60k maintenance questions....

[SevenBizzos]

Car: 2004 Hyundai Elantra

I've noticed as the car has aged and miles increased that the MPG which used to be 29-32 had fallen off to 25-28. I was keeping up with the filter changes etc. myself.

At 66k miles I finally had the dough to get it in for the timing belt change. During the phone conversation for the appointment, I asked if they had any ideas on why the mileage has dropped off. The service rep (as he should) said the 60k maintenance work would probably help. I agreed to let them do it and I took the car in.

I got the car back, and the first tank of mileage was 21.5 MPG. I ran another couple hundred miles expecting improvement. The best I was able to get was 24.8 MPG and that was on the highway cruising at 60mph for 100 miles.

So I call the dealership back to ask what they think could have happened. The rep basically told me that "if the check engine light isn't on, there's nothing wrong with the car". I asked what things could have happened to drop the MPG over 30% in one day (during a maintanence appointment that was supposed to improve my MPG). The only thing he said could have happened was my tires might have been over inflated, to which I replied "and that could make a 30% difference in my MPG?" No response.

So he will not look at the car (because the "check engine" light isn't on) because "there's nothing wrong with it".

Is this normal? Getting a car serviced for "low MPG" and it being returned to you getting 33% LESS?

I'm just confused. For a 2.0 liter engine that used to get 30+MPG, I think I should expect to remain close to that.

The 60k maintanence was around $560.

Any suggestions????

-7

 

[Blake Sobiloff]

Judging MPG on a single tankful can lead to incorrect decisions; give the car another couple of tankfuls before deciding what the current MPG is.

Also, did the 60K service include new spark plugs? Some manufacturers try to stretch the plugs for 100K miles, but I've found significant wear long before then that does negatively impact mileage.

 

[Titan]

This first tankful dropped because they had it idling, or they drove the puke out of it while testing it during the 60K "check-up". It is possible that the checkup didn't do anything to increase efficiency of the car, and that your slowly-developing inefficiency problem is simply continuing to erode your efficiency. It could be catalytic converter going bad, oxygen sensor(s) going bad, spark plugs not functioning well, etc.

 

[JustinH]

Sounds like typical winter gas, mixed with longer warmup periods.

Same thing happens to my saturn ion over the winter. It doesn't even get close to 30mpg during the winter.

 

[MC5W20]

Did they change the oil? If so was it thicker then what was in there? I think there is more then just one reason this happened. It sounds like a combination of different things.

Take an average of ten tanks of gas and see what your mpg is. That is the only reliable way to do it.

 

[Smoky14]

I just took a trip where my mileage fell from 37+ to 28 MPG. Fortunately the trip was long enough to figure out that the cause was the fuel from one station which caused the problem. The bad news was I filled up there going and comming, because I thought the wind was the cause of the mileage drop.
It evidently had an over load of winter mix. The mileage is slowly recovering and the driveability is getting better.

Smoky the disappointed

 

[Donald]

I think the mileage needs to be averaged over a few tankfuls. Winter blend gas will decrease it somewhat.

My Camry is down from 30 in the summer to around 22 now. I am a little unsure. Just put two new tires on as old ones had slow leaks and were worn.

And I am on Auto-Rx maint. doses

 

[wiswind]

As mentioned, there are a LOT of variables this time of year.
Colder weather, winter "blend" gasoline, and traffic conditions all work to lower your fuel economy on a "same case" situation.
I would not panic about a 1 tank or colder weather fuel economy.
I would check the tire pressure, higher should give you better fuel economy, lower would give you lower fuel economy.
Snow tires can lower your fuel economy (not to say that you should not use them in the appropriate application.....as you don't get good fuel economy in the ditch).

If you are in Northern ILL, you have the same fuel as we do in SE Wisconsin, ALL of it is up to 10% ethanol, and winter blend lowers it more.
If you are in a area that is, say "on the border" between the "reformulated" and NON-reformulated.....then you might have gotten the Chicago blend on a tank of fuel.

But, again, winter fuel economy is a tough one to blame on the vehicle if it seems to be running well.
So, your shop is correct at this time....and a tank or so with low mileage might be nothing other than the winter conditions, etc, and it could be a waste of your money to probe further right now.......but keep an eye on things otherwise.

I know, at the price, the drop in economy hurts.

 

[Donald]

You could try a Auto-Rx cleaning and then go on maint. dose. It should clear up crud in the ring pack and give you better compression and thus better economy.

 

[swalve]

The catalytic does not affect efficiency-- unless it's clogged, and you'd feel that in poor performance.

Things that probably weren't done during the 60k service that would creep up and cause poor mileage:

1- Dragging brakes
2- Worn/dry bearings
3- Oxygen sensor
4- Bad alignment causing wheels to scrub against pavement?

 

[Market525]

Could you list for us exactly what the repair order states that they did on the service? Was the service advisor very clear with you as to what was being done?

Not trying to bash dealers, but sometimes these 30K, 60K, 90K services turn into rip-offs.

 

[SevenBizzos]

Thank you for the responses. I've read them all a few times.

I should have mentioned that Elantras have a MPG meter on the dash instrument panel. That is what I'm using to figure the MPG out. It keeps tabs on the MPG and resets only when manually reset, which I do every fill-up.

Update: It's been 1300 miles since the service and the MPG is still terrible. I think the best tank I had was 23.2 MPG.

To answer the questions:
In the car's owners manual, it states the 60k service is:
- Change engine oil and filter
- Inspect fuel lines, fuel hoses, and connections
- Insect vapor hose and fuel filler cap
- Replace air cleaner filter
- Replace Platinum coated spark plugs
- Inspect valve clearance
- Inspect drive belt (water pump, alternator, and a/c)
- Replace coolant
- Inspect automatic transaxle fluid
- Inspect brake fluid
- Inspect brake hoses and lines
- Inspect rear brakes/parking brake
- Inspect exhaust pipe and muffler
- Inspect suspension mounting bolts
- Inspect steering gear box, linkage and boots/lower arm ball joint
- Inspect power steering pump, belt and hoses
- Inspect driveshafts and boots
- Inspect air conditioning refridgerant

The book the dealership gave her with the car had that list and a couple of additions:
- Rotate tires
- Inspect and adjust tire pressures
- Perform computerized 4-wheel alignment
- Replace fuel filter *(not done)
- Road test vehicle
- Wash outside *(not done)

I don't know why the car wasn't washed, but don't really care. I'd rather not have them do it.

The explanation of the fuel filter not being done was that they do not change the filter unless the car does not run any more. I guess it's in the tank.

At any rate, all that was listed on the invoice for being done for the 60k service was:
PERFORMED DURABLEND OIL AND FILTER CHANGE. ROTATE D TIRES. REMOVED & REPLACED AIR FILTER, PCV VALVE VE, AND WIPER BLADES. FLUSHED COOLANT AND INSPE CTED VEHICLE. WATER PUMP LEAKING COOLANT.

Hope that helps people that wanted to know. I'll repost in summer with new MPG's since some of you thought it may be winter blended gasoline.

 

[The Critic]

Why wasn't the transmission fluid changed?

 

[ChiTDI]

Your leaking water pump issue... I'm not familiar with the engine but if the pump leaks on the timing belt, performance and economy would sure suffer I would think.
They replaced spark plugs, so you have a type, gap, and torque issue to think about as well.

 

[blueiedgod]

When you first got the car all of the states were using MTBE as oxygenator and octane booster. EPA has banned MTBE use in recent years. So, the refineries have been using Ethanol as oxygenator and octane booster. Ethanol, by nature is only comprized of 2 carbons, as opposed to 6-8 in gasoline. Many states mandated 10-15% ethanol in gasoline. Hence the lower fuel economy. Ask people who run on E86 what they get. It is pitifull.

 

[BarkerMan]

If your dealer won't help maybe it's because if there is no computer code they have no idea of what to do. Does this car have a long warranty that requires you to get it serviced at the dealer? The reason I ask is that you should have at least received flowers? Isn't that the custom when you get screwed?

Wait until spring and don't use the reading supplied by the car. Get a pencil and paper and do it the old fashioned way, calculate it yourself.

 

[OriginHacker21]

I have a 2.2L Sunfire almost at 114,000 miles (bout 20 miles to go).

It gets the same MPG that I've had since day 1.

However, I just bought new tires and must have done it right when California switched to Winter gas (december) - MPG dropped from 36mpg to 33MPG and is consistently staying there. I think it was a combination of new tires and winter gas.

Also, out here in California the winter brings wind = worse mpg.


What the other posters are saying - when I've had my car in at the dealership they idled it excessively - from what I calculated they Idled about a gallon of gas away (almost an hour?!) and I was just getting some warranty work done on my gas tank intake.