A trip down Memory Lane--Gas Mileage in Yesteryear's Cars

[raccoon]

What kind of gas mileage did people get in those big, tail-finned, chrome decorated, large cars of yesteryear? I'm thinking mostly '50's but I'd be interested to hear about other time periods.

[Jack from Charlotte]

1. About 8 to 12 mpg..... My 1st car, a 1970 1/2 Camaro....

with a six cylinder engine got about 15ish tops. A standard V-8 engine of the day... a 307 CI (5 litre)would have gotten about 9 or 10 to 12 to 13 mpg. That Camaro weighded about 3200 pounds I think.

Today, my full sized Mercury Sable (Ford Taurus look a like) which weighs 3,400 pounds, gets about 18 City to 29 hiway mpg with a 3 litre (183 cubic inch) v-6 that produces 200 horse power.

Also, todays cars are very clean re polution compared to the 70's versions. No comparison.

[HereSince1628]

27. I think my 71 maverick got mid 20's-ish

It had a straight up 6 and almost no pollution control.

It was pretty light and drafting semi's made a huge difference.

[Ursus Rex]

2. '72 Chevelle/Malibu and '68 Mustang - both ~20-25 mpg

that was with a V8 in each, and sooo much more style

and yes, the Mustang had early emissions control eqpt, and of course the Chevelle did too - not that they would pass stringent checks today, but ...

My dad still has both, and drives them often

Now, if you want big, my mom had a 1974 Olds Delta 88 - it would do 100 MPH for days at time, and seat 6 fat adults comfortably, but only got (in practical use) ~10 mpg; my dad had a 1971 El Dorado with the Cadillac 501 engine, and not only did it have a VERY large tank (25 gallons, or more - ?), you could almost hear the gas swirling down the pipes when you accelerated

I think the late 60's/early 70's was the nadir of mileage, and I believe we have come close to that point again - I have never driven one of the 50's boats you mention, but the majority of cars people drove back then were generally more sensible - I mean, not everyone has a Hummer today, right? (even though it may seem like it in traffic) - the BIG DeVilles, etc., probably never sold in the volume we might think from watching retro-worship shows ;)

[jmowreader]

14. The question is, what kind of mileage did a Studebaker get?

The reason you see so many Caddies and the like on the retro worship shows is that people preserved that kind of car for their grandchildren.

You don't see that many Studebakers because people did with Studebakers like they do with Civics today--drive them until they quit working, then trade them in on something else.

[Toots]

42. I had a fifty six studebaker and it actually got pretty good milage

It had overdrive and that helped tremendously. I think I got around 12 - 14 MPG. A lot better on freeways in overdrive than in the city though. I loved that car and called it Cosmo.

[newyawker99]

39. Hi web-abbadon!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[janedoe]

3. My 1978 Honda Accord got 43 mpg

on the highway.

[Selatius]

9. Holy crap on a pita

That's more than my Toyota Camry gets on the highway, and it's a 1995 model. I can get roughly 31 on the highways at best, maybe 32.

[raccoon]

18. That's more than I get in my 2004 Camry.

It must be your driving habits!

[janedoe]

44. No, call it "reverse engineering." :-)

They seem to be reversing their engineering knowledge in favor of ....perhaps oil profits? :wow:

What other motivation has there been to push the sale of SUVs as if it were a fashion statement?

And, bullwinkle428 is correct. Much of the design criteria for cars in the 1970s was fuel efficiency. Foreign cars were way ahead of American cars in fuel efficiency, then.

I remember the gross weight of that Honda was 1974 lbs., which isn't super lightweight. And, I was content with the 1.6 Liter (4 cyl) engine. Sadly, after 260,000+ miles, and 17 years, I had to DRIVE it to the junk yard. The body and frame rust was what killed it. Still original clutch, still not burning oil...

:cry:

[raccoon]

45. Reversing their engineering knowledge....hmm..

you may have something there.

I'm surprised at some of the mileages people have quoted here, and those quoted on the link given on message #10. I was expecting something like 8-12 mpg for '50's--'60's cars. Now that was just my guess. I was a kid in the '50's but I never asked anybody about their gas mileage.

Seems like it hasn't increased much since then. Of course, nowadays most--if not all--cars have AC, most are automatic, and most have many more accessories than cars did several decades ago.

[bullwinkle428]

31. Today's Accords are much bigger and heavier than

the original generation Accords that came out around '76-77 or so, and the engines make at least twice as much HP, so the drop-off isn't all that bad, but I see what you're saying - modern technology and smaller, lighter-weight designs would go a long in improving mileage even more.

[Arger68]

4. My dad had a '65 Mustang that he bought new.

It had a 289 V8 with a 3 speed manual trans. He claims it got over 20mpg. I think to put that in perspective, though, it had no emissions controls whatsoever, also no power steering, no a/c, no power anything. I think that same car with today's technology would get 30+, considering how much lighter it would be and how much less power sapping accessories it had compared to all of our cars today.

[billbuckhead]

10. Here's some gas mileage stats from the 40's and 50's

They used to have something called the Mobilgas economy run where the manufacturers would compete in gas mileage.
<http://www.hagerty.com/NewsManager/templates/template_prot.aspx?articleid=819&zoneid=2>

[TahitiNut]

5. The average mpg people got in the 50s was probably around 16 mpg.

Average gasoline mileage bottomed out about 1970 at 13.5 mpg. We need to remember that the 'gas hog'/'muscle car' impact was GROWING in the 50s and 60s - it wasn't ubiquitous. Merely thinking in terms of cubes and cylinders doesn't really suffice. Carburation (and gearing) had a big impact. While there was a lot of pop emphasis on the 8-cylinder, low-end torque powerhouses, folks who commuted still relied on the lean 6-cylinder (and smaller, lean 8-cylinder) utility cars.

At the same time, the IMPACT of gasoline mileage steadily increased as the average family (and commerce) became more and more dependent on cars and trucks. Suburbanization, two-car families, decreased reliance on railroads, increased demand for trucked goods ... all these tended to amplify our sensitivity to mileage. Heck, when I was a teen in the 50s, the two-car family was rarer than the no-car family in my working class suburban neighborhood. Even in the suburbs, I didn't go a week without several bus or streetcar trips until about '56 or '57.

[raccoon]

19. "the IMPACT of gasoline mileage steadily increased "

good point there.

In my experience of the late '50's on, people didn't drive as much. I knew few (if any) two-car families, and it was not uncommon for people to take Greyhound for what would have been a 3- or 4-hour trip.

[sinkingfeeling]

6. My 1968, 454 Corvettee got about 12 mpg in town and about 14 all

out on a highway, where I used to drive really fast!

[TX-RAT]

21. 454 in a 68?

[sinkingfeeling]

25. Yeah, didn't say it was original..in fact, I got the Vet instead of an

engagement ring! I already had a '76 stock and the guy I thought I was going to marry found the '68 in a body shop. It was 4 different colors and after we split up (and I repaid him the $2000 he'd gotten it for) I had it painted red. Looked like this one:
http://www.vettefinders.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/cardetail/id/9133/g/3/1968_corvette_for_sale.htm

[TX-RAT]

29. sounds like a nice car, love that body style.

[sinkingfeeling]

34. Unfortunately, I don't have it any more. Sold it in 1982! I'd like to have

it and a couple of others back now!

[Greyhound]

7. 2 examples

1. 1967 Mustang fastback w/'68 428 SCJ. As long as I kept my foot off the gas and drove sensibly I got about 20 mpg around town, 25 mpg on the freeway (70 mph back then)
2. 1951 Plymouth Coupe. Flathead 6 (don't know the displacement) got 28 around town and a little over 30 highway.

Your problem was driving Chevy's

[sinkingfeeling]

8. Maybe, but I've still got several trophies for 'dusting' Mustangs!

[Greyhound]

22. Yeah , well the only guy in Denver that could beat me was a

rich kid whose daddy owned a chevy dealership, so every time I beat him (he ran a bright yellow 'vette) he just put a couple thousand more dollars into it. I ran flat 11's and could've done much better if I'd had the cash to change a couple of things (like I still ran 4:11 left over from the small block)

[LostinVA]

11. My dad had a diesel Japanese car -- he thinks a Datsun

Early 70's, that got well over 40 mpg.

[Davis_X_Machina]

15. Friend had a '80 diesel Rabbit by VW....

...that went from Durham NC to Pawtucket RI on one tank of gas.

[bullwinkle428]

33. I've been reading posts by VW TDI (diesel) owners on

www.tdiclub.com and www.vwvortex.com , and I'm just blown away by the gas mileage observations they make - I'm all about getting a diesel car when I'm ready to replace my current vehicle...

[LostinVA]

40. I'm getting an average of 44 mpg with my TDI

The engine isn;'t broken in yet (4k), and I live in a really hilly area. I get approximately 550 a tank. I'm hoping for an extra 100-200 miles when the engine nears 15k.just wish diesel would go down!!! It's still almost $3 a gallon!

[bullwinkle428]

32. Wow, I didn't realize the Japanese manufacturers sold

diesels in the North American market at all. They certainly do today outside of North America - I'm anxiously awaiting Honda bringing over their European-spec turbodiesel Accord, if it ever happens. Over 50 mpg combined city & highway, YEEEEEEEARGHHHH!

http://www.honda.co.uk/change/

[yella_dawg]

12. '65 Ford Falcon

2-door. 2700 pounds (heavily modified) 325 horse 289 V8, four speed, tallest rear end gears I could buy. Under 15 highway (average speed 120+ Hey, I grew up in West Texas), negative around town. Damn thing would break U-Joints if you didn't keep the RPM up in traffic. So bad I had to carry spares in the trunk. I used to cruise the drag in first and sometimes second. (Obviously I didn't do this much, hence the fact I have no idea what in-town mileage was.) Gas, however, was under 30 cents, and I've bought it at 18 cents during a price war.


I got no idea what ordinary cars got. Never drove one. My '63 Olds 455 V8 really sucked the fuel though.

[bmbmd]

30. Oh yeah-I lived in Levelland and had

a '64 Falcon-best car ever. I don't remember being impressed with the mileage, but I certainly remember the full-size back seat.

[yella_dawg]

43. Back seat. Oh yeah.

In the day, it was considered a small car. But as I remember, the back seat was a downright amazing place.

[RaleighNCDUer]

13. Big tailfins was early 60s, not 50s.

I remember a friend of my dad's talking about getting 7mpg in his Caddie in '60. Dad, at that time, drove an Izetta, a little Italian bug-car -- the car door comprised the entire front of the car, no doors on the sides, and you pushed the steering wheel forward to open the door. I reckon it got about 35mpg, which was extraordinary in those days.

[ProfessorGAC]

16. Not Just 60's

The 57 through 59 Chevy's, Caddy's, and Buicks all had them. Remember the 59's were the year that the fins got laid down on their side, so there was this flat, wing-like thing over the rear fenders? We had a '59 Buick when i was a kid, and the people across the street had a '59 BelAir. Later, a friend of mine had an old '59 Caddy convertible! I loved that car!

The 60's had them, but they started in the late 50's.
The Professor

[RaleighNCDUer]

17. Guess I was only starting to notice, then. I was, like, seven yrs

old, and in rural Iowa was more likely to see models from the 40s and early 50s which I really liked - all smooth and rounded instead of sharp and spikey with angles and fins.

So much for memory.

[ProfessorGAC]

20. Well, Our Tastes Match, For Sure

I love those late 40's, early 50's cars. I almost bought one about 6 years ago. A completely restored 1952 Cadillac Convertible Deville. The price was right too (i mean REALLY right). But, it wouldn't fit in my garage. The garage door is too narrow for that car, and we have all the yard equipment stored at the front, so it was too long, unless i moved all the yard stuff outside. (Can't do that. Would get ruined in the winter.)

That car was COOL! Like you said, rounded everything. Big blossomy fenders. I'm sure the mileage was crap, but it would have been a fun ride.
The Professor

[Contrary1]

23. My 65 Plymouth Satellite got about 23mpg.

I traveled to Detroit in the summer of 1970 with a friend, and found there was a gas war going on when we got there. 14.9 cents per gallon at one station we stopped at. Cost about $3.50 for a fill up. How's that for a trip down Memory Lane?

[Tesha]

24. My 1978 VW Scirocco got 35-40 on the highway.

My 1978 VW Scirocco routinely got 35-40 MPG on the highway.

Once, on a bet with my boss, I kept it under 50 MPH for an entire
tank of gas and and the car managed 50(!) MPG. 50 MPH was too slow
for routine use, but even the routine mileage was far more frugal
than most of today's cars.

(BTW, 1477 cc engine, 4-speed transmission, no power accessories
except the brakes.)

I'd *GUESS* that my 1965 VW Bug (1200 cc engine, 4-speed, no power
accessories) got about 25-30 MPG.

Tesha

[bballny]

26. VW

I had a '68 and it got 35 MPG at 55 mph and about 28 in the city.

[MadHound]

28. I've got a couple of those,

A six cylinder Chevy 2600 3/4 truck. It gets about fifteen in the city, twenty on the highway. Same with my 48 Desoto Deluxe.

Sad thing is that cars today that are in the same size range get much suckier gas mileage.

[madinmaryland]

35. 74 Monte Carlo with 454 . . .

12 mpg around town, and 15 on the highway. Had a 25 gallon tank.

[Historic NY]

36. I've got a couple of big old Plymouth tanks

both 1973's one with smaller V-8 get around 21-22 on the highway. It has California emmissions package. The other with the largest V-8 struggles at 13mpg.

[hamerfan]

37. '58 VW Bug

1100 cc engine, 36 BHP. Got around 32 mpg, and once drove 7 people from SF to Tahoe. We were all real good friends by the end of that trip....

[hatrack]

38. PROUD former owner of a 1972 Dodge DART

Woo-eee!!! Now THERE was a car!

Where was I?

Oh, yeah, the thing actually got about 25-27 on the highway and about 22-23 in town - the legendary Chrysler six-cylinder in action.

The thing never died - when the car finally died a horrible ignominious death from rust-cancer, our mechanic pulled the engine and sold it to someone else, so for all I positively know, the engine is out there somewhere pulling somebody down the highway . . . .

[lithiumbomb]

41. .

My '69 VW Squareback (owned in the 90s) got low 30s. My next car was a '88 Ford Festiva (mid 90s). A little sh*tbox, but quite honestly the best car I've _ever_ had. It only had a 4 speed (meaning high RPMs on the highway), but still got 38mpg highway, 32 city (the 5 speed models got into the 40s, but never competed with the Geo Metro 3 cyl). My current '73 BMW gets about 13mpg of premium, my '98 VW Golf gets about 22-28mpg.