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12 Posts
Let me start by saying that I know people are angry about the economy of the 11 Terrain and I'm not here to defend GM nor discuss their responsibility here. Just want to share how I managed to eke out almost an extra 3 MPG.
Up until recently, I was getting the popular average MPG of only 23 to 24 MPG. Like everyone, I was extremely frustrated by it, discussed it with several GM reps and got nowhere. But I kept hearing a common statement- it could depend on the driver and their driving style. That seemed ridiculous to me because I always use cruise control and I was driving as slow as I could stand. So I started watching things and noticed that each time I climbed two particular hills on my way to work, the transmission kicked down to maintain the 70 MPH and my average economy slipped fast! Now when I reach those two points in my trip, I take it out of cruise, and go at whatever speed the car can go without shifting. I've dropped as low as 60 MPH, but my economy has gone way up. I now consistently get 26 MPG and I'm not even using cruise control anymore! Granted, it's still well below the advertised mileage but its enough thati went from struggling to pass 400 miles in a tank, to going well past 500.
Now I know some people will say they shouldn't have to alter their driving habits to get closer to the advertised economy of their car, and you're right. You shouldn't. But since I own this car for a while now, and since it doesn't get the advertised mileage by driving my old way of driving, and since I like everything else about this car, I'm willing to make this one concession to make the gas crunch a little easier to deal with. Take it for what it's worth. Hope I help someone.
Up until recently, I was getting the popular average MPG of only 23 to 24 MPG. Like everyone, I was extremely frustrated by it, discussed it with several GM reps and got nowhere. But I kept hearing a common statement- it could depend on the driver and their driving style. That seemed ridiculous to me because I always use cruise control and I was driving as slow as I could stand. So I started watching things and noticed that each time I climbed two particular hills on my way to work, the transmission kicked down to maintain the 70 MPH and my average economy slipped fast! Now when I reach those two points in my trip, I take it out of cruise, and go at whatever speed the car can go without shifting. I've dropped as low as 60 MPH, but my economy has gone way up. I now consistently get 26 MPG and I'm not even using cruise control anymore! Granted, it's still well below the advertised mileage but its enough thati went from struggling to pass 400 miles in a tank, to going well past 500.
Now I know some people will say they shouldn't have to alter their driving habits to get closer to the advertised economy of their car, and you're right. You shouldn't. But since I own this car for a while now, and since it doesn't get the advertised mileage by driving my old way of driving, and since I like everything else about this car, I'm willing to make this one concession to make the gas crunch a little easier to deal with. Take it for what it's worth. Hope I help someone.
