# MPG in a mellow Viper versus a spastic Civic **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Tags:** fuel-economy, civic, viper\ **Created:** [December 1, 2007, 3:30pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mpg-in-a-mellow-viper-versus-a-spastic-civic/7877 "2007-12-01T15:30:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![toutfour](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5fc32e/32.png) [@toutfour](https://community.cartalk.com/u/toutfour)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2007, 3:30pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mpg-in-a-mellow-viper-versus-a-spastic-civic/7877/1 "2007-12-01T15:30:24Z")
My buddy and I were arguing about this and I thought we should put it to a more informed audience: What would get better mpgs - a viper driven by the proverbial grandmother or a civic driven by your stereotypical teenage male? Does a larger capacity engine automatically get worse mileage or is it how you use it? Thanks and I’ll take my answer off the air ---
**Author:** ![Joseph\_E\_Meehan](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/joseph_e_meehan/32/21_2.png) [@Joseph\_E\_Meehan](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Joseph_E_Meehan)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2007, 4:08pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mpg-in-a-mellow-viper-versus-a-spastic-civic/7877/2 "2007-12-01T16:08:12Z")
I don’t know what the Viper or Civic do for mpg. Certainly driving conservatively will help either. Larger capacity usually reduces mileage, but not always. There are many factors. ---
**Author:** ![Kendahl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Kendahl](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Kendahl)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2007, 4:34pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mpg-in-a-mellow-viper-versus-a-spastic-civic/7877/3 "2007-12-01T16:34:39Z")
On average, I think the teenager in the Civic would do substantially better than granny in a Viper. If you want to go to extremes, compare the Civic going as fast as possible on a race track to the Viper at a steady 50 mph on the interstate. Under racing conditions the Civic might get 15 mpg while the Viper on the interstate is supposed to get something in the low 20s. ---
**Author:** ![BustedKnuckles](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/bustedknuckles/32/25_2.png) [@BustedKnuckles](https://community.cartalk.com/u/BustedKnuckles)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2007, 7:34pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mpg-in-a-mellow-viper-versus-a-spastic-civic/7877/4 "2007-12-01T19:34:44Z")
I take exception to the example. The Viper may do 20 mpg under those conditions, but the Honda flat out as fast as it will go will still get 23 mpg. I know. I had a Honda Prelude in my youth, and ran from Atlanta to Tampa in just over 5 hours (480 miles) and still was getting 26 mpg. A 1.8L engine can only swallow so much fuel. But a 7.0L Viper engine can really gulp it down. ---
**Author:** ![mcparadise](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/mcparadise/32/32_2.png) [@mcparadise](https://community.cartalk.com/u/mcparadise)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2007, 8:29pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mpg-in-a-mellow-viper-versus-a-spastic-civic/7877/5 "2007-12-01T20:29:57Z")
You might be able to find an extreme set of circumstances under which a Viper would, for a short time. get better mileage than a Civic, but 99.9% of the time the Civic will top the Viper, regardless of how it’s being driven. It takes more fuel to run a V10 than an I4, there’s just no way around it. ---
**Author:** ![jtsanders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c2a13f/32.png) [@jtsanders](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jtsanders)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2007, 9:54pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mpg-in-a-mellow-viper-versus-a-spastic-civic/7877/6 "2007-12-01T21:54:31Z")
Let’s test it! Anyone have a Viper I can borrow? ;^)