2017 Chevy Traverse Gas Mileage
 

Hi Guys,

New to the forums, i did a little bit of research on here before posting. From what i found i know i need to go through break-in period but i'm a little concerned with my new SUV. 2 weeks ago we picked up 2017 Chevy Traverse LT (3.6 v6), haven't had a chance to drive it much, only put 95 miles on it, but i can't get above 9mpg in city. i'm easy on the foot, and been almost grannying it, easy on acceleration. This suv was suppose to be getting 15mpg city, 22mpg highway. My father last year picked up a 2016 Ford Explorer (3.5 v6) and within 50 miles that thing was already showing 16-17mpg in city.


Now i know i need to give it some time, but 9mpg of the lot and staying at that.... Should i be concerned?

Thanks for any input.

If you did any researching you would know that the on board computers are sometimes very in accurate. Fill your tank, run to empty, refill and get out the pencil and do some calculations

Putting less than 7 miles per day probably short trips with a cold engine will not give any kind normal reading

That's pretty scary MPG, had no idea they still made such vehicles in this day and age. Do you live in a state affected by colder winter weather and perhaps strong headwinds? What revs do you change gear at? Most poor fuel economy can be explained by driving style, tyre pressures and weather conditions too, my economy has plummeted to just under 60 MPG since its got colder and darker (we just put the clocks back here)

Live in Las Vegas, so cold is not an issue. Also the weather has been perfect last few weeks so no A/C was needed. So far it's been driven on flat roads. I'll be doing manual calculations once i fill back up, i've just never had any issues in previous vehicles with on board computers being this inaccurate, (maybe 1-2mpg), but in this case we're talking about 35-40% difference. One thing I did find out is that the GM was sued for the 2016 Traverse/Acadia/Enclave false advertising for mpg, they stated they corrected the issue for 2017 models. Love the vehicle, the size and feel, but if this is the true mpg it's gonna be a killer for the wallet, on a 22 gal tank less than 300miles yikes... Now to be fair i haven't been driving that long as i stated in first post, so far only 95 miles, and the mileage hasn't really gone up (from 9.1mpg to 9.4mpg in those 95 miles). Not expecting 30mpg :) but I'll be happy with the advertised numbers, 15city/22hgwy/18 combined. Unlike my other smaller/compact SUV, this one i actually go easy on, no hard acceleration. Fingers crossed that it improves & I start seeing 15-18mpg :)

also i don't put it manual mode & shift, but something i will look into and maybe try to see if it yields better results, to keep it in higher gear perhaps. As for the tires, they are at 36psi, granny style driving :D lol

Does that include anyone else driving and/or any driving before you got it? That could factor in as well.

when we got the car it had only 4 miles on, and since i drove it of the lot it's been only me driving it. I'm not sure what the break in period is for this SUV. My other SUV and my fathers SUV both showed advertised mpg or close to it within the first 100 miles. So the fact that on this one i haven't seen mileage really improve at all, got me a bit worried. Now to be fair, of those 95 miles half of them have been short drives, 5-10 miles round trip, and twice so far i drove with a 20 miles round trip. Could it also be a mechanical issue? One other thing i didn't mention, is that every-time i do drive it, after i stop & park it i smell something almost like burning. I figured it was just the brakes, they need to be worn in.

Agree on board computers need time (sometimes a few tanks) to learn your/yours driving style.

In terms of break in for fuel economy, tires are the big issue. They have higher rolling resistance when new. Check the pressure; one could be low, and the TPMS light usually doesn't come on until it is 8 to 10 psi under. Also check the oil and tranny fluid levels if you can. Usually they are filled by weight, but a mistake in overfilling will mean more resistance for the engine.

Did you reset the fuel economy gauge? The 4 miles before you got it could have included a lot of idling.

Stop grannying it. It sounds counter intuitive, but automatics tend yield better results using moderate acceleration up to your target speed. Getting up to the top gear for the speed and letting the torque converter lock up quicker is better than lingering in the lower gears with the converter thrashing fluid.

Finally, short trips will kill the fuel economy of any vehicle when the engine is cold. The EPA city test cycle is 11 miles, and while the car starts cold, the lowest lab temp is 68F.