Try to find cause of high gas mileage

I have a 93 Camry that I bought last May. I liked the gas mielage I was getting until it suddenly got worse a couple of months ago. Plugs are good, air filter is good, O2 sensor is new. No apparent gas leak anywhere, my mechanic looked closely for one. I use regular Shell gas. Could someone put me on the right path to finding the probable cause?

Cheers

JP

Reply to
JP
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Temperature in NB,ca went from 35C in May to -35C now? Gas usage will go up accordingly in winter months.

Reply to
PI

I've owned a number of vehicules over the years and been used to see an increase of gas consumption during the colder months. In this case, my gas mileage is not normal. Thanks for your smart comment.

JP

Reply to
JP

double check your tire pressure with colder temps they may read low. change to a lighter weight oil like 5-30 if you have not already...check brakes for dragging? Are you letting it idle more to warm it up than usual? Fuel injectors been cleaned lately? I find I get a little bit better mileage from premium fuel but not enough to justify it very often...try another brand of gas too.

Reply to
ROBMURR

Also, if you are getting no-where after all these checks, perhaps the muffler has a loose baffle which has shifted and increased back-pressure,......a long-shot tho. Catalytic convertors can collapse and produce a similar result.

The base timing should also be checked, tho I suspect the 'check-engine ' light may indicate if this too far out,...but all the same.

Jason

Reply to
Jason James

"JP" sez:

Does your locale do "oxygenated" fuel such as 10-15% blends of Ethanol, Methanol or MTBE? We have that crap foisted on us down here in the US and it accounts for a 15% reduction in mileage (never could figure out how you make less pollution burning more of the stuff - its all an Arthur Daniels Midland conspiracy :-).

VLJ

Reply to
vlj

Are you getting heat? Perhaps the thermostat is stuck open and the car is in "warm up" mode.

Reply to
Tom Hamilton

As far as I know, there is no Ethanol in canadian gas. I'll check though but it is doubtfull.

JP

Reply to
JP

I'm going to see my mechanic tomorrow morning. The thermostat is on his list of things to check but I DO get all kinds of heat and I must say that the engine warms up quite rapidly so, no complaint there. Good thinking though.

JP

Reply to
JP

It is not thinking, it is the solution I offer for every problem.

Reply to
Tom Hamilton

It doesn't. The problem is, that to compensate for the 15% lower power, most people push their engines much harder. Gas mileage drops and so on.

The real problem with the MTBE claims is that they don't consider emissions per mile driven. 15% less pollution but 15% more fuel consumed:

10 - standard pollution level. 10 miles driven.(100) 8.5 - new pollution level.

11.5(compensate for power)*85 = 97.75

2.25% real emissions reduction assuming perfect driving habits to compensate. In reality, it's a wash.
Reply to
Joseph Oberlander

The real problem with MTBE is the ground water contamination it has caused, resultant cancers, and respiratory effects. Finally, New York and Connecticut have gotten their heads out of their butts and outlawed MTBE.

Reply to
tomcas

Read Toyota technical articles #58 & #32 found at

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your car uses two wires O2 sensors (no heater circuit) which can bethe case during cold weather, or a Temperature Sensor (ECT, IAT, or EGR)might be faulty.

Reply to
IceMan

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