my elantra is a 99 with 230,000 miles and i average 32 mpg but on a trip straight highway is 37 with a/c on and windows up.
how many miles are on your car? what condition are the tires,spark plugs and air filter in?i keep my tire pressure at 34psi and change my plugsevery 15000 and i change the wires every 60000 along with the timing belt. if your timing belthas not been changed that may explain some of the mileage loss (but very little i might add) but to be honest it is moslty due to driving habits if everything else is ok. ive worked in several dealerships and lately that has been one of the biggest complaints. ive heard most of these when i worked with honda they boast high mpg but have had people with hybrid civic 4dr only get 34 reather than posted 48 and it alway came down to driving habits. the best way for me to explain how the hybrids needed to be driven is to drive like there is an egg on both pedals and dont press hard enough to break it. gas milage is also affected be how hard you brake as well as accelerate. i also use Lucas oil stabilant in my engine and for me i do see an increase in mileage when i am using it and i also use the cruise as much as i can. my wife told me as i was driving one day that i do not hold a steady speed. i had no clue i did that! so now i use the cruise, i would have someone ride with you and see if they notice any thing that you may be doing and dont realize it. that is also affecting your gas mileage. that way you will know for sure. i hope this helps

 

That's great mileage! What kind of driving? Mixed? City? Highway?

 

my mileage is from about 60% highway and 40% city my wife uses the car for work sometimes delivering pizza and the mileage stays at 32mpg unless she does a lot of city driving it drops to 28 or 29mpg i check it on every tank fill and the car as 230,000 miles on it currently the car is down now due to a leaking head gasket (the first gasket needing replaced on the engine) other than that this car has been driven everyday since i bought it new

 

Is that from the trip computer or have you calculated it based on amount of fuel pumped versus miles driven?

 

my fuel mileage is baised off of miles driven and gallons pumped i use the tenth mile and tenth gallon numbers becasue i want an accurate number to go by like 330.3 miles and 10.4 gallons would be 31.75 mpg and that is an average tank fill up gallon and mileage number that was actually my last fill up

 

Wow. That's outstanding.

 

my 2006 automatic GT yields terrible city mileage (according to computer).... it used to be around 18/19 MPG city and now, at about 4000 miles, its down to 15-16. I've gotten 30 MPG on long highway drives, going 60+ for hours, but when it comes to city / suburban driving (some in Manhattan NY and some in the boroughs which involve a little less idle time and 3-5 miles of highway speed now and then) - mileage craps out. This is true even if I do not ride the gas and avoid breaking...i.e. do all reasonable to maximize momentum, etc... and without AC/Heater, no extra weight either. My tires are a little low (i.e. the spec 32psi) but I can not believe it should be this bad. I use premium gas, because 87 feels a little less powerful off the start. Car runs fine and already had 2 oil changes (at 1K and at 3K). I just do not believe people get 26+ city with an automatic from this car... anyone with an '06 care to weigh in? Advice appreciated. Thank you!

PS - hello to some familiar names from the GT forum (w. Mitch) ... I know that one was down, so I am seeking help here
I have not posted there for about a year (i.e. after I got used to my new ride, stopped posting/reading)... but now that gas $$ is tight, I am starting to get bummed about this and want to figure out if its just us (me and my GT) or everyone else too that have crappy city MPG. Thanks!

 

You would be surprised how much increasing your tire pressure helps. I bought a set of GT rims for my GLS; they happened to have 225/50R15 tires on them (over an inch wider than the stock 195s). My mileage plummeted- from nearly 30 mpg to less than 25 mpg overall. I started overinflating the tires a little (up to 37 psi) and my mileage is getting higher again- 27+ on my last tank, although that involved a little more freeway than usual.

But it could be all the stop and go traffic is killing your mileage too.

 

I have an 05 GT that has over 46,500 miles, live in a city thats got more hills than you can shake a stick at, and I still get right at 30mpg in the city.

Regular maintenance, tire pressure, and driving habits are what I find make the difference. By the way, I use the lowest octane gas, as its the cheapest.

 

Something is wrong. AT'a are a little more gas demanding compared to manuals but not as bad your saying.

Clean Air filter
Clean oil and filter
clean injectors
Max tire inflation
change out O2 sensor

Speed check (?)
I try to keep my rpms at 2500 or under 60 mph when in high gear and I drive 124 miles a day round trip mostly secondary roads some stops, some hills, mostly high gear driving.

If everything is fresh you should be doing much better and I'd be seeing a dealer. Possibly the catalytic converter (depends on the miles on it I'd think)