Posted: Apr 12 2006 at 9:29pm | IP Logged

Here's an interesting read on how auto makers measure the MPG they post on the window stickers. They dont even run the test vehicles on gasoline for gripes sake!!! Nor do they actually measure the amount of fuel used during the test! See excerpt below or click link for entire article:

http://autos.msn.com/advice/article.aspx?contentid=4023628

"...The fuel economy estimates for new cars, provided in large black type on window stickers, can overstate fuel mileage by as much as 34 percent...These estimates, mandated by the federal government starting in the 1970s, were never based on real-world driving....Automakers may not be the ones to blame..... In the 1970s, the government already required emissions testing by automakers for each new model. So measurements for fuel economy were piggybacked on the emissions testing, where companies could utilize the same test equipment..... Because vehicles are stationary while being tested, they don't experience any real-world aerodynamic drag as they do on regular roads.....only one person—the driver—is inside the vehicle. There's no extra weight as there is when the car, minivan or SUV is carrying more people or cargo....The testing is conducted in controlled conditions, with ambient temperature between 68 degrees Fahrenheit and 86 degrees Fahrenheit. There's no simulation of wintry weather or hot desert climes.....The highway portion—which the EPA also calls "non-city" because it incorporates travel on rural roads—is a 10-mile trip that averages 48 mph and has no stops, according to the EPA. The maximum speed is 60 mph, far below the 70- to 80-mph speed limits that drivers today encounter.....The impacts of fuel-using accessories such as air conditioning and heating are not measured, because this equipment is not turned on during the test. Even daytime running lights, which have been estimated to use up to a tenth of gallon of fuel, aren't considered. The depletion of fuel isn't measured directly in this testing, either, and test vehicles don't use gasoline. They operate on a special laboratory fuel called indolene clear....As the vehicles run, emissions are collected from the tailpipes. Because the carbon content of the fuel is known, technicians calculate fuel economy by measuring the carbon compounds expelled in the exhaust...."

Posted: Apr 16 2006 at 8:31am | IP Logged

2006 Nissan Titan= 13.3 MPG w/the first 700 miles on it. Used it to tow 2 loads of construction equipment and haven't tested highway empty milage. Not too bad considering how the miles were put on. My 2004 silverado (5.3 w/3.73 gears) got about the same when towing an identical load and 17.5 average on highway empty. The Silverado had numerous brake and door seal issues that were never fixed. The Titan handles like a dream towing the trailer. Silverado had too much flex in the frame and handled like a toad when pulling the trailer, and the brake issue made the problem worse. Don't get me wrong....I'm not slamming chevy here. It's just that when the rear differential fluid puked out of the chevy.....I had to go to the nissan dealer to get fluid for it....my local chevy dealer had no idea what fluid it needed.(the nissan dealer also sells GMC) It was a dealer problem... not a chevy problem.

Posted: May 12 2006 at 3:43pm | IP Logged

I have a 2005 Titan Crewcab SE 4x4.. just rolled 11000 miles ..when i first bought the truck .. it got 14 in town and 17 on the highway ..at about 6000 miles .. mpg dropped to about 10.5 in town and 14 highway ... no idea why .. I installed a hi-flo air intake (K&N) and dual exhaust running a Flowmaster and it has come back up to 14 in town and 18 highway.. pretty good for a Titan