What subaru will get the best mileage

[danbennett2u]

Title says it all, what is the best real world mileage I can expect from a Subaru? Is the Justy at the top of the heap? Will some older gen car take the honors?

[GeneralDisorder]

Probably a toss up between a 2WD Justy and a 2WD, 5 speed, non-turbo XT4.

 

All the honors definitely go to the old-gen. Nothing in the EJ series can compare though I would imagine a 93 to 95 2WD Impreza coupe would be decent in it's own catagory.

 

GD

[idosubaru]

what GD said. pretty sure the justy takes it hands down.

 

i'm not really familiar with the justy but it's probably not a great fit for reliability and long term use or high mileage use.

 

at this point it's hard to find a 20+ year old car in a mechanical condition that it's still capable of the same mileage it was off the showroom floor.

[danbennett2u]

Well I can comfortably get 27mpg in our AWD 2.2 auto impreza, so the Justy's EPA figures of 31/31 for an AWD model arent too impressive, especially considering what I would have to give up in size and comfort. My next vehicle I would like to get 35+ mpg, and it is looking like I am going to have to go with a non-subaru vehicle I am so torn, I love my subies but I want better mileage!

[idosubaru]

i doubt you'll want to downgrade from an impreza to a justy or XT anyway, that's a significant difference in style of vehicle.

[bheinen74]

I used search function.

 

Subaru 360. got about 60 mpg or more.

[bendecker]

I'm holding out on the slim chance that Subaru will bring their diesels to the US before our daily drivers croak. It's not looking too likely at the moment, though.

[brus brother]

I used search function.

 

Subaru 360. got about 60 mpg or more.

If you are nostalgic for the good ole days of 360s, here's a link to some that a buddy is restoring.

[NoahDL88]

The best subaru is the Fuji Rabbit hands down, gets near 100 mpg, and because it only has two wheels it has some sex appeal that the Justy is sorely lacking.

 

Best combination of econ and comfort would probably be a 92-94 FWD impreza with the 1.8, if you baby it you should be able to get low 30's if you do mostly highway

 

 

 

oh, and check out hypermilers, I get about 29-30 on my 94 leggo wagon and i'm just learning their techniques.

[GeneralDisorder]

Subaru 360. got about 60 mpg or more.

 

And it's upgradeable to "infinite MPG" with the "Peterbilt in your back seat!" option package.

 

Death trap collectors item. Never seen one on the (public) roads.

 

Totally not even a choice at this point - can't get any parts for them so you can't actually own and drive one. They are museum peices.

 

GD

[bheinen74]

i agree GD. death trap. only good to make runs to the post office on a weekend or to go pick up a loaf of bread.

[idosubaru]

They are museum peices.

 

GD

is that pure cynicism or are you that funny all the time! is your place of work hiring, sounds like fun!

that's awesome.

[brus brother]

And it's upgradeable to "infinite MPG" with the "Peterbilt in your back seat!" option package.

 

Death trap collectors item. Never seen one on the (public) roads.

 

Totally not even a choice at this point - can't get any parts for them so you can't actually own and drive one. They are museum peices.

 

GD

Parts are available! Even picked up rings through SOA network of dealers.

360 Club enthusiasts have had windshields made for the group. They're notorious for finding compatible parts from lawnmowers and leafblowers! 2 stroke engine stinks like all get out!

As you can see from the video, one of the 360's was stuffed to the roof with parts!

Friend has one insured and on the road and maybe another will be pieced together from the trio of rustbuckets.

[zyewdall]

what GD said. pretty sure the justy takes it hands down.

 

i'm not really familiar with the justy but it's probably not a great fit for reliability and long term use or high mileage use.

 

at this point it's hard to find a 20+ year old car in a mechanical condition that it's still capable of the same mileage it was off the showroom floor.

 

The '90 legacy I just picked up has 326k on it (not sure if it's the original engine or not), and it averaged 25mpg on one tank, and 27.5mpg on another... that's driving it as fast as I can on canyon roads, pretty much. I don't think that's too bad..... It's kind of odd to think that this legacy is actually older than the first subaru I ever owned, a '82 GL wagon, was when I owned it 10 years ago.

 

My Justy -- 4wd, 5 speed, gets about 33mpg reliably, and up to 36 to 40mpg on highway trips. It's not something most people would drive long distances.... 70mph is top end (rpm limited mostly) and it's like driving a go cart. I just drove it 1100 miles to salt lake city and back though... From a reliability standpoint, I get the impression that it's more like an american car.. 150k and you need a new engine, vs what we're used to out of subarus.

 

Yeah... I wish they'd bring the diesel over to the US...

[NorthWet]

...Best combination of econ and comfort would probably be a 92-94 FWD impreza with the 1.8, if you baby it you should be able to get low 30's if you do mostly highway...

I would lean in this direction, too. Possibly even "prefer" the automatic: I have seen some good highway mileage figures from 4EAT-equipped soobs. (Our SVXs get 30mpg on the highway, even at 80MPH. Around town is a different story.)

[Fairtax4me]

I would think that a 5 speed Fwd Impreza in the 1.8 or 2.2 variety should get much better than 30 highway. I can get 33 highway out of my Ej22 Awd Legacy, up and down hills and stop and go on 55 mph roads. On the interstate at 70 it drops to right about 30. But still... 30... and its Awd.

[zyewdall]

I would think that a 5 speed Fwd Impreza in the 1.8 or 2.2 variety should get much better than 30 highway. I can get 33 highway out of my Ej22 Awd Legacy, up and down hills and stop and go on 55 mph roads. On the interstate at 70 it drops to right about 30. But still... 30... and its Awd.

 

What year legacy? I consistently got 27mpg at 75-80mph (pretty much floored), 30mpg at 55-60mph, and 36mpg at 40-45mph highway (yes... following a VW bus on I80 for almost 1000 miles), in a 1990 5MT AWD. The 2007 automatic outback's at work only got about 26-27mpg at 70-75mph highway with the EJ25... still not bad for a bit heavier car.

[idosubaru]

Possibly even "prefer" the automatic: I have seen some good highway mileage figures from 4EAT-equipped soobs. (Our SVXs get 30mpg on the highway, even at 80MPH. Around town is a different story.)

the xt6 is in a similar boat, the 4EAT can get 28/29 on the highway and the manual only gets 29/30. i never got to 30 in my 97 EJ22 Impreza AWD auto - and it would drop drastically as speed increased above 60 mph. at 80 i'd only get like 22, but the OBS did have a roof rack.

[Fairtax4me]

What year legacy? I consistently got 27mpg at 75-80mph (pretty much floored), 30mpg at 55-60mph, and 36mpg at 40-45mph highway (yes... following a VW bus on I80 for almost 1000 miles), in a 1990 5MT AWD. The 2007 automatic outback's at work only got about 26-27mpg at 70-75mph highway with the EJ25... still not bad for a bit heavier car.

 

96. Thing is, I don't even really try to get good mileage. It probably could do 35 or better if I really tried.

[Subaru_dude]

On Goodyear Assurance Fuel Maxes I got 31.25 at the VERY best in my '96 5spd Outback. Consistently managed 33 out of my '93 5spd 2wd Impreza WAGON with those big honkin roof racks. Upper 30's (can't remember exactly but did manage 41 once coming from Nashville with a very strong tail wind) with my '89 5spd 2wd GL sedan.

[PeterD]

my parents were getting 36mpg or so on the heads up display on there 2010 Outback on a long road trip. My friends Justy gets over 30mpg all the time. With a tail wind and flat roads I can get nearly 30mpg with my 2.2 Legacy. Im rounding up. :-\

[bheinen74]

my svx is averaging 27.5 over the distance of 9thousand miles i have been keeping track.

 

crx only getting 37.6 but that will be fixed next spring.

 

94 legacy sport sedan 5spd is averaging 24.8mpg over about 6k miles.

85 brat is still getting 24mpg.

i keep all my cars tuned as good as possible from my shade tree experience.

[subaru360]

And it's upgradeable to "infinite MPG" with the "Peterbilt in your back seat!" option package.

 

Death trap collectors item. Never seen one on the (public) roads.

 

Totally not even a choice at this point - can't get any parts for them so you can't actually own and drive one. They are museum peices.

 

GD

 

You can get whatever you need to keep a 360 on the road.

 

They don't really get 66 mpg. More like 40 something is realistic. That's what mine gets.

 

I've got 30-31 mpg in a 02 wrx on long trips driving like a grandmother.

[subie/legacy]

My 95 Legacy L wagon got 25mpg on my last full tank..

3/4 highway doing 80 most of the time with another passanger, and 100 lbs of luggage

1/4 in town lots of stop and go and being heavy on the throttle.

i figured this was pretty good. since my tires were 2psi low, and i think my cats are a little clogged up, but not enough to cause a CEL. oh and noisy lifters in the passenger head..

 

i'm sure i can get 30mpg once i get new fuel, and air filtes. new plugs, wires, high flow cat, and 34/32 psi in the tires. oh and take the led out of my right shoe.

[Ricearu]

i got 31.79 across the board in my GL while on a "baby binge". that thing never saw 1/2 throttle. I wanted to see what it would get. I consistently get 27-29 and even more with the slightly bigger overall circumference of the new tires and wheels, makes for an epic 5th gear. 205/55R16's on rodeo wheels I am down to something like 2600 rpms at 60mph (gps) my speedo is 10% slow now.

 

ps. my wife's forester gets 24mpg @ 80mph and 28mph @ 60mph that lead in my right foot robs me of 1.5c per mile loil

Edited October 26, 2010 by Ricearu