New to LR3's have mileage questions...

[richpike]

The trick to getting good MPG is to use the auto stick and start off in 2nd gear and shift up ASAP I get 17 to 19 MPG in the city during rush hour also coast to a stop and try not to down shift to much.

Cheers J.T.

I have to agree with J.T. - I've seen similar results starting off in 2nd gear and (in general) being light on the throttle. Unfortunately, using command shift is too much for my wife to think about when she drives. Fortunately, she is pretty light footed so she does OK.

It seems that LR could probably add another mpg just by having the car automatically start in 2nd when you are in drive. If you want to start in first, put it in sport mode. I believe this is how our Touareg worked - of course our Touareg got worse gas mileage than the LR3! So I could be wrong

-Rich

 

[di_LR3_co]

not to throw a wrench in here.. but doesn't the LR3 start in 2 as a default in drive. seems like mine only goes to 1 is in sport mode or joystick mode. as for the joystick mode.. i think the big gas milage gain is getting into 5 and 6 as quickly as possible.. seems like sport mode around town holds you in 4 and drive mode holds you in 5.

as for milage.. just took a 1100 mile trip from boulder to valentine ne and back. filled up about 4 times (not including the fill up to go roving in the great plains)..

best tank (using 91 no-ethanol pure gas around 73 mph) 20.5 mpg.
worst tank (using "premium" which is code for 10% ethanol in ne going 73 mph) 16.5 mpg

my dealer tells me i can run 85 in it with out any problems.. however, i notice my milage around town is in the low 14s and max 17s on the highway with 85. in general, it *feels* better, smoother, more responsive when running 91 or higher.

oh yeah.. and tire pressure is 43 in front, 48 in rears on goodyear silent armours..

 

[roverlr3]

I too, live in the Colorado Springs area and only run 91 octane in my because the label in the filler door says so. I have always got around 14 mpg in town and 15/16 on the highway, surprisingly I seem to avg. 13 off-road (lo range desert travel) which is 3 mpg better than my D-90 I used to own.

 

[richpike]

I too, live in the Colorado Springs area and only run 91 octane in my because the label in the filler door says so. I have always got around 14 mpg in town and 15/16 on the highway, surprisingly I seem to avg. 13 off-road (lo range desert travel) which is 3 mpg better than my D-90 I used to own.

Nice! What color is your LR3? Anything nonstock to it (like an A-bar, etc)? There aren't a *ton* of LR3s in COS so I usually notice them

-Rich

 

[roverlr3]

Nice! What color is your LR3? Anything nonstock to it (like an A-bar, etc)? There aren't a *ton* of LR3s in COS so I usually notice them

-Rich

White with blacked out hood (land rover oval on it) roof rack, rear access ladder, 255-65 BFGs. I do alot of off-road driving and have been looking for a good winch mount (something other than ARB) for the truck.

 

[timtiedemann]

Quote from Popular Mechanics:

The Lie: "More expensive fuel offer better fuel economy, because it's higher quality!"

The Truth: The media has confused this issue terribly. Post-1996 model-year cars virtually all have knock sensors. If the octane rating is too low, the computer will roll back the ignition timing a few degrees to compensate. This will reduce peak engine power, and also increase fuel consumption. So, in some sense, this myth gets it right—if your car is supposed to run premium. One of our long-term test cars in the PM fleet delivers an impressive 25-percent better fuel economy running on premium than it does on regular, although our test was hardly done under rigorous conditions. I'll leave the math for an exercise, but I calculate the price differential between 87- and 91-octane fuel at more like 6 percent—at least in my neighborhood. Your mileage may vary, but it's worth trying to see what happens in your car. If you top 6-percent better fuel mileage on premium, it may save you money to run it.

Of course, older cars, built in the days before knock sensors, may be damaged by running too poor a grade of fuel. Spark knock can actually burn holes in pistons, so burn substandard fuel in non-knock-sensor-equipped cars at your peril.

But wait, there's more! Is your car supposed to run on Regular? There are more BTUs (energy) in regular than in higher grades. You may very well get better miles-per-gallon from regular.