but:
i have some concerns/issues.
vehicle has 3500 miles on it thus far.
i have come to realize that this car is more of an upscale accord than a true high mileage vehicle. first tankful, driving home to maryland from poconos, i saw the mileage hit 40. cruise set at 55.

since then, i haven't seen this number, yet i am driving like a granny and pissing people off. i live right off of the highway, do very little stop and go, and my mileage is basically around 30-33. if i can, i set the cruise for 55 or 60 and the mileage doesnt greatly improve.

then there's the brakes. ive experienced serious fade. almost had trouble stopping at a light. ended up 1/4 of the way into the intersection to the surprise of the other commuters.

now, mind you - i know driving a new car takes some getting used to, but i drive a lot of different cars as rentals and this one is the trickiest.

then there's the downshifting- im getting a vibration from the front SOMEWHERE. it almost feels like ABS shudder, but i'm barely braking. i cant tell exactly, but i feel it in the steering wheel, my passenger doesnt feel it at all.

lastly, this car does not accelerate properly out of a turn (2nd gear?). it delays, sends passengers forward (stall type phase) , then revs and catches up with itself (and pushes everyone back in place).

pinions PLEASE?

also, if anyone has any great ideas on dealing with paint chips on the hood, lemme know.


and lastly, i've only seen ONE other HAH around these parts - maybe that navy dude from severna park . . . .

This car is NOT a mileage machine. It was never marketed as one, and one look at the EPA sticker should tell you its not.

If you want pure MPG, trade in for a civic. If you want a (as Xcel puts it) 'semi-luxury' car with nice punch, plenty of room, and better MPG than any American car, then this is for you. This car is a lot of fun to take out into the hills, curves, and interstate for long drives and STILL destroy nearly every other vehicle at the gas pump. 33 is what the EPA says you should be getting- since when is hitting the benchmark bad?

Brake fade: as speed drops and the engine approaches idle speed and autostops, you lose regenerative braking. around 20mph. It takes more pressure on the hydraulic brakes to compensate. It is annoying at first, but hopefully you will soon get the hang of coasting as much as possible, braking as lightly and little as possible, and the issue more or less fades into the background as you get used to it. Ideally, of course, there would be no need to 'get used to' anything, but such is life.

Don't worry about pissing people off- that's their personal anger management issue to work out in therapy. We all learned about what the tortise did to the hare.

MPG: look at my tank history- you'll see I started where you are now. I now get 40.x mpg on a bad day- CC on 60 for my 33mile commute along 50 and 495, 43.x if I DWL. You are past the breakin period (1500, then 3000mi) so all improvement from here on is pure technique, assuming your oil is good and tires are at no less than 32# (I run 38-40). Use neutral a lot- coast coast coast. Pretend like it's a stick, not AT. And keep the 'eco' light on- this requires you to develop a feather touch on the gas pedal. Always be trying to back off the gas a little more, and see if your speed holds up. 5th gear cuts in at 43mph- get above that, and you can hold 5th down to 37 or so.

I don't know what to say about the braking shudder at light pressure- but one or two others here ahve had timing alignment issues with the IMA- if its not feeding/being fed voltage at the right instants it will act like an unbalanced motor. Definitely worth having that checked out- take the service guy for a ride with you.

From the other thread, I agree that the accel lag at 2nd is a pain- I get it a lot coming out of turns when I try to feather-touch the gas to accelerate, but not if I hit it.

Hope you and the car can work out your differences! If you're nearby in MD, perhaps we can get together and look at some techniques to help you mpg? We can compare cars and see if what you feel is different than my car.

I've seen the shifting lag also, and agree it's annoying. I see it most often when doing a "rolling stop" through an unposted intersection, or those types of situations, rather than in normal cornering.

As far as mileage, I've already noticed my mpg has dropped an easy 10% just due to colder weather (averaging about 33 to 45 degrees lately). Where I was averaging 36 mpg during the summer and early fall, even with A/C, I'm now getting 32-33 with the same driving (and no A/C). This is with a 36 mile commute, one way, almost all highway. My previous Civic Hybrid had about the same percentage mpg reduction in winter driving. So anyone that's noticing an mpg reduction lately, and who lives in an area where the weather is cold.... it's normal.

good advice.
you're right about all you said.

im in pasadena, so to meet up might be really convenient. i would like to see how your car operates and learn some of your techniques.

Actually driving slow and annoying everybody is why you are getting worse mileage. When you stop you need to push the gas until you see the IMA engage half way or so and get to eco mode ASAP. You need to step on the gas not too much but step on it. Eventually you will develop better feel for it.

2005 Accord Hybrid
2005 Durango HEMI (wife's wheels)
1998 AUDI A8 4.2Q

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