iowaman

Just wanted to see if the gas mileage I am getting is normal or low?- Today, first time I filled up with premium gas, my range showed 306 miles- tank has a capacity of 18.5- so even though I have only been driving in town and very short distances, that comes to an estimated 16.5 miles/gallon.

I cleaned my MAF sensor yesterday, have not noticed any major difference- inflated my tires to about 36 psi- next step, I will replace the air filter and also try to replace the sparking plugs.

Just wanted to point out that after I cleaned the MAF sensor, codes P 2238/P 2241 went away- If you get these two codes together, try cleaning your MAF sensor first before you think about replacing your air to fuel ratio sensors.

VicSWFL

Greetings:

The "Range" reading is only a rough estimate based on your fuel consumption in the very recent past. I have experienced the "Range" to be over 400 miles in my 2003 ES300 while in the middle of a long road trip where my car is getting an actual 30 miles per gallon. The only way to measure your true mileage is to fill your tank and measure the miles driven until the next fill up. Then take the number of gallons added and divide them into the miles driven between fill ups to get the accurate fuel mileage expressed in miles per gallon.

Happy motoring,

Vic
Fort Myers, Florida
2003 ES300 Millennium Silver w/115K miles

iowaman

Thanks for your response! I took a trip from Ames, Iowa to Kansas City, Missouri and I was able to average close to 26 mpg. I am very close to the 18 city/27 highway mpg suggested by the manufacturer. I am just going to assume that my ES 330 is acting as it should. Very nice looking ES you got there!

RXGS

iTrader: (2)

I'm averaging 20.7 in mixed driving. You're wasting your money on premium on this car by the way. That being said, I have put non-ethanol in the car a few times and noticed my MPG was higher

nsghtbrwry

You know, I got the same in my '99 ES300, about 50/50 city/highway. Everything was working perfectly, and brand-new MAF and O2 sensors. I only run regular (87, 10% ethanol), but some guys on TN with Solaras (non-VVTi motors) report 26-27. I wonder if the VVTi/tune causes that...because I manage 18 combined in my parents' '02 Sienna (VVTi), which I can explain away with the extra weight vs an ES.

iowaman

I appreciate your feedback. I only filled up with premium this one time as a test but I will probably go back to filling up with the cheapest unleaded we got here.

Oro

Ditto. "Real" gas makes a difference. And the performance results are noticeable, too. You can't compare results from ethanol of any octane to using unadulterated gas.

I have also consistently boosted mileage using MMO (marvel oil). A few ounces per tank will help fight the drag in the upper cylinder caused by the alcohol content. It's about $.04/gallon to use and well worth it IME.

RXGS

iTrader: (2)

^ People don't believe me when I say MMO increases my gas mileage, so it's nice to see someone else experience the same results. I nake a 500 mile round trip nearly once a week so all highway with my GS, and the times I use MMO, it's at least 1-2 mpg higher than when I don't.

285exp

I've tried premium in both my '04 ES330 and '97 ES300, and found a very small increase in fuel economy, not nearly enough to offset the increase in fuel price. Same with ethanol free gas, unless you can get it for less than 3-4% more than E10, you're just burning money.

My ES330 gets 26-27mpg at normal interstate highway speeds burning 87 octane E10, and that's right at the EPA rating, so if you're getting that then it's absolutely normal. Running your tires at 36 psi isn't going to do much more than give you a harsher ride.

With the pressure the automakers are under to increase fuel economy, if things like Marvel Mystery Oil added to the fuel actually increased fuel economy significantly there would be a MMO tank in all new cars, kind of like the DEF tank on diesels. If the gas companies could make your car get better mileage by simply adding some MMO to the gas, somebody would be doing it and would advertise that you'd get better mileage running their gas. Since those things aren't happening, you can make your own conclusions.

RXGS

iTrader: (2)

Must be luck on my end

285exp

If you can point me to a controlled study showing that using MMO in gas significantly increases mileage, or provide some scientific reason why it should, please do. Some people also swear that non-ethanol gas increases their mileage 10-20% over E10, or that they see big improvements using premium in cars that don't require it, and I've tried doing both and never came close to breaking even. On the other hand, maybe I'll try this too.

To the OP, you don't have to take anyone's word for it, it's a pretty cheap experiment, and as long as you don't overdo the dosage you probably won't hurt anything.

RXGS

iTrader: (2)

I make a drive from Albany to Buffalo and back once a week, and alternate between regular 93 in my GS300 which requires it, and either non ethanol or premium with marvel mystery oil, and every time, I've done it, my MPG is higher. You don't need to believe me and neither does the OP, but until MMO oil starts paying me, I have no reason to lie.

285exp

If it happens every time, why don't you do it every time? Sounds like you're throwing money away.