Fuel Consumption - How's THAT going ?

[GTR27]

I have found (and Gerrycan has also mentioned iirc) that ac makes a fairly large difference to economy in a 1.4 manual. Almost 1l/100 difference. I can drive in 60 zones around town (non peak) in the mid 5s, but ac bumps that up to low to mid 6s. Stop start bumper to bumper is low 7s now. Highway with ac is high 5s, no ac I reckon I could nearly get high 4s. Engine has loosened up nicely, about 3.5k on the clock and keeps getting better each tank. Gauge seems quite accurate (both fuel gauge and trip computer)

[Baz 55]

Comfortline 90kw 200nm petrol
Usually drive in Eco Mode (DSG)
2000k on the clock.
Long Term 5.8l per 100km
Last Tank 5.5l per 100km
Driving - city / outer urban mix.
Fuel 95 Ron (just found out I should be using 98 Ron (oops) Next tank

Update - 20,000km on clock - same type of driving.
Seems to be roughly 5.3 on average.
Driving mostly in Eco mode and have become an expert on coasting !! lol

[JVdPoel]

Comfortline 1.2L - 105bhp - TSI DSG
Mostly used for commute to work which is 50 - 70 - 90 km/h roads
on cruise control, lots of turning on small roads (50km's per day)
6.4L / 100km on the long term (got 2000km on the car now)

Always use the eco mode of the DSG and disable start/stop as soon as I leave home.

[Ralfi]

That sounds high, even for a tight engine. Give it another 1000-2000km and if it's not into the 8s for normal urban driving then there's something funny going on

Also run ins shouldn't be gentle. Give it some stick asap

Recommend running it in straight away, or after the first 1000km?

[brad]

Recommend running it in straight away, or after the first 1000km?

straight away. You need to bed the rings in while the cross hatching on the bore is still "sharp".

I'm not saying thrash the engine but for most people run-in has to be more vigorous than what their normal driving will be down the track. It's a really hard head space to get yourself in. My wife just got a new Honda & she can't get her head around it (partly because she is extremely stubborn and doesn't really give a crap about cars).

I can't believe the number of people in this thread that use cruise control, eco mode, "D" mode and aim for fuel economy in the first 3000km. You are just setting yourself up to have a slow, tight, thirsty engine that will probably use more oil than it should.

[Ralfi]

Ahh thanks. I asked because iirc, the engine in the Polo GTI needed to be run in after a certain number of km's had been reached.

Different engines, different characteristics/demands eh?

[brad]

Ahh thanks. I asked because iirc, the engine in the Polo GTI needed to be run in after a certain number of km's had been reached.

Different engines, different characteristics/demands eh?

No, they are all engines and can be treated the same.

I'm not sure you have an understanding of what the term "run-in" means. You are running-in or bedding-in the engine (and all the driveline, brakes, suspension, etc) from the first turn of the key at the factory.

You can run them in gently like my aged father does & have a slow engine that drinks fuel like a sailor on shore leave.

You can run them in briskly but gently and they will spin nicely, get good fuel economy & last a long time.

You can thrash the bollocks off them and they will do all of the above & maybe not last quite as long.

I'm a middle-ground guy.

[GTR27]

Run in is most important in the first few ks. Vary load and speed and you should be right. I'm not trying for economy in any way, just commenting on the figures I get. I took it for a drive in the hills and used the firm run in method. Car gets a proper spanking every now and then also. All my vehicles get that and I haven't had a bad engine yet.

[Ralfi]

No, they are all engines and can be treated the same.

I'm not sure you have an understanding of what the term "run-in" means. You are running-in or bedding-in the engine (and all the driveline, brakes, suspension, etc) from the first turn of the key at the factory.

You can run them in gently like my aged father does & have a slow engine that drinks fuel like a sailor on shore leave.

You can run them in briskly but gently and they will spin nicely, get good fuel economy & last a long time.

You can thrash the bollocks off them and they will do all of the above & maybe not last quite as long.

I'm a middle-ground guy.

Appreciate all the info, Brad.

I'm not an enthusiast when it comes to cars (clearly), but interested none the less.

[Mountainman]

I have found (and Gerrycan has also mentioned iirc) that ac makes a fairly large difference to economy in a 1.4 manual. Almost 1l/100 difference. I can drive in 60 zones around town (non peak) in the mid 5s, but ac bumps that up to low to mid 6s. Stop start bumper to bumper is low 7s now. Highway with ac is high 5s, no ac I reckon I could nearly get high 4s. Engine has loosened up nicely, about 3.5k on the clock and keeps getting better each tank. Gauge seems quite accurate (both fuel gauge and trip computer)

I find driving into a head wind or driving in rain makes a bigger difference than air con to the economy. I regularly get around mid to upper 4's with highway driving sitting around an indicated 105 (because of the inaccurate speedo) A trip to Sydney and back with air con running all the time gave 4.5 one way and 4.6 the other. The MFD economy readout is usually around 0.2 optimistic. After 73,000km my long term MFD readout averages are always 5.3L/100km