Hey! I have a 2016 Rav4 se front wheel drive with 18000 miles on it and the fuel economy isn’t as good as my 2010 Camry even tho they both use the same engine and transmission. I get about 18 in town and 25-28 on the highway, is this normal? The ratings say 23/30The engine air filter isn’t dirty at all and it’s very low miles. I haven’t checked the fuel filter but I also don’t have the means to do so. Any idea what it is?
The reason it gets worse gas mileage than your Camry is because of aerodynamics. Simple explanation for that is you have more resistance to air while you drive your car (one reason is you are higher in the air). Your mpg is fine.
All else being equal, sedans will generally get better fuel economy than crossovers which sit a little higher than sedans to begin with, and as Yaser said will experience more air resistance which in turn impacts fuel economy. Also for many of these vehicles it is usually hard to meet the EPA numbers in the first place. That being said, have you noticed your mpg numbers getting worse over time? If so, that is a different issue and there are some places to look to address those. Let us know and we can help.
