For the really hard core who are trying to increase fuel economy, what car should you replace your MINI. Perhaps some type of hybrid is the best "upgrade" you can make.

This thread is largely a repository for those spurious misanthropes who feel the need to assail those who actually do wish to combine the driving experience of the MINI with a more practical fuel economy.

 

 

i noticed you drive an MCS....how about a cooper for better economy?

 

lay off the accelarator,sjift up one gear keeping it under 2500 rpm. Horsepower requires gas to be burnt, or get a One D imported

 

I still get 32-33 mpg in the S Not too shabby. We're looking into the '07 turbo MCS as that should get better mileage than the current offering as well.

 

I can't really complain about my 22mpg when gas is less than half the price it was in the UK.

 

Just my personal opinion, but I didn't buy the MCSa for gas mileage. Before I pulled the trigger on the MCSa, I test drove a Prius. I had more fun with my 1978 Diesel Rabbit before it overheated and cracked the block. If the only objective is fuel economy, then a Prius (especially with the supplemental battery pack) will do the trick. With the supplemental battery pack and short trips around town, you may never use the gasoline engine.

 

"A repository for those spurious misanthropes? Hold on i'm gonna go get my dictionary. Then i'll let you know what i think.

 

Do you mean "combine" by retaining the same driving experience and finding better fuel economy at the same time? if so, you're going to need to define for me what you mean by driving experience. Handling? Responsiveness? Coolness factor? Accelleration? Braking? Then I may (or may not) be able to tell you which car could fit this category.

FWIW, I'm all about eaking out the best fuel economy from what I've got (search my posts here on NAM for the word MPG and you'll see that I'm pretty big on this whole MPG thing). But I also love the idea of having lots of power available too. And I like performance too.

 

I'd say it's fricking unbelievable. How in the world do you manage to get that? I don't even that in my Cooper driving conservatively.

 

Honda Accord is 300 pounds heavier and four feet longer than MCS, with the same horsepower, and it gets better fuel economy. It's cheaper too. But honestly, would anybody trade for one and pocket the change? Of course not.

 

It's not hard if you've had two years experience driving an Insight before you get the MINI. Be easy on the throttle and shift below 4k. The technique is hard to master without an instantaneous mpg display like the Insight has. Just to get even more interesting, I got 37 mpg on an all-highway trip averaging 75-80 mph. Of course, nothing can beat the 74 mpg round trip my dad made from Jax, FL to Pittsburgh, PA and back in the Insight

 

-alpinamike

 

In 50,691 miles, I've averaged 26.39 mpg in mostly suburban driving. The highest mpg I ever saw was 33.3 running about 75mph with the cruise control on the way to MOT. I just don't see my S getting much better than that.

 

I'm currently getting 28.3 mpg with 70 pecent city/30 percent highway. Compared with the 16 mpg of my truck, my conscience is clear. I also don't spend nearly as much on natural gas to heat my house as many of my friends and neighbors since I downsized my home. So now I can even drive my truck on occasion and still feel confident that I am as environmentally friendly as most of my Sierra Club friends.

 

Hybrids that have come out so far are totally pointless. A diesel is much better if you're trading.

Hybrids just aren't efficient enough to justify the increase in price you get over a regular model.

 

I won't argue there. The Insight is probably the only hybrid actually "worth it" and it's about $20k. Honda actually looses money on them but it allows Honda to retain the fuel efficiency title in the States. The price increase between the Accord or Civic models or even the cost of the Prius are just too high when you have to figure in replacing the battery after 100-150k miles. The cost of the Insight's battery is about $2000 and I figured that we've made up that difference within 60k miles.

 

Who cares about the MPG? Honestly, I was worried, cause I thought my 24.5 was low, but now I really don't care. I'm going 300-320 Miles on a tank, which costs me $32, half my truck, twice as many miles, and quadruple the fun..

 

I wonder how many of these MCS mileage champs actually calculate by hand vs. using the OBC. The OBC is VERY optimistic, usually about 3-6 MPG above actual MPG. Also, if you shift an MCS only at 2500 RPM most of the time to save gas why the heck did you get one in the first place? My MCC gets a REAL 33-34 MPG as calculated by hand at time of fill-up and I get to enjoy revving the H*LL out of it at that.

 

I wonder as well. Miles driven divided by actual fuel used is the only calculation that matters for me.