Road Trip Completed: 705 Miles-38.5 MPG

[mdreibelbis]

Originally Posted by Mechanic

Condor, your comment about not wanting to be tricked into buying a 2013 Accord based on the mpg estimates you've been reading is, IMHO, healthy skepticism.

FWIW, when I first purchased my '09 EX 5-spd MT Accord, I did what most new owners do: I drove a bunch of miles running in a new engine and came up with an average mpg number. That number was high -- so high that I didn't post it because I knew that no one would believe a '09 Accord could routinely achieve "my" number.

Suffice it to say my mileage was comparable to the #s being quoted here. Not quite as good, but damn close.

So, what does that tell you? Well, according to one of the largest fuel mileage websites, fuelly.com, 8th gen. Accords average 26-28 mpg. My mileage, on the other hand, has never been that low, ever, in four years. Not even close.

From this you can infer that It's All in How You Drive Your Car.

IMHO, what you are reading now are excellent results achieved by new owners operating their cars under favorable conditions. In more normal conditions -- i.e., traffic, on-and-off the gas, hills, A/C running, teenage son, etc., you should expect those results will be difficult to achieve. In short, remain skeptical.

Right - All Kings and I are showing is that it is possible to get 40 mpg.

[II Kings 9:20]

Originally Posted by mdreibelbis

Right - All Kings and I are showing is that it is possible to get 40 mpg.

I'll add as a reply to the quote you replied to that 40 is the best one can do and yes under ideal conditions. The head wind going home knocked 2 MPG off the figure based on the computer on the freeway only without any city.

If I can convince wifey to take it to VA for thanksgiving (that dang low flat angled passenger seat is truly a PITA) I am expecting no more than low to mid 30s across the WV turnpike all the way to western VA. Approaching Richmond, I expect 40MG. Rest assured, you'll see the results here first.

To get the best MPGs, I have been granny driving (eco does that for me) but gentle starts etc make a difference. I have opened it up on occasion and felt my first "downshift" on the CVT-normally you do not feel any shifts.

[Condor637]

Thanks and I'm liking those responses, Honda has done an exceptional job on the new Accord. I'm planning on renting a 2013 for a few day's before the purchase to make sure I can commit long term.

[II Kings 9:20]

Originally Posted by Condor637

Thanks and I'm liking those responses, Honda has done an exceptional job on the new Accord. I'm planning on renting a 2013 for a few day's before the purchase to make sure I can commit long term.

good idea to rent. Get it on a flat road, set the cruise on 69 and expect 40MPG.

For 1300 miles I am averaging 32.5 MPG about 900 freeway and 400 city. That avg will drop with more city miles. I got 22 going home today over 4 miles. Of course more 70 mile round trips to Columbus on the freeway will raise the avg.

[Condor637]

Originally Posted by II Kings 9:20

good idea to rent. Get it on a flat road, set the cruise on 69 and expect 40MPG.

For 1300 miles I am averaging 32.5 MPG about 900 freeway and 400 city.

Appreciaate the mpg updates.

Thanks again..

[II Kings 9:20]

Interesting, only got 36 going into Columbus today 65 miles, only 5-7 miles city, eco, 60-65MPH.

[mdreibelbis]

Originally Posted by II Kings 9:20

Interesting, only got 36 going into Columbus today 65 miles, only 5-7 miles city, eco, 60-65MPH.

Windy? We've had a rainy windy day today in NE Ohio.

[II Kings 9:20]

Originally Posted by mdreibelbis

Windy? We've had a rainy windy day today in NE Ohio.

Winds for sure, part of Frankenstorm.

[A&Fbro28]

Nice mpg number. The best I got in my 08 EX-L Navi K24 was 34mpg. What's even more interesting is that the best I've seen and regularly get in my 08 TL is 34mpg.

[II Kings 9:20]

Made another 70 mile round trip last night, very high winds from Sandy. At times I felt like I was piloting a boat-not unstable but a lot of presure on the front end and steering corrections; not unexpected with 50mph gusts. It has not required lots of steering correction under other circumstances.

My MPG on this trip (computer-the same one that reported 40.5 for over 300 miles on the firt leg of the road trip in this OP) was 35.5MPG. No cruise (NEVER NEVER use cruise in the rain) and 60-65 MPH about 8 miles in the city.

I have not been able to reproduce the magical 40+ MPG as of yet. High winds on both recent 70 mile freeway trips might explain it along with colder temps.

Interesting thing I noticed was the instant MPG meter in the center cluster would drop down below 30 MPG with sustained wind or significant gusts, very noticeable.

Edit: Eco yes, I leave it there.

[falk1rk]

Kings, I think I may have found a solution the the flat seat position on the passenger seat.

Yesterday my wife and I spent a couple of hours in the car and she got frustrated and said that if she had known how the passenger seat was going to be she would not have bought the car, this really bugged me because I absolutely love everything this car.

This morning I decided to go out and see what I could do. After about 2 hours of messing around trying to figure out what I could do I think I figured it out.

What I did was have the wife over the past several days adjust the drivers seat till it was just the way she wants it and save it as one of the saved seat positions. I then used a level and a tape measure and determined that the rear of the seat bottom needed to be approx 4 7/8" lower than the front. I then took the same measurements on the passenger seat and found that all I needed was to raise the front of the seat approx 1/2".

I tried many things over the 2 hours but in the end what seemed to work was to loosen all 4 bolts that hold the seat down, the rear mounts have a slot instead of a round hole and the front holes are not very tight to the bolt. There are plastic covers that cover the rear bolts, pry them up from the back and sides, if you pry from the front you will break off the little plastic studs that hold it down at the front. I loosened the front bolts almost all the way. I found some 1" x 2" flat steel that was approx 3/8" thick. The front seat mounts, when looked at from the side, are the shape of an upside down L, the top part of the L sits on the bump in the floor and the front side has the hole that the bolt goes through. With the bolts loose I lifted the seat and slid the flat stock under the top part of the L. I then just tightened down the bolts and in the process it pushed the seat back and then the front part slightly bent (because of the change in the angle) till it met the mounting surface. I ten tightened down the rear bolts and put te covers back on.

1/2" seems like a very small amount but for some reason it makes a big difference.

I had the wife go out and sit in the car and both she and my daughter immediately said it made a huge difference. We still have to go for a drive today to really put it to the test but for now it seems to have fixed the problem. I am now about 1/8" from being at the exact same tilt as her drivers seat memory position and I did not have to make any cuts or order any parts.

I hope this helps.

[II Kings 9:20]

Originally Posted by falk1rk

Kings, I think I may have found a solution the the flat seat position on the passenger seat.

Yesterday my wife and I spent a couple of hours in the car and she got frustrated and said that if she had known how the passenger seat was going to be she would not have bought the car, this really bugged me because I absolutely love everything this car.

This morning I decided to go out and see what I could do. After about 2 hours of messing around trying to figure out what I could do I think I figured it out.

What I did was have the wife over the past several days adjust the drivers seat till it was just the way she wants it and save it as one of the saved seat positions. I then used a level and a tape measure and determined that the rear of the seat bottom needed to be approx 4 7/8" lower than the front. I then took the same measurements on the passenger seat and found that all I needed was to raise the front of the seat approx 1/2".

I tried many things over the 2 hours but in the end what seemed to work was to loosen all 4 bolts that hold the seat down, the rear mounts have a slot instead of a round hole and the front holes are not very tight to the bolt. There are plastic covers that cover the rear bolts, pry them up from the back and sides, if you pry from the front you will break off the little plastic studs that hold it down at the front. I loosened the front bolts almost all the way. I found some 1" x 2" flat steel that was approx 3/8" thick. The front seat mounts, when looked at from the side, are the shape of an upside down L, the top part of the L sits on the bump in the floor and the front side has the hole that the bolt goes through. With the bolts loose I lifted the seat and slid the flat stock under the top part of the L. I then just tightened down the bolts and in the process it pushed the seat back and then the front part slightly bent (because of the change in the angle) till it met the mounting surface. I ten tightened down the rear bolts and put te covers back on.

1/2" seems like a very small amount but for some reason it makes a big difference.

I had the wife go out and sit in the car and both she and my daughter immediately said it made a huge difference. We still have to go for a drive today to really put it to the test but for now it seems to have fixed the problem. I am now about 1/8" from being at the exact same tilt as her drivers seat memory position and I did not have to make any cuts or order any parts.

I hope this helps.

Man, you are brilliant-thanks a million. Going to try it tonight. I have a lot of seat experience having gutted put together the interior on a 1980 300SD.

I have been talking with another guy in a thread here and I am going to link your solution.

You are correct, that slight angle makes a huge difference. I have also eyeballed my driver seat vis a vis the passenger and the difference is not much but Honda managed to find the worst possible angle to set the pass seat. Clearly no one closely evaluated it (or they did not notce).

Edit: wouldn't you know it, no 3/8" slab steel laying around so it's off to Lowes tomorrow or to the machine shop on Monday.

[falk1rk]

The wife and I went for a drive today and she says that it is much better than it was before. She says she thinks it needs to tilt a little more, which make sense since I am about 1/8" away from her drivers position. It is amazing that such a little bit is noticeable.

To get more tilt I will have to get a thicker piece of metal and probably have to take the Dremel to the bolt holes and make them a little longer. We ride into work together every day and it is a 30 minute drive so I am going to leave it the way it is for a while and see if she still complains.

Hopefully yours ends up just like mine and it works for you.

[II Kings 9:20]

^^^ thanks, going to try the 3/8 which should be adequate. I am heading to the machind shop tomorrow. 1"x2"x 3/8. Since I am buying de novo, would a 2x2 or 1x1 be best or is 1x2 ideal?

[falk1rk]

The pieces that I used were 1 1/2" x 1 3/4" I just used some pieces that I had in my junk box in the garage. I needed 2 pieces on the outboard mount ad one on the inboard mount.

I would recommend taking to bolts out on your seat to get a good idea of what it looks like. The mounts are a formed metal part and on the outboard mount there are 2 areas where the mount rests on the bump in the floor and on the inboard mount there is only one area that rests on the bump. It does not make much sense when you read it but if you take the 4 bolts out and take a look it will make more sense. Also you may find that a larger or smaller metal piece will work better I just used what I had.

I would assume that the seats will be consistent but it kind of looked like the holes were bigger than they needed to be to accommodate for differences in mounts and the spacing of the holes in the floor, you may need pieces that are slightly different and what I did may not work exactly the same way on your car.

Good luck.