Yes, actually. I live on the top of a large hill and my school is also very elevated, so there is a considerable hill on the way to it. I didn't realize that could have an effect, what's the science behind that?

 

The science is that lifting something takes a lot more force than moving it horizontally.

Think of riding a bike on flat ground vs. up a hill.

Or pushing a car on flat ground vs. up a hill.

And if your house is at the top of a hill you don't even get the benefit of using the downhill momentum to help propel you up a hill, as you would if you were driving on a hilly road both up and down.

Note- the energy/fuel cost of going up far outweighs that of going down.

It's dangerous to dwell on it but if you take quick glances at the momentary fuel consumption graph on the dash (if your car has one; mine's a 2010 and does) you'll see.

 

Haha, I feel stupid for asking the question, of course. Well I'll try all the tips that have been graciously given and report back. Thanks all!

 

Is it at all possible that he's getting carb build up? since he has a lot of little trips not going wot from time to time would cause carb build up and lower his MPG. This has happen with a friend of mine who got a jeep from some old guy which told him that it gets 20 mpg a month or later he was up to 23 mpg (then 25 mpg after a tune-up).

 

having the car come to operating temps would help b/c of the short trips, but the fact that you sit there idling wasting gas defeats the purpose. if you can, combine trips and take care of the errand farthest away first. The way most Honda engines work, it does not produce enough torque on the low end causing the need to rev the engine more. In some cases cars that have a lower mpg rating, will achieve higher than others with higher mpg ratings due to the amount of available torque in order to properly merge with traffic etc. Such examples would be having a fully loaded car. Our Fits gas mileage will vary more than one with a lower rating but with plenty of torque, since the engine isnt working as hard. Thats why the Smart Fortwo achieves about the same mpg as the Fit despite the smaller engine and lighter chassis. The Fit has enough power to drive normally versus the constant need to rev the living crap out of the Smart car engine. Hills are definitely a case where torque wins over power or revving. A regular sedan would make it up without trying hard to maintain speed but the Fit needs to be in a lower gear and work much harder. On the highway is where the Fit shines, because extra torque generated when not needed is how gas is spent needlessly.

 

I question his math. Unless there is something seriously wrong I do not see how anyone can screw up enough to only get 18mpg.

Is this another case of calculating by looking at gas gauge and saying I only got 200 miles from that half tank or is it calculated over say 3-4 fill ups?

Seriously if someone does not realize a car uses more gas going up a hill I question his calculations.

If the math is right then just maybe time to have a Honda mechanic look at it.

 

I feel like I'd have to be doing a lot of idling in traffic to get this car below high 20s MPG. I think you might be onto something.

 

I reset my trip odometer (and thus the mileage meter) every fill-up and yes, you can get pretty crappy mileage if you stop for a 30 second red light every five or six blocks.

The gov'ts calculation of 'city' driving clearly wasn't done with NYC in mind!

 

Short trips, lots of stop and go, little to no driving at speed, and hills can easily get my milage below 20.

 

Hey- Did you ever figure out what was wrong with your fits gas mileage? Mine is getting between 25-28 mpg and it's a manual. Not too happy about it since I see other people getting 30-34 mpg with city driving.

 

I found that if I carry one or two passengers, it will affect MPG versus if I drive alone... which is obvious because more passengers means more load on the FIT, and we have to hit the gas pedal more

my wife is 4 feet 9" and she weigh less than 100 pounds.... and I have good mileage from my FIT so far.

We try to eat salad every week-day lunch time so that we will not put on weight as well

 

+rep to brian champagne. true that. different cities = different conditions. i lowest i ever got was 14 mpg due to super aggressive driving and the horrible traffic of nyc. still beats the 8 mpg i got in my subaru wagon when there was gridlock all around me when it took me over 4 hours to get to a place that normally takes only 10 minutes to get to. wasted almost half a tank that day.

 

I'm so incredibly confused. Pre-turbo I beat the living shit out of the enigne and still never got below 28 mpgs for more than one tank. I would literally wind the engine up on every single stop/go and I never got that low. And at idle the fit only use 0.18 gal/hour according to my ultragauge. So I would have to idle for ~12hours and then drive like crazy to even come close to 18mpgs. Move out of the city.

 

we all have different definitions of beating the hell out of the engine.

 

Ric01 - maybe that is the OPs problem. He has both a fat wife and GF and he is hauling both of them around at the same time.

Malraux - get it below Easy? I doubt it.

Lyon while some question you at times I agree aggressive driving will not get below 18.

If traffic is so bad to get below 18 then sell the Fit and walk. Sure real bad traffic will have dramatic effect but to consistently get 18 - BS! Turn the car off at nights when you are sleeping.

 

Well, I also forgot to add in running AC full blast, which tends to also happen when I am making short trips in the summer. But seriously, if I never get on the interstate, most of my trips involve stop signs every eighth mile. Grocery store is 1 mile driving distance away through nothing but residential neighborhoods. The engine isn't going to fully warm up over that short a distance, I get no at-speed driving, because there are so many stop signs, the AC pulls a huge amount of fuel down, etc. Sure, it requires a stretch of time where I'm just making runs to the grocery, hardware, etc stores, and nothing else, but that's one of the reasons why I live inside the city rather than way out.

 

I also experience, like many other FIT owners, that A/C is a MPG killer.

Even in winter if you need to send some fresh air up the vent in front to the windshield to clear the condensation, the moment we turn the dial to windshield blower selection and switch on the blower fan, FIT activates the A/C without telling you and without you pressing the A/C on button... you will hear the A/C condenser kicks in without you manually switching on the A/C. The windshield defogger is pre-wired to switch on the A/C as mentioned in the the owners manual 2010 Sports A/T.

I did not know this pre-wiring for 6 months and had been unknowingly switching on the A/C for 6 months, thinking that I was only blowing fresh air to the windshield.

I am quite upset with my dealership sales man for not telling me that. Upon delivery of my FIT in Aug, instead he showed me unnecessary things like how to switch on the radio, how to adjust clock time, how to switch on the wipers, head lights, but never told me about the ghost A/C on switch on the turn dial....guess I am expected to read the owners manual cover to cover before I start the FIT engine

 

Quite upset? The dealer should have told you? Come on get real. A/C is a real killer? Yea maybe a couple MPGs. If A/C was that bad then they would never have installed it in the first place.

 

The window defroster is like that in nearly every single car. Two reasons. First it makes it more effective at removing condensation. Second, prevents failure of the a/c from not being turned on during the winter months. It must be run periodically.

 

I think thhe OP has the perfect storm: starting many times a day, hills, short trips, running AC a lot, etc. Still, I wonder if the real mileage is 18 average. Seems to be ball parking it. I keep track of all my fill ups and average over the life of the car. Getting almost 39 average but my driving conditions are superb here (I can get 32-34 in "the city" because the city means a lot 45 mph with few stops). Still, I would think it's hard to get 18 average unless something is wrong with the car.

This brings me to a pet peeve. Why do people drive a mile many times a day? I can walk 3-5 miles easy and carry some groceries in a back pack. At least combine trips if you must drive. Off my high horse now.