The family and I got back from our 10 day, six state road trip yesterday evening and I wanted to report back on how the Burb performed and the full trip fuel mileage as a follow-up to my Road trip fuel economy predictions? thread.
Overall, the Burb performed excellently. The only problem it gave me was that the cargo door lock and rear hatch actuator went out mid-trip. A visit to an AAP and a borrowed ratchet and 7 mm socket later and I got it rigged up to at least lock using the switches in the vehicle; I think the lock assembly will need to be replaced in order to lock and unlock it using the key and to open the glass. 38ish ounces of TC-W3 in the gas tank and one quart of engine oil were consumed. I used 87 octane or higher the entire trip, even though I know I could have gotten away with 85 or 86 at elevation.
As for fuel efficiency, we traveled a total of 3,060 miles and consumed 186.236 gallons of gas, for an average of 16.430 mpg. bourne was closest with a guess of 16.5 mpg. That is without adjusting the mileage to account for the larger than stock tires (1" taller), which I decided to throw out because although that 3% difference is reflected in the speedometer vs GPS speed readings at 65 mph (speedo says 65 mph but GPS says about 67), there is only a slight difference at 75 mph and almost none at 80 mph, speeds at which we traveled much of the time. I guess I could apply a 1.5% adjustment, for 16.677 mpg. Even without that adjustment, I think I did pretty darn well. I firmly believe I could have gotten 17 mpg or higher if I stuck to 65 mph the entire trip. My wife enjoyed the trip much more than she expected and we are planing a road trip to Portland, OR, next summer, during which I think I will hit the 17 mpg mark, as I will have headers and a tune by then and will not be exceeding 70 mph.
And here is a trip and fuel economy breakdown by fillup, for those who are interested (warning, it is long!):
Corona, CA → North Las Vegas, NV
Didn't get on the road until nearly 8:00 p.m., so there was very little traffic. I was pretty good about cutting out the cruise control and using throttle control to keep the TC locked up when going uphill, much of which was climbing the Cajon Pass. Spent the first night in North Las Vegas. This is the only time I filled up with non-Top Tier fuel due to Pilot's price being $0.30 per gallon less than the Chevron on the other side of the intersection.
261 miles
16.556 gallons
15.765 mpg
North Las Vegas, NV → Sandy, UT
The climb from 2,200 feet to 4,300 feet was pretty gradual, allowing the TC to stay locked without having to disengage the cruise control very often. Speed limit was 75 to 80 mph most of the time and I kept it right at the speed limit as much as possible. Encountered some rain and cross winds. Spent night 2 in Lehi, UT, and filled up in Sandy on our way out. I had forgotten to top up the tire pressure before leaving, so I had to add air to bring it up to the target 40 psi. I am sure the 30 degree ambient air temperature difference did not help the pressure levels.
412 miles
24.558 gallons
16.777 mpg
Sandy, UT → Casper, WY
Climbed the Rockies on I-80, crossed the continental divide, cruised on into southern Wyoming, stopped for dinner in Rawlins, WY, (where we had some surprisingly good Thai food), and headed up to Casper to fill up on gas and caffeine before proceeding with the rest of the day's trek. I believe the speed limit was mostly 75 mph from Sandy to Rawlins and 65 mph from there to Casper (highway, not interstate). I do not think the fuel tank filled up as much as usual as the fuel economy number below is the highest for the trip and seems a bit too high.
408 miles
22.505 gallons
18.129 miles
Casper, WY → Chadron, NE
Mostly downhill and flat lands on highways, driving at night, with some light rain and snow. We arrived in Chadron on Thursday and did not fill up until Sunday when we headed out for a day trip. We did very little driving between our arrival and day trip departure, although the little driving we did was very short trips (2 to 5 miles) in 30F-50F weather.
196 miles
12.487 gallons
15.696 mpg
Chadron, NE → Chadron, NE
Day trip to Wind Cave National Park and Mount Rushmore Memorial, followed by dinner in Rapid City, SD. The trip started with some pretty strong crosswinds and rain, nearly all of the driving was on country highways with a good dose of mountain road driving between Wind Cave and Mount Rushmore, and I followed by BIL from Chadron to Wind Cave, and he does not seem to know how cruise control works and constantly fluctuated between 55 and 65 mph. We took a tour of the Wind Cave but spent barely any time at Mount Rushmore due to the snow and 30F temperature...in mid-May...
237 miles
15.002 gallons
15.798 mpg
Chadron, NE → Colorado Springs, CO
Had to take the longe route from Chadron to Denver due to road closures because of snow...in mid-May. Stayed in Denver, spent a day walking around the 16th Street mall, and headed to Colorado Springs the next day to visit some friends who moved there from SoCal a few years back and to visit Focus on the Family. I had hoped to be able to wait to fill up in Denver right before beginning our journey home, but no such luck. Both the Chadron to Denver and Denver to Colorado Springs trips were net elevation gains, but the fuel economy numbers below are probably a bit low as I was parked on a decline when filling up in Colorado Springs, so the tank filled a bit more than normal.
438 miles
27.546 gallons
15.901 mpg
Colorado Springs, CO → Grand Junction, CO
Stayed in Denver one more night and visited the Butterfly Pavilion (our middle daughter loves all things bugs) before heading out at about 2:00 p.m. Crossed back over the Continental Divide with elevation topping out a bit over 11,000 feet (nearly a 6,000 foot gain). TC unlocked a lot as some of the inclines were pretty darn steep. Stopped in Grand Junction for dinner and to fill up on gas. Due to a higher fill in Colorado Springs, the number below is probably a bit high.
334 miles
19.027 gallons
17.554 mpg
Grand Junction, CO → St. George, UT
Second leg of the long Denver to St. George single day trek (didn't get into St. George until about 1:30 a.m.). Some elevation gains through eastern Utah, speed limits of mostly 70 to 75 mph, with some 80 mph stretches once back on I-15.
382 miles
23.287 gallons
16.404 mpg
St. George, UT → Corona, CA
Home at last! A lot of gentle downhill driving, but I was pretty aggressive on any uphill sections and ran at 3,000+ rpm quite a bit as I did not want to sacrifice speed for fuel economy; I was ready to get home! Temps were warm (80F leaving SG, 108F south of Las Vegas, and nearly 100F at home). I did not fill up immediately upon getting home, so this last leg includes a 25 mile roundtrip between home and church, during which I probably averaged my normal 12-13 mpg. Filled up this morning and had to let 4 psi out of each tire to get them back down to 40 psi due to the higher ambient temps.
392 miles
25.268 gallons
15.514 mpg
Overall, the Burb performed excellently. The only problem it gave me was that the cargo door lock and rear hatch actuator went out mid-trip. A visit to an AAP and a borrowed ratchet and 7 mm socket later and I got it rigged up to at least lock using the switches in the vehicle; I think the lock assembly will need to be replaced in order to lock and unlock it using the key and to open the glass. 38ish ounces of TC-W3 in the gas tank and one quart of engine oil were consumed. I used 87 octane or higher the entire trip, even though I know I could have gotten away with 85 or 86 at elevation.
As for fuel efficiency, we traveled a total of 3,060 miles and consumed 186.236 gallons of gas, for an average of 16.430 mpg. bourne was closest with a guess of 16.5 mpg. That is without adjusting the mileage to account for the larger than stock tires (1" taller), which I decided to throw out because although that 3% difference is reflected in the speedometer vs GPS speed readings at 65 mph (speedo says 65 mph but GPS says about 67), there is only a slight difference at 75 mph and almost none at 80 mph, speeds at which we traveled much of the time. I guess I could apply a 1.5% adjustment, for 16.677 mpg. Even without that adjustment, I think I did pretty darn well. I firmly believe I could have gotten 17 mpg or higher if I stuck to 65 mph the entire trip. My wife enjoyed the trip much more than she expected and we are planing a road trip to Portland, OR, next summer, during which I think I will hit the 17 mpg mark, as I will have headers and a tune by then and will not be exceeding 70 mph.
And here is a trip and fuel economy breakdown by fillup, for those who are interested (warning, it is long!):
Corona, CA → North Las Vegas, NV
Didn't get on the road until nearly 8:00 p.m., so there was very little traffic. I was pretty good about cutting out the cruise control and using throttle control to keep the TC locked up when going uphill, much of which was climbing the Cajon Pass. Spent the first night in North Las Vegas. This is the only time I filled up with non-Top Tier fuel due to Pilot's price being $0.30 per gallon less than the Chevron on the other side of the intersection.
261 miles
16.556 gallons
15.765 mpg
North Las Vegas, NV → Sandy, UT
The climb from 2,200 feet to 4,300 feet was pretty gradual, allowing the TC to stay locked without having to disengage the cruise control very often. Speed limit was 75 to 80 mph most of the time and I kept it right at the speed limit as much as possible. Encountered some rain and cross winds. Spent night 2 in Lehi, UT, and filled up in Sandy on our way out. I had forgotten to top up the tire pressure before leaving, so I had to add air to bring it up to the target 40 psi. I am sure the 30 degree ambient air temperature difference did not help the pressure levels.
412 miles
24.558 gallons
16.777 mpg
Sandy, UT → Casper, WY
Climbed the Rockies on I-80, crossed the continental divide, cruised on into southern Wyoming, stopped for dinner in Rawlins, WY, (where we had some surprisingly good Thai food), and headed up to Casper to fill up on gas and caffeine before proceeding with the rest of the day's trek. I believe the speed limit was mostly 75 mph from Sandy to Rawlins and 65 mph from there to Casper (highway, not interstate). I do not think the fuel tank filled up as much as usual as the fuel economy number below is the highest for the trip and seems a bit too high.
408 miles
22.505 gallons
18.129 miles
Casper, WY → Chadron, NE
Mostly downhill and flat lands on highways, driving at night, with some light rain and snow. We arrived in Chadron on Thursday and did not fill up until Sunday when we headed out for a day trip. We did very little driving between our arrival and day trip departure, although the little driving we did was very short trips (2 to 5 miles) in 30F-50F weather.
196 miles
12.487 gallons
15.696 mpg
Chadron, NE → Chadron, NE
Day trip to Wind Cave National Park and Mount Rushmore Memorial, followed by dinner in Rapid City, SD. The trip started with some pretty strong crosswinds and rain, nearly all of the driving was on country highways with a good dose of mountain road driving between Wind Cave and Mount Rushmore, and I followed by BIL from Chadron to Wind Cave, and he does not seem to know how cruise control works and constantly fluctuated between 55 and 65 mph. We took a tour of the Wind Cave but spent barely any time at Mount Rushmore due to the snow and 30F temperature...in mid-May...
237 miles
15.002 gallons
15.798 mpg
Chadron, NE → Colorado Springs, CO
Had to take the longe route from Chadron to Denver due to road closures because of snow...in mid-May. Stayed in Denver, spent a day walking around the 16th Street mall, and headed to Colorado Springs the next day to visit some friends who moved there from SoCal a few years back and to visit Focus on the Family. I had hoped to be able to wait to fill up in Denver right before beginning our journey home, but no such luck. Both the Chadron to Denver and Denver to Colorado Springs trips were net elevation gains, but the fuel economy numbers below are probably a bit low as I was parked on a decline when filling up in Colorado Springs, so the tank filled a bit more than normal.
438 miles
27.546 gallons
15.901 mpg
Colorado Springs, CO → Grand Junction, CO
Stayed in Denver one more night and visited the Butterfly Pavilion (our middle daughter loves all things bugs) before heading out at about 2:00 p.m. Crossed back over the Continental Divide with elevation topping out a bit over 11,000 feet (nearly a 6,000 foot gain). TC unlocked a lot as some of the inclines were pretty darn steep. Stopped in Grand Junction for dinner and to fill up on gas. Due to a higher fill in Colorado Springs, the number below is probably a bit high.
334 miles
19.027 gallons
17.554 mpg
Grand Junction, CO → St. George, UT
Second leg of the long Denver to St. George single day trek (didn't get into St. George until about 1:30 a.m.). Some elevation gains through eastern Utah, speed limits of mostly 70 to 75 mph, with some 80 mph stretches once back on I-15.
382 miles
23.287 gallons
16.404 mpg
St. George, UT → Corona, CA
Home at last! A lot of gentle downhill driving, but I was pretty aggressive on any uphill sections and ran at 3,000+ rpm quite a bit as I did not want to sacrifice speed for fuel economy; I was ready to get home! Temps were warm (80F leaving SG, 108F south of Las Vegas, and nearly 100F at home). I did not fill up immediately upon getting home, so this last leg includes a 25 mile roundtrip between home and church, during which I probably averaged my normal 12-13 mpg. Filled up this morning and had to let 4 psi out of each tire to get them back down to 40 psi due to the higher ambient temps.
392 miles
25.268 gallons
15.514 mpg
