2007 Mazda5 5spd
 

Hey all, I'm Joel. I've always had an itch to get the most MPG out of my cars as I could, but usually fall to the urge to blow it by hanging in the passing lane or 'light to light' racing, blah. Well, because my wife happens to be 37 weeks pregnant at the moment, I have extra incentive to behave when I drive. So now I can really force myself to squeeze out some good numbers!

I was seriously considering an 07 Civic EX, but because of the kid, I decided to get something more practical and roomy, so I ended up getting an 07 Mazda5. I was attracted by it's Zoom-Zoom breed, but yet it's got a smallish 2.3L 4-banger and as you can see by my username, it's a 5MT. ;)

The EPA estimates are 22/27 for my car. However, the last tank where I wasn't particularly trying too hard I got 26.39, and after giving a bit more effort, at fill up tonight I just got 29.43! (That's about 75% city driving)

I didn't poke around here yet, so I'm really not quite sure what all this site has to offer, but I figured it looks pretty appropriate for my MPG quest. I guess my goal is to try to get into the low 30's somewhat consistently.

My wife has a 2004 Toyota Solara SE Sport - 2.4L 4cyl engine... I try to get good mileage with that too, but there's only so much you can manipulate with an automatic. Regardless, I guess I'll be tracking the mileage with this guy too.

Very nice vehicle. Not too many vans with 3rd row seating AND a 5 speed manual! Welcome aboard Joel! :)

If we had the money to get a new vehice today, the 5 is probably what we would get as well. I'm betting there is allot of hypermile potential there once you learn how to exploit it.

Welcome!

Nice Config
 

Definitely -- a passenger minivan with a 5-speed -- good choice. Probably not since the original Chrysler minivans with the Omni/Horizon drivetrain has that been available (someone correct me on this, as I'm sure I'm missing one).

But yeah, welcome to the site! The manual should prove to help efficiency. Take a look at the stickies in the General Discussion forum for ideas to try. Let us know if you have any questions -- we're here to help :thumbup:

Best FE,

RH77

We had a Mazda 5 rental last week. I really liked it. I would consider one for sure if I had just started a family. I am sure that you can beat the EPA estimates with it, in both city and highway. Welcome and I hope you find lots of good stuff here.

thanks all! I did feel kind of guilty for splurging on a new car, but I've been through 6 used ones and this is my first new. I figured with the kid on the way, my best chance of driving a new one off the lot was if I acted right away, so I did.

I've got the tires inflated to 38 PSI (rather than 34 on the door jamb), I'm trying to upshift between 2 - 2.5k, feather the throttle, stay at the speed limit, and coast up to red lights... I guess pretty much all the typical routine stuff. But I plan to dig through a lot of the posts here to get some ideas I may have not thought of... and of course to use the garage tool to track my mileage(awesome tool btw!) I'm pretty sure with this next tank I'll be able to get over 30 mpg... I got SO close last tank :)

It was 80*F here today so I had to have the windows down, but I'm keeping the AC off until summer arrives. The car does have automatic climate control that's very nice, but unfortunately the system keeps the A/C on 100% of the time when it's set to auto, so that sucks. When it does start to get hot out continuously, however, I would like to see on average how much using the ACC drops the mileage.


A question I have, approx when do gas stations switch over to the summer blend? I know it's hard to say because of different climates, but just wondering ballpark, was it like back in March or is it as late as June?

30? You'll get 35, I bet, with the 4cyl and 5 sp. Just a little practice, a little patience, and not using the brakes very much...

We had that automatic climate control in the rental. I never really could figure out how to make it do what I wanted...

wait it isnt broken in yet? you will get more mpg as you break it in.

do you mostly do city driving?

It actually has the same engine as the Mazda3 which is rated 26/33/28, however because of an extra 400 or so pounds and taller profile, the Mazda5 is rated lower at 22/27/24. PA doesn't have big mountains, but we're very hilly... so I have a feeling this is one area where I can learn new techniques. I'd like a ScanGauge, but the $170 is a premium to pay for a "toy" as my wife would probably call it... D'oh!

yep, I'd say 30% hard core rush hour city driving, 50% suburban driving, 20% interstate. But that's a rough guesstimate.

Good point, the odo is currently in the 5k's. I think I hear optimal FE arrives around 15k miles.

Welcome, welcome.

Get the SG2. It'll pay for itself many times over if you're serious about saving fuel.

Plus if the $145 (there's a group buy at that price going on at PriusChat, I think) is too heavy for the wallet, you can use it to refine your driving style, then eBay it. They hold their value used very well.