Eric J Russell wrote:
A few thoughts.
1) How old is the O2 sensor?
Good question. Seems to me it was replaced last time we had such a
struggle getting it past the smog test, but I can easily check that.
B) Most cars will get their worst mpg in 'city' driving. Idling &
accelerating affect mpg dramatically and could account for 5-10+ mpg's.
"City driving" and "freeway driving" in the LA area are frequently
indistinguishable from each other; on Saturday, immediately prior to my
refilling the tank, we'd spent almost half an hour driving thirty-some
miles from Thousand Oaks to Burbank. The odd thing is that the 4WD,
automatic-transmission Subaru can get 20 mpg or so under those
circumstances...
And, do you know if your odometer is accurate? Perhaps you are driving
more miles/gallon than you are measuring.
Assuming that the odo and speedo are perfectly keyed in to each other,
it is unnaturally accurate; according to every stationary radar setup I
pass, the 164 speedo is exactly on the money, a phenomenon I have never
before experienced in any car I've had.
It appears that I have two different things to do here: first, take the
car on some extended jaunts on relatively uncrowded routes, trying at
the same time to hold my speed to the 70s instead of pacing traffic at
80+, and see what that does to consumption; second, get the O2 sensor
and the thermostat both checked out, and anything else that might be
relaying erroneous information to the engine management system. I guess
checking the condition of the plugs might not be a bad idea, though the
ease with which the car starts and pulls from practically nothing to
redline would seem to indicate no problems there..
Thanks to everyone who's shared thoughts and experience so far; this is
hardly the first time I've had the benefit of the Alfa Brain Pool, and
it sure won't be the last.
Will
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