In an ongoing challenge to see who can go the furthest on a tank of gas, my last two fillups in the Cooper were:

400 miles (12.376 gal) = 32.3mpg ... w/ 40 range
420 miles (12.623 gal) = 33.2mpg ... w/ 25 range

My trips are 80%/20% Hwy/Cty... Anyone ever driven 450 miles highway alone?

--Chris

 

Impressive driving. I think the most I ever went without a fillup was about 380.

 

I don't think you'll be hearing from any MCS owners

 

I've driven from Washington DC to LA before by way of Chicago... camped my way acrosss (though this wasn't in my MINI). My longest solo MINI trip was Chicago to DC.

 

Yep easy one... Atlanta and back 450 miles, 39 MPG. Still had a little bit left!

I routinely get 40mpg between Charlotte and Atlanta. The catch is no AC and keep the speed to 70 or below. Any higher with the AC on and the MPG drops to low 30's.

 

When driving to Las Vegas at 80MPH, running the A/C and stopping once, I use 1/2 tank. On those trips, I can usually squeeze 430 out of Roxy, no sweat. 450 (done this twice) requires a bit more sweat

My normal, everday MPG hovers right around 30-32, and I have to fill up at about 390-400 miles.

 

435 miles on a tank, averaging 34.31 miles per gallon. I use Lee Golden's Kar Kare II for Palm OS to track fuel consumption and remind me of vehicle maintainance to be done. Stat's for the MINI from the last two years:

6/5/2002 - 10/23/2004
Total Distance: 19330 miles
Avg Distance/tank: 272 miles
Total Fuel Cost: $1302.63
Fuel Cost/Mile: $0.067
Avg MPG: 27.10

Not hateful... until you compare it to my Aprilia Scarabeo 150 scooter!

Scarabeo 150
3/25/2003 - 10/11/2004
Total Distance: 7215 miles
Avg Distance/tank: 120 miles
Total Fuel Cost: $212.78
Fuel Cost/mile: $0.029
Avg MPG: 65.02

Of course the scooter can't drive in rain or snow and (barely) carries two people and a smidge of luggage.

Chris, use Kar Kare, I'd like to see how your numbers work out rather than calculating on the fly...

 

'05 MCS with 800 miles on it and according to the on-board computer, my last tank averaged 34.5 MPG. I was driving for MPG with a VERY light foot on the accelerater.

 

My JCW averages 24-25mpg with 80% highway/20% city driving. I have achieved about 350 miles on a tank during an all-highway road trip, yielding about 30mpg with the real math.

 

Just did DC to Boston and back - highway all the way. 459.8 miles one way. Averaged 39.3 mpg

 

Commuting to work (to downtown Washington DC no less), lately I've been getting 30-31 + MPG. That's with a CVT too. I keep expecting to find out somehow someone's been sneaking fuel into my tank. I guess I just never thought I'd get as good or better than the EPA estimated fuel economy.

 

I don't know why, but the onboard computers seem to do a very bad job of measuring gas mileage. When I do the math at fill-up, I also get a smaller number than the pooter gives me.

 

My on-board "puter" has never been accurate/correct. I have gone to using my PDA and the results are at least consistent. There are at least variables that come into play: wheel size & tire profile, the speedo's built in fudge-factor . Here check out this tire-size calculator http://www.1010tires.com/TireSizeCalculator.asp

Check it out, also I believe that the speedo reads 2.5% faster than you are actually traveling.

 

If it's not in traffic, that's completely believable! My CVT reported that from I-95 around Springfield, VA to the first rest stop in NJ on the Turnpike (smooth sailing all the way, speed 75ish), I was getting 34.5MPG!!

-Paul!

 

My onboard computer has been quite accuate in its Avg.Econ (never trust the real-time reading however).

So I wondered where's the *sweet spot* of economy... after getting my MINI up to operating temperature, I drove on the I-495 Beltway, clear of traffic, for three 6-mile test. Setting cruise and Reseting the Avg.MPG and watching it stabilize.

@ 3000rpm (64mph) = 44.0 MPG
@ 3100rpm (68mph) = 42.0 MPG
@ 3200rpm (72mph) = 40.0 MPG ... I'm seeing a trend here. >

Granted, you'd have to be in the midwest to enjoy a long-haul flat journey yeilding such numbers.... but then again... who wants to drive *ah-hem* SLOW on long straight roads?!?

So why do I care?
Well, I haven't yet installed my K&N cone/pipe and venturi intake (Tornado Fuel Saver). While I haven't dyno'ed the car's stock power, I do now know the economy over the last 10k miles. Its a good starting point to determine if the mods, once installed, really make any difference at all.

 

Well, my latest personal record for distance and economy... From Northern Va to Currituck, NC and (mostly) back, 442 miles, averaging 35.48mpg! I had about 18 miles left on the range, but wasn't sure where the next gas station was and didn't have the Vcommand fired up. So, I had to stop when I saw a station I liked. Still want to Kramer the MINI, how much farther can it really go?

 

Mike,
If you had held the speed down a little and left a good part of the tires coming out of Duck, you could have gotten all the way up to 35.59mpg ! ! ! Best thing to do is just set it on cruise, sit back and listen to a good book

 

DC area driving last week; I495, I66, I95 (speeds 65-105 mph) plus 100 miles of Blue Ridge Parkway (aka Skyline Drive) twisties (35-45 mph) was able to go 425 distance on 12.25 fillup.

425/12.25 = 34.7 MPG !

 

Yes. I drove to New York a couple of weekends ago. 500 miles

 

...On my S on Rt 15 'tween here and PA. Cruise set for 70 mph... Top up. 43psi in all four corners.

 

Stella's on-board 'puter was always about one mpg higher than my own calcs...but as she closes in on 9000 miles, this discrepancy is getting smaller and smaller. Now the 'puter is pretty much consistent with pencil & paper.

My current record is 424.8 miles (set just last week) at 31.4 mpg.

I usually run her until the range shows in the single digits.

Best mileage was coming back from the Dragon, 32.34 mpg at an average speed of 78.

My overall average mpg since taking delivery on November 20 2004 is 27.16 mpg.

STELLA is a Cool Blue '05 MCC and everybody loves her.

:smile:

 

With 6500 miles on my 05 MCS, my total average is 21mpg but almost half that was driving it back from Vegas. It will continue to drop I am sure.

But it is OH SO FUN!!

I drove Solo from Vegas to Manassas. The longest stretch was 850 miles in one day.

 

43 psi ? CAREFUL! That sounds awfully over-inflated.
what does the driver's door plaque or owners manual say?

16"s I run 33psi which is 2psi over recommended. Don't go much above 10% over-inflation else you risk greatly accellerating center-tread wear. which counts most on rainy days.

 

ONLY 21? What was your mileage on Skyline Drive? mine was 22-24 going UP the mountains, but o'course 99.9 coming DOWN

 

Depending on weight and speeds, the manual calls for

30 to 35 for 195/55 16's
33 to 38 psi for 205/45 17's and 195/55 16's
36 to 41 psi for 175/60 16's and 205/40 18's

I'm running 215/45 17's, just a hair more volume than the 205/45's. Incidently, they're Goodyear F1 GSD3's and they are AWESOME! (On lighter wheels too) Even at that pressure they are not only far better handling but also much less harsh then the 16" run flats were at lower pressure.

The tire is rated for up to 50 psi

I've always found I prefer to run a few pounds higher in 'sporty' cars than the generic manual specs. Always keeping in mind of course the max press info on the tire and watching handling and wear patterns. Your driving style and how sprited you're being plays a part too. I'll probably come down a few psi now to see how that is, had em up high for the Dragon and just haven't gotten round to dropping them yet to see how I like that.

A bit over sure, but not awfully :smile:

Heck, I had a 1978 Subaru DL that with a switch from 155/80's to 175/70's and some judicious pressure changes got pretty neutral handling instead of massive understeer!