Poor gas mileage

[sheiksan]

I have a 2003 Neon (4-cyl, auto) and I really love the car. But I am very disappointed with the mileage. It is rated 22/30, but my average mileage has been closer to 17. Does anyone else have a similar issue? Is it something about my car? I don't have a heavy foot (but I do enjoy the power of the engine). I am filling up 2-3 times a week and that is killing me.

[02NeonON17z]

i have no problem on mine.. i guess i race too much.. lol

[dvgRT]

You should try owning an R/T then you'll see bad gas milage!

[juliesnk]

I have the same problem with my 2003 Neon. I *used* to get decent milage (25/city, 30-35/highway) up until two or three weeks ago, and now I am only able to get 180 miles per tank, which is absurd.

Anyway, I have not changed any habits in the past two weeks, and there is slim chance that some unsavory type is siphoning my tank, sip by sip every day. I recently moved and got a new dealership, and there they told me that "it's just the way it's being driven" -- which roughly translates to "silly, stupid, red-car-driving girl."

So, my car is taking a long trip back to my original, more friendly dealer next week, who promises to figure out what the trouble is because he at least agrees that my milage should be better.

My question: Have you found any solution for why your gas is going so quickly? Did you used to get decent milage? If we figure it out, I'll be sure to clue you in.

[mr.nobody]

ya i have the same problem average around 17 too! not real happy with it at all. i only have about 2000 miles on it. mostly driven by my wife back and forth to work.

chris

[screaminneon]

i know how you guys feel ive got a 1st gen and it uses about twice as much as my friends 98 (his is a year newer) so i decided since im running so rich then ill just put on a turbo well its on and holy moly this thing scoots

[03 yellow beast]

yea im having the SAME problem! im averaging around 18. the most i have gotten out of my tank is a little over 200 miles. thats complete BS. i was down half a tank, found low expensive gas, and i the tank topped off after adding only 4 gallons!! also...i just filled up a few days ago, i drove bout 80 miles and am almost down a half tank! i took it to the dealer..yea..they said nothings wrong! so ima take t to a different one. its sad when you buy a car for economy reasons and the Escalade is getting better mpg!

[racerX_244]

i dont know much at all about neons, but it sounds like some basic maintainance is in order. dirty air filter? bad spark plugs or wires (needs a tuneup)? dirty fuel injectors? bad o2 sensor? clogged catalytic converter?

heh i like screaminneon's approach. if all else fails just slap on a turbo (which i would love to do to my v6 dakota) :rck:

[03 yellow beast]

it would be nice if it was a basic maintanance problem...but he said his neon only has around 2000 miles on it while mine only has 10500 miles...if parts go bad this fast, then i dont want this car! haha

[NeonGasGuzzler]

I'm also having the same problem. I bought my 04 Neon just last Thursday, (09/02/04), with 12200 miles and for one reason, (good gas mileage). The following morning I filled up, and noticed that from that time until noon, the gas gage going down like the minute hand of a clock. It was eerie. I didn't know part of my money was going towards paying a gas guzzler tax. Anyways, since the car is getting worse gas mileage than my ’99 Jeep Grand Cherokee, I tried to take it back. You can guess what happened. In my state there is no 3 day return law, so I’m SOL. If anyone figures this out please hook us up.

[TripleXJ]

I calculated mine after continueally reading this and (just done a tune up last week) I am getting about 24mpg on a 95 SOHC with performance mods

[03 yellow beast]

haha! NeonGasGuzzler!! what a name! i hear ya..i have that same problem! i think the escalade is getting better than i! i can watch my meter drop to! i took mine to the dealer and they said nothing was wrong with it. my GF has a neon (01) and she averages bout 400 miles per full tank. im averaging 200! so that puts me at around 18 mpg city and wee bit over that for highway! thats BS! also, my dads friend has an 03 neon that averages 26 in the city and over 30 on the highway! thats what i should be getting!! this makes me very upset knowing i am making payments on the exact opposite of what i wanted! im watching my miles and gas and everything, so ima have some back up for when i take it to another dealer..ill let you know what they find..if anything...if they say nothing..ill be MORE than glad to trade it in to them if they think nothing is wrong..

[02NeonON17z]

shewt my gas gage be droppin like daaam.. i dont know wassup is with my neon.. my dads car got good milage than mine and my dads car is a v6 n watever i do to that car that car will last in a week but my car it lastr 2 days for me... arrrggg it sucks.. o well i think imma tune it up 30K n see what happen after that...

[03 yellow beast]

i have kinda noticed with mine that my RPMs are staying quite high..i know after a while its suppost to drop once your at a speed for some time..i was going about 75 and it was staying at 3000 or a bit more..thats to high...ima be taking it to the dealer once again next week, ill let you know if they find something....do you ever smell gas with yours?? i sometimes do with mine, you it may be a small leak or something

[lukester]

I have been on this site for some time and I read posts constantly,I own a 2001 Neon 5 speed,it has 130,000kms on it.I run ngk plugs,change oil every 5,000kms,original wires,original brakes still.One thing I have learned is that I bought this car for the mileage factor and a oldtimer told me to set the cruise at 55mph and don't touch it and that I would be amazed.I can honestly say that I get 700kms to a tankful.I don't pass a lot of people,but I do pass a lot of gas stations,and notice a lot of scenery,just my 2 cents.

[03 yellow beast]

i have used the cruise and it only got me a bit more miles out of my tank..didnt save me that much, im still filling up way to often...id rather just get rid of this car, not worth MY money or the hastle

[TripleXJ]

I don't understand how ya'll are gettin such bad gas milage cuase even if you put 8.5 gallons in and ya go 200 miles ya still gettin just over 23mpg. I mean hell Neons only have I belive a 12 gallon tank and I have some performance mods on mine and get over 25mpg AND I have a heavy foot

[03 yellow beast]

nono, your misunderstanding...200 miles is for the whole tank...so 12.5 gallons..i have been to a few sites like this and this poor gas lineage deal only to seems to be very few and far inbetween. mainly with the 03-04's neons. im thinking i just was one of the unlucky ones... :/

[TripleXJ]

yet anoughter reason I am glad to have a 1st gen

[my_carr]

While I have lurked on the Neon Forum for a while, this is my first post.

I have an '04 Neon (mtx) with 4,000 miles, totally stock and still running dino fluids. I, too, bought it because of it's gas mileage. I average 30mpg in my commute; that is up from 28 at the beginning. We just got back from a 1300 mile round trip to Florida; driving at 65 (+/-) mph we got 34.6 mpg; at 80 (+/-) mph we got 29.6 mpg.

I couldn't be happier with the mileage. For those getting substantially less mpg, there is something wrong.

[Irish Girl]

I have a 1997 and I get about 200 miles out of the tank.....heck, I thought that WAS good gas mileage, but now you guys have me thinking twice about that....add this to the peeling paint and I think I might have to get rid of it.... :YO:

[03 yellow beast]

oh yes, your mileage should be MUCH MUCH better than 200 a tank! you should get well over 300..i would take it in and see if its ok..or..better yet, just sell it..make it someone elses problem..i dont meen to be mean, but when i have car problems..i get upset

[dodgeneon_chick]

i got a first gen and mine gets about 400 miles per gallon and im loving it. but sometimes its lower cuz i like to get on it alot i like to get there faster thats all....

[metallicaman915]

they say that if you try to go fast from a stop that it will make the MPG go way done. So if you are guning it from a stop then that will give you the bad MPG.

[03 yellow beast]

that i do know..i baby my car when i drive it so i know that isnt a factor..but thanks! metallica used to rock! :rck: but then they released st. anger..i wont say no more haha

[metallicaman915]

then it can be cause that if it is a manual then your need to get it into 5th gear more often. and you need to like metallica they let the new cd out and you have to like that they change that is what they are about. I will not say any more

[juliesnk]

I have 10,000 miles on my 2003 neon (automatic) and posted previously about getting bad mileage. My expectation is to get around 24 miles per gallon at most, as I live and work in a city with lots of exciting traffic. Anyway, my dealer had my car for a week, went through a tank of gas with it, and could not find an official cause. However, I was idling high, so he adjusted that, so I'll pick up a mile or two per gallon. Also, it's been super hot and I park in a lot at work, so I'm trying to cut back on using my air. By doing that I've gained 2-3 miles per gallon, which is suitable. On longer trips, I get around 300.

Maybe quite a few of us are idling high?

[03 yellow beast]

actually...during that metallica rockumntary they released, there was a lot of tension. kirk really wantes to have a bunch of solos, but everytime he started, Lars would bitch at him bout not doing them...the rest of the jerkoffs agreed with Lars, so Kirk prolly had no plessure with the way this turned out..and i will respect them for trying to be "unique" but this cd justdidnt do it for me at all! i fell asleep watching the dvd the 1st day i bought it! i wish i could have heard it before i purchased..what a waste of money...anyways..i dont have a manual..i have an auto..and i am thinking its not shifting to my last gear cause the RPMs stay quite high..which is where Juliesnk comes in. perhaps i am idling high..when i take it in..i will let you know if i find anything. also..id say that on average im lucky to get 300 miles a tank. i used a whole tank on all freeway and averaged 26 mpg..thats bs..

[tchase]

Wow! I heard the gen 2's were bad on gas but that's pathetic. I'd never checked my neon untill I took it on vacation last week (I didn't care, it was way better than my jeep). Over the 1591km (988miles) trip I averaged 35mpg. Not spectacular but consider that at least half those miles were with a full load of luggage and camping gear (they aren't a really big car are they?) and at 140km/h plus. Not too shabby, I'd say.
To all you gen 2 auto owners I say if you want decent gas mileage you're gonna need to get rid of that car 'cause the gen2 automatic's gear ratios are all wrong and they just won't get the mileage of the earlier cars. The significant increase in weight over a gen 1 doesn't help either.

[metallicaman915]

the thing with metallica it that is how they are but back to the car that is a very great posiblity cause the last gear can be an automatice overdrive and it might be failing. so that is a great posiblity

[metallicaman915]

I Think That The Cars Are Noit Geting Into Overdrive That Is What The Problume Soud Like That Is If It Is An Automatice Overdrive

[tenthelement]

I purchased an 04 on August 26th new. I'm constantly refueling, but have found my mileage to be quite good. are you getting your numbers assuming a 12 gallon tank? If so, there's the problem. the car will go into the red area on the fuel tank and after refueling it until it stops, my car holds just over 9 gallons. At about 220 miles per tank, that's not bad.

[USAIRBAGBOY]

i have the same prob w/ my 03. anywhere from 140 to 180 miles per full tank.full size trucks are getting better mileage then me!!!!!!!!!!!!. i wish somebody knew what is going on here.oh btw, only 8600 miles on car and is going to dealer for front brakes and tranny shifting problems!!!!!!!!!!!. thank god for warranties.

[Crazy001]

I have owned 2 neons, both 2nd gen, and I've found they both get quite good gas mileage. My '02 was a manual, and I averaged about 28 MPG nearly every tank. My '03 was an auto, and I only averaged 25-26. Idling high will not make a significant difference, and driving habits will only make ~2 mpg difference in these cars.

In my experience, most people don't calculate mileage right. These cars have a 12.5 gallon tank, right? When's the last time anyone has ever put 12.5 gallons in it? I never have! I figure that when I fill up, the gas pump will stop reasonably close to a full tank, and I've found it's consistant. So, take the amount of gas you PUT IN, not 12.5, and divide your mileage by that. NOT 12.5!!!

I tell ya, when I fill up, I wish I kept the neon. My F-150 averages about 16!!! This at $2.05 a gallon gets expensive!!!!!

[01bluebomber]

Well I actually haven't had to much of a problem with my neon and gas mileage. I have been averaging around 22 in town and about 30 or so on the highway. So I can't really complain. I would say that I fill up once every 2 weeks or so. But i also don't have to do alot of driving to go places...And my friends and I share the driving to. The one thing that is killing me though is the fact that I used to pay only $12-13 for gas and now I pay almost $20. Not liking that at all! But all in all my car doesn't do to bad. :cool:

[octec]

well.... I'm doing pretty good

full tank just about got me 580kms city driving which is about 350 miles
and I'm only at just under 4k kms

I think you guys should be looking at how you break in the engines and make sure that you break them in properly before switching to synthetic. I know my bone headed sales guy told me that I could use synthetic right off the factory floor (bullsheit)

I know that my first few tanks of gas went pretty quick but that's because of break-in...

imo I never babied the car during break in.... I brought the car to 6k rpm on a regular basis but did it under mild load.... not racing. my car now will pull straight to 6k easily under full load with no mods whatsoever

you can't complain too much on bad gas mileage from a 4 banger.... you should see my Omni GLH.... gets about 150 miles from 12 gallons

[gsbrockman]

Is everyone that's complaining about poor fuel mileage consistently filling up their cars till it nearly runs out the filler neck at least two or 3 times back to back ? That's the only way to accurately check it.

I bought a 2001 Dodge Neon SE wrecked with 19K miles on it. I switched to Mobil 1 at that time, and now have 47K on the car (28K miles in about 13.5 or 14 months). Car is bone stock except for the Pacesetter Exhaust. I fill up everytime to the filler neck...My work commute is 112 miles round trip each day. I can consistently get high 29's or low 30's every fill up; around 330 to 345 miles per tank before I get chicken. My commute is : 19 miles rural two lane country roads; 28 miles interstate, often at 80+ mph or so; then about 9 or 10 miles city driving. My 2nd GEN 1995 Dodge Neon Sport Coupe was getting 34 & 35 mpg under the same driving conditions with 195K on the clock when I sold it....I miss that 5 to 6 mpg.... :bawl:
Greg

[james_schilling]

I think it is all depending on where you get your gas at. I have found out that the four gas stations in my town and around me like to add a little bit of water to the fuel. that may be why in some cases, because when i go to a place where the gas is a little more spendy then i get way better gas milage. try getting gas some where else and look for a change.

[mojo2004]

Have someone at the dealer make sure your lock -up tourqe converter is workin in your transmission. If its not fuel mileage will suffer!

[kevin231]

i have a 2004 dodge neon and i get about 360km off a full tank which is about 225miles using 12 gallons. Should i be getting more that that? In the summer i average around 410km using 12 gallons

[DodgeDream02]

I never thought i would own a neon... i now do. I love this car... I drive like a mad person and im hard on the gas pedal... I drive 45 miles to work and back and i fill up once or twice a week. I had some mods done, nothing crazy... I have 175 hp in this car, an SRT-4 spoiler on the back, and i spend most of my commute at speeds of 70-85 mph... so am i getting good gas mileage? The spoiler added about 10lbs to my car... or so they say... I recently had the oil changed and it doesnt seem to change the mileage. I have a 2002 btw. So care to tell me if im getting good mileage? i dont have the patience to figure it out for myself.

[2000dodgeneon]

Low tire pressure/ air filter need replacement/ do you change your oil as recommended? Is there a checking of your oil lever on a more regular basis, these cars, "NEONS" are known for using more oil....Good Luck :rck:

[DodgeDream02]

I have my oil changed every 4k miles or so. The tire pressure in my car was checked and its at normal operating level. I had the air filter changed with the oil and it hasnt made any difference. I personally feel that im getting decent mileage since i put 90 miles per day on my car. I just dont have the patience to figure it out.

[joninlasvegas]

My 2003 gets pretty good mileage - almost ran tank to empty from full - had 350 miles on trip meter .... Around 28-30 mpg here .....

[henri_69]

I hate to jump on the "dealers side" here but I have a '03 Neon 2.0l and I'm getting about 30 on the highway (farthest on a tank 278 miles(sucking fumes :D )) and a lot less (20-25) in town. Remember this is only a 12.5 gallon tank and reads empty after about 9.5 gallons (the other three shouldn't be used because yu nee to keep the pump submerged). The RPMs on the 4 speed auto trans at 75 mph is about 3000, most modern gasoline engines are very happy between 2000-2500 rpms meaning if you drive faster than 60-65 mph (which I usually do) your milage will go down. My only recomendation is a clean air filter (I use a k&N), Premium fuel (cleaner burning ang a bit more power), an energy conserving 5w30 motor oil (synthetic such as mobile 1), and I hate to say it but a lighter right foot!

[joninlasvegas]

I do drive with a light right foot also. Might be the case for me getting that 350 miles with a full tank (12.5 gallons) to running to empty on fumes.

[henri_69]

probally

[vickicarlin]

I agree that the low gas mileage sounds odd. But remember that just because something is new doesn't mean that it might not have a bad part(s). All parts have a failure rate - meaning that there are parts just manufactured bad. My 99 neon gets 26.4 MPG in town with a heavy foot (ie stop start and over 55 - I replace brakes yearly on all my cars) and that's before my brother has had a chance to tune it up - he pulled my mini van up so that I now actually get the EPA in the real world.

[joninlasvegas]

My tank to gas mileage has changed from anywhere from 260 miles to a 12.5 gallon tank to 350 miles a tank - it does depend on your style of driving and where and how you drive ..... Just my view on this .....

[Vicneon]

I've got the same issue with my 2002 neon. I've been tols it could be the O2 sensor. The dealer said, they just get poor mileage. I've also seen folks talks about the TPS (thottle Position Sensor)?
I just bought the car two weeks ago, it seems great with the exception of the gas mileage. It only has 23k miles.
Let me know what you find?
Thank you,
Vicneon

[Vicneon]

Jule
Did your dealer find a cause? My 2002 neon gets around 19mpg. I just bought it two weeks ago. I never thought it would be this bad mpg.
I've heard O2 sensor, TPS (throttle Position sensor)? I don't know.
Let me know what you find out.
Thank you,
Vic

[mr.nobody]

i was just wondering if some of you have a tach in your car,my 04 neon is averageing around 22.4, i'm running royal purple 5/30 and at (these are just estimates) 55@2000,60@2300,65@2500,70@2700,75@2900 rpm's. the dealer say's there's nothin wrong with the car at all,i have 6,000 miles on it now, i think i've put more gas in this car then my durango (LMAO)
thanks CHRIS

[Jarrek2002]

Yep, same problem. Bought mine new in 2003, and from day 1 gotten 18 mpg highway, and about 10 in town. It's faithfully maintained, and been thoroughly checked by 3 dealerships. Damn thing after 3 years still has only 25k on it, too bloody expensive to drive, and no range anyway....likely to run out of gas in the middle of nowhere.

[HoodooGuru]

Theres something wrong with it then!
My 2001 even with a heavy right foot gets 23 mpg city and up to about 36 mpg highway.
Get all the sensors checked and have the cat checked to see it isnt clogged.

[aJester]

Hello everyone...

I recently bought a Neon. (2003 SXT 30K miles).
And I stare with horror as my fuel gauge rushes towards the "Empty" mark too. Initially I thought I was being paranoid, but this kept on repeating. I told myself, that I do a very short drive to work on side roads ( 5 miles).. and that could be the reason. But I am kidding myself. My previous car used to give me 25 miles/ gallon for the same route.

Am monitoring my mileage, this time from a full tank. I have just gone 70 miles.. but the tank is almost half empty.
Also: I noticed that when I fill gas, it takes only 9.2 gallons. What is with that. I thought all 2003 Dodge Neons have 12 gallon gas tanks?

I hope someone finds a solution for this. I love this car.
And I hope I didnot get myself a gas guzzler...

Any help/suggestions appreciated...

[rice_eater]

Your low fuel light will come on when you have about 3 gallons left in the tank. You should fill up right away when the light comes one. DO NOT RUN ON FUMES. You need to keep the pump submerged or it will be sucking up air.

I'd recommend taking a few longer trips with your car, and logging mileage. I think it is a neon thing to get horrible mileage on short trips. I run 2 miles back and forth to school everyday, and it kills my mileage. Its just far enough i cant walk (well, dont want to) but not far enough for the engine to fully warm up in the winter. I currently see 18-20MPG with these short trips, but have expeirienced 29MPG with nearly all city driving in the summer, and over 34MPG with a mix of city and highway in the summer, so I doubt anything is wrong with my car, it runs fine. I regularly take it out for longer trips during the winter, to warm the engine up to operating temp. Its really hard on an engine to drive only short trips. I wish i didnt have to take them...

[aJester]

Sorry about my previous outburst. But seeing the fuel gauge racing towards the "E" mark does something to you .. especially, in these times where Petrol is teh GOD....
You hear someone scream in agony..
And then realize that it is ... YOU.. B-)

I calculated the MPG today. I had reset my Trip Odometer to 000 when I filled the tank last time. Today, I re-filled my tank. Filled 7.56 Gallons before the pump "Clicked" full. Had 155 miles on my trip odometer which translates to 20.5 MPG. Hopefully it might be because I have been doing short runs everyday. I checked the exact distance to work from my place too.. 3.8 miles, which probably is not the the most optimized drive for the Neon engine... :0)

I hope to do some freeway driving shortly. Hopefully the stats will be much better.. *ATLEAST* somewhere in the 25 mark. I remind myself, I bought this car coz I read that it gives 29 MPG or more...

But for now... I just love my Neon. ... ... ...

[vickie535]

Yes I'm a woman but I owned a 2001 Dodge Neon and now a 2005. My suggestion is to change your spark plugs and your air filter. If that don't improve go get your fuel system cleaned. My 2001 had lost allot of gas mileage and I had the fuel system cleaned and my air filter changed at the same time at one of those Lube places. Instant improvement. Considering how much gas is now days its well worth it. All this should be well under $50.00. To save money....change your air filter your self. Walmart is much cheaper to buy the filter than what they will charge you at a Lube/Oil change place or at a Autozone or Advanced Auto. It got over 30 to a gallon. My new one gets that now. Remember once you have all this done to use fuel injector cleaner. The bottle will state how much you need to use it. I hope this helps. Oh and by the way. I drive a hour each way to and from work up and down a mountain. So for my car to get that kind of mileage its worth a shot.

Vickie :crazy:

[rice_eater]

I think your short trips are killing your mileage. 20MPG isnt actually that bad if all you do is 3.8 mile trips. I run 2 miles to and from school, and average anywhere from 18-20mpg in the winter. and that 29mpg rating is highway isnt it? you wont see that unless the majority of your driving was done on the highway for that tank of gas.

[vickie535]

Nope. This is 25 Min's in the city full of stop lights and the rest comming up a very long mountain.I live in the country. Its worth a shot to try it. I know what it did for mine. If you have to drive the distance I do each am and pm you want the best gas mileage you can get. I'm not really heavy footed but I move along. Air cleaner, spark plugs and a fuel injector clean at a lube shop. That is all mine took. Under 50 bucks and 30 miles to a gallon. I saved that in less than a month on gas. :cool:

[rice_eater]

Sorry, my post was directed toward aJester. I should've specified.

[aJester]

Vickie...
Thanks a bunch for your response!
Using Fuel Injector:- I had used it in my Old 1998 dodge Neon previously. But was a wee bit worried about using it on my newly bought car :0)
Shall also check my spark plugs.

Rice Eater..
Thanks for your comments. And nope. The 25 MPG I used to get for my old car (1998 Neon) was for the same route I drive now. Ofcourse, I used to drive a 30 - 40 miles a week on the Highway to meet my love in those days.
AND it was NOT yet winter. So those perhaps why I got marginally more milleage.

I agree my short trip is probably killing my mileage... I checked again this week. I get around 20.5 MPG. Hopefully things will improve as the Winter ends and I do some longer drives.

-aJester

[n-gin]

You should try owning an R/T then you'll see bad gas milage!

Try a 4.7 Durango with 3.92 posi,4x4. Btw I raced a neon and won :thatfunny Then he said try that on the high way, and I proceded to pull away from him :D . Durangos rock :rck: . My Neon is cool too :D

[n-gin]

My Neon gets 230 to the tank, and the D gets 320. The difference is one take $18 to fill and the other takes $55 to fill.

[DodgeNeonES]

Yea i agree with all those peope who are getting 17 miles per gallon there is something wrong with you car there has to be. Ours gets good gas milage around 35 mpg. Have fun trying to figure out what is wrong :)

[rice_eater]

I know whats wrong with mine, I take too many short trips in the cold!!!!! LOL In the summer i can pull 29-32mpg IN TOWN :rck:

[dodgefan360]

Yea i agree with all those peope who are getting 17 miles per gallon there is something wrong with you car there has to be. Ours gets good gas milage around 35 mpg. Have fun trying to figure out what is wrong :)

There's something wrong alright. Auto+heavy foot = bad gas mileage.

My around town winter mileage with my D is 9.8mpg - with light/moderate acceleration. My spirit averages 24mpg (US mpg) with the 100hp 2.5L TBI engine mated to the 3 speed auto. Both have improved since last Feb! Maybe that's due to the lack of snow!