Questionnaire and my LR4 Gas Mileage Theory

[Murphy]

Okay.. hate me. After 1,000 miles of breaking in I'm getting just shy of 20 miles per gallon (19.4) in my new LR4. But talking with other LR4 owners at a recent Off-Road event (see my post about that for pics about which you can reference) - I have come up with a Theory.

I'm deriving my theory from my Ford Focus Actually. You see, when I mount my Thule bike rack to the roof... my gas mileage drops by 1 to 2mpg. If I have bikes on it, I can subtract another 1 or 2 Mpg.

So my theory is... .my LR4, being completely free of encumbrances on the outside of the body shell (You call it "Kit") lends itself to better gas mileage. We'll just say I opted for the "Clean Air package" on my HSE.

So, I'm wondering... do you have the LR installed roof rack? Maybe you even have the horizontal rack bars installed on that too? How about side body panels? Perhaps even side steps or rock sliders? Then do you get worse gas mileage than I do? By a lot? I'm thinking each one of these kit items adds DRAG to your LR4 thus reducing your gas mileage.

Sure sure, it will also have alot to do with altitude and grade of gas you use. Another dirty secret? Here it is... we also have ETHANOL FREE gasoline here in South Carolina... by the droves. Interesting fact is... I haven't used that yet. I wanted to break the engine in with ordinary gas I might find elsewhere in my travels. So I'm really wondering if I might get another mpg or two if I make the switch to E-Free? Hmmmm. We'll see.

Your thoughts? And thanks for listening to a blithering idiot.
Murphy

 

[cayenne]

Have the roof rack, horizontal bars, and ladder and I still get 20mpg on the highway

 

[baobay]

Have side steps and mud flaps and my avg is 17 mpg if I'm lucky. My driving is not aggressive by any stretch of the imagination.

 

[Finlayforprez]

I am going to keep track of my gas mileage the rest of the week, as I honestly never even pay attention. This will be interesting as I have a Voyager half-rack (with wind-fairing), ladder, front and rear lamp guards, front skid plate, and rock slider/step combos. I will report back, as I am very interested in observing my gas mileage (on and off the highway) over the next few days.

 

[Murphy]

Have the roof rack, horizontal bars, and ladder and I still get 20mpg on the highway

No, I mean I get 19+ mpg AVERAGE. Not just highway, but PER TANK.

Finalyforprez - my Thule had the wind fairing too. Let us know what you find out!
Murph

 

[jptruck]

Wow. . .I do a lot of City driving, but 19+ MPG per tank sounds like a Hawaiian vacation. I can generally get 19+ driving the hilly highways of Virginia using the 6th gear a lot, but no way in the City.

 

[cayenne]

No, I mean I get 19+ mpg AVERAGE. Not just highway, but PER TANK.

Finalyforprez - my Thule had the wind fairing too. Let us know what you find out!
Murph

This will all depend on how much higher speed driving you do vs. stop and go... If you calculate it out by hand, I seriously doubt you are getting 19+ in stop and go traffic. Maybe your daily commute isn't as much City driving as others etc. Many variable come into play, but I can tell you, I have a friend that has the "clean" look and he isn't getting 19+ average with any amount of City mixed in.

Wow. . .I do a lot of City driving, but 19+ MPG per tank sounds like a Hawaiian vacation. I can generally get 19+ driving the hilly highways of Virginia using the 6th gear a lot, but no way in the City.

I agree, I'm in VA as well.

 

[waltzonice]

No, I mean I get 19+ mpg AVERAGE. Not just highway, but PER TANK.

Are you getting this number from the LR4 computer, or are you calculating this manually? Because I find that I generally get close to 2 MPG less than what the LR4 computer calculates. It seems that the closer I get to empty, the bigger the disparity between the actual calculated value and LR4 computer value. I do a manual calculation after every tank and I usually fill up around 17-19 gallons.

 

[Finlayforprez]

Are you getting this number from the LR4 computer, or are you calculating this manually? Because I find that I generally get close to 2 MPG less than what the LR4 computer calculates. It seems that the closer I get to empty, the bigger the disparity between the actual calculated value and LR4 computer value. I do a manual calculation after every tank and I usually fill up around 17-19 gallons.

How are you guys calculating mpg?

 

[rainmn]

Our LR4 is used primarily by my wife, and about 95% of her driving is around town.

I don't keep close track of the mileage she gets, but I can assure you that it it isn't even remotely close to 19 MPG.

Our old Lexus GX470 would get about 15 around town, give or take. The LR4 uses noticeably more gas for the same daily routine.

I also have OEM short rails and OEM cross bars on full time, but didn't add them until I had the truck for a few months. I noticed no appreciable difference in mileage after I installed them. (Hence the reason I don't bother to take off the cross bars when I'm not using them)

Maybe I should do a real calculation on the mileage one of these days, but to be honest - I don't think I want to know the real number. I'm betting it's about 13-14 around town at best.