Saturn Vue Gas Mileage

28 thoughts on “Saturn Vue Gas Mileage”

1. I own a 2004 saturn vue fwd manual 5 and I have never gotten more than 20.75 miles per gallon no matter how or where I drive. I purchased the vehicle for the 24/29 rating on the mileage but, it is indeed a lie! It’s been a good vehicle overall and I have 88500 miles on it as of 5/20/2008

2. We have a 4cyl. 2004 manual VUE and have always gotten gas mileage in the high 20’s, typically around 28-29, even with driving in the city and highway combined.

   Our car currently has over 55,000 miles on it.

3. We have the 2003 w/manual trans. we have gotten as high as 32 mph on long trips and get low 20’s if hubby is driving city and I get mid to high 20’s city driving. Driving style makes a big difference in this vehicle.

4. I just bought one over the weekend. We love the car, but the mileage sucks and we’re considering taking it back. After a couple hundred miles and tanks of gas, we’re only getting 19 to 20 highway and far less city. Yuck! Might want to think twice on this one next time.

5. We just bought a 2003 AWD V6. The mileage is supposed to be 19 and 25, but it’s horrible. It drinks gas like like a V8. Usually between 19 and 21 on the highway. We may trade it soon.

6. I own a 2005 saturn vue fwd manual 5 and I have never gotten more than 24-25.5mpg on average. I also have a 2004 v6 saturn vue and on average drive 22-24mpg. Therefore, all of the above feedback before mine seem to be innacurate. I am also not that of a delicate driver. I have come to really love these saturn vues.

7. I own a 2007 Saturn Vue AWD V-6, (just bought the car less than 2 months ago from a guy). I can beat all of you. I am getting only 13 MPG ,(I have measured EVERY tank). I have a bumper to bumper warranty, and Saturn can do done nothing about it!! Saturn told me that the car is fine, and they found nothing wrong with it! We even paid to have a fuel flush done, and are putting premium gas in it. If i go 5 miles down the road you can actually see the gauge going down–it is HORRIBLE!!!

8. I have a 2004 Vue 2.2 FWD 5 Sp. manual, synth oil, some Slick 50, Techron in gas sometimes, 5% over inflation, coast with clutch in or neutral when possible, 5 mph under speed limit AND GET 30mpg to 50mpg depending on conditions, usually OVER 40MPG.
   car rated at 24-29mpg. Go figure……….

9. I ended up getting a 2005 Saturn Vue AWD V6 and around town the lowest I got was around 21 mpg….then on a road trip over two mountain passes, it ended up getting 28.25 mpg. I assumed that I’d be getting around 20mpg for the highway being a V6 with AWD, but totally surprised at the mileage so far. I’m in Seattle, WA with lots of hills and I thought that would reduce the MPG, but not the case. The time where I got 28 mpg, I also had the AC running in the desert of eastern Washington. Anyone else get this good of mileage from the V6 AWD?

10. I’VE HAD MY 4 CYL VUE 1 MONTH AND IT IS FETTING 13MPG IN MOSTLY CITY DRIVING – WHAT’S THE DEAL? RATED 19-16…

11. Loved the Saturn since I first walked into the dealership and there was no high pressure sales guy chasing me around or screwing me over. My whole family (wife, daughter, Mom & Dad) drive Saturn’s. The 2003 Vue I have (106,000 miles on it) gets about 22 mpg on average – I keep up with the maintenance (i.e. oil change, plugs, filters) and I’m positive this in turn keeps the mileage up (mpg).

12. I own a 2005 VUE 4 cylinder 5 speed and absolutely love this car, however, I have NEVER obtained more than 24 mpg. I would expect at least 28-30mpg…go figure. Any thoughts, comments, or suggestions to improve mileage?

13. @Warren – Optimum fuel efficiency often comes down to when, where, and how you drive. Averaging 24 MPG with a 2004 VUE is admirable… in the right conditions.

    Here are a number of techniques you can use to raise your mileage: don’t idle for long periods, avoid stop-and-go traffic (when possible), go easy on the throttle, use inertia for maximum advantage, maintain a greater following distance, and avoid excess speed on the highway.

14. mpg-o-editor…I drive my 2005 Saturn VUE 4 cyclinder 5-speed almost entirely on the highway at an average rate of 75mph. I live on the Wyoming/Colorado border where the elevation is around 6000 feet/1800 meters above sea level. I only average about 24 mpg. I recently ordered a K&N air filter in hopes of increasing mileage. Any other suggestions?

15. @Warren – In addition to the last four suggestions (light foot, maximize coast time, plenty of space between your vehicle and the vehicle you’re following, cutting back a couple of MPH), try to minimize lane changes and acceleration … the more pressure you put on the pedal, the more gas that flows into the cylinders.

    Two more ideas:
    1) switch to a synthetic oil
    2) add an aftermarket real-time fuel economy gauge (like the AutoMeter EcoMeter)
    … Real Time MPG gauges can be a big help in learning how to drive with a light foot.

16. mpg-o-editor…thank you for the suggestions. I am following the ‘conservative’ driving tips – especially using inertia. One question: Will using 5w-20 instead of 5w-30 help mileage and be better for engine lasting longer (I change oil and filter every 3000)?

17. @Warren – I’d stick to the weight specified by the manufacturer, but go for a synthetic. I’ve been using Mobil One synthetic oil for years and have never been disappointed. Just switched to Royal Purple (it was on sale). 😉

18. @Warren – You probably still aren’t checking this.

    I will comment for anyone else who stumbles across this blog. I have noticed with my 2004 v6 vue, I get ~28-29mpg on perfectly flat highways.

    However- the moment I hit any sort of hillage, the cruise control (imo) seems to just destroy the gas mileage. I get about ~24-25 on a hilly highway.

    Mostly city driving I get about 20. Sometimes a tad less. I get a little acceleration happy sometimes. 😉

19. I have a 2004 Vue AWD 2.2 auto. it’s getting terrible gas mileage! maybe like 15mpg…Any ideas???

20. I just purchased a 2005 Saturn Vue with a 2.2L 4 cylinder engine, and my main reason for purchasing the vehicle is due to my long commute to work 5 days of the week…so far the gas mileage is not what I thought it should be…other than that I love the vehicle.

21. I have the 2007 hybrid and my highest was 37 mpg highway. Around town it drops to 23mpg. Overall it’s a nice size car for my occasional trips with children, pets, gardening, and antiquing.

22. I bought a 2008 Vue in October. The mileage is horrendous. You can see the guage move as soon as you fill it and start driving. I do live in a neighborhood with lots of stop lights and it does a little better on the highway but this is extrememly discouraging.

23. I have a 2005 FWD manual trans VUE with 158000 miles on it (bought it new in late ’04). I’ve always run it with synthetic oil, which in saturns DOES seem to add about 10% to mpg (worked for my ’98 SL2, too – and the car is still around). The Vue typically gets from 25-30 MPG combined city/hwy; for long hwy trips, I’ve seen it go as high as 32, but more typically hovers around 30.

24. My Fiance and I just bought a 06 vue 3.5liter and I a mechanic for 8 plus years know cars and have been disappointed in the mileage my fiance is getting. She commutes roughly 15 to 20 miles to work most of which is 35 mph zones and she was getting 16 but after a new set of tires E3 spark plugs and a 180 thermostate shes getting about 20 know. For those of you who know a little about cars. 99% of cars run now operate at 195 degrees the 3.5 liter calls for a 170 degree tstat. Me know having a very good understanding of engine theory and aftermarket equipment I located 180 tstat and installed. Not only did the mpg go up but the trans shifted better as well. Also some may notice the very light gas pedal making it very easy to over accelerate at take off, this is due to the electronic throttle control (there is no cable) So what your rpms like everyone else is stating. When you get up over 2500 rpms you really start to get into the engines power range which at the point your using the most fuel. My recommendations to squeeze out the best mpg. Uprade to E3 spark plugs get you a high flow filter or high flow kit. Upgrade to a 180 thermostat. And Also as you get close to the 75000 miles mark uprade your atleast your rear shocks to a nice performance one to eliminate squating on take offs. Go with KYB GR2, Monroe sensa trac or equivalent. And yes i’ve ridden with my fiance enough to know most of the time she has the rpms close or above 3,000 rpms and im on her all the time about it.

25. for the comment about the synthetic oil I recommend using synthetic oils for either Single over head cams or dual over head cam engines. They are making the oil passages smaller these days for some stupid reasing thus you see a lot of cars mainly ford using 5w 20 instead of 10w 30 and that means less oil to your cams and valve train volume wise. Synthetics soak into metal better which adds less friction and reduces heat on the major components. And since it soaks in it makes up for the lack of volume that is getting to the upper engine.

26. The majority of people get poor mileage
    Because of there horrible driving habits!
    Lift your right foot!
    Leave earlier
    Allow more time
    Accelerate slower
    If your foot is on a pedal your costing your self money!
    The girl that complained about her 13 mpg
    My ford superduty crew cab 1 ton
    V10 that hauls over 1500 lbs of tools
    Gets avg. high teens
    Slow down!

27. our 2003 AWD 2.2 automatic averages 28-30 mpg on the highway and 22 in city. we are satisfied mpg wise but I must admit that I absolutely hate the cvt transmission 🙁

28. 2006 Saturn Vue; 2.2 L4; 5-speed manual; FWD. 139k miles.
    First fill; 75% city/25% highway; A/C usage ~30%.
    Some hilly terrain; cruise control usage: ~22%.
    87 octane; same station and pump. Auto shut off used.

    230.5 miles travelled; guage ≥⅓.
    9.019 gallons used
    25.56 MPG (rounded up to nearest 1/100th)
    357.84 miles cruise (REF. 14 gal. tank; 2.5 gal. reserve)

    Very happy with milage. Always bested EPA ratings on my old Saturns (1994 Holiday edition and 2006 SL1).

    Proper maintenance and driving habits are key to getting good mileage. My older Saturns were sold at over 300k miles and still ran good.