MikeP

Just drove from New Orleans to Houston yesterday and was amazed at the gas mileage. Glad I Didn't buy the HS, which I seriously considered before test driving the ES. I obeyed the speed limits, which was pretty tough and wound up with an "Average Since Fill-up" of 35.4 mpg. At one point the average went to 37.1. If you've ever driven that same route along I-10, you know there are no downhill stretches (no uphill either).

I realize that these readouts can be 2-3 mpg optimistic, but even if so, I am still extremely happy I didn't buy the HS. I am more impressed with this car every day.

LexBob2

Nice mileage! You're right, the ES does get good gas mileage for the size of the car.

The readout on my '07 is about 1 mpg optimistic vs. doing a manual check. I can usually get over 30 mpg on flat roads if I keep it under 70 or so. Between 75 and 80 it's around 28 mpg.

lextooth

What year is your ES? What octane of gas did you use? What were the tire pressures?
How many miles are on your ES?

MikeP

It's a 2010 and a week old today. Including this trip, I have about 400 miles on it now. I filled up with Chevron regular unleaded. I keep 35 psi in the tires. I didn't drive like a hyper-miler, but I am careful with the accelerator and try to be as smooth as I can (egg under foot).

tromly

Great mileage, bet you'd hit 38 if you used premium, try Shell 93, that's what I use in all my cars. Good Luck

MikeP

I just wonder about the economics. Will the added MPG offset the added cost per gallon?

Joeb427

iTrader: (1)

Mike,you bought a Lexus.Premium is recommended to have optimum performance and MPGs.
Why skimp for say 20 cents a gallon?

MikeP

I really didn't want to start another thread about the benefits/evils of premium vs. regular gas, but I guess the resolution to this puzzle has not been found. In my area, the difference is more like 30 cents a gallon. I would have no problem spending the extra $ if I was told that I was causing damage to the engine and significantly reducing performance. I estimate that it would cost me about $230/yr. to use premium instead of regular, based on my annual mileage. That's not a great deal, but if it is not necessary, I'd rather have it in my pocket than the oil companies'. Being frugal is one reason I can afford a Lexus.

Seriously though, if someone can convince me that I am damaging my engine in any way, I will start using premium. If the result of using regular fuel is my car's current fuel economy and performance, I am more than satisfied.

Joeb427

iTrader: (1)

Mike,you won't do any damage to the engine using 87 but premium is recommended.
Don't you think Toyota would rather recommend 87?Some new Cadillac models have a 87 requirement.
The engineers recommend premium for a reason.Peak performance and better MPG.30 cents worth,maybe not but I'll go with what's recommended.

MikeP

Joe, thanks for the debate. What's great about CL is the way we can disagree with each other's opinion while maintaining a respect for each other.

lextooth

Nobody in these discussions has mentioned that Ethanol/gasoline, (regardless of the octane), costs 10% less but results in 10% decreased mileage! I guess that if we all wanted to maximize the mileage with pure non-ethanol gasoline, regardless of the octane and cost, we would fill up with 91-93 octane pure non-ethanol gasoline. Isn't this a interesting discussion?

Joeb427

iTrader: (1)

I owned a BMW 335i and there was a lot of talk on BMW forums about ethanol because of high pressure fuel pump failure problems on the twin turbo engines.I feel it's a fuel delivery design flaw but most believe ethanol is the culprit.
Anyway,ethanol content is said to be 10% but on the BMW forums,tests showed the content is actually higher in many cases.
No non ethanol gas in my area.Canada has some stations.

Joeb427

iTrader: (1)

So true.

MikeP

The discussion is interesting because it shows that not everyone has the same set of values and having that difference doesn't necessarily imply right or wrong. In my world today, getting good fuel mileage is important, not just for the economics, but also for the environment. Just 3 years ago when I bought my M35, gas mileage was far from the top of the list of criteria for choosing a car.

If I had to pinpoint the top item on my list of "must haves" in choosing my current car, it would have to be value. For me, the ES is a perfect example of getting the most bang for my buck, especially in these economic times. It is reasonably priced, has good resale value, great fuel economy for its size and has a nice amount of high tech features, good for the environment and good value. But besides this clinical approach to choosing a car, the emotional aspect (drool factor) is important too.

The great thing about the ES for me, is that I knew it had all the clinical factors before it bought it and it did get my Adrenalin going when I stared at it, but as I get to know the car better by experiencing the joy of driving it in different conditions and learning how frugal it is, I'm drooling a lot more. It's so much better than having high expectations of a car before buying it and then being disappointed the more you get familiar with it.

Guess I should tie this back to gasoline/ethanol. The value factor comes into play again for me. Does the cost return value? I have not found ethanol to provide value, in that the lower cost does not offset the reduced fuel mileage. I try to avoid it when I can.

oldcajun

I have a 2008 ES350 and enjoy the highway mileage although I drive a little faster than the OP, I still regularly get over 30 mpg. This is not "hybrid mileage"! The real advantage of the hybrid is in town where the engine shutdown at stops and electric power at low speeds is most effectice. While it is true that the ES will get near the HS highway mpg, no one I know gets any thing like 35 mpg in town with an ES.

I had a RX400h before this ES and it really got 30 mpg in town. My problem is that 80% of my driving was freeway with a 75 mph limit where the hybrid system had minimal effect so I got an ES this time instead.

Around town in New Orleans or Houston, the HS should get around 15 mpg better mileage than an ES.

As far as use of premium fuel, my personal test over 400 mile freeway trips to Southern California from Tucson indicates about 2 mpg better mileage with premium. It is not always consistant, but over several trips the average is better with premium by about 8%. Since premium here is about 8% higher than regular, it seems to be about a wash in cost so the extra power is free.

Steve