I have been cruising this forum for a while now. I have a 2008 Fit (on the second tank of gas) it's AT and a sport. My previous car was a 1991 Honda CIVIC 5 speed manual - which I drove for 11 years and it still gets 31-35 mph.

I am not the best AT driver, can you guys tell me what YOU do that improves your gas mileage?

we got 29.9 for our first tankful. Hoping the second tank is better.

 

I tried running 40 PSI tire pressures, and could not measure any significant difference in mileage, so I dialed back to 35F, 33R, which softens the ride a bit. Other than a light foot on the gas (including staying under 70), the only things that I have found to make a difference are 1) drive in sport mode and set your own shift points (especially helpful on the highway); and 2) In city traffic, turn the engine off if you expect to be stopped at a light more than 15 seconds. #2 has far more impact in congested traffic; if you want to see how much, fill the tank, then sit in traffic with the engine running and watch the MPG number start falling. Engine running at 0 mph = 0 mpg. On the other hand, sitting in traffic with the engine turned off can be hazardous to your health. YMMV.

 

interesting. Have not had the car above 66 mph yet
I don't know anything about set points on the paddles, I guess I will read up on that.
thanks for the good tips. We do have stop and go traffic and I cannot avoid hills..

 

don't be afraid to rev high when you're going up a hill, you'll get better mileage than if you bog down. also, when coming off the line at a light you can accelerate rather briskly and get better mileage than if you take it real slow. try to learn what the torque converter feels like when it's unlocked and try to learn what vtec feels like when it's engaged. then try to stay out of vtec when cruising. and when the torque converter is unlocked, you're better off revving a little harder to get yourself to that next gear. the longer the torque converter is unlocked the more gas you suck.

 

questions, questions
what is the torque converter?
what is Vtec?
how do you make "set points?"
thank you

 

Automatic transmissions have torque converters instead of a manual clutch. It allows the car to come to a stop without the engine stalling and when it's "unlocked" it acts as an extra (lower) gear by multiplying the engine's torque through liquid dynamics.

VTEC is an engine feature that allows the valves to open wider and longer in order to increase power when RPMs are above ~3000. It can engage at highway speed if you're going too fast and really drain MPGs.

You should really google both of these things and learn a little bit more about your car. You'll have more fun driving it when you understand what's happening inside.

 

I will. THANK YOU

 

The A/T is great on hiway on mpg stop and go city not so great. I just took a trip from Chesapeake, Va. to Elizbethcity, NC. about 80 miles and it got great milage went down Rt 17 no stops at 60-70 mph and got great mpg. But the 24 miles from home to work with alot of lights the mpg is not that good. I read from others that the 5sp man. is better in city because of the gearing.

 

Last night I drove 260 miles I got about 37 mpg and it was half and half what I have done is the k&n drop in air filter got me about 3 mpg better also my exhaust gets me about five better( my friend has exactly the same car and exhaust gets 2-3 mpg less) with the exhaust drive like a slinky hit the gas a little harder then cruse hit the gas hard then Cruse if u get good at that ur mpg will go up considerbly and ur passenger won't even know ur doing it

 

don't go off of numbers. most 09's don't have the software update and the MPG meter is overly optimistic. the 010's are more realistic in numbers, so if an 09 owner says they get nearly 40mpg, but you're 010 is sittin there with 28 mpg, don't feel bad.

on my way to frisco, at one point i was at 41 mpg! but or course i probably really wasn't getting that, as my car's an 09.

check the PSI in ur tires, and look good in the slow lane.

 

I have a 2008.
Ok, I read about VTEC, very cool. Looks like something that kicks in when you are going really fast. I understand the concept.
I read about Torque converters too, and I absolutely understand that's how come you can get an AT to stop while it's in gear. but what I don't know is when is it UNLOCKED.

I am getting mixed messages. I'm being told to not go fast but don't worry about high RPM's what about driving the thing like a stick shift, you know, one two three instead of leaving it in Drive.

and finally mr crash001 (funny, that's my husband's nickname, crash!)
how do you drive like a slinky? hit the gas a little harder WHEN, then cruise you mean use cruise control?

thanks everyone.

 

oh! an 08 eh..hmmm.. i dont know too much about GD's but on the 09+ fits, the AT actually gets better mileage than the MT because of their lower final gearing. (usually a MT will get better mileage over the same car in an AT)

don't change up your driving style, it doesn't seem like ur ricing around or anything. how many miles on your 08? Changing up your spark plugs could be a good start to getting better MPG.

 

the car has 16k miles on it. Very well taken care of. thankyou

 

what kind of spark plugs do you suggest?

 

I do not go by the Computer MPG meter. I always fill up my tank and start the tripometer. Before my KN filter I was averaging 340-360 miles on a full tank. at 26k miles I changed to a new KN filter. My old one was dirty and black. Now I am getting into the 370 region. Plus the car feels smoother under acceleration. The filer was $45 bucks. In the long run it will save me.

 

MDBRICH,
what is a KN filter?

 

29.9 is pretty good for automatic equipped fit.

 

K&N is a washable air filter that has less restriction than the paper filter that come in the car from the factory.

 

Here, are more thoughts, since you have asked more questions, and provided more context to your driving.

The torque converter in an automatic transmission normally permits a certain amount of controlled slippage between engine speed and rear wheel speed. However, at highway speed, it "locks" to eliminate this slippage (and loss of power). In Sport mode the transmission seems to be more reluctant to downshift at highway speeds, so you can keep the revs lower, and stay out of VTEC.

For highway driving, starting in sport mode, the transmission will automatically shift from 1st to 2nd to 3rd, with slightly higher shift points than in Drive. Then shift to 4th and 5th using the paddles to get up to speed. I generally shift from 3rd to 4th at 30 mph, from 4th to 5th at 40 mph, unless I am accelerating faster to merge on a freeway. I have tried higher shift points, without any discernible effect on gas mileage. Throttle position (less is better) is probably more important than at what RPM you shift.

Watch the instantaneous mpg bar like a hawk (while still paying attention to the road) -- you will be surprised how much it changes in response to very small foot movements. On the highway, I control speed using the cruise control almost exclusively, and I adjust speed by blipping the CC up or down one blip at a time. On less than flat roads, I try to accelerate gently going downhill, then, using the accumulated velocity, let it slow down gradually while going up hill. Keeping an eye on the instantaneous mpg bar, on the highway you should be able to keep it right at 40 mpg most of the time using this technique.

At 16,000 miles, changing the spark plugs is unlikely to make a significant change in gas mileage -- and the cost of the plugs will outweigh your mileage savings, if any. Honda rates the plugs for 100,000 miles.

 

thanks Selden.
I didn't know it would shift automatically in sport mode. I was experimenting with it today... I will probably get WORSE mileage for a while. When you drive with a real stick shift,you can feel what gear you are in by the angle of the shifter. Not so with those paddles! it will take some getting used to.
3rd to 4th at 30 and 4th to 5th at 40, that's great, that's about where I thought it should be too.\
unfortunately the 2008 doesn't have the instantaneous MPG bar, but I had it in another car so I kindof know what will waste gas.
thanks for the info about the spark plugs...
that air filter sounds interesting though.

Thanks everyone! I feel a little bit more acquainted with my lovely new car.