Satya's blog - Florida trip mileage calculations

Jul 18 2007 20:57 Florida trip mileage calculations

When we got back from Florida, we were almost out of gas. Yesterday I filled the tank again so now we have an accurate picture of the fuel consumption

Leg 1: Filled up on the way out of Charleston, at 21479 miles. Next filling was in Jacksonville, at 21765 miles. That's 286 miles. 8.034 gallons. That's 35.599 miles/gallon. Mostly highway driving, plus driving around Jacksonville. Some attempts at drafting. Google maps says Charleston to Jacksonville is 240 miles, city to city.

Leg 2: Jacksonville, 21765 miles, to Ft. Lauderdale. 22126 mile reading. That's 361 miles. Used 10.739 gallons. 33.616 miles/gallon. Some of that was highway, some in Jacksonville city, and some on the scenic highway. Google maps says Jacksonville to Ft. Lauderdale is 325 miles, city to city.

Leg 3: Ft. Lauderdale, 22126 miles. Filled 11.994 gallons in Miami at 22409 miles. That's 283 miles, 23.595 miles/gallon. Driving within Ft. Lauderdale/Miami area, some on the interstates. A lot of A/C was used, a lot of idling, braking, accelerating, many passengers. Could explain it.

Leg 4: Miami, 22409 miles. Filled 12.669 gallons at Titusville, approximate mileage 22779. That's about 370 miles, 29.205 miles/gallon. Driving in the Miami/Ft. Lauderdale area may account for the drop.

Leg 5: Titusville, approximately 22779 miles. Filled 13.121 gallons at Charleston, about 432 miles later (google maps says 374 miles city to city -- add 20 miles driving in Titusville plus driving in Charleston). That's about 32.924 miles/gallon. Mostly interstate driving, some truck drafting, a little commuting.The interstate driving was in heavy rain. Wind may have helped, or not.

Average for the trip: 1732 miles, 56.56 gallons. 30.62 miles/gallon.

Car: Hyundai Elantra automatic.
Tank capacity: 14.5 gallons.
Extreme highway range: 380 miles with margin.
Absolute best-case highway range: 430+ miles.
City range, estimating an average 24mpg: 348 miles.
Recommended fill distance: 320 miles.
Real MPG: 30 Highway, 25 city (estimates based on real-world driving)

Update: Added city-to-city mileages from Google maps.

Last updated: Jul 22 2007 11:47

Tag: florida travel