Just getting started...
Created July 13, 2004, at 11:59 pm by Anonymous
I just received my Civic Hybrid last week, and have driven fewer than 100 miles, all short trips in central Chicago. My mileage is hovering around 36 mpg. This bummed me out, because I had been looking forward to doubling the 25 mpg I got with my 2000 Honda CR-V, and I started wondering if that the mileage would go up after the car broke in a bit. Now I'm thinking that several of the driving tips I've found on this site will make a bigger difference. Does anyone else have a mileage comparison for a strictly urban area?
Also, does this car have a lifetime mileage display? The only thing I can find are two separate trip meters, but both are resettable. I would expect a lifetime reading to appear in the odomoter mode, but I don't see one.
Thanks for the great site!
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7 years ago
Gas mileage should continue to improve as the car is broken in. The dealer told me I would not see the best mileage until 10,000 miles or so. To reach optimum fuel efficiency will require changing you driving habits I have found planning your stops and coasting as much as possible can really help. My last tank was 12 gallons and 565 miles getting close to 50 mpg.
Your civic hybrid should have two trip odometers and show overall mileage. Press the button to the lower right hand corner of the odometer. If it says “trip A” press twice and that is the vehicle overall mileage.
7 years ago
Hmm, yeah ... from Trip A, if I press twice, I see the overall miles (odomoter), but the area where the mileage appears in the trip views is blank. Also, the user manual doesn't mention a lifetime mileage, so perhaps this is a variation in models? I have a 2004 that was just manufactured last month.
Anyway, I reset one of the trip views last night and my mileage for that view instantly jumped up and is now sitting between 40 and 45. Ah, that's better! Perhaps the very first miles on the car (moving through the assembly line?) were inefficient and were pulling down my average. I'm also keeping in mind that this car literally only has 100 miles on it, so I'm not drawing any conclusions yet.
Now, can anyone share strategies for keeping your eyes on the road when you can't help watching your mileage indicators? (smile)
7 years ago
Okay, I've learned something else that seems to have played as much of a role in my initially disappointing mileage as anything else. For a couple weeks, all of my trips were around two miles long, but it appears that the Civic engine is relatively inefficient for the first mile. If I reset my tripmeter at the start of a trip, it will show an initial average of about 36 mpg. But if I reset it again after about a mile of driving (while stopped at a stoplight, to be fair), it will show 45-50 mpg for the rest of the trip. This has been the case for both city and freeway driving.
So, the inefficient first mile was making my two mile trips look pretty bad. But I'm more than satisfied with the mileage I've been getting after that. I can average 45 mpg without even trying, and it's not uncommon to exceed 50 for parts of a trip. I'm usually at 48-49 when I pull into the driveway at the end of a trip.
This is with about 200 miles on the car now, so, again, these results might not be applicable to a more broken-in vehicle.
7 years ago
Here's a tip for keeping a lifetime average of your car. Since it has 2 trip meters, I dedicate trip A to keep the lifetime by never resetting it thus keeping a cumulative average. I have 5000+ miles on my 2004 Civic Hybrid and its lifetime average is 43.7 mpg. I have been able to get as high as 49.5 average for a tankfull, but I can't/don't always drive to get the best mileage. I also commute 30 miles each way thru some hills which drops the average.
What I do to get better mileage is if you accelerate quickly using the battery assist to help get you up to speed then back off the throttle slightly, you'll see your mileage jump. The worst thing to do is slow acceleration, you're using only the gas motor to bring you up to speed rather than the battery assist. Coasting to a stop really helps too as suggested before.
7 years ago
Wow, accelerating faster to increase mileage? That seems counterintuitive, but I'll try it. Thanks for the tips.
7 years ago
arlo, I too am in Chicago and my wife and I just got the civic hybrid 2004. We noticed similar things at the beginning and then tried a lot of gliding and planned braking etc - it really does change the milage. That is when we are able to - the Stevenson can be tricky...
Our first tank was 42.7 so I hope the 10,000 mile break-in is true and we start going up from here. we also are using A as our lifetime guage and B as our per tank guage.
The funniest thing we have noticed is the quiet with auto stop - its like when the conversation lulls at a party -- there is an instant strangeness about the lack of noise.
Good luck - were shooting for 45 this tank...
6 years ago
Accelerating quickly then easing off with these IMA (Integrated Motor Assist) vehicles, while counter intuitive, is crucial for better fuel economy. The way the new Civic and Accord IMA's work, there is a small, disk-shaped electric motor placed between the engine and tranny that pulses precisely between engine strokes to get the car going; acceleration from a stand still is when typical cars use the most gas. So once you get up to speed, ease off to cruising speed. Coasting helps, and breaking recharges that supercapacitor by transferring your kinetic energy into electric power. That's probably why there is no anti-lock breaking system on the Civic.
What a sweet car. I can't wait to get mine!
6 years ago
am i luckier than most? or do i drive different?
i have had my civic less than two weeks, and i drive mostly on roads, with a long commute to work. my first tank gave me 51.7MPG. on the second i got 53.8. now, when i travel and drive around 55-60, it is registering just over 58MPG on a regular basis. i know that's not the overall mileage, i will check again next time i fill up....maybe next week hee hee. at any rate, i was told by the sales person not to expect anything too high until around 5000 miles, so i think this is great!
5 years ago
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