Poor Mileage
 

Hello Everyone,

I recently purchased a used 2003 Honda Accord LX-G model. It is a 2.4 L engine. The owner of this previous car has maintained the car very well and has serviced the car very promptly according the the maintainence manual for Honda accord. He gave me all the service records since the purchase of the car and each one was done at a certified Honda service center.

Todate, the car has 115k KM. I just realised that the car is giving very bad gas mileage. It is averaging about 13- 14 MPG or 16 to 17 l/100 KM. I find this very concerning.

I notice no other problems with the car. It starts very well and runs very well. This is my first car. Can you please help me with your experience on what might be the problem?

Thanks in advance for all the help.

Is the Check Engine Light on? If yes, you need to obtain the OBD2 (Pnnnn) code for a guide to your problem. Repost for help.

If you don't DIY, suggest having a engine scan of OBD2 info to see if Long Term Fuel Trim is showing heavy bias towards enrichment. Sometimes a fault causes a false lean condition and the ECU enriches the mixture attempting to achieve correct fuel/air mix. However, LT Fuel Trim will cause a fault to be set (Check Engine Light) when trim reaches a limit (+25%?).

Spark plugs should be OK at 115km (70k miles) unless you've seen a flashing Check Engine Light.

If you can't verify the air filter has ever been replaced, replace the filter.

If you live in cold climate and warm the engine extensively before beginning your drive, this greatly reduces gas mileage.

good luck

Thanks For the Reply.

The engine light is not ON. I will check on when the air filter was replaced and will try to replace it myself.

I live in Montreal Canada and I do warm the engine for about 2 minute each day before begining to drive. Can 2 minute warm up says, two times per day reduces the gas mileage somuch?

Also how much would an OBD2 scan cost?

Thanks for the reply

What's LX-G? (as opposed to LX?)

We had a 2003 LX and would get much better MPG so I'll agree with your concern. However, at one point my daughter moved real close to school (like less then 2km) so it was all short trips. Got low-20s MPG then...

Call a tuneup shop and ask them. I would gues $30-$50, and they will usually refund the analysis towards work on the car. Ask around for some recommendations before committing to a shop.

good luck

I get an average of 22-24mpg wit my 05 v6 a/t, you should be averaging more than that if u have the 4cyl. Even if you warm the car you shouldnt be getting that low mpg's unless you are flooring it constantly. Pull a spark plug and check to see if they are good, check tire pressure, check oil and tranny fluid.

I have a 2005 EX 3.0 and understand the mpg issue. Two minutes is only enough if you see your temperature gauge rise above the C by 3< lines/marks. Go by your temperature gauge not time for warming the engine. Check out your fuel filter as well. My heavy foot needs to loose some weight. lol Heavy on the pedal has a huge effect on the gas mileage. Good luck!