Average mini-van mpg?

[wander2039]

I'm curious to see what everyone is averaging their minivans. Doesn't matter on make/model!

Our Escape is getting a whooping 13-15 city mpg in the cold weather 19-20 on the highway. Nothing new really mpg wise the highest we ever got was 25mpg and that was years ago. Thinking about replacing it with something with a bit better mpg so we won't have to drive the Festiva everywhere. Granted the Escape doesn't get much drive time nowdays less than 10k a year.. trying to decide if it's worth switching!

 

[highe]

05 town&country 3.3 152,000 miles
19 mpg in winter 22 mpg summer

 

[Hokiefyd]

Both of our former Mopar minivans got right close to the revised EPA ratings. '03 Grand Caravan 3.3 was 17/24 and '07 Town & Country 3.8 was 16/23.

We always get best mileage in the winter, and summer MPG with lots of in-town driving could crash to 15 MPG on a tank, especially with the T&C. Overall, though, we were close to the EPA ratings.

 

[simple_gifts]

20 mpg @ 10K / year = 500 gals of gas = $1500
40 mpg @ 10K / year = 250 gals of gas = $750

There isn't much of an economic case for purchasing a vehicle to save $750/year. Your call. Case subject to 3rd party scrutiny as always.

 

[svhanc]

Our 2011 Toyota Sienna Limited gets a combined 22mpg.

Not much cost justification for buying one based on mileage...

 

[AuthorEditor]

Quote:
20 mpg @ 10K / year = 500 gals of gas = $1500
40 mpg @ 10K / year = 250 gals of gas = $750


Of course over 10 years you've saved $7500, which is not chump change to me. And, if gas gets to $4 or $5 per gallon, which I expect soon you might be looking at $12,500 over 10 years.

 

[DrinkDuff77]

2006 Honda Odyssey w/o VCM
Winter: 18-20mpg city, 25-26 mpg highway
Summer: 20-22mpg city, 27-28mpg highway

Highest roadtrip tank was 28.5 mpg last summer with average speed around 65-70 mph

 

[jimbeamalki]

97 Windstar, 3.8L., 101k miles. Originally got 18 city/ 24 highway. Now get 16 city / 22 highway. Don't know if drop is from age of vehicle, or the way gas has changed; probably a little bit of both.

 

[simple_gifts]

Originally Posted By: AuthorEditor
Quote:
20 mpg @ 10K / year = 500 gals of gas = $1500
40 mpg @ 10K / year = 250 gals of gas = $750


Of course over 10 years you've saved $7500, which is not chump change to me. And, if gas gets to $4 or $5 per gallon, which I expect soon you might be looking at $12,500 over 10 years.


Bear in mind, your calculations of $12,500 assumes you get the new car for free. ALL aspects of this need to be considered. In CT, I pay property tax on vehicles, which for new ones is in the hundreds of $$ / year.

I just don't want you to spend $15K to save $12K

There are a lot of psychological forces associated with the pain of fueling up weekly/daily that cause people make a decision that financially, doesn't add up, but relieves the pump sticker shock.

Plenty of others forces that say "go for it" ditch that hog.

 

[daves87rs]

ONly if you need the space.

 

[Buick92]

2005 Dodge Grand Caravan, usually 24 or 25 MPG on a highway trip, much worse in town, the way we drive we average about 21 overall.

 

[JayhawkRoy]

01 Mazda MPV 18-19 mpg winter and 20 mpg summer. Commute 2/3 highway and 1/3 stop & go.

Rented a 2010 Grand Caravan and got about 25 mpg in the fall.

 

[wander2039]

All the mileages is about what I expected. All I see is averages just curious what everyone was in the "real world". It does look like the majority of them get a few better mpg's compared the Escape. But that's to be expected since their 1 lower to the ground and 2 mostly like more aerodynamic. Highly doubt their any heavier or have less horsepower probably about the same on both counts. I tried talking the fiancée now wife into a minivan at that time but we didn't have kids. I remember having a minivan growing up so versatile! We're still weighing our options. Pluses the Escape is paid off and very dependable. Negatives space is limited with one kid let alone 2 or 3.. waiting on the head count on Friday. I do believe I can squeeze a few more mpg out of the Escape. I guess I've been asleep at the wheel.. 40k since the last air filter changed.. oops. In my defense I think I cleaned it a few times. And a few other things like removing the running boards and I think the resonator is about to delete itself that might help also.

 

[fdcg27]

Real world, our '97 Aerostar 3.0 averaged >20 mpg all year round, and I could get 23-24 mpg on my commute.
Best ever was a little over 25 mpg, while worst ever was around 16 mpg.
Of course, the last Aerostar was made nearly fourteen years ago, and they are pretty crude as compared to any current minivan.

 

[ag_ghost]

2000 Windstar 3.8 SE, SF Bay Area in California
138K miles
5W30 it's whole life, mostly Valvoline conventional, 1/2 quart in 5000 miles at most.

~16 around town; lots of grocery getting, stop & go
~25 last year on a cross-country trip.
I'd take it tomorrow if needed; only complaint is the paint chipping off of the roof.
It ran like crud the first couple of years, then Ford updated the firmware on the computer and it's been great ever since.

 

[ET16]

I get about 25 mpg on the highway in my '03 Mazda MPV.

 

[CivicFan]

''

 

[JDD]

2005 Sienna 3.3 liter. Bought it new. It gets 19-20 around town and 26 on the fwy. I average just over 21 MPG for several years now. Great for a large vehicle IMO, and has been totally trouble free. I would buy another one in a minute if I could afford it.

 

[JTK]

Originally Posted By: DrinkDuff77
2006 Honda Odyssey w/o VCM
Winter: 18-20mpg city, 25-26 mpg highway
Summer: 20-22mpg city, 27-28mpg highway

Highest roadtrip tank was 28.5 mpg last summer with average speed around 65-70 mph


Yep, our 2008 Ody LX gets exactly the same. Unfortunately it almost never sees long highway travel.

Our 2001 Windstar LX 3.8L got ~18-20 city, 23 tops on the highway.

Joel

 

[kkreit01]

Most newer minivans are quite a bit heavier (800-->1000#) than your Escape, and they'll have much more room. Our 08 Mariner 3.0 4wd got pretty good: ~20 mixed/24 highway -- same motor/transmission as yours. In winter it was about 18 mixed. I don't have any "city-only" data to compare. All of our commutes = some highway. When we had an 04 3.9 Freestar, it wasn't any better than our Mariner. I drove a Grand Caravan 3.3 as a rental once. Power was horrible, and MPG wasn't much better.

For better MPG, and about the same size, you could look for a used Focus Wagon, or newer 2.5 fwd Escape/Mariner/Tribby. A fwd 2.4 Equinox will be roomier, and get better MPG also. I'd stay clear of the 2.3L Escapes. MPG isn't much better, and power is waaaay down compared to 3.0.