larrchev

Hello
I was reading the review of the 2011 Marqui from Consumer Guide and it has me puzzled.They state it has poor milage and stability,fuel economy at 16 city,24 highway,no mention about using cruise control or overdrive.I find this contradicts my specs for my 98 Vicky,which has the same motor and specs.I get 20 city and 34/40 highway using cruise and overdrive.(6.5-7 liter per 100km)Has Ford made it worse or was this review prejudiced because it was written by some one from the younger generation who hates Grand Marqis because they don't have all their gadgets,has low hp and poor milage(to them)because they drive like maniacs.All their cars look alike and have no trunk space.I guess I'm prejudiced also,but I think I have good taste for a senior and so does some of today's generation.

NoLeaks2001

I just bought an '01 with 25,000 very well maintained miles and if I drive like there's an egg under the accelerator I get 16 MPG around town,that is unless it's from a cold start and I am just on a short errand,then it's about 9 MPG.(according to the dash read-out)
On the freeway on a 900 mile trip (75 MPH and minor in-town driving) with cruise control and very little (minutes) air conditioner I got 25 MPG (actual after dividing miles by gallons used). (U.S.gallons not imp. gallons).
With the A.C. on I would guess that 24 MPG is pretty accurate.
I agree with you on most of your post though. I have no need for a place to plug in an I-phone or an e-pad or a Z-screen or whatever.And I am happy with everything about this car even though it is replacing a premium Japanese car.

larrchev

No Leaks
You were lucky to get a gem like that with 25000 miles.On your trip you didn't mention if you used overdrive.It makes a hell of a difference in your trip mileage.Naturally I get the best mileage in the summer.It sucks in the winter in the city but I live in the county so I still get good mileage using overdrive and cruise.I go camping a lot and tow a trailer and still get 32mpg converted to your smaller gallon on the highway in summer.Plus in the winter your heater and cold starts knocks down your mileage.I have a few friends who have the same car and their results are about the same.I also use injector cleaner with every fill up which are few and far between now that gas is $1.10 a liter here.I can't understand you getting 9 mpg in the city.Is the 98 Crown Vicky more efficient than the 2000 Marqis?

Happy Holidays

NoLeaks2001

Yeah, overdrive all the way but some of that trip was over old Route 66 through Arizona (Needles,Cal. to Kingman,Ariz.) so I figure I'd get 26+ just normal freeway.
I've never heard of anyone getting 32 MPG in one of these. How many miles can you go on one tank?
I'm no expert but I believe the 1998 Crown Vic and the 2000 Marquis got about the same mileage,unless the CV was a cop car or had a lower differential gear.

I picked this car up from the estate of the original owner. It came with all records and even the window sticker. It's just like a brand new car.

larrchev

NoLeaks
On the electronic message center I leave it on Inst Econ.As you are traveling it shows your mileage.On overdrive traveling on a flat road it will show 6 or 7 liters per 100km here in Canada,to convert while your driving press E/M and it will show MPG.As you go uphill the display will increase,downhill decrease.Driving into a heavy wind,it will decrease.I never checked mileage on a full tank.It's all in the owners guide.Switch overdrive off and watch the MPG go down.I double checked these numbers when I put gas in,odometer reading before and after a trip,you know the routine,and it comes up very close.There was a post here quite a while ago about the gear ratio in overdrive that allows the motor to have slow rpms to save fuel on long trips.I'm sure Bert here can enlighten you.I posted my mileage results last Feb and some posters agreed.
Best you lucky dog.

NoLeaks2001

Larrchev, that's great MPG. My next trip I'll try 70 MPH and stay on the freeway and leave the old lady at home (dead weight anyway) save some poundage there. Maybe a bit extra pressure in the tires and see what I can do. -Brian-

vms4evr

Using "Instant Mpg" is fairly meaningless. You can see awesome numbers coasting down a hill. This is not true gas mileage. Using "Average Mpg" over a tank of gas is. Getting 16/24mpg city/highway are good numbers for a 4,000lb car with a V8. I wouldn't complain about those numbers. That is about what I'm hoping for with the 01 I just picked up.

larrchev

VMS4
True it doesn't show your true mileage,it shows how much gas your using.Obviously going down hill is less,uphill more.On a straight and level road using overdrive and cruise the lower the number the better.If your doing mixed driving,like city,country,city,at the end use the AVG button,it will give you an average economy for everything.Still the best way is the old fashion way.First,fill up the tank and take the O.D reading,second,Drive X# of miles then fill up again and take the O.D reading again.Divide the miles traveled between fill ups by the gallons used and you will have your MPG.By the way,my 98 CV has over 100,000 kilos on it and you can put a glass of beer right on the motor and it won't even shake.One truly classy car!Of course with the motor running.

no_common_sens

Your 98 is actually very different than the newer MGM. The frame was redesigned for 03 to accomodate rack and pinion steering. The front frame crossmember and lower control arms are now made of aluminum. The rear shocks are now mounted outside the frame rails, the axle is wider, and I believe the rear stub is slightly wider than its predecessor. The transmission crossmember was also redesigned to be much more obnoxious than anything preceding the 03 model year. I'm sure ford engineers would argue the trans crossmember was redesigned for tensile strength. Personally, I think they did it to P&#@ me off. They also rolled up the lip of the rear wheel wells starting in 03 and if I remember right, it was done to keep the edge of the wheel wells from cutting into the tires on cornering.

As far as the consumer guide goes, did they actually test for fuel economy or did they just make their opinion based on the factory rated fuel economy? They've changed the way fuel economy is rated across the entire auto industry because fuel economy testing was done in the lab on a roller where cars didn't have to face things like hills, wind, or turbulence. This, in turn, reduced fuel economy ratings by default once vehicles had to be tested in real world conditions.

Another poster made a great point about the gear ratio too. Say you want to driver 65 MPH from a dead stop. If the gears are steep, take off power is great but you're turning more engine RPMs to go the same speed as the next model MGM or Crown Vic. For all the Crown Vics we use as taxis, 16 to 18 MPG has always been par for the course. We've had a few drivers try to improve and one driver actually hit 20MPG with his cab in the city but that is a rarity. If you're actually accomplishing 32-40 with your old boat, I wouldn't worry about the consumer report or the 2011 edition anyway.

larrchev

I wish I was getting 32 to 40 in the city.I got that mileage driving on a highway with cruise and overdrive.That was not my average mileage for town and country driving.Going a steady 90 kph my digital readout says I'm using 6 liter per 100 km, Of course going uphill and down reads different.I live near Windsor,which is south of Detroit and I call it redlight city because of all the traffic lights and stop signs,I'm lucky to get 20mpg,but it has happened.Sorry to confuse you with metric,I didn't vote for it.
Nocommonsense,you are a smart man,wish I could post like you.