Welcome to CleanMPG! The mileage in my Sonata kept increasing incrementally until it hit around 5000 miles. 18-19mpg is not bad if your commute has a lot of traffic lights. My daily driver is the 2011 Elantra and I have demonstrated that when driven "easy", it returns about 20mpg city. Techniques you will learn here increase that to 28-30mpg city. My Sonata is a stick so it can't be directly compared to your SE, but the Elantra provides a good parallel comparison. To hit EPA city, it is important to minimize braking, keep it rolling, learn how to make use of the fuel cut capability, and accelerate gently enough to allow upshifts at 2000rpm. Pump up the tires will help, but is not a requirement. Add a post in the Start Your Journey Here forum, describe your commute a little, and provide your general location. We're happy to help and share the tips and techniques that will help you increase fuel economy.
Cool thank you for the response...well that makes sense...I hear it 3000 to 5000 to 10000 miles before it gets better mileage. I live in the heart of Los Angeles and traffic is like breathing you have to go through it. Well there are a couple of techniques that I will use but I still want to be able to accelerate fast. I am still young lol I tried looking for the start your journey section but I could not find it...can you please post the link? Again thank you I feel better about my mileage now.
Start Your Journey Here Traffic makes it a real challenge to beat the EPA, but it can be done. Your commute in LA is similar to those of us in New York, Chicago, Boston, and other clogged cities. It takes some work to keep the mpg number up, but those of us who live in these cities and their suburbs do exactly that every time we turn the key. It is your choice to accelerate fast at times, and the term we often use to describe it is "throwing it away" - using fuel that doesn't need to be used. At $4 a gallon, it is a luxury to "drop the pedal and go", and it does affect the tank average. Taming that desire will provide a healthy boost to the measured mpg number on your next fill.
Awesome! Thanks for the interesting an entertaining write-up. I enjoyed it immensely and am glad you went to such length and detail to make your case.
