What could an oil change cause the MPG to drop to the point that i get as far as 158 miles before i have to refuel.

When i first purchased my fit, iw as getting about 280~290 to the tank, now it's half of that.

I even traveled to Las Vegas and back to the San Francisco area and it was running like a champ.

then a week after i got back from my road trip, i got my oil change done at Jiffy Lube, since i had work to do, and couldn't take the time to go to the dealership to get a proper change done.

What tell tell signs can i look for that my car has been damaged? or something is wrong?

it's been 1,500 miles so far since that change, and wondering when it will correct itself.

-Anthony

 

The only thing that I can figure is that Jiffy Lube didn't use the correct weight oil. I bet they put 10w40 in there and not the prescribe 5w20. I would suggest staying away from them if you can at all. If you don't want to pay dealership prices you may want to look for a good local mechanic.

 

I don't know if putting a heavier oil would cause the milage to go down by half, but you never know.....

It's very possible that they put in the wrong oil though. The last time I went to a Jiffy lube (maybe a year ago) they didn't even have the 5w20 oil that the Fit requires- the lightest they had was 5w30. Also, I noticed that once they put in 10w40 instead of 5w30 in another car of mine - WRONG!. I had them drain it and put in the correct oil, and from that point on I always specified what and how much to put in.

If you still have the receipt, take a look - it should say what and how much they put in.

 

That's very dramatic, so this may not apply, But...

Our fuel economy dropped (from high 5s to mid 6s lt/100km). I asked the dealership what might be the cause and they said their first guess was tire pressure and/or air filter. The tire pressure was fine and the air filter isn't due until 48,000km (we're at 28k). My b/f popped it open though and sure enough the filter was clogged. They recently repaved the road and even though we drove on it for a very short distance over a couple of days it was enough to clog it.

Anyway, just two small things to check. Hope you figure it out 'cause that's damn low MPG!

Digi

 

Have the mileage averages been this bad on ALL tanks in the 1500 miles since the change?

I cannot imagine anything that would make it that bad, my worst was still over 30mpg. Any guilty looking neighbors hiding a length of hose beind their backs as you do by perhaps?

 

shit, I was just talking about this in another thread. I took my car to the dealer ship for a oil change and my mpg sucks ass now. I was getting 38-42mpg avg, now I am getting 29-32avg if I am lucky.

 

maybe they left a dirty rag in the air cleaner or sumtin,,,take it back and raise heck with them,,,

 

Just wait it out. It should go back up. These a few threads about this. People in the new-3000mile range get mixed MPG.

 

i have 6,000+ miles on the engine....

the first 4,500 miles were very consistent.. between 30~38mpg..

with the new oil change, since the 4,500 mark, it has been... poor.

 

My car has never gone that low. Seriously..... Thats pretty horrible, I think thats the lowest Ive seen.

My lowest was 28-29mpg.

 

Man, Tony, you are just full of bad news today. Very sorry to hear it. I have no guesses to add to what others have said, but here is a different side of mileage changes--

For our Fit Meet picnic a few weeks ago, I drove just about the same mileage as you did. In my fist trip to scout the area the previous weekend, I got the best mileage ever- 38 mpg. On the weekend of the meet, I mounted my Thule roof rack, carried a passenger, and about 60 pounds of ice chest, ice, and food, and drove through some pretty strong winds that you will remember. Mileage dropped to 27 mpg- the worst ever.

Aside from a REALLY dirty air filter, I can't imagine what your problem might be, but I hope that you cure it really soon.

Dave

 

on the trip to our meet, i got 190 miles to the tank, and i filled up when i reached gilroy, then headed to the mountains after that.

that was sad, but when i went to LA< i filled up once, IN LA...

 

Dang 15 mpg. Somethingn is terribly wrong. Fortunately for you, u kmnow it happened right after your oil change, so at least you can pinpoint what might have gone wrong.

How does the car drive? Does it seem slower than usual?

 

just some things off the top of my head to check;
-something left in air cleaner ( or VERY dirty)
-parking brake adjusted wrong (draggin) rear drum brakes adjusted two
tight (dragging)
-wrong oil in engine (to heavy weight)
Can check the draggin brakes by coasting on flat ground to see if you can feel a drag

 

How does the car run? Anything noticeable then before? Is it overly slow....
Maybe the MAP sensor is going bad?

 

Make sure you check the oil level. If it is overfilled it can can cause problems. Does the car feel any slower?

 

It could be that for shure... Had the same thing
happened with my 04 Civic... The bastard at my
dealership overfilled the oil about 1,5 litre... I do
my oil change myself since that.

Philippe

 

Yup, overfilling could certainly contribute - this is another thing the folks at Jiffy Lube et al seem to excel at. Whenever you go to one of these guys:
1) check the invoice to make sure they put the right oil in.

2) check the oil level, cause they often seem to overfill ;

3) Check under the car later in the day to make there's no leaks - they stripped out the oil pan hole once on my Acura, and oil just gradually dripped on out.
I took it back in and after a heated discussion, they reluctantly agreed to fix it, but admitting no liability. They drained the oil so they could put in a temp plug, and then told me to go to another shop where they could tap a new hole in the oil pan. When they handed me the keys, I gently asked them 'Uh, you DID put oil back in the car so I can get there, right?' At which point, they grabbed the keys, rushed in to put oil back in the car, and suddenly became wayyyyyy more friendly and cooperative than before.

Can you tell I don't trust these guys? Many of these shops are good, but the bad ones really suck, and the info they have isn't always up to date for some reason. If you use them, find a good one where they at least know how not to overtorque a simple bolt, and always tell them how much oil to put in and what weight to use in case their info is bad.

 

Actually, My car feels like it runs better than before, maybe it's because i don't drive with anyone, or i'm getting used to the feel of the car.

I went to Jiffy lube, i was 1/4 of a quart low, so they topped it off, they checked the air filter, it is still sort of clean (very green, compared to black)

I coast on the highway sometimes, depending on where, i just go into neutral... in town i stay in gear, so i am sure it's not the rear breaks being on too tight.

I went to the dealership, they said that is horribly wrong, and that a simple oil change wont be the cause. They told me to get 3 gas mileage readings on paper, and to schedule an appointment with them. They will record my ECU readings, and reflash it if Honda says to do a reflash, but it seems this will require a few days of work on my car when i get the readings, my first set of readings is 240miles to the full tank refilled to 10.2gallons of gas, this was ALL highway, coasting most of the time from San Francisco to San Carlos (30 mile drive one way).

I'm going to be driving around town most of this coming week, so i'm sure i'll be getting 150~180 miles to the tank.

 

why is coasting illegal? i have gone to jiffy lube once, but i brought my own oil and filter Mobil 1 synthetic 5w20. I watched them carefully do it... i am that anal where i dont sit in the waiting room just keep close eye on them. Now i have a friend at Honda so i get the hook-up
i get over 300 miles on my tank al the time...need to check that out yo