volvo. Excluding the luxury differences within this cost differential, as these two vehicles are in vastly different luxury classes, the technological differences (engineering) between the two simply blow me away. Some of these contribute to mileage. There are a huge number of variables outside of normal maintenance and conditions. While I think our Subie is an awesome car, every car is built to a price, with a projected profit. Subaru has to make decisions on where to spend their money on their products. I don’t believe Subaru has the resources that Volvo or Honda has to optimize each of their vehicles like other larger manufacturers. This is also reflected in that lower price. A Subaru is typically less costly than an equivalent Honda, Toyota or Volvo. A few mpg, or other niceties may be the casualties. Bottom line for me is that it’s a great car and a few mpg either way is fine. The Legacy GT does everything I need from it. It’s pretty economical, hauls lots of stuff and is pretty sweet handling car. Jack Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 12, 2005 Share Posted July 12, 2005 seen some gas mileage posts in the past. here's what just happened to me. i was getting low gas mileage on my 2.2 liter impreza OBS....about 23/24 all highway miles. i did a tune up, new timing belts, rebuilt oil pump, cam seals, crank seals, spark plugs, wires, , fuel filter, PCV valve, etc. gas mileage went up maybe 1 mpg to 24/25. this was about 2 weeks ago. then i replaced the brake pads just a couple days ago for a trip this past weekend and got excellent gas mileage. getting close to 30 mpg on one trip. i'd say averaged a solid 28 with the a/c on at least half the time. either it took a couple trips for the tune up to *kick in* and improve gas mileage (i doubt it) or the brakes were causing a loss. brakes have always worked great with no problems at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
friendly_jacek Posted July 24, 2005 Share Posted July 24, 2005 I have a 2000 legacy and not forester but will chime in anyway (same engine). My wife is getting only 16 MPG in city driving (hot climate but short trips) and 24 MPG is the absolute record (hwy, long trips) for the car. The engine seems to run rich (unburn gas smell on starts). No codes and O2 sensors are fine. At one point, I thought I diagnosed the problem: excessive fuel pressure according to my pressure gauge, got a new fuel pressure regulator ($70) from a dealership, but not change in pressure or MPG. To me, it sounds like some pressure regulators are defective from the factory, but this is just a theory, anybody cares to elaborate? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
howards11 Posted July 24, 2005 Share Posted July 24, 2005 I have a 2000 legacy and not forester but will chime in anyway (same engine). My wife is getting only 16 MPG in city driving (hot climate but short trips) and 24 MPG is the absolute record (hwy, long trips) for the car. The engine seems to run rich (unburn gas smell on starts). No codes and O2 sensors are fine. At one point, I thought I diagnosed the problem: excessive fuel pressure according to my pressure gauge, got a new fuel pressure regulator ($70) from a dealership, but not change in pressure or MPG. To me, it sounds like some pressure regulators are defective from the factory, but this is just a theory, anybody cares to elaborate? Knock sensor ? Mine was bad I believe before it generated a CEL. MPG seems to have picked up on replacement. I will have figures next week. ~Howard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wkoepp Posted July 24, 2005 Share Posted July 24, 2005 I took off the roof bars, aired the tires up to 34 and turned the AC dial up from 65 to 75 so it doesn't run all of the time; haven't checked the milage since so I don't know what it is now. It's a great car, hope it lasts as long as my 220K mile toyota tercel did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
friendly_jacek Posted July 24, 2005 Share Posted July 24, 2005 I took off the roof bars, aired the tires up to 34 and turned the AC dial up from 65 to 75 so it doesn't run all of the time; haven't checked the milage since so I don't know what it is now. It's a great car, hope it lasts as long as my 220K mile toyota tercel did. Good luck! I keep the tire pressure at 40-44 psi, no MPG difference that I can tell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
friendly_jacek Posted August 25, 2005 Share Posted August 25, 2005 One more thought: the 2005 2.5L NA is now rated 30MPG hwy with a couple of more HP, heavier car (slightly), and 2700lbs towing. Anyone knows what are the changes in the new engine? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweet82 Posted August 26, 2005 Share Posted August 26, 2005 I just squeeked 35 mpg out of my 01 Forester two weeks ago. This was my best by a long shot. I have got 21 mpg on trips in the past. What I did different this time was, (and I'm not sure if this is what did it) Aired the tires up over 30 psi. Didn't use the Air Conditioning. Kepted it under 84 mph. Used the cruse control most of the way. The car was loaded with 4 peps + gear. When I got 21, I had the tires around 25 psi. Used the A/C. Averaged just under 90 mph. Used the cruse control most of the way. The car was loaded the same. My hunch is slower with more air in the tires and no A/C will help. Good Luck, Glenn 82 SubaruHummer 84 GL Mad Max 01 Forester Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
555Ron Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 Anyone think Subaru will come out with a hybrid eventually?Yes, they have a prototype similar to the Prius, but its a very small car. Can't recall the name. And then there is this... http://www.subaru.com.au/news/?newsid=12316 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookie Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 will hold out until there is a hybrid with a similar size and shape to replace it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capri Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 Hi, My new Forester 2006 says 22 city/28 hwy. That is my reason for buying it so I hope it doesn't let me down. Otherwise, I was ready to buy the X-Terra, but their gas mileage was about 17 hwy and I forget what the city was. I have not done a road trip to track what a tank of gas gives me yet, and just took possession of it two days ago, so I don't know what city is either, but now I'm sure going to keep my eye on that tank and gas consumption. I see in other posts people mention the AWD, but the sticker should account for that where it tells you the city/hwy gas consumption. Bye, Capri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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