# Your mileage may vary

**URL:** <https://community.cartalk.com/t/your-mileage-may-vary/86932>\
**Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\
**Created:** [August 31, 2014, 10:52pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/your-mileage-may-vary/86932 "2014-08-31T22:52:36Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![irlandes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b5e925/32.png) [@irlandes](https://community.cartalk.com/u/irlandes)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 9:27pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/your-mileage-may-vary/86932/21 "2014-09-01T21:27:26Z")

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I owned an 80’s era 9 passenger Pontiac wagon, until 1998 when some guy talking on his phone in traffic on I-35 low in Austin converted it back to its basic elements.

I told a fellow worker I got around 18 mpg at 70 mph on the Interstate. He haughtily informed me I should be getting around 24 mpg, just as he did. What a line of blarney.

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**Author:** ![melott](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/melott/32/10827_2.png) [@melott](https://community.cartalk.com/u/melott)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 9:36pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/your-mileage-may-vary/86932/22 "2014-09-01T21:36:05Z")

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FYI, I’ve been getting a load of advice telling me things I have known for 40 years.  
My questions were the ones I originally posted.

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**Author:** ![Whitey](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/whitey/32/24680_2.png) [@Whitey](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Whitey)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 11:15pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/your-mileage-may-vary/86932/23 "2014-09-01T23:15:09Z")

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Yeah, I know I do it too, but I’m amazed at how often our answers don’t address the OP’s actual questions. Sorry about that. It’s your conversation, and thread-jacking is rude.

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**Author:** ![texases](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/texases/32/862_2.png) [@texases](https://community.cartalk.com/u/texases)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 11:26pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/your-mileage-may-vary/86932/24 "2014-09-01T23:26:19Z")

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@melott - we don’t know what you know, do we? And since you’re getting reasonable highway mpgs, it’s more likely technique that’s the issue, not break-in.

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**Author:** ![Whitey](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/whitey/32/24680_2.png) [@Whitey](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Whitey)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 11:31pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/your-mileage-may-vary/86932/25 "2014-09-01T23:31:47Z")

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We may not know what melott knows, but melott asked a very specific direct question, making it very easy to answer a direct question with a direct answer.

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**Author:** ![Whitey](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/whitey/32/24680_2.png) [@Whitey](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Whitey)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 11:36pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/your-mileage-may-vary/86932/26 "2014-09-01T23:36:09Z")

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My direct answer is no, you shouldn’t expect oil consumption on a new vehicle. The owner’s manual in my mother’s 2002 Toyota Sienna warns about routine oil consumption, but if yours doesn’t, oil consumption would be a symptom of a problem. Actually, since switching my mother’s minivan to synthetic oil, I haven’t noticed any oil consumption.

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