# Sick of 15mpg



## goodal (Sep 12, 2013)

With the start of school, the wife is driving quite a bit more. We are now paying around $90 a week just to get her around town in the Armada. We are both sick to death of this and are now in the market for a used SUV that gets awesome gas mileage, holds 7 and won't break the bank. We have just about settled on a Toyota Highlander Hybrid. Its just a smiggen smaller than the Armada and is supposed to get 28-30mpg.

Does anybody have one of these or have any thoughts?


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## snickerd3 (Sep 12, 2013)

is it stop and go around town sort of driving or more highway sort of around town...


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## Wolverine (Sep 12, 2013)




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## roadwreck (Sep 12, 2013)

^^

I knew that was coming


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## Supe (Sep 12, 2013)

Given what those Highlanders weigh, I'd be stunned if it got 30 mpg without unicorn dust being sprinkled in the tank.


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## Road Guy (Sep 12, 2013)

I would also really wonder about anything that carries 5-7 people that would get more than mid 20's and have any kind of powers when you need it..

I've got a family of 5 and I think I just have to assume that one vehicle is gonna get shitty gas mileage...


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## ventilator (Sep 12, 2013)

We have a Traverse and average about 20-22mpg with it. I don't drive it much buy I know that out of the 350 miles per tank prob about 200 is highway and the other 150 is stop/go commute. It won't wow you with performance but its strong enough that it doesn't feel underpowered and I fit 20 bags of mulch in the back last week with the back row down.


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## snickerd3 (Sep 12, 2013)

i get 21-22 mpg with my pilot. 90% highway. but the 10% in town is a lot of stop and go the closer i get to all highway i get 24 or so.


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## goodal (Sep 12, 2013)

All highway miles. We live in the middle of nowhere. We are looking at the hybrid model. Customer reviews claim mpg in the upper 20's. Over 200hp supposedly. This will be the workhorse of the family. It has to carry up to 7 people, at times, and pull a trailer, at times. A leaf wont pull a trailer and I refuse to drive a minivan.


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## csb (Sep 12, 2013)

We own a 2006 Ford Escape Hybrid that's still averaging 30 mpg.

How often are you carrying 7 people? Are they not able to go in two cars? I ask because having one giant vehicle for "just in case" can burn a lot of money.


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## snickerd3 (Sep 12, 2013)

does a hybrid have enough power to pull a trailer?


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## MA_PE (Sep 12, 2013)

7 people plus a trailer and you want 20+ miles per gallon. Tall order.

I vote a suburban with a 40 gallon gas tank


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## snickerd3 (Sep 12, 2013)

The pilot fits 8 people can pull a trailer and the 4wheel drive V6 version gets 21-22 MPG. you drop to 2 wheel drive and the mileage goes up some.


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## csb (Sep 12, 2013)

snickerd3 said:


> does a hybrid have enough power to pull a trailer?




Yes. It's a dual engine system- gas powered four cylinder along with the electric motor. When you really need to get going, the vehicle uses both at the same time.


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## MA_PE (Sep 12, 2013)

csb said:


> snickerd3 said:
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> > does a hybrid have enough power to pull a trailer?
> ...


that would explain why most regular car haulers/tralier folks have the GMC 2500/Ford F250/Dodge 2500 RAMS crew cabs with the dual wheels and turbodiesels


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## Dexman PE PMP (Sep 12, 2013)

Tesla Model S. No trailer, but infinity on the MPG...


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## mizzoueng (Sep 12, 2013)

Diesel? the 2013/14 jeep grand cherokee diesel is supposed to get 28 on the hwy, 21 in the city


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## csb (Sep 12, 2013)

MA_PE said:


> csb said:
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Hey, she asked if it had enough power to pull a trailer. She didn't ask what the best vehicle for it was and he didn't say how big the trailer is that he's using.


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## roadwreck (Sep 12, 2013)

csb said:


> MA_PE said:
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If pulling a trailer is the primary purpose I think you'd want one of these, no?


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## Dexman PE PMP (Sep 12, 2013)

^^^


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## csb (Sep 12, 2013)

'Merica


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## MA_PE (Sep 12, 2013)

East down and bound..... We gonna do what they say can't be done


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## Road Guy (Sep 12, 2013)

F Yah!!!


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## goodal (Sep 13, 2013)

The Pilot is sharp and gets better than my destroyer but we are going for maximum mpg change. 4-5mpg better is ok but 12-13mpg will make a significant dent in the fuel budget. We don't pull anything big. Just a 7x12 or occasionally something a little bigger, but I don't want to have to borrow somebody's truck to bring some lumber home from Lowes. And no it doesn't have to pull the trailer and 7 people at the same time. I've found a highlander in Los Angeles that I like and (more importantly) can afford. Its a $200 flight out and 21 hr drive back to bring it home. I am not ready to do that yet. It sure would be nice if I didn't care what I drove or could afford to buy something new. It would be so much easier to buy cars.


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## roadwreck (Sep 13, 2013)

badal said:


> It sure would be nice if I didn't care what I drove...




I've gotten to this place, and it is glorious.


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## ktulu (Sep 13, 2013)

My wife drives a 2010 Highlander and consistently gets between 22-25 mpg. Mostly city miles too.


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## goodal (Sep 13, 2013)

roadwreck said:


> badal said:
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> > It sure would be nice if I didn't care what I drove...
> ...


I can see why.


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## roadwreck (Sep 13, 2013)

badal said:


> roadwreck said:
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> > badal said:
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Ha, just out of curiosity I looked up what my car is worth. According to kbb.com the best I could hope for is $3k. I don't mind. It gets me where I need to go and it's comfortable. To me that's all that really matters in a car. 95% of the time I'm commuting to/from work, so what does it really matter what I drive so long as it gets me there and I'm not a sweaty mess when I arrive. I've had numerous friends &amp; colleagues mock my car, I just don't care. Sure they drive flashy cars that look cool or go fast, but they use theirs for the exact same thing I use mine for and mine is cheap (no payments) and gets 25-30mpg. Why would I want to buy something new and flashy just because I can?


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## Road Guy (Sep 13, 2013)

You mean you don't want to look cool in a used jaguar like that dipshit that still works there?

I'm gonna need a new car soon, but not really looking forward to paying for it.. But the Durango is approaching. 200,000 miles ...guess I have gotten my. 24k out of it?


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## Flyer_PE (Sep 13, 2013)

I was pretty much there with my old truck until it ruptured a brake line last year due to rust. I just lost confidence in the vehicle for long distance travel. I typically do a bunch of research and buy a new vehicle that I really like and then run it until it gets to the point where I just don't trust it any more. It took 14+ years for the last one to get there. I'm hoping for the same from the new one.


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## csb (Sep 13, 2013)

^ I'd say that's excellent ROI.


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## Master slacker (Sep 13, 2013)

roadwreck said:


> badal said:
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HA! Gotcha beat. I had to lie on KBB to get a price on my car since it doesn't go back to 1992 and they don't rate "poor" cars. $1239 for my beater car. It's probably more worth a deck of playing cards. But for 34 MPG and no loan on it, I can live with six different shades of red, a busted front bumper cover, and a passenger door that doesn't open from the outside.


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## engineergurl (Sep 13, 2013)

I am confused..... are you still considering this purchase despite the other thread you started today?


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## Dexman PE PMP (Sep 13, 2013)

^^^ eg, I would assume its because of the other thread. Smaller/cheaper SUV that doesnt use as much gas.


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## Sapper PE LS (Sep 13, 2013)

engineergurl said:


> I am confused..... are you still considering this purchase despite the other thread you started today?


I was wondering the same thing.

badal - I was going through the same thoughts myself recently because I drive a wrangler on 33's and a lift which gets probably 10 mpg and recently increased my commute from about 6 miles round trip to 80.

I know this might not be feasible since you live out in the country, but is it possible to do some trip planning or car pooling? I was able to find a van pool which saves me nearly $300 per month. And my wife has gone to route planning which has made it possible to extend time between fillups from a week before to about a week and a half now.

Also, I know you say you refuse to get a minivan, but don't be so quick to discount them, they are quite comfortable and our odyssey gets probably close to 24 mpg.


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## csb (Sep 13, 2013)

I have never encountered anyone who regretted their minivan purchase. Everyone says, "I can't believe I fought it so long!"


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## Road Guy (Sep 13, 2013)

No


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## Dexman PE PMP (Sep 13, 2013)

Sapper said:


> engineergurl said:
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> > I am confused..... are you still considering this purchase despite the other thread you started today?
> ...


I don't believe this vehicle is for Badal, but rather his wife. Sounds like her "around the town" driving with the kids, etc is crushing their gas budget, and "around the town" type driving isn't necessarily something you can carpool with...


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## engineergurl (Sep 13, 2013)

Dexman PE said:


> ^^^ eg, I would assume its because of the other thread. Smaller/cheaper SUV that doesnt use as much gas.




but then you have a car payment, different insurance rates because it's a new car (possibly a change to full coverage rather than liability only)... so you really might not be saving any money...

plus $90 is like WOW, where the heck are you driving...


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## Sapper PE LS (Sep 13, 2013)

Yeah, Dex, that's why I suggested trip planning. My wife has gone to one outing per day, plots out points A, B, C etc and goes the direct route to each even if it means stopping by the grocery store with both kids after school or whatnot. Just some thoughts, it may or may not work, but data to be considered nonetheless.


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## Dexman PE PMP (Sep 13, 2013)

engineergurl said:


> Dexman PE said:
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> > ^^^ eg, I would assume its because of the other thread. Smaller/cheaper SUV that doesnt use as much gas.
> ...


Assuming he doesn't already have a car payment.

I wish my weekly gas bill was only $90. If Mrs Dex and I don't carpool we're spending $120+ a week, and that doesn't count any driving on the weekends...


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## knight1fox3 (Sep 13, 2013)

Road Guy said:


> No


+10


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## snickerd3 (Sep 13, 2013)

Dexman PE said:


> engineergurl said:
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i spend around $150 a week on gas...anything smaller would be a blessing but it isn't going to happen


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## EM_PS (Sep 13, 2013)

Cripers, you guys spend almost as much on gas a week as I do on childcare for 2 kids!


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## roadwreck (Sep 13, 2013)

Road Guy said:


> You mean you don't want to look cool in a used jaguar like that dipshit that still works there?


It's amusing when riding in that Jaguar. I know you wouldn't believe this but said dipshit isn't a very courteous driver. I like to tell him not to worry about it, everyone expects the guy in the Jag to drive like an asshole.


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## csb (Sep 13, 2013)

I spend, on average, $40 a month for gas.


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## goodal (Sep 13, 2013)

The $90/week was only for her tank. Including mine and its about $140+/week. And yes the other thread is influenced by this one. I don't have a car payment now and we are going to purchase the next smaller/higher mpg vehicle with the proceeds from this one and continue not having a payment. The insurance will probably be slightly cheaper because it won't be as big of a vehicle or 4x4. Her driving is due to picking up and carting kids around town and actually getting to town (30+ miles away). Not conducive to car pools. I did car pool to work several years ago right at the time gas peaked at $4. it was awesome, but, alas, that opportunity no longer exists.


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## engineergurl (Sep 13, 2013)

^^ gotcha... I was just wondering... for us to trade in any of our cars it wouldn't be beneficial.... I commute a bit of a distance right now but have been driving my husbands car for the better gas... every other week I fill up on Wednesdays for about $60 and the opposite weeks I need to fill up on tuesdays and saturdays so in a 2 week time frame I spend about $180 in gas. Fortunatly at this point both cars are nearly paid off, so we are looking more towards the lack of a car payment and lower insurance payments since we don't want a car any smaller than the what we have now (a mazda 6).

We are looking at getting another truck, but I think that the jeep will be around forever. It's sort of like my sport trac, the only thing that is going to kill it is if I end up driving it into a ditch.

Anyway, my point was going to be I have a 2002 Jeep grand cherokee with an inline 6 and highway driving I get about 20 mpg, city driving I sometimes get as low as 13 mpg. I'm sure the newer ones are better.


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## Sapper PE LS (Sep 13, 2013)

The newer Jeep Grand Cherokees aren't much better. I had an 08, and it wasn't great with gas, maybe not quite as bad as yours, but what killed it for me was the payment. It was a damn expensive car. We ditched it as soon as we could and got the Odyssey, a decision we do not regret.


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## engineergurl (Sep 13, 2013)

Sapper said:


> The newer Jeep Grand Cherokees aren't much better. I had an 08, and it wasn't great with gas, maybe not quite as bad as yours, but what killed it for me was the payment. It was a damn expensive car. We ditched it as soon as we could and got the Odyssey, a decision we do not regret.




I can imagine, 10 years old they go for about 10,000 depending on what the extras are... but every problem I've ever had with it, has turned out to be a simple thing... and the one thing that is expensive to fix, I don't need to fix because Alabama doesn't do inspections...


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## Sapper PE LS (Sep 16, 2013)

You know I'd be interested in the price of a used hybrid as well. I'm wondering if the cost of gas would be less than the commuter can pool I use. Unfortunately though I'm not in a position to pay cash for a 15k to 20k vehicle (I just bought a house) so I'd have a payment, but I have a payment now, but not for much longer. If a hybrid saved me money in gas cheaper than the van pool and the payment was the same or less than my current payment (doubtful) then it wouldn't be a terrible idea to get one.


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## goodal (Sep 16, 2013)

You can get a 2006 highlander hybrid for around $11,000...


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## snickerd3 (Sep 16, 2013)

wasn't the battery life on hybrids 7-10 yrs before they needed replacing or reconditioning?


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## Capt Worley PE (Sep 20, 2013)

Badal, you consider a used Escape Hybrid?


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## csb (Sep 20, 2013)

^ Battery on those is warrantied for 10 years/100,000 miles.


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## Capt Worley PE (Sep 20, 2013)

csb said:


> ^ Battery on those is warrantied for 10 years/100,000 miles.




Would you belive it has to be? It counts as an emissions controls device and they, by federal law, must be warrantied for that.


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## csb (Sep 20, 2013)

I thought it was an advertising gimmick.


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## Judowolf PE (Sep 20, 2013)

On a semi-related note: does any one use E-85 flex fuel in their vehicle? How much does it change your mileage? When the price was just slightly better than regular gas I wasn't very interested, but I noticed yesterday that the price was about 70 cents a gallon less and thought, hey maybe I'm missing out...


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## Capt Worley PE (Sep 20, 2013)

E10 decreased my mileage by a full 10%. I would imagine E85 would be even worse.


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## snickerd3 (Sep 20, 2013)

the E85 ford tarus sedans we had at work were getting like 15-18 mpg...at least that is what I noticed on longer trips. your regular maintance costs will go up too. the E85 shit clogs up the full lines like no other, line flushes are needed on a more frequent basis and cost in $100 range.


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## knight1fox3 (Sep 20, 2013)

LOL @ E85...


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## Capt Worley PE (Sep 20, 2013)

Anyone remeber the M85 'fuel of the future' debacle?

Read here: http://www.thedodgegarage.com/na_efi_ffv.html

And the story at the bottom here: http://www.thedodgegarage.com/amusing_stories.html


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## goodal (Sep 20, 2013)

The Escape doesn't have a third row that I'm aware of, so I did have it on my short list. We are driving to Montgomery, AL (6hrs) tomorrow to potentially buy an 06 highlander Hybrid. Due to the potential financial storm I see coming, I've had to lower my standards on a few things, but I think its mechanically sound. Fingers crossed. By the way, is anyone interested in an 05 Armada? j/k


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## Capt Worley PE (Sep 20, 2013)

^Have you noticed the roof on those things bears an uncanny resemblence to a 58 Nash wagon?


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## MA_PE (Sep 20, 2013)

Beep-beep. his horn went beep-beep-beep


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## knight1fox3 (Sep 20, 2013)

^ the little Nash Rambler....


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