MPG HELP

i kno this is probably an old topic but i cant stand this anymore. i looked around and the jist of it was, wait for the break in period to be over. i am reaching towards the end of the breakin period (958) and no improvement in mpg. i freakin basicaly babied the car. even the times when i was testing the handling. whenever i was casual drivingand went downhill i put it nuetrual so it would roll better and use less gas. in the city i would drive like a granny(tolerated many middle fingers). and nothing i get like 20-21 mpg. i was getting better mileage with the 626. this is some royal bull. i heard that in some cars the breakin period is about 3,000 miles.wtf. i hope this isnt true.

In the first place, Mazda doesn't recommend babying the car during break in.  My manual is not specific about a break in period.  But they do recommend not maintaining to a strict speed for long periods, iirc.
As for the problem @ hand, my mileage has never improved but always stayed about the same no matter what I did, or have done to it.  In fact, I sometimes seem to get slightly better mileage running up the revs.
As far as gas mileage goes, this car doesn't act like any other I have owned either.

I don't really understand why people are complaining about 20 mpg, that's still good! I don't even really care what my MPG is really, just as long as I don't have to fill up every week or so (My car's tank usually lasts me about 2 weeks if I drive regularly and keep it under 4.5K RPM. Even when I rev it off it's goats.

If the mileage doesn't improve and your bothered by it, get some performance parts for it (ex. Engine management)

its a huge deal for me becuase gas is gonna get to about 4 dollars this summer, supposedly. and mazda advertised 30mpg. i dont mind if its a few under but 10 miles is a lot in my opinion. i am about to do an early oil change to see if anything improves. i want at least 25 mpg combined. that would be nice.

haha.... the "break in period"
i think i lasted about 200 km's before i opened 'er up

If you want to average around 29-30 mpg, you need to have the 3i (2.0L) with a 5-speed stick.  That's what I get.  Lowest was 27, highest was 35 mpg.
 
20 mpg average is horrible for a car that small.  How are you calculating it?
 
You should fill up your car to the first click of the pump, reset the trip meter, drive through the gas, then fill at the same station to the first click.  Divide the miles driven on the trip meter by the gas you just put in.

I'm getting about 24 mpg average for all driving in mine.  Yesterday I had the computer well over 30 mpg for the first 80 miles or so.  It seemed to like 55-60 mph in 6th just cruising home in traffic.  I was impressed because I had three adults in the car so it wasn't empty or anything.

I honestly think that a 6 speed transmission is the best and saves you soo much gas when in 6th gear. Your RPM's are seriously in the low 1000's most of the time (inless your on the highway).

The thing is though, 55-60? You must be going down hill for sure... hah

im measuring it with the unlocked DIS. i jus want to get my 24 mpg back. i hate filling up every 4 days.

Yeah I have a 3 S 5dr. I am very dissapointed on the gas mileage I get. I am actually getting ready to trade my 3 in. I don't want to but I just cannot afford putting gas in it every few days. I need to get something with better gas mileage :(

quote:

ORIGINAL: TMR Net Shark

I honestly think that a 6 speed transmission is the best and saves you soo much gas when in 6th gear. Your RPM's are seriously in the low 1000's most of the time (inless your on the highway).

The thing is though, 55-60? You must be going down hill for sure... hah

 
Actually the trip was not all down hill and I even pushed on the gas a couple of times for some two lane road passing.
 
You realize that 6th gear is nearly the same ratio and 5th in a 5-speed.  In the MS3 6-speed 5th gear is essentially 1:1 like 4th normally would be similar to an RSX Type-S transmission.  I wish they would have kept the standard 5 speed ratios and given another gear since the powerband is much wider than the gear ratios.
 
Mazda advertises 20 mph city and 28 mph highway using premium 91 octane fuel.  If you purchased a Speed 3 and have concerns about the cost of fuel or economy then why purchase a car like this.  My only concern would be if I wasn't getting the advertised mileage and it was an indicator of a mechanical problem.  Mine has just over 5,000 miles and has always run about 24 mpg.  My first tank was 23 mph and I played with it, not abuse, during break in.  Maybe you can find out how the testing is done and compare it to your driving style.
 
What rpm do you shift and cruise at?  I try to keep the car between 2,500 - 3,500 rpm in town and will cruise about 2,000 rpm on the highway on the flat and will downshift for hills.  Lugging a car is not only hard on an engine, it burn fuel.  Coasting down a hill doesn't really save much gas as anytime you let off the gas the computer will read 99.9 mpg no matter what the gear.

For some reason I was assuming that you had a Speed 3, but I don't see on this thread where you actually say, did I miss it?

sorry i keep on forgetting to do that. im drivin a m3 2.3 hb wit a 1020 miles on it.

The 2007 Mazda 3 HB is rated for 26/33 Manual and 25/31 Automatic.
 
Are you using the AC?  People have reported a couple mpg loss from the AC being turned on.
 
Are you tires aired up properly?
 
Does it coast easily?  Possibly a brake sticking or a wheel brearing issue?
 
What brand/grade of fuel do you generally use?

i dont use the a/c unless im on the highway, which is not to often becuase i use back roads.

yea the pressure is good, i was gonna take virgin1's advice on the inflation of tires for better handling jus have done it yet.

no it doesnt coast easily when its in gear, coasts a lot better when i put it in nuetrual.

and i use the cheapest gas usually citgo or the stop and shop brand.

Try running a few tanks of a Top Tier fuel like Conoco/Philips/76, Texaco/Chevron or Shell and see if it makes any difference.  It shouldn't cost you even a dollar per tank.
 
My old 85 Toyota truck was extremely picky about the fuel it liked and the local 7/11 Citgo seemed to run ok in my Camaro, but I stopped running it after I put a tank in the Toyota.
 
It might not help, but you never know.

p.s. is it possible that you are running some of the "corn" fuel that is known to cause poor mpg.

quote:

ORIGINAL: blackdiamond

p.s. is it possible that you are running some of the "corn" fuel that is known to cause poor mpg.

 
Hahaha!! Like West Virgina "drip gas?"  
 
My old Civic was very picky too.  It absolutely HATED Exxon gas, no matter what grade it was.