Gas Mileage on PT's

[krhill]

As I mentioned before I am seriously considering the purchase of
a PT in the near future but I am concerned with the gas mileage
issue as I feel that gas prices will once again start to rise.
After reading some of the threads on this forum it sounds like
The 150 HP with automatic is the worst on mileage followed
by the 180HP Turbo possibly being a little better and the
150HP with the five speed being the best. The following
seem to be the average mileage for highway speeds that
I am picking up on most of the forums including this one.
Please let me know if I'm not even close.

1. 150 HP automatic- 22-24 MPG
2. 180 HP automatic- 22-25 MPG
3. 150 HP 5 speed - 26-30 MPG

Please let me know if these figures are way off base. I live in a state
where the legal limit is 75 on the interstates but I usually drive about
70.

Thanks

[CREWZIN]

Except for a few of us, look forward the the low end of those figures, especially if you'll be traveling a good bit of the time around 70mph.

[quicksilverdon]

I have written down every drop of gas that went into both my PTs.
My OVERALL mileage - over 70,000 + miles - is just over 25 MPG on my turbo "lite", which is a bit better than what I got on my '02 150 HP PT.
Some observations -
Mileage creeps up with more miles on the car as friction goes down.
Tire Pressure DOES impact mileage. Inside the driver's door it tells you the pressure for your tires - I go a couple PSI over - and in winter, tire pressure is lower due to temperature...
Acceleration eats gas.
Get into top gear and try and stay there.
If there's a red light ahead, take your foot off the gas.
In winter, mileage is about 2 MPG lower because the computer richens the mix.
Use synthetic oil - I've read it helps mileage a bit, but I KNOW it protects the engine better and is worth the extra cost ( I had a car that lost a valve guide at about 150,000 miles. The head was on the mechanic's bench, and was all clean and shiny - like new - inside. I asked what he'd used to clean it like that, and he said, "Nothing - that's how it was" - synthetic oil.)

If you can do with the manual, the 5-speed is your best bet, and the Auto 150 hp PT is slow - not a slug, but with the 5-speed or turbo the PT is much more fun.

Hope that helps.

[soonercruiser]

See the many past threads on gas mileage.