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I am having some MPG issues used to get 29-31mpg/420-430 miles per tank with the 2.4L 4 speed auto lately I have only been getting 26-28 mpg/360-400miles per tank ....33k miles recent oil change (within 1000mi) and air filter (within 300 mi) tires at 38psi...only difference is that it is now winter here and the avg temp in now close to about 10 degrees outside...are the colder temps to blame for this muck of a MPG drop?? or am I missing something....this is a BIG deal as I drive 100+ miles a day....any ideas
 

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forgot to mention that I don not let it warm up very long at most 1-2 min and anytime that i am idle more that 1-2 min i shut the car off so I dont think that is it but Chevyguy you could be on to something with the winter gas blend ...doing more research now...Thanks
 

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I'm in Kentucky now, but when I lived in California ('til mid '06) they had and additive for winter called MTBE. It causes about a 10-20% reduction in fuel economy.

Never could quite understand why CA mandated it in the first place. Supposedly it burns cleaner, somewhere around 10-20%. When I do the simple math I'm burning the same amount of fuel over the course of a measured distance, but now I'm also burning MTBE and paying through the nose for it! Just doesn't stack up.

Most gas in cold country use winter blends, affecting your mileage.
 

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MTBE has been banned from gasoline sold in several states because it has been found to be contaminating ground water.

Only about 20 states have banned it. California & New York banned it in starting in January 2004. Kentucky banned it starting in January 2006.
 

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I am having some MPG issues used to get 29-31mpg/420-430 miles per tank with the 2.4L 4 speed auto lately I have only been getting 26-28 mpg/360-400miles per tank ....33k miles recent oil change (within 1000mi) and air filter (within 300 mi) tires at 38psi...only difference is that it is now winter here and the avg temp in now close to about 10 degrees outside...are the colder temps to blame for this muck of a MPG drop?? or am I missing something....this is a BIG deal as I drive 100+ miles a day....any ideas
38 psi for your tires, that seems a little high. Have you always been at that pressure?
 

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2011 Malibu LTZ 3.6L V6 Red Jewel Tintcoat
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On my '09 30 all around (per the label) caused me to wear the shoulders too soon and wouldn't grip very well, wet or dry. I experimented with different inflations and settled on 38 front / 36 rear, which is what I use on my '11 now.

It's a little high but still below the Max Cold Inflation Pressure of 44 listed on the sidewall. The ride suffers a little but the performance is much better. The wear seems to be better as well, with no scuffing on the shoulders.
 

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Generally gas stations change over to a winter blend fuel that does cause a loss of fuel mileage. Plus, if you warm your car up at all before driving you will notice a decent decrease. I am down to 20mpg between remote start and winter blend gas. I let my car warm up for the full 10 minutes though. It isn't anything out of the ordinary.http://info.bellperformance.com/blog/bid/49483/Fuel-Mileage-Dropping-Blame-The-Winter-Blend-Gasoline
This is a good article, but I don't agree with the author's position where he throws ethanol out of the discussion as part of the problem.

Ethanol is crap - the only value I see to this stuff is to supplement the U.S. fuel supply in the event of a national emergency (as in oil import interruption). Otherwise, it plays hell with engines (all the way down to lawn equipment), does not burn nearly as clean as the proponents claim, and I think it could very well interact and magnify the drop in vehicle fuel mileage when mixed with the winter gas blend.

Otherwise, I really don't have an opinion on this... ;)
 

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Here in Canada we have 10% ethanol in our regular and mid grade fuel. Using mid grade in my 2009 2LT with the V6 I get 21 US MPG in town, 29 on the highway, that equates to 26/35 in Imperial gallons, or 8/10.7 Litres per 100 km. That is better than my neighbour gets with his 2010 2.4 litre LTZ. And the big bonus is the trans does not downshift with the V6 at every hill.
 

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Here in Canada we have 10% ethanol in our regular and mid grade fuel. Using mid grade in my 2009 2LT with the V6 I get 21 US MPG in town, 29 on the highway, that equates to 26/35 in Imperial gallons, or 8/10.7 Litres per 100 km. That is better than my neighbour gets with his 2010 2.4 litre LTZ. And the big bonus is the trans does not downshift with the V6 at every hill.
Yeah, we have 10% ethanol gas down here in the Land of the Mouse.

I have a '10 LTZ 2.4... I get just under 20 mpg in city traffic, but on the highway, I have no problem hitting 31 mpg+ at 70-75 mph.

Hell, I was impressed that my Bu could consistently get 23 mph on the FL Turnpike. At 90 mph.

Now, about this thing you were talking about... something called a "hill"..... what are those? :p
 

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