Hey all, thanks for the add.

I picked up a 97 CL with 170k for cheap, and after doing the normal stuff on a new to me car (T belt kit, fix leaks, etc) I began regularly driving it. Three things I noticed were the temp gauge going all over the place, the heater taking a long time to get hot, and horrible fuel economy. The gauge and heater were easy, bad cluster sending unit and thermostat missing. I was hoping the thermostat missing would also cause the poor economy. I drive 50/50 street/highway and I average about 21.5mpg. I know these didn't have the greatest rating to begin with, but is this normal? It runs strong and has decent pep, I was just hoping for a more fuel efficient vehicle. It got all new plugs, new air filter and a valve adjustment when I did the Tbelt. I've checked the FPR, and it's not leaking. I don't smell an external leak. Just at a loss as to where to look next.

Thanks!

 

Sounds pretty normal for a 27 year old car

 

I would think it ought to do better than low 20's. I usually check my fuel mileage at fill up, and it's usually high 26 to low 28 MPG. This is with an H motor and a shorter geared transmission.

My commute is roughly 25% rural, 50% highway and 25% city.

If I remember correctly, the old F22 used to get 1 or 2 more MPG.