I own a 2002 S80 turbo. I wondered how accurate the computer is in determining gas mileage. When my highway speeds average between 60 and 65, my car's computer computes my gas consumption between 31 and 36 miles per gallon depending on the terrain. It seems high to me. With gas prices closing in on $2 per gallon, it is something I wonder about.
Hmm, I dream of $2 a gallon! I'm just happy that my volvo is now on LPG and I can fill up in the UK for ~ $2.50 and that's phenominally cheap.
If you want to talk petrol prices then lets start the ball rolling at ~ $6.63 for an imperial gallon.
Your turn! ;)
David.
My '87 Saab 9000 regularly gave 35 mpg at highway speeds. My son-in-law has a later Saab 9000, and he gets the same mileage. Both had (have) 5-speed manual transmissions. Automatic transmissions don't give as good gas mileage. My 2000 S40, which is smaller, doesn't so as well, but it has an auto tran
To check, you need to calibrate your odometer by driving a known distance, and track the amount of gas you use as well as the mileage. Normally, the computer is accurate.
Hi, P.S. - - -
You can double check the computer quite easily and accurately. I've done it on both of our Volvo's (98 V70XC & 02 S60AWD). In both cases it may be luck, but the reported numbers are right on the money.
No rocket science here, just the numbers. On a recent trip from Reno to Elko, NV, we got exactly 31.0 mpg for the 300 miles trip. Fairly level road, all at about 5,000' across the High Desert. Average speed reported by the computer was just under 75, as that's the posted limit and I generally drive at five over. Most of us have gotten similar figures under similar inputs. There is one caveat, of course, and that's the "Miles to Empty" number, which changes as mpg numbers vary. This number is derived based on the average mpg over the preceding 12(?) miles (or is it 6?). You can drive around town for a few days after a fill up and see a number - then watch that number increase significantly as you hit the highway.
As to mileage vs cost of gas - once again we see that our fellow Americans have only one real concern: "Is it available?" Today's paper reports SUV sales for the past month are up by 18%(!!) from the previous month, while passenger car sales are down by a small %. For all the concern for these dubious economic times, it's clear that too many folks have altogether too much money - and no heart for conservation.
bob noble Reno, NV, USA
I checked the accuracy of the reported MPG on my 2000 S80 T-6 and it was always within one mpg of the manually calculated figure. I'm not even sure which is the more accurate figure because the pumps have a certain allowable error. The computer knows how many milliseconds each fuel injector pulses for and the flow rate so it should be quite accurate. The highest mpg I've ever achieved over a tank of fuel starting and ending at the same elevation was 29.6 mpg. My speed varied between 55 mph and 70 mph. Mostly about 60-65.
Spanky
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