Honda Fit Mileage

There's a US Government Web site that lets owners track and share their
gas mileage. Here are some of the numbers a few Honda Fit owners have
reported.

For the 5 speed 11 owners got 29 - 35.5 mpg with an average of 35.5 mpg.
For the automatic 13 owners got 21 - 35 mpg with an average of 29.0 mpg.

If anyone's interested in more detail here's a link
http://www.FuelEconomy.gov

 

Fuk, my 20-year-old Accord gets that kinda mileage! So much for "progress"...

 

no kidding.

here's what i do know:
1. better thermodynamic efficiency [and therefore fuel economy] derives
from a higher combustion temperature.
2. higher combustion temperature creates more NOx.
3. cars use catalysts to deal with undesired emissions, including NOx.

here's what i don't know:
since we're committed to using a catalyst anyway, why not increase the
capacity of the catalyst and go for the better thermodynamics? i
guessing that to some degree, increased NOx capacity could be balanced
against reduced CO and HC catalyst capacity since at higher combustion
temps, output of those two components drop significantly.

one last thing i do know:
since the NOx bug-a-boo hit the emissions agenda, progress towards
thermodynamically improved fuel efficiency has been stopped in its tracks.

 

Now compare tailpipe emissions.

 

Passed local emissions testing with a fraction of the allowable outputs. I've
seen brand-new cars fail with higher readings.

 

I think things have improved. Here's why.

A 1975 Honda Civic got 30 MPG in town and on the highway.
It weighed 1781 lbs and the 1.5 liter engine produced 53 HP at 5000 rpm
with 68 lb-ft of torque at 3000 rpm.

A 2007 Honda Fit gets between 29 and 35 MPG.
It weighs 2471 lbs and the 1.5 liter engine produces 109 HP at 5800 rpm
with 105 lb-ft of torque at 4800 rpm.

As you can see Honda is getting quite a bit more performance and better
gas mileage to boot. In fairness I should note the lower rpm for
maximum torque in the older Honda.

 

"A 1975 Honda Civic got 30 MPG in town and on the highway. It weighed
1781 lbs and the 1.5 liter engine produced 53 HP at 5000 rpm with 68
lb-ft of torque at 3000 rpm.

A 2007 Honda Fit gets between 29 and 35 MPG. It weighs 2471 lbs and the
1.5 liter engine produces 109 HP at 5800 rpm with 105 lb-ft of torque at
4800 rpm."

Great. Now stick that 109 HP motor in a 1,781 pound body and then we'll
talk.