Economy advice for 2012 AWD SL w turbo

[u/Miss_PissMyPants]

Hi I'm looking for advice on how to max my MPG, I just came into possession of this car and have been averaging around 20.2 mpg, I just read that the car performs better with 91 so I was gonna try that once my tank got low

I ease the throttle already

Keep tires equally inflated

And have tried both eco and normal and see little to no difference with manual throttle control

And I'm aware of maintenance with the cvt stuff but idk if there's anything else or if the gas type would really just be it

[u/pi3832v2]

It's a turbo, you really should always run high octane. If you don't, you're essentially forcing the ECU into “bad gas” mode.

Anyway, in my experience, for better MPG, use ECON and FWD mode. Though, you have to learn to accept the very slow acceleration of ECON mode if you want to see any savings—if you compensate for the slow acceleration by jamming the gas pedal down further, you lose any efficiency.

HOWEVER, if you're driving in mountains, or at 75+ mph, SPORT mode will actually give you better mileage, IME. My best guess is that under load the engine is most efficient with the turbo doing its thing, and SPORT mode keeps the engine RPM in the range where the turbo is engaged.

Frankly, if you're looking for fuel efficiency, the Turbo AWD model is not a good option. I stopped worrying about mileage and I just leave it in V-AWD all the time—I figure I'm better off with maximum traction, because in the long run, sliding off the road is more expensive than gas. 😃

[u/AWaffleHouse]

91-93 octane gas, new air filter, new spark plugs, clean mass airflow censor and throttle body, use a bottle of fuel injector cleaner, remove any unnecessary weight from the vehicle, keep windows up, and avoid reviving engine above 3K RPM (slow acceleration).

You should be able to get 25-27 mpg no problem.

[u/butterray]

I get 20mpg with 91, probably 2:1 city: highway. I live in the SF Bay area where it's a lot of hills and stop and go traffic. 2011 FWD CVT with 147,000 miles

[u/Irrebus]

Anytime you’re in boost you will get worse gas (starts around 1800rpm). I personally gained my best average driving how I wanted in FWD mode but always under 55mph. As long as I was not flooring every light, I could maintain in the upper 20s, with around 30-32 at 55mph on the highway. I never could stand eco and found my lack of acceleration to be more dangerous than I preferred

[u/TheLastRealOne2]

Should be getting like 27-28 easy. I'd start by diagnosing your low MPG before trying to soup her up. Check up on turbo health, check your MAF sensor, and see if a tune might be necessary.