Toyota Echo Fuel consumption

i have an echo 2004 sedan manual transmission with 174000 kms, i recorded yesterday 812 kms on 40.85 litres 55.9 mpg , i was told a while ago an echo may take 25000 kms to break in.

Hi, I'm a new Echo owner (sedan) in Vancouver.

I'm getting the same mileage (auto transmission) as you. Closer to 9
per 100 kms, not 7.1 But it's still too early to tell, I think, as I've
barely driven a little more than two tanks of gas, and measuring it as
best I can, going to the same pump at the same gas station, etc

Today I ran my concerns past the parts manager at the dealership I
bought the car from. He explained that ALL auto manufacturers use
"idealized" test conditions, i.e. simply putting the car on a dynameter
(sp?) and setting it at 50 kms (city) or 100 (hwy)

Obviously this can't be a realistic way of doing it, but it must be
legal...

Anyway, I'm going to wait and see how it all averages out over the first
couple thousand kms. It strikes me that the real complaint should be to
government, which allows such generalized methods of measuring fuel
efficiency. It kind of makes me wonder how they actually do this -- do
they take the "idealized" results and then subtract a litre or two to
make it close to real?

The same parts manager told me that the break-in period is between 800
and 1000 kms, and that I "might" notice better fuel economy thereafter.
Anyone here have any experiences along these lines? The last time I
bought a new car was so long ago, gas wasn't even a concern (cheap old
days!)

Here's an interesting article about the same issue, but from a British
website -- notice the shocking disparity in their findings on the Prius'
fuel stats.

Cheers,

RB

You did not mention if she has an automatic or manual transmission. The
gas mileage with a manual transmission model if often quoted because it
is higher. Other factors impact gas consumption: tire make/model (snow
tires use more gas), tire pressure, wheel alignment, frequent short
trips use more gas than the same distance in a single long trip, weight
carried in trunk and number of passengers impacts gas consumption. It is
my understanding that the EPA figures are derived from the car rolling
on a rollers with no wind resistance or the gravity drag you would get
from driving up a hill, so they would not be "real life".

my echo five speed gets 40 mpg (american gallon) on all but the close-in
stop and go.
i'm not sure of the mathi could ask if the canadian litre is also 5/4
of the american liter? <G sam

...

In article < says...

Just for comparison, My 01 Corolla ( Auto Tranny ) just did 5.6 Litres/100 Kms
highway driving, on a recent trip.

I'm pretty pleased with that.

I have a 2004 5-speed with 6200 km on it. I drive 110km round trip to
work every day just outside of Edmonton. I filled up tonight, without
the low fuel warning flashing, with 638km. No way to complain here.
Driving around town doesn't hurt fuel consumption very much.

RB <> wrote in

There are so many variables!
look in the owners manual and you will find driving with extra weight, lower tire pressure, cold weather, prolonged warm-ups, high speed......all have an effect.
My girl and I put on 12,000km on a trip down and across Mexico and I was somewhat impressed with 6.5l/100km....
then we did a 1000km trip through BC. This time, we had lots of time, and nice weather (for canada) so we filled up the tank FULL and took it easy. Slow acceleration, shifting at recommended speeds (see the manual), and never exceeded the speed limits.
We had to stop once. Near the end of the trip I put in 10 litres. Then at the destination 997km away i put in 33 litres and there was no way I could get anymore in the tank.
44litres = 996km there's the math. i was amased.
Driving in calgary, I can't get 500km per tank (40litres.)
and there's nothing wrong with the car.
Love your echo!

I put my car in for service and when it came back it seemed under powered and the gas mileage was just over 400 k... The issue was the air filter cover was not clipped in correctly... It clicks in the back and locks in the front... Once I corrected the cover the car was working like new again....

I HAVE AN '04 HATCHBACK....94,000 KM, 5 SPEED MANUAL, NO POWER STEERING...MY RECORD FOR A FULL TANK WAS 1020 KM.....35 DEGREES C, FLAT, SLIGHT TAILWIND, ALL HIGHWAY...REPORT BACK ONCE YOU HAVE 10,000 KM ON IT....SWITCH TO SYNTHETIC....WALLYWORLD'S 0W-30 IS DECENT ENOUGH....

There are a few reasons why you might be getting such low mileage even if you are careful with the gas pedal.

I have a 2004 Echo Hatchback with a 5spd. I live in Edmonton and can attest to getting both very good and very poor mileage.

In the summer when the temp is around 25 C, I can get as good as 5L/100km on the highways (which are relatively flat here).

In the winter when the temp can get to -35 C, I have been getting as low as 9L/100km as well. An Ottawa winter can sometimes approach these temps also. If you are commuting short distances each day, you are spending a lot of time just getting the engine to optimum temperature. A cold engine with cold fuel management system will definitely result in poor gas mileage.

As far as Vancouver goes, the number of chances to drive unobstructed by traffic and stoplights is sometimes very low. This can come down to driving style.

In the end, the temp makes a huge difference. I used to have a 1997 4Runner that would get 12L/100km in the summer. Last winter when it averaged -35C, I got a real shocker when the mileage plummeted to 22L/100km.

fyi the litre is an international standard that the US has never any
interest in, other than science related professions. Hence they have
never felt a need to "have their own to be different than the British"
;-) <G
Z
Z
Zmy echo five speed gets 40 mpg (american gallon) on all but the
close-in
Zstop and go.
Zi'm not sure of the mathi could ask if the canadian litre is
also 5/4
Zof the american liter? <G>

My '01 echo 5 spd with 65,000 km goes about 600 km (360 mi) before
the light comes on and I have gone about 680 km on a tank. 430 is very
low but in line with their 7.1 l/100 km (40 mpg or 33 mi/us gallon)
claim . ( yet another reason to stay away from big cities). My commute
is about 15 miles, first half about 35 mph and the second half about
75 mph with 1 stoplight. Mileage was about 10-15% less in winter. I
suspect your wifes commute is more stop than go in Ottawa. It is
probably an automatic , right? This is probably not good for break
in. lf the problem persists after trying it with some highway driving
(vacation time, eh?) you may have a problem. You should try a more
accurate test though, like filling it up at 430 km and calculating
actual mileage. A gas guage/light is a VERY rough way to tell how
much fuel is left.


ZHi,
Z
ZWe live in Ottawa Canada.
ZMy wife recently purchased a 2004 Echo Hatchback for a city car.
Z
ZToyota boasts that this car does 7.1 city and 5.5 highway.
Z( liters per 100km )
Z
ZMy wife does not have a lead foot and takes it easy.
ZShe is never stuck in morning traffic and does regular "city"
driving.
Z
ZShe currently has close to 3000km on the car, and averages about
Z430km per tank ( when gas gauge starts to blink) ( 6 liters left)
Z( no A/C running)
Z
ZIf you do the math, Toyota expects around 630 km per tank. (city)
ZSo lets say remove 6 liters she should be averaging about 550 km per
Ztank.
Z
ZFrom what I calculated, it looks like her car is doing about 9 liters
Zper 100km city.
Z
ZDoes anyone else who owns an echo notice that the gas mileage doesn't
Zseem to par to what is advertised ?
Z
ZThanks for your input.
Z
Z

Calculate mileage by what you put in the tank, not by what you guess
may be left when the light starts blinking.

FWIW, I have an '03 Echo with a standard. Over the last year, I
averaged 48 miles/US gallon in mixed driving. I did get only 43 mpg
over two tanks last winter when we had a stretch of near 0F weather.

So with the current gas price increase, I'm paying 80 cents a gallon -
in SUV dollars. :-)

You do not have the right way to calculate the fuel consumption. you
should work it as a factor of mileage against what amount of fuel you
put in. As I recall, my car has nearly 10 litres remaining before the
low fuel starts to flicker.
I get between 36 and 42 mpg (imperial)