Palehorse here is a converter site to help you in future.

www.tdiclub.com/misc/conversions.html

 

I have a buick Lesabre 2001 w 3.8L engine I get 29 to 31 on High way 17 to 20 in town. Why would you want such a small car when you can go big and economical.

 

My gasoline figures are superior to your figures which I, at least, wrote down. Did you repeat many of those 31 MPG tanks or did you just remember a highway tank of gas that you got while moving with the wind or descending a mountain pass? What was your Lesabre MPG for its last 50 tanks of gas?

The Caliber isn't that small of car or a car of outstanding MPG. Tho my Caliber MPG averaged 31.3 MPG, my old Plymouth Champ & Ford Festiva averaged 42 & 45 MPG, respectively. Newersmall cars, with airbags & other new safety gear can average close to 40 MPG, & feather footers get even more.

Your Lesabre is just big, but not economical. Iget rid of cars that get 17MPG.

 

I think the issue with the 2.0 and CVT is *how* we can drive the car to get optimal mileage. Myself, when I first got the car, I tended to accelerate hard from a stop in order to get up to speed, due to the dynamics of how the CVT works compared to a standard auto or a stick. We are used to "listen to the engine" in order to figure out how fast we go, but this is wrong with a CVT because the engine keeps a constant rpm while the car accelerates. The tranny always tries to keep the engine to the optimal torque and lowest possible rpm.

One need to get used to the "rubber band" effect and ease up on the pedal! Also, this is a pretty heavy small vehicle at 3000+ lb. I can tell you, just try smooth accelerations for a few days and you might see a big improvement on the gas mileage.

 

Just checked the mileage during the last few weeks, and it averaged 10.2 L/100km which translates into 23.1 mi/US gal. for 2/3 city and 1/3 highway driving. About the same as my previous PT Cruiser with a 2.4L engine!

So it seems that the "economy" features of the dual-VVT engine and CVT tranny aren't what we expected... But it's still fine, the Caliber is not a lightweight car by any means.

 

When accelerated hard the CVT Caliber's internal hydraulic pressures approach 1000 pounds per square inch. Any car when accelerated hard will drop its MPG. However, with the CVTs internal pressures so high, CVT MPG will drop even more. You have to be careful on the Caliber throttle...rrreeeeeaaaalllllyyyy careful. My Caliber throttle is a bit jumpy. If your throttle is jumpy too, you have to press the throttle down very very careful to eliminate the initial jump. If you can stop the initial jump(& those elevated hydraulic pressures), the smoothness of the CVT will lead you to further careful acceleration. Its true. My Caliber MPG is proof.

 

Well, I only still have 2200 miles on my Feb 2007 delivery SXT with CVT and 2.0 engine. I will be going on a long trip this Christmas and look forward to at least 30mpg when driving 70-80 mph. I hope it gets close to this. I still don't know how many of you are getting that kind of mileage. I accelerate using 2000rpm as max and people want to climb up my *** because I am going so slow. I think I am going to put a sign in the back of my car saying the following...[Gas is $3.00+ as gallon. I'm saving you money !!!].

Anyway, I hope I can report after Christmas that the gas mileage is as good as most of you say it is. I have not been able to get better than 27mpg with combined driving yet.

I rented a Chevy HHR and it was a little more comfortable and had a nicer ride than the Caliber. The door opening to get in and out was much better also. But then again, I am 275lbs and 6ft tall so I like an easy entry.

Happy driving....
Jib01

 

Very true.

Smooth does it when starting from a stop. You can feel the torque converter lock after about 2 seconds or so and everything else is done "direct" thereafter. The engine pulls well and we tend to keep the foot down...

 

Hi Jib01...I think EPA mandated lower energy winter mix gasoline is being used by now in the U.S. So MPG probably won't be as high as during most of the rest of the year. To get my high Caliber yearly overall averageof 31.4MPG(highest flat highway, 35.6MPG), I try to drive very smoothly(which the CVT helps a lot), & I never drive 80MPH...or 75MPH. I recommend no higher than 70MPH, & if you can get away with it, slow down to 65MPH on the freeway. Of course, slower speeds on 2 lane highways is almostalways good for economy. The Caliber has a high drag coefficient & the drag force at higher speeds is just too much for the best economy. Slow down & enjoy the scenery.

Read my above posts too if you haven't already.

 

Litesong,

Aha, you have an SE with the smaller engine. As far as I knew you could not get a CVT tranny with that model only a 4-5 speed manual. That explains why you get the mileage you get. I have the SXT with the 2L engine with CVT which will get lower gas mileage. I noticed that they have change the information on the newer Calibers and have lowered the EPA from 30mpg to 27mpg on the SXTs all of a sudden. I will be driving at 70-80mph on my trip this Christmas. I'll put on 2000miles of freeway driving. We'll see how well it does.

Regards
Jib01