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Gas mileage?

4K views 13 replies 8 participants last post by  mason 
#1 ·
Hi,
Just got my 2013 535i GT (yeah, finally)!
How long does it take to reach the gas mileage of 30 MPG?
I am now at 1000+miles and I am still getting 23 MPG at best (driving in the most economic way I can).
The dealer gives me a bunch of lip service every time I ask.
Any suggestions?
Thanks!
 
#2 ·
I've reached that a few times, but only while using the cruise on a long trip on the interstate. Around town, any stop and go, and the weight of the vehicle is going against you - while it doesn't take all that much to keep going, it certainly does to get it there. And, anything much over 70mph, and you'll likely never reach that figure. Remember, the EPA test are run at lower speeds, and low, constant speeds are good for mileage on any vehicle. Also, you likely won't reach that in the wintertime. A more 'normal' mileage for me (I have an x-drive, which is lower than your rear-wheel drive vehicle) is 26-28 on a trip. Winter tires and bad weather affect things.
 
#3 ·
+1 @Jad.

I think most people assume the manufacturer rating is what is to be expected. My 2012 non-xdrive is rated at 19 city and 28 highway (iirc). With a one way 12 mile commute in stop and go SF bay area traffic, I get about 21 to 22mpg actual (measured by fuel consumption relative to miles traveled, not by idrive calculation). After the first 4000 or so miles tweaking my driving style for better mileage, I gave up checking the mpg and started appreciating the drive a lot more. Its hard looking at the efficient dynamics meter on the gauge cluster and at the same time quickly maneuvering lanes in traffic while engaged in Sport+ driving mode. :)

The only few occasions I check the mpg is when we head down to Disneyland in Southern California. I reset the idrive and try to beat our previous trip's mpg. I get between 28 to 31mpg purely hwy. Sometimes I get less. 70mph on I-5 for an autobahn proven GT just wont do.
 
#5 ·
For their size and weight, and with the V8, it can be surprisingly efficient on a long trip. But, put it in stop and go, or a heavy foot, and it will suck fuel. Want to have better fuel economy, petition BMW for the diesel...the 535d has about the same torque as the v8 which is what gets you going, and the fuel economy of a much smaller car. If we do ever get a diesel in these, it will more likely be the 530d which has more torque than the 535i, but not quite as much as the 550i and is down on power some. On the EU extraurban cycle, the 530d gets amazing mileage, and much better in the urban cycle, too.
 
#10 · (Edited)
Well, I've done several pure highway runs on a full tank of gas. The best is about 23 mpg, worst was 18 mpg. Most of time, highway mpg is 19-21 mpg. City and highway combined is 15-16 mpg. I do admit 65-70 mph is not my thing. If the road is empty, I am doing 85-90. But if you tell me to drive slower then there is no point to get a V8.

I was part of the focus group research by BMW about GT. That was the first thing I said, bring diesel over. I also told them, they would need to shed some weight on the car.

Let me share this story that started my obsession with diesel. I picked up this GT via European Delivery. I was in Northern Italy, very close to South Tyrol region. The road was empty and I was chucking along at 110 mph. All the sudden a 530d GT blew by me. I pedal-to-the-metal and got the car to 130 mph but I didn't feel I was closing the gap.

Few years have gone by, my lease is about to conclude. I just got a MB GL350 Bluetec. Awesome. This car is even heavier and less aerodynamic than GT, it yields 20-21 mpg combined and 24 mpg highway. NYT article averaged 26 mpg on highway, I haven't done that. I am trying.
 
#7 ·
At least on mine, the car computer is somewhat optimistic (from taking gallons/miles pumped in to refill), but that's about what the EPA rating for the vehicle is on combined. On short trips, mines a little lower, and on long ones, higher, I do not know what the overall average has been, but would guess in your range.
 
#8 ·
I am in a 2011 535i gt xdrive. Highway cruising i get down to around 8 to 8.5 L per 100 km. pure city stop and go i am over 13 L, very thirsty! Overall i get around 11.3. I have had the car 5 months and have stopped trying to save gas in the city as it is a struggle. Takes a lot of gas to get this big car moving in stop start conditions. Also so much more fun in sport mode so it is tough to drive it conservatively.
 
#12 ·
While it's my understanding that the gasoline engines that come here are nearly identical to their EU versions, the diesel engines we've gotten so far are unique to the USA, and thus, there isn't as much incentive to bring more over. Even though the US now dictates lower sulphur diesel fuel, it is still quite a bit dirtier than the EU supply, which is the bigger reason they don't use the same engine here as there.

Because a diesel is so efficient at idle, the city mileage typically is much better than a comparable gasoline engine version. Also, diesel has a significant energy density increase over gasoline, so it should produce more miles/gallon than gasoline. The refineries in the EU are optimized to produce more diesel from the mix than ours, and we fight with heating oil in the winter for our diesel for vehicles. It will take new refineries to make a more stable diesel supply and cost structure here.

That being said, I still would have preferred a 530d over the 535i GT I purchased, especially if the cost differential was similar to what it is elsewhere. I think the reason they charge so much extra for the diesel here is the engineering required to make it work here with our fuel is spread out over so few sales verses in the EU, where diesel predominates - the economy of scale come more into play.
 
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