Automatic definitely hurts it a bit. Heavy stop-start traffic can easily double your fuel consumption.
I don't mean to be a downer but there's just something about the GSi that makes it get bad fuel economy! Lol! I suspect that the lower (4.26) final drive doesn't help. I know it's a little bit heavier (the GSi), but I never got worse than 10L/100km when I had a stock B18A in my DA. It's difficult to keep all the variables equal though; everyone drives differently. I (and my sister) live in Newcastle. The traffic isn't so bad here, and I'm adept at avoiding it.
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