Help me Improve gas mileage in my escape

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What is the *actual* mpg? 275miles/tank is rather meaningless.

Pump the tires up, a few psi over the door jamb should be ok. I presume it's an automatic. Figure out how to drive so it not only stays in top gear but with the convertor locked up as much as possible. Coast to stops, avoid using the brakes as much as possible (but obviously use them when you have to!).

And trade for something else when you get a chance. This will never touch the mpg's that can be had in a proper econobox. Of course you'd have to balance mpg savings against vehicle purchase, it might take years to recoup if this current vehicle has lots of life left.
 
Originally Posted By: Olas
Higher tyre pressure, pull ALL unnecessary weight out, and imagine there's an egg between your foot and the gas pedal
Also, don't use AC, advance your timing a few degrees, and if that still isn't enough, start to look at the 'Aero Mod' section of Ecomodder.com


It's all computer controlled - can't advance the ignition timing on those.
 
Originally Posted By: Miller88
Originally Posted By: Olas
Higher tyre pressure, pull ALL unnecessary weight out, and imagine there's an egg between your foot and the gas pedal
Also, don't use AC, advance your timing a few degrees, and if that still isn't enough, start to look at the 'Aero Mod' section of Ecomodder.com


It's all computer controlled - can't advance the ignition timing on those.


Maybe not by hand, but the software to change ignition tables is on eBay for reasonable money..
 
It's a 6-cyl SUV. What is the EPA rating on it?

Best advice I can give is to drive as if there is an egg under your shoe.
 
please tells us your typical drives. unless you are driving on highway for 30 miles at a time or more, you are going to have hard time improving the mileage.
 
Sounds normal. Ours averages 19-20 around town and 22-25 on the highway. Has a small tank which doesn't help. Beyond all the tips above spin test your rear wheels to make sure your brakes isn't dragging and wheel bearings good. Ours were dragging on one side making for terrible mileage.
 
Owned a 2002 XLT 4Wd with the 3.0L. Got tired of fixing it so traded it in in 2010. Only had 80,000 miles, but just could not keep it running reliably.
One item that kills fuel economy is a collapsed catalytic converter. Yours may be bad - had to change mine.
 
My neighbor had the 3L in his Ranger. Traded it in for the bigger 4L (I think) and got better mileage.
 
Your 2002 4WD V6 Escape is rated for 22 hwy / 16 city mpg.

How far off are you from these figures? Have you noticed a recent drop in mpg that would suggest a bad part or sensor?

Best to figure out your average mpg (and not just range per tank) before you start guessing and spending a bunch of money on new parts.
 
Originally Posted By: Clevy
Tc-w3 in your fuel. One ounce for every 5 gallons of fuel might help a bit.

Mos2 has improved mileage in every v-8 engine I've added it to.

+1
 
Originally Posted By: stranger706


Best to figure out your average mpg (and not just range per tank) before you start guessing and spending a bunch of money on new parts.


Cost to fill and miles per tank are never good indicators of fuel economy.

My dad's F350 gets 400 miles to the tank. My Focus gets 400 miles to the tank. The tank on the F350 is 3X the size of that on my Focus.
 
Drive less. Did you not know the EPA estimates when you bought the vehicle? Gas is actually quite cheap right now, what happens when it goes back to $4 or higher?
If you drive enough that you are actually "going broke on gas", the only thing to do is sell it and buy an economical car.

Cable bill? Cell phone? Food budget? These are much easier to find lower priced options for vs significantly improving the MPG of a v6 CUV.
 
You're getting about 18mpg...thats only about 2 mpg off of Edmunds(fwiw) est.,mpg .
Certainly within tune-up improvement range.
 
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Originally Posted By: JHZR2
It's a 6-cyl SUV. What is the EPA rating on it?

Best advice I can give is to drive as if there is an egg under your shoe.



I used to drive that way until I got a vehicle with a digital fuel consumption readout. I found that average mpg increases when achieving speed rapidly then letting off and cruising then slowly achieving cruising speed.
 
Originally Posted By: 19jacobob93

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On highway runs I can get 1000km (620mi) out of a 68l tank in a Ford 4.0 with a 4 speed auto. Works out around 34 mpg
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You get an AU Falcon to average 6.8 litres per 100km? That's about 40mpg...
 
Driving like there's a egg under the gas pedal will not help any with your Escape. With the gearing and the power the V6 puts out if you haven't noticed it's like instantaneous take off regardless of lightly you hit the gas pedal. Just noticed your's is a 4x4 that won't help any either.

What viscosity of oil do you run? In 2 different Duratec's have noticed 5w30 vs 5w20 can yield .5 to 1 mpg. Now it'll feel like a slug. The only way in 100K and 8 years we've owned ours to get good mileage is highway runs at 65 to 70.. which seems to be the sweet spot. Got 320 miles on our last tank but that had some highway.

Now if you wanted a Escape with good mileage should of got the 2.0L or even better the 2.3L and you would of got high 20's. The 2.3L is a great engine.
 
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