I currently own a 2007 Nissan Altima Hybrid and it is not getting the fuel milage it was said to get. The 2008 NAH is supposed to recieve 35/33 hwy. I'am recieving 27/33. Anyways I'm considering a new Civic hybrid, would anybody reccomend it? If so what are the pros and cons you are seeing with this car? I would appreciate any feed back thanks.

 

Do you have any idea why aren't you getting the mileage you expected in the NAH? Are others on this site getting/exceeding the EPA mileage, or are the estimates generally too high? (I've paid very little attention to the NAH since it isn't sold in Colorado).

I LOVE my Civic, but it is a more "user involved" hybrid system than the Aisin-based NAH hybrid system. You will get good mileage if you drive it like a regular car, but you're not going to get great, EPA-busting mileage unless you work the hybrid system. I think of our Aisin-based Mariner as similar to driving an "automatic" whereas the HCH is more like driving a "stick shift" (even though obviously they are both CVTs). I find the HCH to be a much more engaging drive.

If you're not getting the mileage in your NAH because you drive of a lot of highway miles, the Civic might be a good answer since it does very well on the highway. However, if you're not getting the mileage in the NAH because of a heavy foot or a short commute, it is very unlikely that you will get EPA in the Civic--in fact, it might be an even greater differential.

 

Well at this point I generally have no idea why my NAH is reciving the fuel mileage i'm getting. According to the dealer my car is working perfectly, however, the hybrid system is new to Nissan and they have little experience working or dignosing problems on these cars. I've been in contact with Nissan Corp and they claim most hybrid owners are either reciving the EPA fuel milage or going beyond (example: 38 - 40 in the city). I do a lot of city driving myself and at one point was reciving the EPA MPG on my car but recently I have seen a steady decrease in the MPG. I have had problems with this car since day one and I'm considering walking a way from this car.

 

I would post up something on the Altima board. We get a lot of posts like this on the Civic board where people aren't getting the mileage and there are usually a few things that we can suggest to help improve.

Since your mileage has gotten worse, some basic things would be to check your tire pressure and your oil level. Has the oil been changed to the wrong viscosity? What kind of problems are you having? Are you focusing on fuel economy or driving like a normal car?

 

Yeah I'll repost this on NAH, but I have changed the oil twice on this car, i'm currently investigating what oil was put in this car.

 

you might try to learn hypermiling techniques, and give your car a chance before giving up on it.
add: this site's combined avg for your car is 34.4mpg, and yours is 30, so you're not far off.

 

I filled my gas tank up just a day or two ago and had my miles divided by the gallons of gas filled and it averaged 24mpg. Which is worse than the 27 mpg my read out was showing on my computer.

 

Get the Honda Civic Hybrid.

My cumulative average is 41 MPG (US) for 70% city driving over the first year. But I really, really, really like this car!

 

I promise I am not biased, but the HCH is hands-down the best general vehicle on the market.

 

You have a one year old car and are considering replacing it with a new car to achieve better FE?

Is your car paid off?

What is your reasoning for replacing the car? Are you wanting to save money at the gas pump? Or is it out of concern for the environment? Remember, whatever you lose on trade-in or sale of your 2007 has to be factored into the lifetime cost of the new vehicle. If you''re seriously upside down on the loan, it might be better to be patient and wait until you are in better shape on the loan, or any savings brought by higher FE will be blown away by the extra burden of the sale loss.

Don't get me wrong, I love my HCHII and yes, I did primarily buy it to save money on fuel. But other costs came into play as well; I got rid of a 93,000 mile gas guzzler that's been paid off for two years, to get the Honda. Maintenance costs were starting to escalate significantly so a factory warranty offsets some of the increased cost of once again having a car payment again.