Lousy City Fuel Economy-- SXT

[ChargerS.X.T]

My best around town has been 16 mpg.
Worst has been 14.5. I drive 7 miles each way to work and during the weekends do longer drives that include some highway.
I only have 1500 miles on my car and it may improve but this is lousy.
I should have bought the hemi but the reason I didn't was some owners had been reporting 12-13. The price difference was only $3000 because my SXT is almost fully loaded.

[bluecar1968]

Its hard to get good economy from a 4000+ pound car Your city economy is better than my 5.7 if you realy wanted good economy you should have got a prius

[ChargerS.X.T]

I would never drive a Prius, way too ugly and small.
But for a comparison the Avalon with 268HP is rated at 22 mpg city and it weighs only 200lbs less than the V6 Charger.
The fuel economy of 19 city is way too optimistic.
Just trying to say that for a saving of a couple of mpg the V6 is giving up way too much performance against the Hemi.

[spoonerock]

Sounds like you're ready to trade up! :ninja:

[Jason298]

anyone else w/ an sxt having the same fuel economy? just wonderin...

[goval]

I drive 60 miles everyday from Monday to Friday, and about 30 miles on weekends. I usually have to fill the tank up every 8-9 days. I think it's pretty good comparing to what I was getting on my previous truck, which was around 10mpg. If you do the figure, it's around the same you're getting. No car actually get what is claimed on the sticker, unless you put on cruise control everytime you drive. About the HEMI, no, you would have been getting even worse. Be glad with what you got now, or you can switch to a Honda, they are the only ones that I know you get what it claims; but then again, you loose all the power, lol.

[Dredz]

Hey Charger SXT I have an SXT and my mileage is pretty good:D . I drive 25miles a day and fill up my baby once every two weeks, so Im pretty happy. Its a good change from my old F150 :dead:

[ChargerS.X.T]

spoonerock
V6 Discussion Moderator


Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 1,422
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__________________
I would but the initial $3000 cost for the Hemi will now be $8-10K after taxes.
Depreciation is quite high.

[SupremeG]

Your mpg is determined by several factors. If you like to accelerate hard at stop lights, yeah, thats really going to kill your mpg. If you like to speed and go above 60 mph, that also kills your gas. Using the A/C all the time hurts it. If your tire is not properly inflated, you don't change your oil often, and if you don't change out your air filter, all those factors can kill your mpg. If your drive is mostly stop and go that may be the cause. If at all possible, try and find a way to and from work with the least amount of stop lights/stop signs.

[canadiancharger]

Yea,
When I had my stx I found it was pretty bad on gas.

[ChargerS.X.T]

CanadianCharger-How long did you keep your SXT?
How much did you pay to upgrade to the Hemi?

[ChargerGirl]

Well, 16 mpg would sound pretty good compared to my 11ish. :D 2.5 miles to work, couple dozen stoplights, binary accelleration/braking. :rockon:

[ga charger]

take off slower mpg you are getting is about average.

[08MagRacer]

fill your tires up with nitrogen
it made a 1mpg difference for me when I drove a Durango

[dijedil]

...binary accelleration/braking. :rockon:

Ha I love that term! :clap: I also gladly trade a mpg or 3 to drive that way myself.

[divinejr11]

I get around 310 miles and still have a gallon to a gallon and a half left when I fill up, 75% highway (not very flat highway) and 25% city. I drive with somewhat of a led foot; I almost never have the ESP activated and usually use the autostick in the city. I have the 18 Gallon tank so I am happy with my mileage. Mods are below.

[ipimpthisc]

My best around town has been 16 mpg.
Worst has been 14.5. I drive 7 miles each way to work and during the weekends do longer drives that include some highway.
I only have 1500 miles on my car and it may improve but this is lousy.
I should have bought the hemi but the reason I didn't was some owners had been reporting 12-13. The price difference was only $3000 because my SXT is almost fully loaded.


MY POPS TOLD ME THAT WHEN A CAR IS NEW...IT WASTES LOTS OF GAS TILL ITS PROPERLY BROKEN IN...HE SUGGESTED TO COMPARED THE MILEAGE AFTER AROUND 7K...I FOUND THIS TO BE TRUE..MY MPG WENT UP ABOUT 4 MPG AFTER 8K SO I THINK HE WAS RITE, MY .02 CENTS...ALSO THIS WAS WHEN I OWNED A 300C HEMI...I WENT TO FILL UP AT LEAST 2 TIMES A WEEK..AT 60 BUCKS A POP...AND SUMTIMES EVEN 3X A WEEK, NOW I FILL UP 1 TIME A WEEK FOR 40 BUCKS WITH THE MINIMOUSE 2.7L...TRUST ME U ARE SAVING MONEY, JUST BORROW A HEMI FOR 3 DAYS AND FEEL THE BURN IN UR WALLET. AFTER ALL I DONT WANNA BURN RUBBER ON MY 24'S AND WHY GET TICKETS AND SPEND EVEN MORE MONEY..I JUST CRUISE AROUND, EVERY1 THINKS I HAVE A HEMI..I JUST ROLL WITH IT, AND NEVER RACE...ACT LIKE THE BODY BUILDER THAT DOESNT FIGHT...BE HAPPY WITH MILEAGE...ICANT EVEN IMAGINE WHAT THE 6.1 GETS

[HKLEVI]

My best around town has been 16 mpg.
Worst has been 14.5. I drive 7 miles each way to work and during the weekends do longer drives that include some highway.
I only have 1500 miles on my car and it may improve but this is lousy.
I should have bought the hemi but the reason I didn't was some owners had been reporting 12-13. The price difference was only $3000 because my SXT is almost fully loaded.
I did the exact same thing last Feb, traded my Durango in on a SXT for the mileage and was never happy (with the MPG). I got a loaded SXT as well and after a few months decided to trade to an RT. I got my current car in Jun and have been happy ever since. I get better MPG while only a few better, it is better and I do not spare the right peddle at all. I drive almost the same distance each way as you do and I have found that the MDS DOES work. My MPG went down when I started taking surface streets to and from work instead of the hwy. I average 15 MPG in town which is ALL I drive now. I know that sounds bad to some, but my SXT's one time best was 17 MPG and I think I fouled the math to get that. Otherwise I was running between 13 and 14 MPG. Like I said, I do not spare the throttle and I still get this millage.
The above are right, heavy car and smaller engine = lower MPG. Now I know others get great millage and good for them, I just never did.

[divinejr11]

Run 89 octane from a reputable gas station, wait until about the 5-8K mileage range, get a CAI, Better exhaust and you will see a difference! It just takes time my friend, dont give up on the V6 yet. Also you cant drive around town trying to race everyone, revving your engine next to every car at a stop light and expect to get good gas mileage, not saying that is what your doing but just to put it out there. I have a heavy foot and still get around 310 - 330 on a tank.

[firemnfrank]

I drive mostly in the city with 33,000 miles on the car and i average 16 to 18 mpg with my mods, don't like it and expected better, i drive with a lite foot to keep the mileage up, on the highway is when the car does good, it gets a consistent 26 - 27 mpg, never really in between, it is usually one or the other, would be nice to get at least 21 combined.

[Dmode11]

I've had my SXT since Thanksgiving weekend and have less than 2K miles on it. I only use 89 Octane and the gas mileage has not been good so far, but I have a leadfoot. I drove like a grandpa for a week and got good gas mileage. It is probably your driving habits. Mine dramatically improved when I left stop signs and stop lights like a human.. lol I can't drive like that, so it would be even worse with a V8 even with multi displacement, for me at least.

[Robins_SXT]

My cumulative average MPG is at 21.2. "City" cumulative is 17.9 MPG. "Hiway" cumulative is 23.2. Best tank 29.8 MPG. Worst tank 15.4 MPG

[07_3.5_LX]

i get between 16.8 - 19.5 in town, regardless of how i drive. i also let my car idle more than usual when it is cold out.......still no worse than 16.8 on regular old 89. the worst i have pulled on the highway is 27.3, with a highway best of 32.5 mpg. i love my 3.5l.....even if it is a tad soft.

[We Built This City]

im in cold ass michigan so my heat is always on

also, I like accellerate fast and go faster than 60 on the expressway

Yet and still, there is no reason I should only be getting about 210-240 miles out of every full gas tank

WTF?

[juanvaldz]

I have 10k my my 3.5l so far
Daily drive of 44 miles
(8 of that with stop lights, and the other 36 are highway (65 to 70)
I have been consistantly 21 to 22 MPG
that include a 50/50 mix of standard driving and "I love my Charger" driving.

Bill

[mywhitecharger]

I have 10k my my 3.5l so far
Daily drive of 44 miles
(8 of that with stop lights, and the other 36 are highway (65 to 70)
I have been consistantly 21 to 22 MPG
that include a 50/50 mix of standard driving and "I love my Charger" driving.

Bill

+1
It sounds like we have very similar driving habits and commutes.

I just recently switched back to 89 octane so we'll see if I get any better now. I had been at 87 for a while.

[biggz2544]

i get more than 300 miles. when i drive from rockville, MD to Troy, NY i always make it to albany, which is about 10-20 mile b4 troy, b4 i have to fill up and according to mapquest thats about 380 miles according to mapquest so i get about 350-360 per full tank.
hehe had to fix it. 350mpg is insane!!!

[ChargerS.X.T]

March 2006 Consumer Reports real world testing resulted in 12mpg city for the Charger SXT and 11mpg city for the R/T.
Almost identical and not worth buying the SXT for fuel saving.

[mywhitecharger]

What the he!! world are they driving in?

[ChargerSXT]

I have over 34k on my SXT. I drive a total of at least 70 miles a day (to and from work), with a combination of in-town driving, 70+ mph freeway driving, and stop-and-go traffic each and every day. On average, I get 22.5 mpg. I haven't taken my car on an extended road trip in a while, but in the summer of 2005 (when my car was only a couple of months old and didn't have any mods), I drove from VA to FL and my best mileage was just over 31 mpg.

[ChargerS.X.T]

The real world testing involves a lot of stopping at red lights and driving under 35 mph. Even some of the other cars tested sucked.
The 3.9L impala resulted in 13 mpg, 2.0L turbo Passat 16mpg, Fusion 3.0L 14mpg.

[H-Town_Charger]

mine is aight on gas but it seems to run out pretty fast

[bobvnd]

Its amazing how some people complain about gas mileage when they buy a 4000lb car that has a 250HP engine. If you people wanted good gas mileage go buy a geo metro or a hybrid. Quit complaining.

[mywhitecharger]

Its amazing how some people complain about gas mileage when they buy a 4000lb car that has a 250HP engine. If you people wanted good gas mileage go buy a geo metro or a hybrid. Quit complaining.

Welcome to the forum - home of many opinions.

[ChargerS.X.T]

Its amazing how some people complain about gas mileage when they buy a 4000lb car that has a 250HP engine. If you people wanted good gas mileage go buy a geo metro or a hybrid. Quit complaining.

Yeah, of course people are going to complain when they don't get the results the manufacturer or EPA obtained.
I guess you never complain.

[ChargeRonDavinS]

Its amazing how some people complain about gas mileage when they buy a 4000lb car that has a 250HP engine. If you people wanted good gas mileage go buy a geo metro or a hybrid. Quit complaining.


Yeah I forgot that the geo metro and hybrid looked so cool.. I'll look in to those :rolleyes:

My SXT is at 5500 miles, and my mileage is better, but ive also changed my driving habits. People say big rims give u worse gas milage... not for me, I accelerate SO SLOWly when I have big custom wheels, I drive more carefully, no burning out, no sharp turns, no gassing it on turns, it saved me quite a bit.

Funny how that worked out.

I plan to put a custom exhaust and CAI on my car, but I dont know what to get, and the more I read on it the more I can't decide if I really want it or not.

[bobvnd]

Of course I complain, however if I want a vehicle that gets great gas mileage I am certainly not going to purchase a Charger. I don't know many stickers that are accurate concerning gas mileage. Usually they are about 80%.

[ChargeRonDavinS]

Of course I complain, however if I want a vehicle that gets great gas mileage I am certainly not going to purchase a Charger. I don't know many stickers that are accurate concerning gas mileage. Usually they are about 80%.

Well those of us who are young, or otherwise not used to buying new cars, or new to doing research, and many other reasons...

We didn't realize it was inaccurate.

[ProWrestlingStudent]

Yeah I forgot that the geo metro and hybrid looked so cool.. I'll look in to those :rolleyes:

My SXT is at 5500 miles, and my mileage is better, but ive also changed my driving habits. People say big rims give u worse gas milage... not for me, I accelerate SO SLOWly when I have big custom wheels, I drive more carefully, no burning out, no sharp turns, no gassing it on turns, it saved me quite a bit.

Funny how that worked out.

I plan to put a custom exhaust and CAI on my car, but I dont know what to get, and the more I read on it the more I can't decide if I really want it or not.

good ideas...

i do something slightly different, that i learned in the autoX courses we had to take for driving.

when it allows, keep momentum.

in turns, stay constant, when you get up to speed...keep distance so you can pre navigate throuhg things so you wont be bumper to bumper.

its all a kinetic energy vs potential thing.

takes more energy to get something at rest in motion than it does to keep something in motion.

sharp turns i can take, but i make sure they are smooth.



two ideas that serve the same purpose though:grin:

[Dmode11]

Of course I complain, however if I want a vehicle that gets great gas mileage I am certainly not going to purchase a Charger. I don't know many stickers that are accurate concerning gas mileage. Usually they are about 80%.

I think the most annoying thing is that some people (like myself) went with the V6 because the perception was that it is significantly better on gas than the R/T. It is not proving to be the case because the multi-displacement tech is working pretty well.

I would have went with a R/T if I knew gas mileage was this close. Then again, I would not think if I drove an R/T it would ever go into 4 cyl mode. Who knows. I will not make the same mistake when I get the Challenger if they even offer a V6 model.

It will also be interesting to see if gas hits $4.00 a gallon this summer. I hope not.

[ProWrestlingStudent]

I think the most annoying thing is that some people (like myself) went with the V6 because the perception was that it is significantly better on gas than the R/T. It is not proving to be the case because the multi-displacement tech is working pretty well.

I would have went with a R/T if I knew gas mileage was this close. Then again, I would not think if I drove an R/T it would ever go into 4 cyl mode. Who knows. I will not make the same mistake when I get the Challenger if they even offer a V6 model.

It will also be interesting to see if gas hits $4.00 a gallon this summer. I hope not.

i guess for some its gas worries, but for many i've read price and insurance issues are a factor.

[firemnfrank]

I have been driving for a lot of years and had a lot of cars, boy am i getting old :)

So far with all the cars i have had the actual mileage stayed around the middle of the city and highway mileage for the driving i do.

Just to mention 3 of the cars that come to mind,

*1992 Lumina Z34 with the dual over head V-6 with 200hp was 21 mpg average

*1999 Camaro Z28 with HP add ons on the LS1 24 mpg average and 26 hway

Even my 1985 Lincoln Town car even got 14 in the city and 17 highway for that heavy 302 with a 2brl throttle body,

So i would expect a 3.5 Charger would at least get the 19 mpg city and at least a combined 21 - 23,

The car does get 26 -27 on highway only trips so that helps keep the wife from complaining about using the Charger when we go out of town, her Honda Accord with the I-4 only gets 29 highway and so for the 2-3mpg difference i don't get all the flack for driving such a nice car on long drives versus driving her car regarding mpg.

So much for reality,

[Dutch]

March 2006 Consumer Reports real world testing resulted in 12mpg city for the Charger SXT and 11mpg city for the R/T.
Almost identical and not worth buying the SXT for fuel saving.

Hahaha I've driven my R/T 29,000 miles and I have never once gotten below 17 mpg over a tank of gas. I get 19-20 in my commuting cycle to downtown Phoenix.

I think your mileage is probably poor due to cold weather and driving habits (short trips that don't make for much running time with a warmed-up engine). Do you have a heavy foot?

[ChargerS.X.T]

I think your mileage is probably poor due to cold weather and driving habits (short trips that don't make for much running time with a warmed-up engine). Do you have a heavy foot?

My drive is 7 miles to work. The outside morning temperature is mostly 35-40 degrees.
The drive lasts 15-20 minutes so you are correct in that the engine isn't always warmed up.

[mywhitecharger]

Well - I just filled up with my third tank of 89 after running about a year and a half on 87.

Not a huge jump in MPG, but there is a little - about 1-2 miles more per gallon. That's not very accurate though because the weather has been bad and I've been driving a lot more conservatively. I'll be able tell more over the next few months.

As far as HP and TQ goes. I'm not really sure. It's been extra cold here and it seems as if the car pulls more in the cold anyway. Butt-o-meter says more but in reality I don't think switching octane has made a huge difference yet. Again - I'll be able to tell more once the weather gets better.

[arfur]

Well - I just filled up with my third tank of 89 after running about a year and a half on 87.

Not a huge jump in MPG, but there is a little - about 1-2 miles more per gallon. That's not very accurate though because the weather has been bad and I've been driving a lot more conservatively. I'll be able tell more over the next few months.

As far as HP and TQ goes. I'm not really sure. It's been extra cold here and it seems as if the car pulls more in the cold anyway. Butt-o-meter says more but in reality I don't think switching octane has made a huge difference yet. Again - I'll be able to tell more once the weather gets better.
It will do - slightly denser air is making it's way through the manifold, due to the low ambient temps - your volumetric efficiency has increased everso slightly. :)

[mywhitecharger]

It will do - slightly denser air is making it's way through the manifold, due to the low ambient temps - your volumetric efficiency has increased everso slightly. :)

Makes sense....:) :) :)

[MR C]

Your mpg is determined by several factors. If you like to accelerate hard at stop lights, yeah, thats really going to kill your mpg. If you like to speed and go above 60 mph, that also kills your gas. Using the A/C all the time hurts it. If your tire is not properly inflated, you don't change your oil often, and if you don't change out your air filter, all those factors can kill your mpg. If your drive is mostly stop and go that may be the cause. If at all possible, try and find a way to and from work with the least amount of stop lights/stop signs.

Yup I agree, also remeber this is an auto. I notice a big diff when i put my foot in it more often.

[CountryLad]

My 2006 SXT is just hitting the 97000km factor.. could even be a little over now.. In the warmer months I get almost 600km's out of a tank.. these cold days.. -30's with wind factor.. i am getting between 4 and 500.. Plus winter tires.. I was quite impressed with my mileage.. But I do all hwy.. drive 140km's a day just work.. But I agree.. she doesn't do to well in the city.. :knockout: :wax: :knockout:

[CountryLad]

Ok.. Filled the SXT with Fuel on Monday.. and drove it like a old Lady.. or a sunday driver (nearly killed me when a few guys passed me like I was sitting still) But drove her to almost the speed limit.. maybe 10k over here and there.. She just hit the 1/2 mark.. with 400km's.. So I got a hundred more out of a 1/2 tank.. by driving the speed limits.. Worth it? I'm not sure.. :wax:

[ChargeRonDavinS]

I drive like grandma all the time :)

[CountryLad]

I drive like grandma all the time :)

must get excellent mileage all the time???? It's alright going home after work..but coming in..i have a hard time driving like grandma.. :knockout:

[SACharger]

I live in Texas and have never gotten more than 210 miles from a full tank of gas in the city (19 gallon tank). I average 200 miles per tank in the city and don't drive my car hard at all. So I'm getting 10.5-11 miles per gallon on 93 octane. Anybody else getting as crummy gas mileage as me?
I had to have my pcm replaced shortly after purchasing the car and read in the owners manuel that MDS sometimes becomes disabled and the car has to be taken to a dealer to be re activated. Unfortunately, when I took it to a dealership they didn't know what I was talking about. (Even showed them where it states that in the manual and still no luck)
Does anyone know how I can tell if my MDS is disabled or working?

[ChargeRonDavinS]

forgive me for being stupid, but isnt mds multiple displacement system? Only the RT's have that


correction, you have an RT, I wouldnt expect much more than what you're getting, a lot of people on the forum experience gas mileages from awful 9 or 10 mpg to "20" mpg. Odd huh?

[red35]

We have been getting 19MPG mixed city/highway

I took a trip across state this weekend, putting 475 miles all highway and only got 21MPG :plain:

[RitzRT]

My best around town has been 16 mpg.
Worst has been 14.5. I drive 7 miles each way to work and during the weekends do longer drives that include some highway.
I only have 1500 miles on my car and it may improve but this is lousy.
I should have bought the hemi but the reason I didn't was some owners had been reporting 12-13. The price difference was only $3000 because my SXT is almost fully loaded.

On my old 300M (I'm assuming this is the same 3.5L) I got about 17 around town and 24-25mpg on the highway. And that was with a car that was a bit lighter than a charger. I noticed early that mileage suffered BADLY if you had a heavy foot or liked "jack rabbit starts." When driving with a more even foot and without sudden acceleration, I got the mileage above.

Best regards,

[RitzRT]

forgive me for being stupid, but isnt mds multiple displacement system? Only the RT's have that


correction, you have an RT, I wouldnt expect much more than what you're getting, a lot of people on the forum experience gas mileages from awful 9 or 10 mpg to "20" mpg. Odd huh?

I've only had my RT for a short time, but I seem to get about 17-ish around town and about 22-23mpg on the highway. And that's with occasional hammering on the gas. :) I suspect the variety in reported mileage is mostly a symptom of different driving habits, not anything "wrong" or "right" with specific cars.

Cheers,

[ChargerS.X.T]

I've only had my RT for a short time, but I seem to get about 17-ish around town and about 22-23mpg on the highway. And that's with occasional hammering on the gas. :) I suspect the variety in reported mileage is mostly a symptom of different driving habits, not anything "wrong" or "right" with specific cars.

Cheers,

I find it hard to believe that your R/T is using as much fuel as your old 3.5L 300M. Maybe you live in the south and the warmer temps are helping. I don't drive that fast but once in a while do get it past 5000 rpm. This is supposed to beneficial to the 3.5L based on what I have read.

[RitzRT]

I find it hard to believe that your R/T is using as much fuel as your old 3.5L 300M. Maybe you live in the south and the warmer temps are helping. I don't drive that fast but once in a while do get it past 5000 rpm. This is supposed to beneficial to the 3.5L based on what I have read.

Nope, I'm in CT. The 300M did OK with gas as long as you didn't have a lead foot. I once drove it from NYC to Montreal and averaged 27mpg (with the cruise set at 65mph). The RT seems to be almost as frugal on gas. Again, I suspect most of this variation is driving style.

Cheers,

[iCeD00D]

Welp, with the new mufflers i'm getting roughly 23MPG which isnt too bad ;).....