~200 mile road trip in my '16 Advance AWD. ~75 mph most of the way, give or take. I was feeling tired, so I kept passing to a minimum. This yielded 28.7mpg.

Normally I'll drive ~80 mph and pass slower cars with little to no hesitation. This usually produces about 26.5 mpg on the same trip.

Pretty good, I'd say.

 

My RDX over states the MPG by about .8 MPG. I know this because I tabulate each tank against the previous miles travelled and the number of gallons purchased. If I simply trusted the RDX computer I'd be getting a tad better mileage. This is not uncommon on cars as I've experienced this with most cars I've owned. My RDX also travels around one MPH slower than the speedometer displays. This too is not unusual. My Q5 was off by two MPH. Right now, with just over 2,000 miles I'm getting exactly 22 MPG in mixed driving--just as Acura promised. Maybe as the car gains more miles the MPG will tick up a bit. But no complaints. It performs as advertised.

 

Still averaging about 15MPG mostly local driving on 93oct. 1200 mi so far on the car. Thought 19MPG was min. Does this improve over time? This is very poor...

 

5300 miles on mine in mixed driving (50/50). I drive very conservatively. Neighbor's kids tell me I drive like an old man. Computer reads 20.8 over the life of the car, but I don't know how accurate it is as I don't really check it. When the tank gets low I figure I have 2 choices: fill it or park it.

 

It has been three months since I purchased the RDX with very little highway driving. My “highway driving” was limited to 2-3 highway exists if any. The mileage has been around 11L/100km (21mpg).

Today I dove a 200km round trip with ½ regular and ½ premium gas. The outbound was 7.8L/100km (30mpg) averaging around 105km/hr. The return trip I got 8.4L/100km (28mpg) driving into very heavy traffic. These number are better than the advertized highway 8.6L/100km.

I am very pleased with the results and can expect the average summer driving to be below 10L/100km (23.5mpg).

 

That's pretty amazing. After 9 months, and only using premium fuel, the best tank I ever had was 8.7L/100km (26.9 mpg).

Did you obtain those readings from the trip computer, or by mathematical calculation?. I find that the trip computer usually gave a slightly better consumption value in the summer (by about 1.5%) but since winter, and more idling time, it provides a 6% better value.

 

Rick:

To keep it simple, I just used the trip computer. Note that this is pure highway driving.

On the return trip we ran into very bad accidents on the QEW and 427 with stop and go traffic. The slow traffic bumped the mileage up noticeably.

 

Thanks for this great data all!

Just so you feel better about the new model, the 09 in my garage does 20mpg around town. On the freeway I can get it up to 25mpg at around 65mph, but then when I drive a reasonable speed for Idaho freeways (80mph) it dive back down to 20mpg. When I drive at the unreasonable speed of 90mph it's more like 18mpg. Of course at this speed the turbo and gas gauge are inversely linked.

It sounds as if they made a good decision with the 6. The 4T is fun, but only for the first 3 gears.

 

Back in October, in post #26, I explained how the trip computer was within 1.8% of the mathematical calculation after 19 fill-ups.

If I just look at the 11 fill-ups from December 1 until today (cold weather fill-ups), I find the trip computer has a 7.2% error from the manually calculated values.

In both cases, the computer gave the more optimistic values. I don't know if the change is actually related to the temperature change or if there is a problem with a sensor. I guess I will find out for sure when the warm weather returns.

The thing is, if this 7.2% error is common in all RDX's, then your 7.8L/100km (30mpg) might really be 8.4L/100km (28 mpg) which is still better than anything I have obtained.

If you get the chance, try doing the manual calculation on one fill-up to see if it agrees with the trip computer.

 

First 1300 mi on new '16 RDX (Premium Fuel - and I feel stupid buying it for this car) and I'm getting almost 16mi\Gal - mostly city. Really disappointing. The numbers people are giving here don't seem real. Maybe it'll break in - don't know but to this point it's a gas hog. I'd gladly give up the extra 10-15 hp to save the .80c for regular also. You'd never know the difference with this type of car anyway...

 

I normally run 93 octane, but since reading these posts I decided to try 87 octane for a few (3) tanks. I notice no difference at all. My driving habits are the same and my usual driving spots are about the same. The miles to empty are the same when I fill up and the overall reading remains at 20.8 mpg (mixed driving).

 

I just started using regular gas this week and should be able to come to some conclusion by the end of this month.

 

Some you likely know about Fuelly--a free online fuel recording and calculating program that assures easy and accurate mpg, as well as long term statistics for your car.

 

You forgot about the laws of the internet:


Everybody else paid too much because I got the best price evar - even if I left out half the charges.
Gas mileage must be overstated because I don't want to admit my mpg sucks.
Premium gas is always best because it gets 50% better gas mileage and 100 extra HP.
The price difference between regular and premium is only a few cents in my area.


The people getting good mileage are doing lots of highway driving and attributing it to city driving. My TSX wagon gets great mileage on the highway (30+ mpg) and 22mpg in the city. If I fill up in the city and drive around doing errands on the weekend, I'm lucky to break 20mpg. With lots of highway driving over 40k miles, I've averaged 27.2 mpg on the trip computer - so about 26 -26.5 actual.


While my TSX has no relationship to the RDX engine wise, it proves something that is inherent to the gas mileage stats on Honda/Acura cars - you can beat the highway ratings easily, but you're lucky to match the city numbers.


As far as regular vs premium, I've not been able to detect ANY difference in mpg on my daily commute - which recently includes 200 miles of low traffic highway and inter-town roads with few traffic lights.


Here in the DC area, the price difference is about 75 cents and (at a $1.60 a gallon) that equates to almost a 50% premium. Even those people that claim to see an improvement don't claim more than a 1 - 2 increase - so well under 10%. When the price difference was a quarter you could have made a case for premium.


As far as power, and HP increases would be in the lower single digits.

 

LOL! This sounds like something I would say. I'm not sure why people don't just tell the truth as it would actually be helpful to people reading the blogs. Instead, when reading the blogs you have to do your own "B.S. filtering" and you may or may not get it right.


I filled up this morning (4th time with 87 octane) and have yet to notice a difference in performance or mileage. I did, however, note that the RDX computer calculation and mine (using a calculator) do not agree. The computer says I got 20.9, but my calculator says I got 19 even. In any event, it doesn't really matter because I plan to keep the car 5-10 years and when the tank gets to the half way point I plan to fill it regardless of the mpg. I do plan to continue with 87 octane though. There is a 37 percent price difference between 87 and 93 octane and I think that's substantial. I'm glad the gas is available and whatever it costs I pay it - but 37 percent increase with nothing in return is wasting money in my opinion. I look at it like this: if the EPA on the RDX was reduced by 37 percent how would I feel (i.e. 15/21 instead of 20/30)? I just wish I'd have gotten one of the RDXs that get 50 mpg while turning 11 sec quarter mile runs.

 

I've had my 2016 Advance RDX since November. My average in roughly 50/50 mixed driving is 22.4 mpg, based on hard data, not the car's display. I'm getting what was promised. Highway mileage is upper 20's as others have noted, depending on speeds.

 

My mileage is usually about 50/50, but my last tank was a bit unusual as it was more like 75/25 (in-town/highway).

 

That's what 91 octane is for. 93 octane gets you 10 second runs.

 

When I was a kid my dad bought a new 1969 Hurst AMX (it was red, white and blue from the showroom floor) that he took to the dragstrip about a month after buying it to see what it could do. I don't remember the exact number, but his 1/4 mile time was like 11.3 or something. BUT he used 95 octane with lead in it! I'm not sure the RDX can do that, but will never know.

 

I am seriously pissed now.

So here is the story. I went in at the end of May and bought a 2016 RDX Tech AWD. I took it home and did my usual breakin of the car. RPM under 2500 and speed under 55mph for 3000 miles. I noticed that the MPG was nowhere near what was advertised. I was getting around 11mpg city and at most 16mpg hwy. The tech said give it till 5000 miles and it should improve. So after my first oil change, it did not improve that much. City got a little better at about 13 mpg and highway still stayed at 16 mpg. After I changed the air filter and did my own oil change with Mann Oil Filter and 0w20 Mobile 1, the mpg improved a little but no where near what you guys are getting. To this day the tech swears that it just needs to be broken in. Its been almost a year and 12K miles and I have NEVER seen a 20s average mpg. I drive 65mph to 75mph for 17 miles to and from work during the weekday, on the weekends I probably do about 20 to 25 miles city driving with the rest being above 45 mph(highway speeds). I've recorded my mpg by calculating how many miles on my "Trip A" counter divided by the gallons of gas that went into the car. Oh and I've only used Shell V-Power since the day I got it.

The range of average mpg for me, even through winter, was 13mpg to 17mpg. What am I missing here? Do I have to go to Acura CS to get this fixed?

 

Well, you could just keep listening to the tech.

 

Your mileage is too low. You should get an average of 20+MPG.

With regular gas, I get 22 mpg average (city/highway combined) and 27+ on the highway.

It is either your driving style or something is off with your RDX.

 

3000 mi in and I'm getting 16mpg city have gotten 24/5 max highway only. Mileage blows to this point...

 

Seems like the V6 mileage jump over the old I4 turbo is a little overstated. 50/50 mixed driving for me over the nearly 9k miles I've owned my 2008.

 

Maybe try taking off the parking/emergency brake before driving?

 

I believe 22.3 in 50/50 mixed driving is what they promised. And it's an improvement over the 2008 four cylinder I had. My average is currently 22.3 after 3,500 miles and I calculate it by hand each fill up--I don't rely on the trip computer.

 

I've noticed the gas mileage in my 16 RDX improving as I get more miles on it. The mileage was 17city and 26 hghway. I just got over the 2400 mile mark and am getting 21 city and 31 highway and I don't think the cars totally broken in yet. I am extremely happy with the gas mileage and how close it is to what Acura claims. I only use Premium fuel so maybe that has something to do with it.

 

The trip computers seem universally optimistic.

 

25-ish mpg hwy is about right. The RDX doesn't have the Eco mode (cylinder cut-outs) that you get on some Hondas, like the Odyssey that significantly boost cruise mpg. You're running 6 cyl at 279 hp all the time. The reasoning behind this is that Acura is supposed to be their "performance" line and Honda is supposed to be their "value" line.

(Interesting side note: The cylinder cut-out technology apparently makes the engine sound so bad that Honda will only sell it with full noise-cancellation technology that fools you into thinking the engine sounds fine)

 

Incorrect Sir, the RDX has VCM (variable cylinder management).
2017 Acura RDX | Features | Performance | Acura.com
2013-1015 models would cut down to 3-4 cylinders, newer RDXs cut down to 3.
I'm sure other Acuras such as the MDX utilize the VCM as well.

 

Also, the RDX will automatically turn the volume up and down depending on the vehicles speed.

 

You are correct the 2017 does have VCM. We have the FWD model and our gauge hit 30 mpg on the highway using the adaptive cruise last night. Still less than 1,000 mi on the vehicle. The sticker says 28 Hwy. I was under the impression that AWD got 4-5 mpg less. Wife has pretty much an all highway commute (less than a mile from each exit and 50 min. on the highway)

 

Where did you get that idea?? The MPG difference is only 1 MPG less on the AWD.

https://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/bymo...cura_RDX.shtml

 

Yes - we bought a 2016 RDX Advance at the end of Jan and read that it does have VCM, but have yet to feel or see it at all.

 

You can pick up 2 mpg by turning the A/C off.Yes,it runs all the time.

 

Make sure your tires are properly inflated - a simple check of the TPMS system on the MID will tell you.

 

I was told my '16 Advanced RDX has VCM. It so, it's almost completely invisible in operation. There is not dashboard reading as to when the engine shifts from 6 cylinder to 3 cylinder operation (or maybe 4 cylinder). I certainly haven't noticed any vibration from VCM. When I first heard about VCM, I was a bit leery about buying the RDX, but now in my opinion, it's the best SUV I've ever owned.

In highway driving I get close to 28 MPG and 20 around town.

 

In the first 2000 miles, I started out pretty consistently getting 24.5 mpg on the highway driving 80 mph. I was suspicious about the claims of higher mileage because of this. However, now with 15,500 miles on it and making a 1500 mile round trip to Colorado, it's consistently turned over 28 mpg. One tank was over 29 mpg, and one drive in the mountains on I-70 averaged 32.2 mpg. Back in the low lands of Kansas, I'm back to getting around 28 mpg when i can find no-wind conditions. I attribute the higher mileage in Colorado to lower wind resistance...or something. The Kansas cross winds don't affect the handling much. However, a headwind will sure nail the mileage.

As for the VCM, it really is unobtrusive. The most I've ever been able to feel from it was a slight thump similar to an air conditioner clutch engaging. That happened when transitioning from going downhill to going uphill at highway speeds. They've done a really good job with this function.

 

Interesting to compare. We drive 'spirited' according to tirerack.com

2017 9months old with 7500miles and just starting to feel 'broken in' so havent yet thought about mpg...
especially after what I thought were disappointing numbers during our initial road trip.
The range and miles driven never got above 250mi and I usually needed to fill up seeing the low fuel warning light.
I was averaging roughly 18mpg freeway 15 city.

Now the numbers finally add up to just over 310mi range and I'm seeing 20+ mpg mixed driving with premium fuel...that is a great improvement.
we got a free dealer A-1 service voucher so maybe another fresh oil change might help...
but for now 20mpg and hopefully the rdx will continue to improve and I see the mpg numbers that you guys see.

 

it cannot be stressed enough... if you want good MPG, keep your right foot out of said throttle... The 4 times I had a RDX loaner, my average fuel consumption was 28mpg you have six properly spaced gears so there really is no need to push that engine past 2k in daily commuting...