i have a mini cooper cvt and dont think im getting the window sticker mpg. i think im getting an average of 18 mpg. i dont floor the car. when i accelerate, i only get the rpms in the 2500 range. is this normal? it has 1050 miles on it.

 

Decidedly not normal.

 

the mileage should improve as you break the car in ...

however, my 03 CVT still averages only about 23-25 mpg ... I do a lot of stop and go in NYC though

 

When was the last time you check the air filter cleanliness and oil quality, but this sounds like it is probably an ECU thing.

 

No one gets the window sticker mpg. The driving conditions they use to rate your milage do not take into account modern driving conditions. They use 1980s info and stats to calculate that.

 

My 03' CVT is getting about 20 on a 90/10 mix of city/highway

 

MC or MCS?

 

That would be a MC, sorry for not completly specifing that.

 

well you said CVT so that would mean there would be no way it could be a MCS

the window sticker doesn't mean crap, they use an algorithm to produce that number. THEY DO ZERO REAL WORLD TEST. so the real life numbers are always lower than the window sticker.

 

For that year, true, but dosnt hurt to be 100% specific

 

I dont think that is at all normal. I have an 06 MC with the 5 speed and i get around 28-32mpg 70-30 (hwy-City). I wouldn't think the CVT would be that much lower.

 

it is normal during the break in period to have less than stellar fuel economy. all the inerts of the engine are working and burning for the first time and breaking in so it is not efficient at the moment.

Maybe i am a perfectionist to a fault but i openned up the bonnet with 35 miles on the odometer and noticed my engine smoking and running extremely hot. This shows that the engine is breaking in and is the reason why you are advised not to drive the car hard during this period when the parts are working through each other.

check your mileage at 5000, then 10000 and you'll see a difference. be mindful of your speed and revs.

 

Wow, I'm surprised at these numbers. I thought CVTs weren't any less efficient. I thought the entire point was efficiency.

 

18 MPG is not right. Breakin or not you should be getting better than that.

Most CVT/Automatice/Etc are less efficient.

 

disconnect your battery and start over. if the obc reads same as previous, than your ecu might be a problem but i think you will notice the difference.

my 06 MCS obc mpg at 29.4.

 

Might sound a little silly to suggest, but check your tyre pressure. This time of year with the tranfer from a warm garage to a cold outside will cause a pressure loss. Could be part of the problem. I know whenever I see my mileage change it's the first thing I look at. But even still the people I know with CVTs have never bragged about their fuel econ.

 

Shouldn't CVTs as a general rule of thumb be more efficient than a regular automatic offering though? From wiki: "CVTs can smoothly compensate for changing vehicle speeds, allowing the engine speed to remain at its level of peak efficiency. They may also avoid torque converter losses. This improves both fuel economy and exhaust emissions."

But whatever. I don't have one. *shrug*

 

18 does not sound right rergardless of what the window sticker says. My 04 MC CVT get 31-33.

A couple questions:

1. Do you go by the computer or actually check the mileage you are getting?
2. Have you checked the stuff people have offered here, like filters and good oil?

 

Definitely something is going on with your CVT. My '03 averages around 34 mpg or so on the highway, and the only time I EVER have gone below 30 mpg is when I tracked it. Even then, it got around 23 mpg.

 

Hmph, maybe CVTs are better than pure automatics. I've just never seen an EPA rating higher vs it's manual counterpart nor did I think they would have lower emissions. The main reason you can't get JCW with the MCS Automatic is they couldn't keep it below the emission standards.

 

If you're entirely trusting the MPG reading of the on-board computer, don't. I'm finding that my new JCW is entirely inaccurate when it comes to giving fuel economy. My '04 CVT though was fairly accurate, and I usually got about 28 MPG with mixed highway/city driving. I typically got around 350 miles per tank. Is that what you're getting?

(FYI, my JCW is reading an average fuel economy of about 20 MPG, yet I'm still getting about 350 mi/tank...)


-Paul!

 

CVT's are *theoretically* more efficient than other transmissions because they can run the engine at it's most efficient rpm. Now realistically, they arent because they are run by belts or chains that slip and the rotating mass it pretty big. Also, CVT's have a "spin up time" before they kick in. It won't hurt to disconnect the negative battery terminal for a couple minutes to reset the ECU.

As for EPA estimates, yeah they do use a procedure from the 80's but it's possible to get close to them. They're changing the procedure in the next couple years anyway so get ready for a 10-20% drop in estimates.

 

CVT was ALWAYS an MC only tranny ...

but anyway ... I use SD and Manual mode a lot on my CVT, now that I am used to them and still average about 25 ... or 300-320 a tank.

 

1. Where are you driving?

2. What kind of fuel are you using?

3. Have you checked your tire pressure?

 

I actually get way better than sticker mpg, they say 28, I get 33.