Hey guys
 

Hello everyone! Been lurking for a week, finally decided to join to participate in this great community. Plus, the garage and fuel log seem like a great way to track your mileage. The only logging I have ever done for my car has been to make a mental note of my mileage at the pump before driving away, but I have never actually recorded anything. This is the start of a new era for me!

I have a Scangauge II in the mail. I am really excited to start tracking my miles/gallons and increase my efficiency!

I am also in the process of saving money to purchase a new car. That is what helped me find this place; my quest to purchase a car I love and to make sure I achieve optimal efficiency with it.

I look forward to my new journey! :turtle:

Welcome to EcoModder!

The SG-II is a great tool, you will love it.

Keeping track of your mileage is paramount.

These days, you can do all those things online :) - and more.
Sites like MPG and Cost Calculator and Tracker - Spritmonitor.de (there are likely others as well) let you keep track of all your car expenses in detail.
Which can be something of an eye-opener :eek:


The easiest way to get better mileage, is to start by buying a car that will give you far better mileage right off the shelf.

The downside to that, is that your improvements in driving style or to the car will usually be less spectacular and tougher to achieve, and that the savings made by improvements are less in absolute terms. :rolleyes:

Welcome to the site.

Thanks for the warm welcome, and the tips from euromodder. :)

"Welcome aboard!"

Welcome - you'll love the ScanGauge. Turns driving efficiently into a game.

What car(s) are you considering?

Welcome! same question as Metro, what are you looking into? Now a days there are so many cars that can function for what you want, and with the nut behind the wheel tuned, great mileage can be achieved before any of the 65+ Vehicle modifications for better fuel economy - EcoModder.com.

The most important part (arguably, but to most of us) is a standard transmission.

Thanks fella's! I have the Scangauge II installed and it is working great. I love it! I haven't had to fill up since I received it, but I will record my tanks as soon as I do.

Now don't laugh, but I am highly considering the Toyota Tacoma. I have had my eye on them since their 2005 redesign, but I finally have room in my budget to start saving for one.

I took one for a test drive last weekend and it was dreamy! lol. It rode better than I had expected; it was really quite a smooth ride. The back seats(looking at the double cab 4x4 V6 with short bed) were spacious enough to accommodate for me(6' tall) as well. The mileage with the V6 is nothing to brag about, but I do want to make sure I get as good as I can with it. I am the type that drives nothing but manuals, so I am definitely looking at the 6M.

I have plenty of time before I am ready to purchase a new vehicle, so I will be window shopping and test driving quite a bit until then.

The Tacoma is nice. My grandpa has a '06 Hilux, which is its overseas equivalent, but it's fitted with a 4-pot turbodiesel and a 4-speed slushbox.

Regarding the V6, it may eventually not get so disadvantaged mileage-wise compared to a 4-pot, since it would have more torque at lower RPM :thumbup:

Have you done the math to see how much more you're going to spend on fuel over 10 years vs. going for something more efficient? I guarantee you, it's a huge number -- ie. the difference in fuel cost alone will likely pay the entire cost of the more efficient car.

Of course you buy what you like, but make sure you go in with all the info!

Even think about getting a lightly used one, just off of a lease, or buy back, and you could get something else.

I had my Mustang as my DD, but I was putting WAY too many miles on it to keep the warranty in tact- so I got the NSX of FE (which would comfortably seat a six footer).

The Tacoma seems like a sweet ride, but trucks are usually pretty hard to real get good FE out of, or, it's really easy and only a few people do it...one of the two lol. But hey, if it's the right vehicle for you, and you end up with it, I'll be following your mods.

Thank you UltArc and MetroMPG. I appreciate your advice as well as concerns. :)

Buying used crossed my mind. However two things are making me lean towards a new car. One is Tacoma's appear to retain a high resale value. The other is(and I can't stress this enough) I really want a new vehicle lol. This will be my first new vehicle and just having the peace of mind knowing I have been the only one to drive it, that I have taken meticulous care of it will mean a lot to me. The way people drive around here(Bay Area, Ca), I just couldn't take it knowing that one of those people had a go at the first 20K or so miles of my vehicle.

Again thank you for posting this because if people don't realize how much cars take just to run, then they are doing themselves a disservice.

As a note, the original driving force behind my new car purchase was getting something that has excellent crash ratings(as my current car does not), is reliable, and something that is fun and I can enjoy. FE is always a concern but not one of my top priorities. With that said, I do want to make sure I get optimal FE with whatever car I do choose(hence why I joined here :D).

I have two dream cars that I have wanted for some time now and I know I am going to buy one of them; the Tacoma and a Subaru WRX STI. I have literally dreamed about both of them at some point.

I don't go racing around town, and I don't go to the track. Neither of those interest me. My next car will just be a DD that I enjoy. I do go backpacking a couple times a year and often times the roads getting to my destination are abused dirt trails with large ruts and sometimes there is a couple feet of snow. I think in these situations the STI's 5.9" ground clearance will be a large disadvantage. Off-roading has always sparked my interest but I have never had a vehicle that was capable, so the truck might be the spawn of a new hobby for me. The STi is also a minimum of $5,000 more than the Tacoma.

Now that we have gotten off track properly, here is the gas cost breakdown for a new Tacoma:

Mileage for the V6 is 16/19, let's assume 16 for a worst cast scenario. I drive ~8,000 miles a year, but again let's assume 10K/year to be conservative. Gas is currently ~$3.80 per Gal but let's assume $4 average.

10,000/16 = 625Gal. per year.
625*$4.00 = $2500 per year.
$2500*10 = $25,000 over 10 years.
Price of vehicle = 33k

Price for the STI, keeping above rates but putting in 25mpg avg since I have seen someone on this site getting 25avg.

10,000/25 = 400Gal. per year
400*$4.00 = $1600 per year
$1600*10 = $16,000 over 10 years.
$9,000 savings over the Tacoma in gas.
Price of vehicle = $38k

Price for Audi A3 Diesel assuming 42mpg:

10,000/42 = 238Gal. per year
238*4.00 = $952 per year
$952*10 = $9,520 over 10 years.
$15,480 savings over the Tacoma in gas.
Price of vehicle = $33k

I compared them to the Audi because I really really like manuals, and I don't see any other efficient vehicles in this price bracket that I would really enjoy that come in a stick shift(the Audi isn't even a true manual). All the values above are made to make the difference in price seem greater. In reality, I hope to be getting better than 16mpg in the Tacoma.

Seeing these price differences in front of me is a bit of a shock. That is a lot of gas money lol. What is a relief to me however is that to save enough gas to recoup the cost of a new vehicle will take ~20 years in a best case scenario. While saving my money for a new car purchase I will continue to keep an open mind and look at all my options before making a decision. :thumbup: I am also open to hearing suggestions of cars from you guys that you think I might like.

PS. sorry for the long post :o

Sir. Have you ever considered the regular WRX?

http://www.cars.com/go/compare/trimC...,USC30AUC151B0

The WRX (non STi) is the same price as the Tacoma, but get's the Tacoma's highway mileage in the city. Seemingly better crash testing, honestly, it appears every area (other than ground clearance & torque) is better with the WRX.

The WRX saves over 10k off of the base STi, and is only lacking 40 hp and ~45 ft lbs.

The Audi does smash the WRX on fuel economy, but keep in mind the price of that fuel economy. Not meaning diesel is more, meaning the Auto Union (VW) needs more work and in the long run usually costs quite a bit more- if you plan on keeping her for a long time. Personally, the power trade off isn't worth the fuel economy trade off (plus the 2013 doesn't appear to offer a standard, only flappy/auto). Oh yea, the Audi is ~5k more.

All come standard with carpet, optional rubber. Ground clearance is 6.1" vs the STi's 5.9, Tacoma's 9.3, and the Audi's 4.3.

I selected the hatchs because I imagine you may want to haul some, based on the Tacoma. Keep in mind the WRX can tow, and there is a lot of info on that here. Things get better (in many ways, but not all) with just the Impreza, but I think the WRX is the best balance.

I did a little math.

Miles: 100000 Gas: 3.85 Diesel: 4.1
Car Initial Price "Avg" MPG Gallons Used Fuel Cost Total Cost /Mile
Tacoma 26000 17.5 5714.28571428572 22000 48000 0.48
STi 36000 20 5000 19250 55250 0.5525
A3 33000 36 2777.77777777778 11388.8888888889 44388.8888888889 0.443888888888889
WRX 26000 22 4545.45454545454 17500 43500 0.435
Before Insurance and repairs. Insurance should be worst for the STi, I would guess the WRX and A3 are close, with the Tacoma being the cheapest. This does not include repairs, which will add up more quickly on the A3.

Gah, dumb formatting from spreadsheet to forum.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-N...7.47.33+PM.png

I don't think I follow you here. Do you mean to say the Audi will require more repairs?

The reason I prefer the STI over the WRX is because of the strong 6 speed and the better suspension. I feel going with the WRX would be compromising, and that isn't something I really want to do on a new car. I want to make sure I get something I will be very happy with. I have been straying away from the Subaru though because of some reliability issues I have been reading about. It would appear that ringland failures are a common issue. I am still reading up on reliability a bit.

Thanks for the link and the spreadsheet. I like how you compared the total cost, as well as cost per mile. I am going to make my own little spreadsheet and throw some other vehicles up there lol.

Auto Union, especially diesels, have quite a few issues. I wasn't aware of them until I learned from so much experience on here. I noticed with friends who have had VWs, but I thought their cars turning to crap and falling apart was because they neglected them- but it seems to be more common.

I see your point on the 5 speed and suspension being compromised, but if that is your main point, the suspension can be done far better than what STi will do for much less. I am not familiar with reliability issues, the individuals I know with Subarus have never had issues, except some driver headlights (one first time owner has replaced 7 lol).

Keep in mind the WRX does have an upgraded suspension vs the Impreza. I suggested the WRX not to be a weak almost STi, rather, to keep many features of what you want in the Tacoma mixed with much better fuel economy and a decent amount of sportiness.

For the spreadsheet, I had it auto populating with formulas (makes it much easier).