Avensis Loosing milage

sidcon

I drive a Toyota Avensis '04 1.6 Petrol. I normally would get 567km to a full tank of unleaded however I am only getting 498km now and the last few fill ups.
I do a lot of mileage roughly about 400km a week. Car only has about 80,000km on the clock at the moment.
Brought it to Denis Mahoney and put it in for a service yet this did not improve it and the found nothing wrong apart from a front shock will soon need replacing.

Any ideas folks its really hitting the pocket.

bazz26

On board computers are unreliable. My old Avensis's OBC would nearly give different ranges everytime I filled it. Calculate the MPG the old fashion way is my advice.

SomeGuyCalledMi

Check tyre preasure.

Atlantic Dawn

SomeGuyCalledMi wrote: »

Check tyre preasure.

Yes check the tyres too for uneven wear, the front ones in particular.

johndaman66

On the face of it there is not an absolutely dramatic difference between 498km and 567km but no doubt you are feeling the pinch of it, particularly with petrol prices creeping up the whole time of late. As bazz26 said I too would not be inclined to pay too much heed to an on-board computer either. I had one in a 1.6 Vectra which showed an average of practically 50mpg over a long period which certainly was not the case. There could be a host of reasons for the difference really. To list a few;

1) Your driving style may have changed off late? Holding lower gears longer would lessen your mpg as would being generally heavier with your right foot.

2) Perhaps you are carrying considerably more weight in the car of late?

3) More frequent shorter journeys where you find yourself stuck in traffic more?

4) Poor car maintenance. Change spark plugs, oil and filter, air filter, petrol filter at least as often as the manufacturer recommends. Not only will you maximise economy but also increase the longevity of your car. Also ensure your tyres are are carrying the correct pressure. I tend to check almost weekly.

5) Have you per chance changed to wider tyres lately? This too could be a culpurit.

It could indeed be a combination of the above factors or indeed I'm sure there may be something I missed also:)

Finally a few people mentioned to me in the past that there is somewhat of a difference in mileage you get from petrol across various filling stations. I use to think it was silly talk, petrol is petrol and all that but after trying a few different filling stations I do notice somewhat of a difference. I must say that Texaco techron petrol does seem rather good to get a few extra mpg from. I could get petrol elsewhere a cent or two cheaper per litre but feel I will get it back from the Texaco techron in terms of mpg...just my thought on it.

EDIT: Hope that last bit does not sound too much like an ad for Texaco. I guarntee all that I am in no way affiliated to Texaco

sidcon

johndaman66 wrote: »

On the face of it there is not an absolutely dramatic difference between 498km and 567km but no doubt you are feeling the pinch of it, particularly with petrol prices creeping up the whole time of late. As bazz26 said I too would not be inclined to pay too much heed to an on-board computer either. I had one in a 1.6 Vectra which showed an average of practically 50mpg over a long period which certainly was not the case. There could be a host of reasons for the difference really. To list a few;

1) Your driving style may have changed off late? Holding lower gears longer would lessen your mpg as would being generally heavier with your right foot.

2) Perhaps you are carrying considerably more weight in the car of late?

3) More frequent shorter journeys where you find yourself stuck in traffic more?

4) Poor car maintenance. Change spark plugs, oil and filter, air filter, petrol filter at least as often as the manufacturer recommends. Not only will you maximise economy but also increase the longevity of your car. Also ensure your tyres are are carrying the correct pressure. I tend to check almost weekly.

5) Have you per chance changed to wider tyres lately? This too could be a culpurit.

It could indeed be a combination of the above factors or indeed I'm sure there may be something I missed also:)

Finally a few people mentioned to me in the past that there is somewhat of a difference in mileage you get from petrol across various filling stations. I use to think it was silly talk, petrol is petrol and all that but after trying a few different filling stations I do notice somewhat of a difference. I must say that Texaco techron petrol does seem rather good to get a few extra mpg from. I could get petrol elsewhere a cent or two cheaper per litre but feel I will get it back from the Texaco techron in terms of mpg...just my thought on it.

EDIT: Hope that last bit does not sound too much like an ad for Texaco. I guarntee all that I am in no way affiliated to Texaco

Cheers for that seems that I had one tyre worn down more than the others, I have replaced it and I have gained about 40k back from that just goes to show how tyres work. Now need to loose the weight in the booth and I say I should be fine.
PS I work for Esso so cant see myself trying Texaco any day soon

Atlantic Dawn

sidcon wrote: »

Cheers for that seems that I had one tyre worn down more than the others, I have replaced it and I have gained about 40k back from that just goes to show how tyres work. Now need to loose the weight in the booth and I say I should be fine.
PS I work for Esso so cant see myself trying Texaco any day soon

Ideally you should have replaced both wheels on the same axel, otherwise you will have the same problem occur again as your car is sitting on uneven tyres, one being new, one being used.