Quote:
Originally Posted by SierraGS
I doubt you have ever got anywhere near 33 MPG in a 3.6L Aura.
Sorry, but I have asked dozens of owners of 3.6L powered cars and reviewed hundreds of posts/reviews online from owners of the same and most are in the 24-28 range. That is better than most competitors and better than the EPA rating, but not better than similar research shows what most 3.5L powered vehicles get (30-35) and many get 24 MPG in "mixed" driving.
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It's entirely possible that someone got 33 in the 3.6L Aura. My best tank so far in my 3.6L Malibu was 32.2, and I expect that I could have even higher on an all-highway trip (haven't done one of those yet). This is still mostly highway, but was one of my week's commutes (er, a week worth, duh).
True, most of my tanks have returned somewhere between mid 28 and 31, but I could easily see hitting 33, just not routinely.
As far as the whole discussion between the 3.5 and the 3.6 go though, I have to side with you. The 2004 3500 (non-VVT 205hp version) in our old Malibu easily got 34 highway all the time, and on those same long trips would return 36 or so, with a high of just over 38 for one of them. Even though the fuel economy for the newer VVT engine dropped a little, it's still rated at around 3 mpg better than the 3.6, so I'd expect it to actually return an average about that much better for most drivers.