geocord

Two weeks? Maybe just chill out and put a couple of tankfuls through it and see if it evens out. Reset your computer when you fill it up if it isn't set up that way now.

Mike_TX

Rather than asking opinions and guessing, just take it to the dealer and explain your concern. Insist that a tech hook up his computer and go for a ride with you. He can look at all the parameters - fuel use, ignition timing, VCM operation, transmission lockup, yadda yadda yadda, all in real time. If there's something out of whack he will be able to see it.

Be polite but insistent. Talk to the service manager if need be. Offer to pay for a tech's labor hour if absolutely necessary.

Micapeak

I had the dealer hook it up to his computer but he didn't go for a ride. He just said there where no error codes. I was kidding about trading it in. I love the RDX and it did much better highway MPG on the return trip today with no headwinds. I think strong headwinds caused the cylinder deactivation to shut off and that system is where the really good highway mpg number come from. I've seen other threads say mpg drop off a lot over 70mph. So my 70mph plus 15mph headwind would see mpg number similar to going 85mph average. Add in the crossing of a major mountain pass over compact snow and ice and 22-23mpg is about right.
On the half of the return trip with no headwinds and no mountain pass or snow, I averaged 28.5mpg which is higher than EPA estimates so I am pleased. The bottom line is I think the cylinder deactivation is what gets the RDX great highway mpg numbers and that it can't save much gas on hills, in headwinds, or at high speeds.
Thanks for the replies.

de-pro

mine is 3 weeks old with just shy of 1000 miles on her. My average is not the greatest since the city traffic here is not no great, however I have so far managed 29.5 on the highway (cruising at 70mph) and 20 combined.

Micapeak

De-pro

That sounds similar to what I am getting.
Thx

I_Like_Scotch

An easy way to see if your VCM is working is to take the vehicle on the highway and set the cruise control. Flip on the Instantaneous Fuel Economy screen and watch the bars. When the VCM kicks in you will see it drop.

Mike_TX

Mmm ... not as easy as it sounds. Every little dip and rise in the road will make the instantaneous mileage bar fluctuate, and it's not always easy to know if it's VCM or not.

richardyc

I got a 2013 RDX as a loaner while my 2012 was in the dealer for some warranty work few weeks ago. My dealer is about an hour, with my 12, my mpg would go up a few miles from 19 mixed to 24mpg by the time I get to my dealer because it's mostly highway. With the 2013, the mpg was 19.1 on the MID, and it never changed, it stayed at 19.1 to 19.0 the whole time I had it and until I returned it, it was still at 19.1. kinda weird.

Mike_TX

Not really. Unless you reset the mpg display, it was working with probably hundreds of previous in-town miles, and the small amount of highway driving you did wasn't enough to overcome the cumulative total of all those miles.

dallison

That is stop and go, you are lucky to get 22.

saxman48

Just did a 60 mile round trip today, mostly freeway, rolling hills, and got 27 mpg registered on MID. MID was reset just prior to the trip. SF Bay Area - no snow, no rain, light breeze. Our RDX is 4 weeks old and has logged just under 1000 miles.

Roadie2000

Took a little road trip over the weekend with about half county highway driving and half interstate driving. I noticed on the slower county highways I was getting over 30 mpg going about 60-65 mph! On the interstate going 75-80 mph I usually get around 25-26 mpg.

geocord

I just did a 450 mile r/t from Chicago suburbs to Grand Rapids, Mi. Mostly 65-75mph expressway for 85% of the trip and 15% city type driving. Rainy and windy on way up and sunny on way back. One day trip averaged 27mpg and I'm fine with that. AWD tech model.

yobbo

From Fuelly.com

http://www.fuelly.com/car/acura/rdx/gas%20v6

geocord

As a side note.....I usually drive about 90% suburban Chicago type driving with a little expressway added in at non-rush hours. I've been averaging around 22-23.5mpg. Since my vehicle is rated at 19 city I consider that MPG to be right around the combined MPG I should be getting.

Sculldog3

Recent 250 mile highway run, hit 26mpg overall, 91 octane, two people. 75+.

Lifetime average over 6K, heavily tilted to city, is 18.8.

Mwchill

I just got a new acura rdx 2013 base model last week...it's been Awesome so far....enjoying my ride and the comfort...
I have used 300 miles so far of which approx 100 would be highway miles...that would be 300/16== 19 mpg approx...

My tank is close to empty from the full fuel I got from the dealer...
Is it too early to determine how efficient the mpg of my vehicle??

Do I need to drive more to get an accurate mpg??

Thanks

Mike_TX

Yeah, I think it's a bot too soon to draw any conclusions.

For one thing, many dealers use only regular gas at their dealerships - not only is it cheaper, but most dealers just don't have the facilities to store and maintain more than one grade of gas. And since they know the car will run fine on regular, they just "cheap out" and go with that. It just won't give you the best mileage.

Another factor is of course how you drive and the kind of traffic situations you're in. Needless to say, congested areas like New York City are going to yield lots worse mileage.

And yet another is the switchover to summer-grade gasoline by the refineries. I've noticed about a 10% (2 mpg) drop in my mileage compared to a month ago.

Put some good-quality premium gas in it and drive out the whole tank. You should see it improve a bit.

CoachRick

There's often a lot of idling with a new vehicle...showing off and trying systems/programming, etc. I remember testing a brand new RX330 back in '06 and the vehicle hadn't yet left the parking lot when I scrolled through the trip computer to find an 'average mileage' of NINE mpg!!!(The RX 'puter re-sets upon fill-up and the sales dude had just fueled the vehicle ).

Given my experience with our RDX fuel gauge, I wouldn't run it 'bone dry' until you get a feel for the gauge accuracy...and give it another tank or so before calculating mpg.

Mwchill

Thanks guys for your quick response. As you said, i will have to refill couple of times to have a better idea. I just refueled with premium for about 14.5 Gallons. So my caculation is more like 300/14.5 ==> 20.6 which does not sound that bad.

yobbo

I am averaging 10mpg 100% around town on my second tank. I think something is wrong with the computer. Will wait and see on the third tank to reset the computer.

hand-filer

Perhaps you made a calculation error when you converted liters per 100 to miles per gallon?

yobbo

Hand-flier - its whowing a tick over 21l/100km on the computer which is 11mpg.

Near certain its a computer glitch as the needle is not going down at that rate. This would give me 300km per tank!

strykme

I get about the same in NYC driving, traffic lights every block. Highway mpg is fine, 60 ml trip and I was getting over 27mpg with 5 people in the car, but city mpg is a bit of a disappointment. It still costs me less then Honda Pilot and using premium gas.

backwoody

Just an update from previous posts; this week, with a 280 mile trlp into central Idaho across mtn passes and returning, I got 33.3 mpg. Astonishing, IMO.

hand-filer

Sounds like a trip to the dealership is in order. I am currently averaging 12.4 L/100 in 100% city driving which includes a fair bit of stop and go. I average 400km between fill-ups. These numbers could be improved upon. I have a bit of a lead foot.

Ch1l1

I average about 22.8 mpg on a tank of gas. This includes a daily commute or 30 mi. on 101 through Silon Valley which is not fun. Pure highway driving 75mph I get 28. All in all I am very satisfied considering the horsepower in the 3.5.

Dimcorner

how do you get the instantaneous MPG? is it that bar or is there a way to get a number?

aquaholik

I am getting 22.8 for the last 3000 miles but the computer is usually off by about .4 miles so it is probably 22.4 for the last 3000 miles. I am getting about 22mpg mixed driving. I'm seeing 28mpg on the highway but have not taken a long road trip with it yet.

On a side note, towing a small boat that probably weighs 400lbs + 700lbs aluminum trailer, I am getting 20mpg on the highway. A huge drop from the 28mpg and I often have to downshift manually or drive in "S" mode to get the response I want. Driving in "D", the car can't seem to tell that I am towing so it shift up to early causing sluggish response. I think I am just going to drive in "S" mode when towing. I have to check the owner's manual and see what is recommended.

AcucaDude

I'm getting 19 mpg. But I do 95% city and 5% highway so I guess it's just me.