Ok so I just went to the pump, 6 days after purchasing my used Vue GL. (15,500 miles on it.) I've had a long day, but I need to ask. Here's my first tank post : https://www.greenhybrid.com/compare/.../car/6483.html

Now, I live in Iowa, this past week has been either barely above 0, or very below it for temp. I was so excited to get this Vue, cause we got a great price on it, and the idea of not only getting higher MPG, but helping the environment appeals to me.

I typically spend 30 - 40 mins on the road taking my kids to 2 different schools and then driving downtown for work. (1 way) I averaged 1.16 gallons a day. I filled up tonight, and found out I only got 18.6 mpg for the 6 days!

It's kinda sad considering that's less than a nonhybrid rated Vue.

Believe me, I took the advice from others on driving this, doing lots of regenerative coasting, keeping the RPM between 2000, and 2500. Seeing the ECO light quite often, only time I never saw it was as the car shifts through it's first 2 or 3 cycles. I use cruise, but manually adjust when it
comes to hills to try and keep the ECO light on. And to be honest with exception of the initial acceleration I'm pretty good at keeping the ECO light on much of the drive time.

Could it be something with my driving, the car, or the exterme cold weather. Though I see the occassional 18 mpg tank noted, majority of you are getting high numbers! yes I'm getting 5 mpg more than my Jeep Grand Cherokee, but I have to admit I'm still bummed.

Am I just jumping the gun on my expectations? I have noticed when accelerating that once the car hits its 3rd shift at around 40 mpg the ECO light kicks on most of the time, or if after the 2nd shift I let off the gas the ECO light kicks on.

I also noticed at around 50 or 55 whether I'm maintaining or accelerating the ECO light STAYS on.

Can you all tell me when exactly does the electical engine offer the most help? Does it not really do much until you get past 30 mph? I have noticed the needle swings towards "assist", but the ECO never lights up. Is it better to keep the needle in the middle of charge/assist, or is it better on your mpg if you try to adjust your gas pedal to keep the needle in the assist range?

And while I'm at it, is there a trick to keep the EQ settings from not reseting when you turn off the car? Whenever I adjust the bass/treble, it resets to 0 again once the car is off.

Thanks for your help.

 

Last summer I visited Iowa, filled up with E10, and took a hit of 3 mpg. If you are filling up with E10, try using regular gas. May help your mileage some.

Cold weather has an adverse effect fuel economy. Warmer weather should help with your milage.

Is your VUE kept in a garage? Does it have a block heater?

Garaging and block heating can help with the warm up time for a car, and improve fuel consumption.

Oh and the cruise really is not that helpful, unless the terrain is really flat. It tends to force a downshift to maintain speed when pulling a hill and/or hitting a head wind and the car eats more gas, when this happens. It might be a good idea to avoid using the cruise control.

Also, avoid letting the engine idle to warm up in the morning, when the engine is cold or waiting for a passenger to come out to the car.

Just some items to look at.

Bob

 

A few things to consider.

The dealer tank may not have been filled to the top. Hence, you put more gas into the tank and your mpg wase way below average. I would give it at least three full tanks to see if your mpg's improve before I would be concerned.

Having the Hybrid in a garage vs the elements is a big factor in mpgs. Especially if you make alot of small trips. My Hybrid Vue is garaged. As a result, my starting temperature was 42 degrees this morning instead of 14. This helps the Hybrid to warm the engine sooner and allow for the auto stop & assist/charge to happen sooner in the trip. I see a big difference when the temps get above 60 degrees. My auto stop will kick in within a mile of my house. When temps are in the 20's it takes a good 5-10 minutes of driving before the auto stop occurs. Also, I rarely use the heater and if I do I do not turn it past the first setting and I wait for the Hybrid to warm up first. If you use the heater or AC (in the summer) past the first setting - your auto stop will not engage.

Also - I think we need some more information about the 30-40 minutues you spend driving. Is it highway driving or alot of stop and go? With two kids and working downtown - we know that you make at least three stops - maybe more. If that is the case, when you add low temps, multiple stops and stop & go driving - your mpgs will be low. Excatly how much is tough to determine without additional fillups.

As for keeping the ECO light on - that is great.

This next section maybe difficult to understand as you are new to the Saturn Hybrid Vue but this is what I do to get the most out of the Hybrid Vue.

I have mastered getting the battery to either charge or assist. I rarely have the gauge in the middle. I have found that the Saturn Hybrid Vue with its belt alternator starter (BAS) system, works best if it is either charging or assisting. So that is what I do. On my daily 45 mile commute each way - I use different sections to charge the battery and different ones to assist. For example, I have a two mile downslope about 10 miles into my commute. I use that section to coast and regenerate the battery. By the time I get to the bottom of the hill - my charge guage barely moves to left. This tells me that the battery is fully charged.

How do I do this? As I start the 2 mile downslope of a four lane highway (I am in the far right lane), I slowly accelerate the Hybrid to 65mph using the assist. Once I get to 65mph I then coast - the charge/assist gague swings all the way to the left. I coast down to 55mph. I can get a good 15-25 seconds of driving with the charge all the way to the left. I then accelerate back up to 65mph using the assist and coast again back to 55mph. This time the guage starts off all the way to the left and then slowly works its way back to the middle. By the time I am at the bottom of the slope the gauge is close to the middle and I know the battery is fully charged.

All the while - my ECO light remains on. I also keep a eye on the traffic behind me to make sure I am not impeeding the traffic. With the battery charged I take the next 20 miles at 65-70mph using the assist and maintaining the ECO light the rest of the way. This method has become second nature. I do not even look at the gauges but I focus on the road and the traffic around me. By the way, the first 5 miles and last 7 miles of my commute are stop and go. The last 7 miles - when I stop the auto stop always kicks in. Regardless of temp outside.

My driving style applies to Hybrids and Regular cars alike - smooth accelerations and declerations - watching the flow of traffic and driving "smart smooth". Using my driving style - the cold weather has not taken the bite out of my mpgs as it has done with others.

Best wishes with your Saturn Vue Hybrid and I hope you mpgs rise over the next few tanks. I will be keeping an eye on your results.

 

Thanks for the replies! Some good ideas. A little more background on my situation. yes, 3 stops mininum: school, school, gas station for a pop.

My car is in the garage, but I do tend to let it warm up for 3 mins or so, but on 0, subzero days after a day at the office, the car will be sitting an open parking ramp for 9 hrs and will need at least 5 mins to warm up.

Yesterday I drove without warming it up, as the booklet says, and it really sounded like the car was working hard, and the auto-stop never came on. But I find if I let it warm up for a little bit, my auto-stop comes on much quicker! (So which is a better method?)

I'll pay more attention to me it seems I rarely get the ECO light on when accelerating, but I do see the "battery assist" being used. Should I be able to get both the ECO light and battery assist going at the same time at speeds under 55 miles per hour?

Can I assume whenever the battery assist is being shown, that even without my ECO light I should be getting pretty good mpg cause of the electric engine taking on part of the work?

Another question, is the electric engine ALWAYS helping, or only when we see the dial swing to "assist"?

I have found that once the hybrid system is warmed up, my auto-stop will be activated even if I have the heater going, but I guess I haven't had to use the defrost yet, so maybe it's only defrost related that it won't turn on? (And ususal the heater dial is on setting 3 or 4 while driving....it's darn cold in this state right now!)

Anway, I'm still excited about this, and everyone I know is probably annoyed by how often I talk about now having a hybrid car.

Oh and it's mostly suburbia driving (a stretch of it being up to 55 mph) and about 10 mins on the interstate (unless it's rush hr than it's a lot more) Just got done driving it and had my heater dial on setting 3 (if 1 is off), and got the auto-stop to work 3x while downtown. I have exactly 3 stop signs, and 17possible stop signals from my house to my ultimate destination of work.

 

Latest tank, my 2nd half-tank fill up (7.5 gallons) gave me a 26.3 mpg average! I'm thrilled.

 

Excellent!!


Just as I suspected - not a full tank when you drove it off the lot.

Sounds like you have a good basis for your Hybrid Vue driving. When the temps start to warm up 65 and above - you should see an improvement in the mpg. Given your travel pattern and style - I guestimate you will approach 29-30 mpg on a regular basis.

To answer a few questions-
- I never warm up my Vue
As to which method is better - warm up for 5 and get auto stop eariler or drive immediately and wait for the auto stop to happen - they probably are both the same in the long run. You waste gas when warming up the Hybrid at a stand still - but you waste gas when get to a light and the Auto Stop does not kick in. Pick your style - I think it is even.

Should I be able to get both the ECO light and battery assist going at the same time at speeds under 55 miles per hour?
- Under the right driving conditions - I can get the ECO light on, Battery Assist on, while driving 65 miles per hour and going up hill. It is all a matter of being gentle on the gas pedal and keeping momentum. I can also get the ECO light and Battery Assist on under 55 if the Hybrid has been driving for 10 minutes regardless of temperature.

Can I assume whenever the battery assist is being shown, that even without my ECO light I should be getting pretty good mpg cause of the electric engine taking on part of the work?
- Not necessarily. If you are gunning the Hybrid up the hill - of course the assist will kick in. But you are wasting gas because of the rapid acceleration. Be easy on the gas pedal if the situation warrents it.
Remember smooth drivers do not hold up traffic - they just go with the flow.

As for the assist always helping even when it is at the 12 o'clock position - I am not sure. Saturn does not go into that level of detail. Heck - they did not even release sales numbers for the 2007 Hybrid Vue. They lumped it in with the regular Vue. My guestimate is 4000-6000 2007 Hybrid Vues on the roads. So consider yourself part of a select group.

Please keep us posted on your findings and welcome aboard.

 

What's the ideal tire pressure? The dealership had it at 35 when I got it, but do some people have it a little higher? I see my tire's max is noted at 44.

 

This may come as a surprise but I have checked my tire pressure twice in 37,500 miles. Both times were at a WAWA station because they offered free air. It is more of a priciple thing for me - I could never understand why they charge for air.

Anyway, if your tire states max is 44 - I would probably run at 38 - 40psi. Any higher would give a harder ride. Just my two cents worth.

 

Very good on your mileage!

Easy on the gas pedal always helps with mpg. If you get on a downgrade, traffic permitting, let up on the gas and let the regen throw some charge into the battery . Also good for highway offramps, again traffic permitting.

On the question of tire pressure, I run 37 to 38 psi on mine.