Bedding in or driving style?

[hirsty]

I've tried to keep my MFD #2 as a rolling average since I got my Beach, but as Tom says it is (perhaps too) easily 'resettable' on the T6 - I think my T5 Transporter and Touran were the same? I expect it rolls over eventually (eg: 20K miles), or when the battery has been disconnected long enough.

I occasionally refill & reset the odometer trip, then divide the eventual trip mileage by the new diesel volume required to refill again (always to the first pump click). Doesn't seem that far off to me between that & the MFD generally.

I'm a bit underwhelmed by the standard tank range though - there's a thread on the other forum for the "600-mile club" & I don't ever expect to see that again now I'm in the Beach. I go easy on the aircon, but DSG and too much urban driving spoils things. Stunned by the (manual) Passat mpg I drove this week, but it's a slippery shape compared to the brick ...

 

[Amarillo]

I've tried to keep my MFD #2 as a rolling average since I got my Beach, but as Tom says it is (perhaps too) easily 'resettable' on the T6 - I think my T5 Transporter and Touran were the same? I expect it rolls over eventually (eg: 20K miles), or when the battery has been disconnected long enough.

I occasionally refill & reset the odometer trip, then divide the eventual trip mileage by the new diesel volume required to refill again (always to the first pump click). Doesn't seem that far off to me between that & the MFD generally.

I'm a bit underwhelmed by the standard tank range though - there's a thread on the other forum for the "600-mile club" & I don't ever expect to see that again now I'm in the Beach. I go easy on the aircon, but DSG and too much urban driving spoils things. Stunned by the (manual) Passat mpg I drove this week, but it's a slippery shape compared to the brick ...

I once managed 997 miles on a single 75 litre tank in my old Peugeot 406 HDi.

 

[T6 CFO]

Not over stressed by MPG but pleased to see it creeping up. Only 1500 miles on the clock so need to get my act together
Circumstances about to change so hopefully long trip to mainland Europe on the horizon.

Stratford back home to Bristol. Bit of Urban either side and a relaxed drive home sticking to about 65mph on the M5.
Average for journey 42.1 in a 204 with 4Motion brick is probably as good as it will get.
I'm anticipating long term mid to high 30mpg so ok.

Mike


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

[Shadrack]

A very interesting thread. As Welshgas said earlier that there can be many variables that can affect the mpg. I am Wondering if the so called better standard of diesel that can be found at some fuel stations can improve the figures. Or maybe by using any of the so called improvement additives sold by likes of halfrauds etc.

 

[Palm]

This is a very interesting issue to discuss. There is so many factors influencing on miles/ gallon or kilometers/liter. I think km/liter is useless, 10km/liter more accurate and 100km/liter is close to true. I guess you can see miles/gallon in the same way.
Attached is one year fuel logbook for my cali 2012 Comfortline 140hp.
My objective with the calculations is to follow up total fuel costs for using the vehicle. I have considered the in built computer but it is out of my control simple division i.e. km/liter*100 = liter 100/km does the job for me.

 

[Palm]

A very interesting thread. As Welshgas said earlier that there can be many variables that can affect the mpg. I am Wondering if the so called better standard of diesel that can be found at some fuel stations can improve the figures. Or maybe by using any of the so called improvement additives sold by likes of halfrauds etc.

There are many and persistent rumors here in Sweden that the fuel is better in Germany. The actual difference between the fuel in Germany and Sweden is the winter additive that is used throughout the year in the Nordic countries. Take a look at my Fuel consumption log in earlier post and you will find an increase of fuel consumption during the winter time. That is the winter tyres with a higher roll resistance and bad road conditions. You can probably wash out other differences in fuel consumption which I consider is the difference between vacation driving and normal driving

 

[WelshGas]

There are many and persistent rumors here in Sweden that the fuel is better in Germany. The actual difference between the fuel in Germany and Sweden is the winter additive that is used throughout the year in the Nordic countries. Take a look at my Fuel consumption log in earlier post and you will find an increase of fuel consumption during the winter time. That is the winter tyres with a higher roll resistance and bad road conditions. It is possible that you can. You can probably wash out other differences in fuel consumption which I consider is the difference between vacation driving and normal driving

I'll find out on Friday.

 

[B J G]

Not too detailed survey but figures I got on April trip in France were,

Scenic run from Normandy, Manche area, to Loire valley with coasting function utilised and 90kms speed limit was 38mpg. Approx 5 hour runs. Quite hilly and on not much more than single track roads for much of the time and loads of villages.

Motorway running at 70mph showed 33mpg. Head winds mostly.
204 4Motion. only 1500 miles on clock.

 

[briwy]

If you Google diesel calorific values it shows how diesel varies in countries and summer winter.
I have tried the "super" diesels and not found any noticeable difference on mpg.
However we never use cheap unbranded fuel.
Use branded and no additives.

 

[Rich20]

Went up a hill on Thursday and it showed 8mpg on the (in the moment) display. Dropped it a gear to try and get 7 but it didn't change. It knocked the average by 2mpg.

 

[Palm]

And there was I thinking it was something very clever like dividing the distance travelled by the fuel used, this being somehow metered by the ECU magic box!

The only way to monitor fuel consumption is to do it your self.

 

[Ksar-el-kebir]

I'm in Essaouira Morocco. Even back up to Errachidia from Merzouga in Sahara I got 46.2. Next day to Marrakech and on to Essaouira which includes the highest mountain pass in Morocco around 2,600 metres above sea level with miles and miles of hairpin bends 46.4. The best on the trip down 49.9. I think I have a good'un here!

 

[Amarillo]

I'm in Essaouira Morocco. Even back up to Errachidia from Merzouga in Sahara I got 46.2. Next day to Marrakech and on to Essaouira which includes the highest mountain pass in Morocco around 2,600 metres above sea level with miles and miles of hairpin bends 46.4. The best on the trip down 49.9. I think I have a good'un here!

The MFD returned 18 Km/l yesterday for a 325 Km run across Sicily. If correct, that's about 50mpg for a fully laden 150 DSG Beach with four bikes. I had a nail in a tyre recently and the garage that fixed the puncture topped up the pressure to that of a heavy van on all four tyres. Perhaps that helped. I don't check the tyre pressure often enough.


Follow my blog: www.au-revoir.eu

 

[soulstyledevon]

The MFD returned 18 Km/l yesterday for a 325 Km run across Sicily. If correct, that's about 50mpg for a fully laden 150 DSG Beach with four bikes. I had a nail in a tyre recently and the garage that fixed the puncture topped up the pressure to that of a heavy van on all four tyres. Perhaps that helped. I don't check the tyre pressure often enough.


Follow my blog: www.au-revoir.eu

Would that not be 50kpg...???
No way can any California do 50mpg

 

[Ian Robinson]

Tyre pressure is probably more of a safety concern, blow outs and grip etc, than an mpg issue. I found this quote:

‘According to the US Department of Energy every one psi drop in the pressure of the tires is going to lower gas mileage by 0.4 percent. It is pretty obvious that under inflated tires will have a serious impact on a person’s wallet.’

The difference between normal and fully loaded pressures for my cali is only 3psi. So according to the above I might loose 1.2% economy or about 0.4mpg if I load my cali up and don’t increase the tyre pressures?

So unless your tyres were almost flat I don’t think tyre pressures can explain such a big change in mpg?

 

[Amarillo]

Would that not be 50kpg...???
No way can any California do 50mpg

The MFD gave 18 Km/l that's a shade over 50mpg.

I'll do a brim to brim calibration next long drive. Last time I calibrated the MFD was over reading 5%.

Cruise control was set to 90kph - slightly faster to overtake slightly slower through roadworks. The motorway was clear and climbed gradually from sea level to 2000 feet. On the descent to sea level I made use of the coast function where possible. The outside temperature varied between 16.5 and 22.5 and we used neither heating or air conditioning.

I am not suggesting the MDF of 50 mpg is correct, but 47 mpg is quite possible based on an earlier brim to brim calibration.


Follow my blog: www.au-revoir.eu

 

[thehorse]

Managed 50mpg (on MFD) over a 70 mile motorway trip driving carefully in the summer when the Cali was only a month old. Never got close since, but long term average is 35.5mpg on a 150dsg Ocean which isn't too bad.

 

[Amarillo]

Managed 50mpg (on MFD) over a 70 mile motorway trip driving carefully in the summer when the Cali was only a month old. Never got close since, but long term average is 35.5mpg on a 150dsg Ocean which isn't too bad.

Our long term average (MFD computer 2) is 14.1 kml (a shade under 40 mpg). It has been 12500 km since the last reset, but I have a feeling that the 14.1 figure is just the last 10,000 Km.




Follow my blog: www.au-revoir.eu

 

[Ocean Spirit]

Early days for me but my daily commute of 22 miles each way has cold engine 30/40 mph stretches though small towns plus traffic lights before some warmed up motorway miles then warm30/40 mph plus lights stretch to finish, regularly gives me 40+ each direction.
If bedding in improves that I'll be ecstatic!

 

[Amarillo]

Our long term average (MFD computer 2) is 14.1 kml (a shade under 40 mpg). It has been 12500 km since the last reset, but I have a feeling that the 14.1 figure is just the last 10,000 Km.

I have just checked the manual. Total journey memory (2) records data for 99 hours 59 minutes of ignition on or 9,999 Km or until a hard reset, then resets to zero. Our MFD reading of 14.1 Km/l (40 mpg) refers to the last ~2500 km driven.



Follow my blog: www.au-revoir.eu

 

[Amarillo]

Managed 50mpg (on MFD) over a 70 mile motorway trip driving carefully in the summer when the Cali was only a month old. Never got close since, but long term average is 35.5mpg on a 150dsg Ocean which isn't too bad.

I did a brim to brim test today.

A message came through that our hosts over Christmas received a package addressed to me. It was for something I had ordered on 7 December for delivery to our rental house near Balestrate (Sicily). I had already advised my credit card issuer that it had not turned up and have received a chargeback.

The problem was that we are the other side of Sicily now. I decided to drive across the island to pick up the package. Soon after leaving I topped up with fuel and reset trip 1 data.

Shortly before returning I topped up again with 36.69 litres.

MFD shows 18.2 Km/l (51.4 mpg)
Brim to brim gives 17.4 Km/l (49.2 mpg)
MFD over reads by 4.4%

I think that 49.2 mpg over 400 miles is bloody amazing for a van. About 60% was on motorway, 10% on grade separated single carriageway (I.e. no lights, roundabouts or crossing traffic) and 30% on smaller roads including snarled up towns and a 2000 foot mountain pass. We had a mixture of dry weather and very heavy rain showers.


Follow my blog: www.au-revoir.eu

 

[Ksar-el-kebir]

I did a brim to brim test today.

A message came through that our hosts over Christmas received a package addressed to me. It was for something I had ordered on 7 December for delivery to our rental house near Balestrate (Sicily). I had already advised my credit card issuer that it had not turned up and have received a chargeback.

The problem was that we are the other side of Sicily now. I decided to drive across the island to pick up the package. Soon after leaving I topped up with fuel and reset trip 1 data.

Shortly before returning I topped up again with 36.69 litres.

MFD shows 18.2 Km/l (51.4 mpg)
Brim to brim gives 17.4 Km/l (49.2 mpg)
MFD over reads by 4.4%

I think that 49.2 mpg over 400 miles is bloody amazing for a van. About 60% was on motorway, 10% on grade separated single carriageway (I.e. no lights, roundabouts or crossing traffic) and 30% on smaller roads including snarled up towns and a 2000 foot mountain pass. We had a mixture of dry weather and very heavy rain showers.


Follow my blog: www.au-revoir.eu

Used your recommended app Amarillo. Now I agree with you that the MFD read out is misleading. I estimate that the display shows about +4 above the actuality.
I got the van with around 6,000 miles on the clock so I guess it was “run in”. Just sold that one (150 with DSG). As the first one was an ex demo I didn’t spec it. Now I’ve got a 204 4motion DSG. The difference in mpg is large; 32 now and 38 with the previous one. Early days but it is very different.
I’d put VB air suspension on the first one which gave a far better ride and handling as well as self levelling.
This one rides much better but I’m considering air suspension as well and possibly a snorkel for Morocco trips, very dusty and possibility of flash floods.

 

[WelshGas]

The App and Brim to Brim calculations are Inaccurate I'm afraid and your MPG calculations are upto 10% greater than they should be.

Reasoning.

The Speedometer over reads the vehicle speed by upto 10%. This is perfectly Legal. So when your Speedometer shows 100 mph you are in fact doing 90 mph, assuming a 10% variance .

Now on the older Analogue Speedometers using a mechanical drive the Odometer/Milometer was similarily driven and hence also inaccurate. In fact even more inaccurate as the tyre circumference decreased as a new tyre wore. So with new tyres you travelled further / wheel revolution than you did with worn tyres and seeing as both speed and miles covered related to wheel revolutions speed and milage also varied as tyres wore.

In the Digital age, although we have done away with mechanically driven speedometers/milometers the same discrepancies occur as far as I am aware.

So, when you do a Brim to Brim calculation the amount of fuel used may be accurate but the Milage covered, taken from the vehicle Odometer/Milometer could be upto 10% too high.

eg:
Fuel used 3 galls. Milage covered according to Milometer 100 miles. MPG = 100/3 = 33.3 mpg

Fuel used 3 galls. Accurate milage covered 90 miles. MPG = 90/3 = 30 mpg

This assumes a 10% variance for ease of calculation.

So, Who/What can give you an accurate Distance covered? SatNav/Google or Apple Maps?

 

[Ksar-el-kebir]

The App and Brim to Brim calculations are Inaccurate I'm afraid and your MPG calculations are upto 10% greater than they should be.

Reasoning.

The Speedometer over reads the vehicle speed by upto 10%. This is perfectly Legal. So when your Speedometer shows 100 mph you are in fact doing 90 mph, assuming a 10% variance .

Now on the older Analogue Speedometers using a mechanical drive the Odometer/Milometer was similarily driven and hence also inaccurate. In fact even more inaccurate as the tyre circumference decreased as a new tyre wore. So with new tyres you travelled further / wheel revolution than you did with worn tyres and seeing as both speed and miles covered related to wheel revolutions speed and milage also varied as tyres wore.

In the Digital age, although we have done away with mechanically driven speedometers/milometers the same discrepancies occur as far as I am aware.

So, when you do a Brim to Brim calculation the amount of fuel used may be accurate but the Milage covered, taken from the vehicle Odometer/Milometer could be upto 10% too high.

eg:
Fuel used 3 galls. Milage covered according to Milometer 100 miles. MPG = 100/3 = 33.3 mpg

Fuel used 3 galls. Accurate milage covered 90 miles. MPG = 90/3 = 30 mpg

This assumes a 10% variance for ease of calculation.

So, Who/What can give you an accurate Distance covered? SatNav/Google or Apple Maps?

I agree with you entirely about the overreading speedometer and its subsequent distance calculation.
I’ve been a lorry driver for ? years and now lorries are governed to 90km/h (56 mpg) with the tacho/governer being calibrated every two years. Some companies send lorries for test with just legal tyres then put new ones on to get a couple of extra km/h.
So why don’t car makers calibrate the speedometer/odometer correctly when it is possible?
As well as the VW satnav I have a garmin dēzl 760. That might measure distance traveled, it certainly measures speed correctly, I’ve checked it in the lorry. Haven’t checked out all the functions. I know it’s got a dash cam but how to use it! Must read the handbook!
I wonder if VW would calibrate the instruments correctly under warranty? By my calculations the speed is 7% out.

 

[WelshGas]

I agree with you entirely about the overreading speedometer and its subsequent distance calculation.
I’ve been a lorry driver for ? years and now lorries are governed to 90km/h (56 mpg) with the tacho/governer being calibrated every two years. Some companies send lorries for test with just legal tyres then put new ones on to get a couple of extra km/h.
So why don’t car makers calibrate the speedometer/odometer correctly when it is possible?
As well as the VW satnav I have a garmin dēzl 760. That might measure distance traveled, it certainly measures speed correctly, I’ve checked it in the lorry. Haven’t checked out all the functions. I know it’s got a dash cam but how to use it! Must read the handbook!
I wonder if VW would calibrate the instruments correctly under warranty? By my calculations the speed is 7% out.

By regulations that are worldwide, no. The Speedometer MUST over-read by a maximum of upto 10% + 4 kph.
For an Aussie explanation

https://autoexpert.com.au/posts/how-accurate-is-my-cars-speedo