You will not know real gas mileage until you have 15,000 miles on the engine because that is how long it takes to be fully broken in.

Make sure to keep using 5W-20 oil (be sure your dealer isn't just putting 5W-30 in his bulk oil drum and using that in every car that comes in for maintenance). Of course beyond driving habits, proper tire inflation is the biggest impact on gas mileage.

Everybody should have a WalMart bicycle pump and digital air pressure guage and check their tire pressure once a week.

PS - if you consistently lose 2 or 3 pounds of pressure from the same tire every week, you've got a nail in that tire. Repair is to take the tire off the rim, plug the leak and put a patch on the inside. Hand torque the lug nuts when replacing the wheel. Everybody should have their own 1/2" torque wrench as well to hand torque after the tire shop gets done :)

Tires actually run cooler when they have more inflation. This is because they flex less as they roll and the flex is what causes the heat. As long as you stay under the max number on the sidewall you are fine from a safety standpoint. The tire will also last longer (again heat makes a tire wear faster) but may have more wear in the center. The biggest downside is a harsher ride.

My Toyo dealer is pushing Nitrogen tire fills. ($45 for 4). Without it my 98 Camry
got 32 mpg (80% hwy,20% City) They claimed NO pressure fluctuations due to temperature, as well as 2-3 mpg increase. I got a 2mpg increase. Put dis gas in yo fit wheels!

Don't have my Fit yet, maybe in three weeks or so, but I'm wondering what tire pressure most are running at.

I used to have an Insight for about a year, and I'd run those tires at 50-52psi, and got pretty good gas mileage. I'd like to run the Fit's tires a bit high, and see how they do.

Tire pressure and gas mileage
 

I discovered after the last fillup that my tire pressure was low, all 4. Raised them all to 32 psi and I'll see how I do on gas mileage. I've been getting between 31-32 mpg consistently after I passed 2,000 miles on the odometer. If I see improvement, I may take the pressure up to 34-35, but no further.

there's has been numerous discussion on tire psi, and should be below 40 at most...

glad someone else said it! 44 psi your asking for trouble.

I have run 44 psi for 7 years on the Insight now approaching 200,000 miles and on my many CRX's and never had any problem at all. No flats, blowouts, uneven wear, loss of road adhesion, or suspension damage. the ride is a little rougher yes, but the cars just seem to roll far better and the difference in gas mileage is large. The Potenza's on the Insight and the Dunlops on the Fit are both spec'd at 44 max on the tirewall. These I am sure are conservative, or tire companies would be getting sued if failures did occur.

That works great for you, however you mentioned you were mostly a 60MPH, light footed driver.

After reading this thread there are a bunch of guys here that drive faster and harder than that and then bitch about their poor gas mileage.;)

Also what are the road conditions like in your area? You ever hit a NYC sized pothole at 60MPH?:eek:

I'm sticking to 36 PSI(cold) all around even though I could probably go up to the listed 50 PSI on the sidewall of my Kumho Ecsta's

Heck, I drove my Insight with 50PSI in the tires. Only had it a year (probably put 13k on it..) and it was fine.

Just get one that gives the actual pressure read out. It's more flexible that way.

I got mine at the local Autozone.

I can see that being beneficial if you're changing cars or tire pressures often, but if you're shooting for a specific psi, wouldn't that be a good way to sorta let you know when you needed to fill them up?

And... most of the places you get air have a pressure guage on the pump - so you won't be filling them blindly either way.

(Yeah... I just asked for an opinion and am now defending the item I was questioning myself... I'm kind of just thinking outloud though...)

I'd invest in an accurate tire gauge instead and use it often... just make sure to always use the same gauge and to check the tires when cold. Also, to up the mpg, try putting a few psi over what the mfg calls for.

Well I heard that the guage on the air pumps aren't too accurate.

What thingies? :confused:

I'd just get a mechanical type that looks like a pen. Get one calibrated from 0-50/60 psi instead of the ones that read to like 150 as they tend to usually be more accurate.

Buy two and use them to calibrate one against the other. If they both read different by a few pounds, use the one that reads lower of the two.

And yes, those pressure gauges on the end of the air lines at the service stations can be way off. Besides, you want to take your pressure readings when the tires are cold, before you start driving on them, for accurate readings. I usually check mine after they have been sitting overnight.

My $30 Walmart air compressor has lasted over 5 years now - with fairly frequent use (track events, etc). There are different ways to adjust tire pressure for performance/handling. But, for daily driving, this link is pretty useful.

Yup! We keep a small pump in our other car, and when I need a quick pump it's fast. Heck, even if a tire is really low it's just a minute or two of work.

I found my fronts were at 32 and my rears at 30 when we drove the car home for the first time, so I upped it to 36 all around. Feels a bit tighter in the turns now, and should help MPG a bit!

Thanks!

You're very unlikely to exceed 51 PSI (indicated maximum) unless you load the car up with a lot of weight. For city driving, 38 is very safe. Given that we don't go 4 million MPH and that we don't drive over a pile of tiny rocks that will puncture it.

My driving habits consists of 70MPH max, going up to 80MPH if traffic calls for it, but never exceeding 70MPH as I am a patient guy and actually enjoy spending time on the road with the car :). All city driving so no bother with gravel and puncturing terrain. Of course, your mileage may vary. For me, I rather put the stress on the tire than the engine as tires are easily replaceable.

Well... well... i'll be dammmn... after averaging about 26-28 mpg.. for 4 tanks.. i pumped my tired up and did not top off and guess what? i'm at 240 with about 1/4 tank left.. the needle during the last half of the tank isn't going down as fast anymore.. before it shot down very fast.. but now it's going down really slow...
i hope to break 300 miles on this tank before the red light comes on..
normally about 1 gallon left.. that will give me an average of about 33mpg.. i'll be soooo happy.. it seems like once i hit 1k it started drinking less gas.. i'll report back when i hit red light.. it looks promising.. i'll take 33mpg anyday!!!

ok.. went to airport and red light came on at 299.. turned out to be 31.5mpg.. not 33.. but nice improvement over 26-28mpg.. hope to improve next time around!

just received fit at sport tire psi at 47 all around max psi on side wall states 51 max psi.

Yes, but on the doors it says 36!

Mine says 32PSI.

overinflation
 

Just a word of caution about running your tires at 45+ psi. That is a lot of overinflation and you will have uneven tire wear (heavy wear in the center of the tread) as well as handling/braking issues, a harsh ride, and increased potential for road-hazard damage. I can't believe that you are saving enough on fuel to offset the cost of shorter tire life and increased wear on suspension parts. I run mine in the mid 30's, FWIW.

max psi aollowable on car is 51 as stated on tire. The car. is light wt so wear is not an issue. I dont live in NYC so roads are ok .

Higher tire pressure
 

is the key to better gas milage. Max allowed is 51 psi

I haven't checked my OEM tire pressure until today (Fit Sport OEM wheels/tires). I saw the car get PDI'd...I basically bought it the day it came off the truck. Well, I found out today my tire pressures were 32 psi all the way around. Since max pressure is 40 psi, I'm having a feeling that's affected my gas mileage. Has anyone else played with the tire pressures and noticed any variations in mpg? I do mixed city/highway with the majority being city and I'm getting mid 20's.

I mounted up a set of 14" Civic steel wheels with 185/65/14 tires. I set all the tires to max 35 psi pressure. I'll post more mpg results after I fill up next and have a chance to observe.

i hate to say this but what is on the door for air psi is more for ride and safty than mpg just to give you an example the ford exploders they said 26 psi for the tires and had blow outs because of it and firestone took most of the blame just dont go over the max psi on the side wall and just to be safe at lest 2psi under it watch you tire wear see how they are wearing aligments will cut mpg as well as tire psi and tire rotation every 6000 miles will make you tires last longer if you want to know how i know i have been a tech for 13 years and i run a fleet shop and have save the company lots in gas

Has anyone changed their tires to a lower rolling resistant tire and see a increase in mileage?

What size tire/wheel did your Fit come with originally? I think mine is 195/60/16 or somewhere around there. When you calculate your mpg, you're going to have to adjust for the difference in tire size. Also, if your original set was 16 inch aluminum like mine, then the unsprung weight difference may also skew your results.

I know, nag nag nag! But just want to make sure you figure in the ratio difference (easy enough). It'll be interesting anyway!

???
 

:confused:


Your dealer has never taken a physics class, huh? :D Or perhaps they're trying to make a quick buck...

The pressure of a gas changes based on temperature... Charles' Law

Don't fall for this bologna!!! Perhaps Nitrogen gas in tires has other benefits, but ALL GASES change in volume (therefore, pressure if confined to a set size space) based on temperature - so no pressure change due to temperature is NOT one of the benefits.

Sorry if someone already addressed this one - but that's just junk science right there.

Is that something like the untamed ornithoid? Only kidding! :D

There is an easy to get an approx. 80% nitrogen tire fill....use compressed air!

I think the big deal with the N2 fill is the lack of moisture, not so much the expansion rate of the gas. You might be shocked to see how much liquid water comes out of most commercial air hoses... Most of what I've read says that it's not really necessary for consumer automotive use, although I guess it's been used by racing teams for years. If they can tell the difference in 0.5psi change, it might be just the ticket for them. I certainly can't.

As soon as I could, I upped my tire pressure from the 32+/- it was delivered with to 38psi. I figure it's better for the short sidewalls with the roads around here, and the decrease in rolling resistance can't hurt. I keep our Pilot's tires at 36, so it's not really that high of a pressure. More than that I'm not really comfortable with except on the autoX course, as I know the pressure in our Pilot's tires really increases on long road trips. I saw over 4psi increase on our last spring break trip to CO on a cool day - not something I'd want to do on a hot day.

I don't think tire pressure makes THAT big of a difference. On "green" advice columns, they say the mileage improvement of an inflated tire over a deflated tire is 3%

Tips to improve your Gas Mileage

On a bike, where the tire pressure is much higher around 55-80psi, it makes a big difference. Trust me, I know. You can feel it. You actually have to pedal downhill if a bike is at 30psi. Plus,the higher pressure of bikes means it leaks more.

The air pressure listed on the side of your tire is NOT the correct air pressure for your vehicle. That number is the maximum air pressure for the tire.
:rolleyes:

the fit gets great gas mileage no matter what. as you said on the door the psi is for ride and safety.

what is more important?

ride :vtec: and safety
or
a tad better mpg?

:rolleyes:

ps: addressing the 26psi for the ford. my ford econo van was 35-36. 26 must of been a mistake as thats makes no sense

anyone driving a fit with over 38 psi is asking for trouble

re: Fit410s

bored are we?

You do know that the last post before yours was 2 1/2 YEARS ago, right?

That being said... i'm going to sleep. ta ta!