It's running in Hybrid all the time, whether the Eco light is on or off, some people just don't want to see it. Hopefully you will see some improvement after the new harness is on and the engine and transmission are reset.
I agree that your commute is detrimental to good mileage with the Vue, but it should still be better. Having to go short hops kills any chance of good mileage but you also have to re-train yourself to drive a hybrid. Even tho the Eco light is on, you can still coax better mileage out of it by coasting to lights and turns and not braking as much as you would in a normal car. Don't try to maintain your speed on the highway as we've been taught, keep a steady pressure on the gas pedal on hills and let the speed drop. It's taking me quite a bit to get used to it, but it's paying off. I wish the Vues had a better display like other hybrids do so you could see real-time exactly what your driving style is doing to your mileage. That's why I bought the ScanGuage and it's really helped. (No, I don't sell them but I'm glad I bought one)

Acually that's not true. If you have ECO set to OFF it disables all the Hybrid functions, Try it, you'll see immediately. If it's set off this may be a contributor

Er...uh....what? I thought maybe I had misread my Owners Manual and so I did as you asked on my 50 mile commute home. The Vue Charged when it was supposed to Charge, Assisted when it was supposed to Assist and Auto Stopped when it was supposed to AutoStop and got 31.8mpg running the AC in Econo mode. Please refer to pages 163 and 183 of your Owners Manual. It clearly states that the EcoOn/EcoOff on the Trip meter is for the light only. There is no way to turn off your hybrid system and if there was it would be a much more substantial switch than a dinky toggle on the trip meter. If yours is not doing those things, get to the dealer!! Good luck with that Vue

Actually you're absolutely correct - my mistake - though, in my defense, I was told this by Saturn as we were/are having such disappointing economy. Perhaps if this is what they told me, maybe I should have doubts about their proficiency in finding out why we only average 22.5.

No worries!! I guess whoever said it was right "Believe half of what you read and none of what you hear"!! Hope you get that Vue right and start to enjoy some decent MPGs!!

I find that it seems very obvious that the particular Vue will cause the type of gas mileage that you acheive. I have had mine back to the dealership, talked to the Saturn engineering rep, who of course all assured me that it was the break in period and after it was broken in, I should see the 30+ mileage! Well after 17,000 miles and driving all manners known, agreesive, conservative, A/C on, A/C off, windows up and down, etc.- no change in the 24 maximum mileage. The dealership also told me that I should get better mileage with a majority of City driving- What a joke!!

I guess I should have retuned it within the return time frame-

Saturn seems to have no clue how these things work!

I am trying to talk to the general manager of our dealership, who keeps sending me to the service manager who keeps telling me that it is performing to spec! Guess I need to put the banner on the car with the gas mileage and drive around the dealership on the weekend!

Thanks for all of the info!

What a load. I'm amazed about how some dealers know so little about the product they're selling. All it takes is one glance at the EPA estimates and you KNOW the car will do better predominantly on the highway.


Sorry about the troubles with your GL. It seems that mileage appears to have a strong dependence on the particular car, which is very odd...

Just bought a used 2007 Hybrid from the dealer. It has 15,500 on it, and I'm wondering if there are particular driving tricks people do to maximize gas mileage? Our weather is currently in the negative degrees, so not sure how bad that'll effect my mpg. I'm really curious to see what I end up getting for my first tank.

Michael,

the plain fact is that for the most part, you should drive your vue as you would any other car. The main difference is when you are stopped at a light, you should keep you foot on the break. You will feel the gas engine quit, but it starts when you step on the gas pedal.
Depending on how long the light, and whether or not you are using the A/C or heat, you will feel the engine kick back on within a short time.

Other than that, just use, cruise control on the freeways and drive sensibly on city streets and you'll get the most out of your vehicle.

Curious... What mileage are you getting?

Jack

I just filled up this morning, half tank (7.7 gallons) and so I average a 26.3 mpg this time! Thrilled, considering this was still my average daily commute and suburbia driving. of course my wife hasn't tried driving it yet, so I expect it may go down some when she does.

I haven't gotten a letter yet about the emission recall, how long should I wait before I ask my Saturn dealer?