Saving Fuel/MPG Guide v1.11111111 - inc Torque Figures, Tyre Pressures, Rated MPG

27th December 2006, 14:52

Firstly, I'm not sure where it should go. Mods, move at will

Ok I’ve had quite a few people contact me regarding MPG, either calculating it, what is good MPG, how to pull babes, how to get decent MPG, why is someone getting bad MPG etc etc so I’ve complied this little post to explain literally everything I could possibly think of… I want everyone to understand it so I’ve gone for the ‘person completely new to MPG’ approach. Please don’t see it as patronising, its not.

MPG
MPG stands for Miles per Gallon. This is a measurement of how far a car can travel on the gallon of fuel. The more you travel on a gallon of fuel, the higher the MPG and crucially the cheaper your travelling costs will be. Your car’s MPG is dependent upon the engine, the transmission, the aerodynamics, the weather (yup the weather plays a big part on MPG), the weight, but most critically the way you drive.

Calculating MPG
Some cars actually calculate this for you however their accuracy is pretty limited – so it’s always a much better practice by applying your brain and doing it manually.
The way to do this is:

1) Fill up the car to the brim, and I mean the very BRIM of the filler neck, be warned this can take around 10 minutes to fill the tank up completely whilst you pop a bit of fuel in and then wait for the level to settle. You'll have to do this at least twice if you want to measure the mpg once. Given this upsets most people who are waiting behind a more realistic method, although less precise, is to fill the tank to the top until the nozzle clicks. Wait a GOOD few seconds then beginning filling again, click. Wait a few seconds again and beginning filling until it clicks, again. So 3 clicks with a good pause in between.
2) Reset the trip distance monitor on the dash
3) Drive around
4) Come back to a fuel station and then repeat step one.
5) Make a note of the fuel put into the car on the second fill up and the distance on the Trip Computer.

Then get your calculators out…
Take the distance and divide it by the number of litres put in - This will give you an answer in miles per litre of fuel.
Then multiply that value by 4.55 (or if you're extra nerdy 4.54609188)
This will give you your Miles Per Gallon for that tank.

Example:
I drive for 300 miles
I fill up and put in 29.34 litres.

So 300 / 29.34 = 10.22
Then 10.22 x 4.55 = 46.5 MPG

Simple as that

Below is a rough guide to improving your mpg/reducing your running costs...

27th December 2006, 14:55

I've received a lot of questions with regard to how to improve MPG, so I've tried to document this as clearly as possible below

Engine
Often dodgy MPG is an early sign of things not right in the engine department, therefore it makes sense to keep the engine and transmission well maintained. Regular engine oil and air filter changes are an easy way to keep on top of the engine health and maintain good fuel consumption, thus keeping those running costs low

Please be aware of the fact that an engine will consume a LOT OF FUEL when starting the engine from cold - this is something that cannot be avoided but CAN BE minimised to ensure the cold start does not consume more fuel than absolutely necessary. Avoiding regular short journeys is the key factor but if unavoidable then try to time your start ups so that you make your short trip with the engine warm from a previous outing or something.

Don't let the engine just idle until heat is built up... Remember when you're idling your doing 0 MPG so it's costing you to cover absolutely no distance at all!

Similarly, do not race the engine to build up heat quicker. Best mpg is achieved by being extra cautious and making use of very light throttle inputs use during warm up.

Accelerating & Torque
Torque is the pulling force you observe when accelerating i.e. when you're pushed into your seat. And, as you'll probably feel, this force varies throughout the engine rev range.

As a very very rough indication, an engine is at it's highest efficiency where the engine develops peak torque. Therefore attempt to maintain your revs around your peak torque figure when accelerating up through the gears - the exception is the VTS/GTi engine (1.6 16v) where the peak torque figure is stupidly high in the rev range and not really a sensible figure to reach for gradual acceleration routines - for VTS/GTi owners, aim for shifts around 3000-3500 rpm

Peak Torque:
1.0 – 3600rpm
1.1 – 3800rpm
1.4 – 3400rpm
1.5D – 2250rpm
1.6 – 3000rpm (Mk1)
1.6 – 3500rpm (Mk2)
1.6 16v – 5200rpm

Cruising
When cruising, for instance in 30, 40, 50, 60 and 70 mph limits, use the highest possible gear without labouring the engine i.e. making it judder or generally straining it. On level roads 30mph in 5th shouldn't be a problem, if it's an uphill stretch of road you may need to downshift to 4th or even 3rd to main speed without labouring the engine - so choose your gear accordingly. If you're accelerating up to next speed limit, say when exiting a town/residential area, again try to VERY slowly increase the speed (which again should be achievable in 5th for most) to achieve best mpg.

Decelerating
When decelerating, avoid using the brakes, instead allow the car to slow naturally by using engine braking. This method is MORE efficient than taking the car out of gear and coasting as well as being much safer. During coasting, fuel is still injected into the engine to keep the engine idling. Whereas when the car is left in gear the momentum of the car maintains the engine revs and therefore far less fuel is used. NOTE, Saxo’s still inject some fuel into the engine under engine braking, unlike modern engine where virtually no fuel is injected.

MPG 'Boosters' - Super Fuels & Off-The-Shelf Fuel Additives
Fuel additives and Premium fuels are increasingly popular amongst Saxo Enthusiasts – some offer octane boosters or higher octane’s to boot, as well as specialised detergents that clean the fuel system and aid combustion. Premium fuels such as V-Power, BP Ultimate, Total Excellium etc, although offering fuel rated at 98/99RON as well as a host of additional chemicals aiding combustion and fuel system cleanliness, are limited in their benefits for a Saxo. The Engine Management System does not have a sufficient operating envelope to fully utilise the properties of these fuels. Some members report benefits of using premium fuels whilst others do not.

First things to be aware of are:
The standard Saxo ECU is capable of adjusting ignition timings up to 98RON (according to model documentation) meaning that whilst the full abilities of 99RON Premium Fuel can't be achieved, there is still a margin where the engine can make use of the benefits that come with using a higher octane fuel. Whether these are noticeable on the various models is subject to much debate.
Note: Standard UK fuel Octane rating is 95RON

Engine's that typically benefit more from higher octane fuels are ones that operate at high compression ratio's, or utilise force induction (Turbo/Super charged - although standard saxo's are not charged). Below is a compression ratio's for the various models:

1.0 – 9.4:1
1.1 – 9.7:1
1.4 – 10.2:1
1.5D – 23:1 - note that the information in this section regarding octane rating does not strictly apply to the 1.5 Diesel engine - Cetane rating take precedence
1.6 – 9.6:1 (Mk1)
1.6 – 9.6:1 (Mk2)
1.6 16v – 10.8:1

excluding the diesel engine variant, the 1.6 16v has the highest compression ratio amongst the saxo engine line. The compression ratio is approaching the limit at which standard forecourt fuel (95 RON) can be used without pinking. Consequently is most likely to respond well to the usage of Super Fuels. If driven appropriately, modest gains in MPG can be achieved too. On the other hand, the 1.6 8v engine has a relatively low compression ratio and therefore is unlikely to respond as well to the use of super fuels.

Therefore for most owners it may be more cost effective to opt for periodic fuel additive treatments. Off-the-shelf Fuel Additive Treatments are more specific in cleaning the fuel system than purely to increase the RON number compared to Super Fuels, but are a good way of carrying out a periodic cleaning of deposits within the engine and fuel delivery system. A highlight of this method is the control over the dosage (i.e when a thorough clean is needed) and timing according to amount of miles driven for instance. You DO NOT need to put additives or premium fuel into the tank each and everytime - simply adding a 'treatment/premium' tank every few weeks is sufficient to maintain good fuel system health - in doing so improving the running of your engine and keep running costs to a minimum.

The Car
Weight is the enemy for just about everything related to car performance and dynamics, and the same can be said for MPG. Increased weight means the harder the engine has to work to achieve the same results as a car weighing less, particularly during acceleration and decelerating manoeuvres, which means more fuel consumed and more expense.

Therefore, an easy way to improve your MPG is to do simple things such as removing built up junk from the back and passenger footwells, anything useless in the boot like 6x9’s and subz, and getting rid of your fat mates will all help decrease the amount of fuel your car consumes – as a general rule for every extra person in the car the fuel consumption will increase, typically in the region of 1-2 MPG.

A tyre’s job is to generate friction. However this friction affects MPG, so wherever friction can be safely minimised, improvements in MPG can be made. Wider tyres will typically generate more friction as they tend to run softer compounds, so if you're intent of getting bigger rims, limiting the width to a sensible figure is advisable.
Choice of tyre brand will heavily affect the levels of friction and the mpg you can achieve. Track type tyres (ie soft compound such as Toyo R888's) generate relatively high levels of grip/friction and therefore should be avoided if you want to save fuel. Many manufacturers create tyres specifically designed for low friction (such as Michelin Eco's), but this will come at the slight detriment of corning and braking grip - if you're not too concerned with whether you're the fastest young'n in the land then I wouldn't worry too much about the lower levels of grip.

Cheap (un)branded tyres are a false economy in many respects, usually to increase the levels of grip to sensible and safe levels (in the dry), the manufacturers forgo heavy investment in R&D and opt to make a softer compound tyre - whilst from a safety view, in the dry this is good, tyre wear is usually high, MPG is high and in wet weather conditions can give rise to unpredictable grip levels - as a result the Cost per Mile of running a cheap tyre is likely to exceed that of running a premium branded tyre. Honestly cheap tyres are a mug game.

Regardless of tyre choice, make sure you're getting most of them by using the correct or selectively choosing your own tyre pressures, check them regularly, when do it when cold and make adjustments if necessary. Below is a list of the recommend tyre pressure for various models

165/65R14 (i.e base models and 1.4’s) – 2.2bar/32PSI – Front, 2.0bar/29PSI - Rear
185/55R14 (VTR and early VTS models) – 2.5bar/36PSI – Front, 2.2bar/32PSI – Rear
195/45R15 (VTS and common aftermarket alloy size) – 2.3bar/33PSI – Front, 2.0bar/29PSI – Rear

If you have a Sub Woofer system in the boot I suggest increasing the rear pressures by 0.1 - 0.2bar

NOTE: I've noticed several threads where people are recommending tyre pressures in the region of 30 psi all round, because 'that's what the guy at the tyre place said'. Ignore this information. It's incorrect for most road vehicles. Pressures are generally determined through the weight distribution of the vehicle. As a saxo is a front heavy car, more pressure needs to be placed in the front wheels. Less so in the back.

Weather
Cold air is favoured for the performance enthusiast but surprisingly, cold weather affects the engine in ways will usually harm MPG. The engine will remain colder for longer, so on early morning start ups the MPG can be pretty terrible. Once at operating temperature a larger proportion of the energy from the combustion will be used to maintain the engine temperature, thus less useful energy is used to move the car. So don't worry too much if your fuel consumption increases noticeably during the winter months

Humidity to certain extent is good for MPG as water vapour in the cylinder will turn to steam during combustion as well as cooling the charge, effectively retarding the ignition, causing a slight (and probably unnoticeable) increasing in power. So less throttle is needed and and consequently less fuel needs to be injected.

Improving MPG
Easy
The easiest way to improve your MPG is to adjust driving style. Accelerating hard, using the upper revs and driving above 80mph will consume a lot of fuel and make you look a tit. Instead, accelerate gently, avoid heavy braking and use the highest gear as you sensibly can at cruise. If on motorway try to stick to 70 and hold your speed. If you choose to drive at 75mph, try to stay at 75mph. Fluctuating the speed, i.e racing some other idiot on the road or overtaking another car for no reason, will harm MPG. With good anticipation skills, unless of course you hit a traffic jam, you should never need to drastically reduce or increase your speed on a motorway.
Check tyre condition and pressure
Remove any junk from the car.

Moderate
Further improvements in driving style are:
To avoid using that brake. This isn't an endorsement to just plough into cars, but rather to make use of engine braking by learning to ‘Read the Road’. This means look far ahead, predict what will happen and determine whether you’ll have to modify your speed to suit the conditions. With the extra time you've got to adjust your speed, you can make the changes much more gradually and therefore increase your changes of improving your MPG. For example there are traffic lights further up the road that have been on green for while, it makes sense that they’ll probably go red as you approach or before you have time to go past them, so sense would suggest to begin to gradually ease off the accelerator pedal and let the car slow down, the less brake the better. NOTE: this also forms part of the Advanced Driving Course.

If weather conditions are in your favour, you can increase the pressure in the tyres by up to 0.2bar. This will 'stiffen' the tyre slightly creating a reduced contact patch and less flex in the side thus reducing friction and heat build up, thus aiding MPG, although be warned your grip will lessen.

Check and if necessary replace your engine oil with a Fully Synthetic derivative. Similarly check and replace if necessary the air filter.

MPG King
The driving style is further improved. Basically as slow acceleration and deceleration as safely possible without being a prat to other road users. When cruising on A-roads and Motorways stick to as slow as you can go (again without being a pain to others), a sensible guide figure would be around 55 mph which is a good balance between getting to a destination and achieving good mpg.

On motorways and at these suggested speeds slipstreaming can be implemented. As a car/lorry progresses along a road, it effectively pushes air out of it's way and creates a wake behind it, which if you're sufficiently close, allows your car to maintain it's speed with much less effort than previously required. NOTE this can be bloody dangerous, so concentration of the highest order is required and I'm will not accept blame should you:
a) rear end a car/lorry
b) the police kick your ass for 'dangerous driving' or similar offences

When carrying out such a driving technique, it's best to choose a lorry as their speed fluctuation is much less that a normal car and the drivers are much more used to having a row of slow moving cars pacing behind them doing the same thing as you are.

Further improvements to your 'Reading the road' technique, if you see a incline approaching, begin to gradually accelerate a few mph, then once on the incline allow the car to slow back to your cruising speed as you reach the top. When going down hill aim to maintain cruise speed rather than speed up.

Electronics – turn everything you can live without, radio, heaters, lights (if safe to do so). The alternator, which provides power to engine and it's ancillaries, runs off the engine and therefore if more power is required to supply electric to all your devices that are on, then the alternator will demand more from the engine.

Remove anything unusable/unneeded from the car, rear seats, spare tyres etc

If you're willing, have the aerial removed from the vehicle and the bodywork where it used to be flushed - the aerial is a sore point for aerodynamics so remove it if you can.

Example: One of my runs

From a 45 litre tank with what I estimate to be around 2 litres left...

That was from NA to Brighton and back again (going a slightly weird route).

I'm guessing that was around 78-80MPG. I'm afraid it's not my best run, but sadly the weather wasn't on my side. However it give you an idea of what is achievable if you're prepared to apply a few simple tips to your driving and condition of your car/engine.

Questions:

‘I’ve just changed tyres and my MPG has dropped’
See here:-
http://www.saxperience.com/forum/sho...ight=tyres+mpg

‘Will Premium fuels such as V-Power and BP ultimate aid MPG?’
In all likelihood yes, but it's marginal and ultimately depends on your engine and your driving style. As discussed above, some engines are more likely to respond better than others. In addition the cost of purchasing a premium fuel may outweigh the benefit of slightly improved mpg.

'My MPG has just (or progressively) gone crud'
First of all, a cold weather spell may have a nasty effect on MPG and is usually the biggest culprit, so always ensure whether, in particular if you're on a motorway that wind direction and speed is not to blame. Check your tyres haven't deflated excessively, check your air filter. The difference between a mucky and clean air filter can be 5-10 MPG on a saxo. Check what modifications have recently added been added to the car or engine. Has your driving style or regular drive changed?

'Does an induction kit increase MPG?'
Because highest mpg is attained when using part throttle the flow of air through the engine is relatively very low anyway... as a result an induction kit is unlikely to affect the mpg adversely at part throttle and/or light loads... Induction kits are (in theory) suppose to increase the flow of air into the engine at wide and wide open throttle. As a result the fuel has to be increased to match the air/fuel mixture. So if you boot it it'll in theory improve performance - but hurt your MPG.

So ultimately it depends how you behave.

Make sure you clean your air filter regularly too! If you've bought an induction kit they need cleaning regularly as well.

Caution with 'Open' style induction kits is needed, there is a tendency for hot air from the engine bay to be induced into the engine, the local hot air has a lower density than it's cooler equivalent outside the engine bay. This additional heat has the consequence of effectively advancing the ignition of the fuel and so reducing engine torque. So if you're at cruise you'll have to open the throttle further to maintain your speed than would otherwise be necessary, which would increase the load on the engine and likely to cause the ECU to respond by putting extra fuel (running slightly richer) and reducing fuel economy.

Below the official MPG figures for saxo models organised into three scenario's... These are good reference values for you to aim for if you're wanting to improve your mpg figures or tell if there may be a problem with your car.

Typical MPG's for Saxo Models:

1.0
Town driving - 34MPG
Mixture driving - 45.6MPG
Motorway driving - 55.4MPG

1.1
Town driving - 32.8MPG
Mixture driving - 43.5MPG
Motorway driving - 53.3MPG

1.4 (manual)
Town driving - 32.1MPG
Mixture driving - 43.5MPG
Motorway driving - 54.3MPG

1.4 (automatic)
Town driving - 26.9MPG
Mixture driving - 35.8MPG
Motorway driving - 44.1MPG

1.5D
Town driving - 40.9MPG
Mixture driving - 53.3MPG
Motorway driving - 65.7MPG

1.6 Mk1
Town driving - 28.5MPG
Mixture driving - 38.7MPG
Motorway driving - 48.7MPG

1.6 Mk2
Town driving - 32.1MPG
Mixture driving - 42.1MPG
Motorway driving - 51.4MPG

1.6 16v
Town driving - 24.8MPG
Mixture driving - 34.9MPG
Motorway driving - 44.8MPG

Hope this helps... please give feedback if you have any questions, comments or criticisms

(C) Adsayer

27th December 2006, 14:58

gd usefull post rep given

27th December 2006, 14:59

Fantastic read mr Sayer, im just home from my xmas travels and its nice that the first thrad i read was something useful!

Merry Christmas (i think its still ok to say that?)

27th December 2006, 17:13

does induction kits increase MPG?

it dont make sense after reading so many posts since denser air is taken in and that means more fuel surely

27th December 2006, 17:18

depends how you use it.

Induction kit are (in theory) suppose to increase the flow of air into the engine.

As a result the fuel has to increased to match the air/fuel mixture. So if you boot it it'll improve performance - but hurt your MPG

However if you tickle the accelerator, the increased air will improve conbustion so you'll need less fuel to maintain your speed - hence better MPG.

Depends how you behave.

Open inductions will kill it as hot air will be entering the engine, not not a high density. there less fuel will be injected to match the air/fuel ratio.

etc

27th December 2006, 17:20

nice 1

lol

27th December 2006, 22:40

dont mods wanna sticky it?

mofo's.

27th December 2006, 22:49

Very interesting read mate. I would leave rep, but I can't.

I'm coming to the end of my tank now, I think I have managed 260 miles on this tank, which to be honest is pretty poor compared to my last 447 miles from a tank. I'll be filling up tomorrow, so I'll take your information and try to stick to it.

I'll report back my findings.

27th December 2006, 22:54

when i saw this title....i knew who it would be writing this

very useful info though Ads!

27th December 2006, 23:09

Could use this link to calculate it Click Me

am currently getting 34 mpg out of my mk2 vtr.... but thats with short journeys, town driving, heavy foot... i tired the sensible option for a while and seen 39 mpg at my highest with again short journeys etc

oh and good guide!

27th December 2006, 23:48

Get a bit bored did we Mr Sayer lol, good guide lad

28th December 2006, 06:29

cheers ads

catch

28th December 2006, 14:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by adsayer

dont mods wanna sticky it?

mofo's.

Already did yesterday, see sticky in here and in engines

28th December 2006, 15:50

scott

28th December 2006, 16:44

Nice post ad, very handy, Have some rep my good man.

28th December 2006, 16:50

ads must have tons of rep for this,lol well deserved though

8th January 2007, 01:16

bosh.

That was from NA to Brighton and back again (going a slightly weird route).

I'm guessing that was around 78-80MPG. not my best run, weather wasn't on my side. But gives you an idea.

8th January 2007, 01:19

5000rpm pah is that it

good going though ads

8th January 2007, 01:23

never taken it to 5000rpm, although the tech specs tell me that max power is at 5000, which seems really high for a diesel, usual figure is around 4000. We'll find out the when it gets rolling roaded anyways.

8th January 2007, 01:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by adsayer

never taken it to 5000rpm, although the tech specs tell me that max power is at 5000, which seems really high for a diesel, usual figure is around 4000. We'll find out the when it gets rolling roaded anyways.

you will rip the rollers off

really need to sort my fueling out its running like a bag of shite at mo

8th January 2007, 01:30

whats the situation with the fuelling??? have you cammed it or something, possibly a ebay super chip

?

8th January 2007, 01:33

nah no cam i have 2 mcds chips in it but there down under the seat

it just seems to be giving shite mpg the manifold i coming off to be replaced by standard one this week to see if that helps

8th January 2007, 02:15

good un adsayer.

9th January 2007, 13:09

really good guide adsayer

9th January 2007, 16:36

cheers really useful thread!!!

9th January 2007, 20:07

ads you love the mpg! i must say i was mega jelous when you told me your MPG before, maybe im getting old thinking about it?

ive recently done a similar test and would like your advice my good man

vts
£20
160 miles

deal or no deal

9th January 2007, 20:13

£20 is roughly 22 litres of jungle juice.

160/22 = 7.2727 miles per litre

7.2727*4.55 = 33mpg.

seems reasonable to me... very near the 'Combined' fuel consumption figures (see guide).
So if you've done a mixture of town and motorway then the figure is good.

9th January 2007, 21:00

Kudos on this guide adsayer.

I hope you expand upon your guide to include mods like de-cat, manifolds, fuel cleaning additives etc etc.

Just got my second Saxo so I shall be keeping my third eye on the mpg

ManC

9th January 2007, 21:04

Good suggestion dude. I'll add to it when I get some time

ads

9th January 2007, 21:49

man 33mpg sucks! really did stretch it to get that too! it was in general normal average driving, a couple of times id expect i will have nailed it but its only fair

diesel coversion as next mod anyone

9th January 2007, 21:59

Bare in mind you've got a performance few mods.

6th March 2007, 18:23

does coasting still use up petrol? or is it bad for ur car at all because i coast alot when i know i have to stop soonish, eg trafic lights or comin up to a roundabout

6th March 2007, 18:37

Quote:

Originally Posted by graham_ha

does coasting still use up petrol? or is it bad for ur car at all because i coast alot when i know i have to stop soonish, eg trafic lights or comin up to a roundabout

Coasting still uses petrol yes because the engine is still ticking over but using very little fuel just to keep it reving gently. This way would save petrol compand to driving all the way upto trafficlights...etc and then braking hard to stop.

6th March 2007, 18:51

On saxo engines as far as im aware, you're slightly better off coasting, although I wouldnt recommend it as the saving is minimal.

On modern engines, leaving in-gear and taking your foot off the accelerator will yeild the highest fuel savings, I heard the engineering goons mention that NO fuel is injected into the cylinder, whether this is true or not is another matter.
plus you get engine braking which saves shaggin your brakes slightly

7th March 2007, 00:10

o rite cos ive been doin that for ages and i duno when i got into the habbit of doin it and i jus wondered if that was damagin my car at all lol

7th March 2007, 00:43

Only just seen this guide! Top work though and deserving of some rep.
Kupow!

16th May 2007, 10:39

coasting is never a good idea. Most engines are tuned to run a little rich at idle to help you start off and for when starting the engine.

Also the advanced fuels do aid mpg. A co-worker and I had been doing titanic milage resently. He has been using v-power petrol in his 1.4 206 and I have been using v-power deisel in a 2.5 tds bmw. On regular diesel I get 44mpg and with v-power I can get 49-50mpg. That saves me £100 a year even after paying through the nose for the fuel

Good guide though

16th May 2007, 10:52

Kam,
the guide is aimed at TU engined drivers, the ecu isnt capable of accepting anything higher that 97RON hence why the premium fuels are not recommended... mainly the price increase over the saving is minimal as the engine cant fully ultise the fuel. which is why i recommend manually adding addtives to the fuel solution.

Yeah there seems to be some small improvements on modern engined cars but even then most have to be mapped to really see the full gains

ad

16th May 2007, 11:03

well the 206 TU is no better than the saxo so thats why I mentioned it. My diesel is also 12years old so not particularly intelligent either

16th May 2007, 11:11

diesel is a slightly different technology as its based on cetane and not octane (although both exist in both petrol and derv) then engine (the old ones such as TUD) have no engine management as such. Its been tested infact on a TUD engine, that bp ultimate did offer gains.

your friend may find going for standard (not cheap tho) fuel then adding a fuel additive even now and again will probably prove more cost effective

3rd July 2007, 23:06

What about turning engine off at traffic lights/queues etc? Does starting up again use more fuel than you save from killing the engine for 5-10 secs?

4th July 2007, 00:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by ham1

What about turning engine off at traffic lights/queues etc? Does starting up again use more fuel than you save from killing the engine for 5-10 secs?

there is, as I remember, quite a bit of debate over this matter... however... citroen brought out a c3 with a start/stop function recently... basically the engine would cut out at traffic lights and by a light press on the accelerator would kick in again. they reckon decent savings could be made on fuel.

so on that assumption I'd guess that turning off the engine at traffic lights could provide some small gains, although I wouldnt recommend killing the engine if you're at the front of the queue... you might upset the people behind you if they're waiting a while lol

ad

4th July 2007, 18:17

Hehe yeah if you were at the front or quite near the front then might not be good. Although I read somewhere that in some country its the law, if you are 3rd or more in a queue at traffic lights, to kill your engine.

I suppose also if you are in a queue going down a hill then you could get most of the way with out the engine on.. although that is probably illegal or something...

5th July 2007, 03:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by ham1

I suppose also if you are in a queue going down a hill then you could get most of the way with out the engine on.. although that is probably illegal or something...

extreme coasting like that is typically frowned upon by the highway code and stuff as most modern cars lose power steering and brake assistance. I remember doing it quite a lot in the C3 only to find that my brakes would quickly fail.

sticking it in neutral could be done however research suggests that leaving the car in gear and letting the car coast actually saves more fuel

ad

5th July 2007, 09:26

turn your ignition off and your steering lock will come on. Could get interesting lol

5th July 2007, 09:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by KamRacing

turn your ignition off and your steering lock will come on. Could get interesting lol

only if your keys are out of the ignition???

5th July 2007, 09:34

There are a few notches on the ignition.
Off - you can pull the key out and steering lock engages
one notch - power to radio etc
two notches - ignition on
further to start engine.

Personally I wouldnt risk turning too far lol

9th July 2007, 15:47

will having a de-cat lower fuel comsumption?

3rd November 2007, 14:02

Good guide mate

What's the best gear to use when driving on a 60mph single carriageway on quite a straight road bar a few bends?. Is it best to leave it in 4th if not continuously holding 60mph but staying closer to the peak torque figure and making the most of engine braking? Please help as I'm confused lol

3rd November 2007, 15:08

If you're cruising... i.e. maintaining a constant speed... put it in top. that goes for just about any speed except below 20mph or something

ads

4th November 2007, 00:26

excellent guide ad

4th November 2007, 00:30

tbh i want to rewrite but i have two problems at the moment:

1) not enough time
2) cant be arsed

4th November 2007, 11:41

nice guide there,that some nice milage you got there guess you save a good few ££ compaired to people with VTS/VTRS. I get about 310-320 to a tank which is almost full ( Doesn't click at the pump ) filled it up yesterday to brim so will see what i get. ( i have a heavy load going to work also

)

2nd February 2008, 15:30

Hi adsayer, im no good at maths and what not, so can you work this out for me pretty please

I drove my car til it was 99% empty of petrol. I then filled up £10 of petrol at £1.02 a litre. This lasted me 98 miles. This was a evenish mixture of motorway driving and town driving.

Does that sound about right?

My cars a VTR, 98bhp model. I drive about 80 on motorways, I have an open air filter atm, (fitting the casing soon to make in enclosed dont worry).

Rep waiting

2nd February 2008, 16:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paul_CGM

Hi adsayer, im no good at maths and what not, so can you work this out for me pretty please

I drove my car til it was 99% empty of petrol. I then filled up £10 of petrol at £1.02 a litre. This lasted me 98 miles. This was a evenish mixture of motorway driving and town driving.

Does that sound about right?

My cars a VTR, 98bhp model. I drive about 80 on motorways, I have an open air filter atm, (fitting the casing soon to make in enclosed dont worry).

Rep waiting

No probs man!
nice one, you got about 45-46MPG by the sounds of it. which is pretty good considering the mixture of driving you've done.

good engine and transmission by the sounds of things

ads

2nd February 2008, 21:18

Cheers mate

14th May 2008, 01:26

Y'know - This was super useful!

Thanks!

14th May 2008, 10:17

Old thread but pretty useful, just thought it was mainly driving style and weight which affected MPG. Didn't think that the weather would, nice one

14th May 2008, 13:37

thanks everyone

18th July 2008, 18:53

wow worked a treat, thanks!!!

18th July 2008, 19:51

fuking hell over 700miles to a full tank thats mental im lucky to get 250 lol

18th July 2008, 19:57

but yer well done mate great info will try some of those thing to save me some money on petrol

18th July 2008, 20:04

thread digup ftw

1st August 2008, 02:37

great post! really helpful........having recently been made reduntant i need to find ways for the vtr to stop drinking the small amount of money i have left!!! lol

1st August 2008, 11:28

thats awesome, ive made 290 on 40 quids worth and that was a struggle, ive read through and taken a few tips on board, going to give it a go.

nice one

1st August 2008, 11:30

290 miles on £40?! You should be getting at least 330 mate...

1st August 2008, 11:43

ill give it a go, i did boot it once or twice with that tankful, only mods are raceland induction, supersprint centre and ashley backbox, so shouldnt make much of a difference

1st August 2008, 12:32

I use the same methods as mentioned in this thread- I can get 380 miles out of my VTS then the fuel light comes on, so somewhere around 42mpg.

I've found Esso fuel to give slighty less MPG though...

26th August 2008, 13:09

How will driving at 30mph and being in 5th gear in a 1.1 affect the mpg? i always drive like this as i see it as barely going over 1500rpm. But i still only seem ot be getting 30mpg around town

26th August 2008, 16:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by snottybadger

I use the same methods as mentioned in this thread- I can get 380 miles out of my VTS then the fuel light comes on, so somewhere around 42mpg.

I've found Esso fuel to give slighty less MPG though...

That's very good.

I need to improve my MPG

26th August 2008, 16:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by gavross

How will driving at 30mph and being in 5th gear in a 1.1 affect the mpg? i always drive like this as i see it as barely going over 1500rpm. But i still only seem ot be getting 30mpg around town

It only benefits the fuel consumption if you're holding that speed and not trying to accelerated.

30mpg round town isn't actually as bad as it seems. Sadly there are too many variables when it comes to town driving to judge how good/bad your car is in terms of fuel performance - you could be stop/start all the time, doing short journeys etc etc

ads

26th August 2008, 16:57

You want to drive in as high a gear you can without the engine labouring.
My BMW has overinflated tyres and I'm driving silly slow to get 50mpg average out of a 2.5 diesel. Am going for 700miles out of a 60litre tank lol.
Coasting is a no no. Try lifting off the accelerator downhill so there is no load on the engine. This uses less fuel than a car at idle.
Leave a large gap between you and the car infront so you do not need to stop/start as much.
In reality i've found that driving slower is the main way to save fuel.

26th August 2008, 17:07

Quote:

Originally Posted by adsayer

It only benefits the fuel consumption if you're holding that speed and not trying to accelerated.

30mpg round town isn't actually as bad as it seems. Sadly there are too many variables when it comes to town driving to judge how good/bad your car is in terms of fuel performance - you could be stop/start all the time, doing short journeys etc etc

ads

i think that may be my downfall, as soon as i hit 30 i go straight into fifth but from then on i very rarely change gear evenwhen i try to speed up. in which case my foot wil be planted to the floor, which seems abit silly now i say it out loud

3rd September 2008, 14:02

This is a great guide, thanks man!

3rd September 2008, 14:43

anytime dude

3rd September 2008, 15:10

i got 1.1 and after a full tank i get about jst under 300 miles is taht good mostly urban miles

3rd September 2008, 15:13

if it's town driving then it's probably about right man.

nice username lol

14th September 2008, 00:22

Power Up! (Rep Power) Thanks

Just workd mine out.. 415 miles.. 1.1 Petrol (Town and long distance (20 miles or so) just over 40MPG's

10th October 2008, 23:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by edwardsvtr

thats awesome, ive made 290 on 40 quids worth and that was a struggle, ive read through and taken a few tips on board, going to give it a go.

nice one

I got 220 to £20 in my VTR dude! You've missed something in this thread I think

24th November 2008, 23:12

Useful thread, going to see how the VTR does.

5th January 2009, 19:56

Useful thread lads. I've just signed up to this website, on a mates advice. I have a question which I'm hoping someone might be able to answer and help solve a problem that's been getting worse the last 3 / 4 months.
Basically, I used to get well over 300 miles per tank with my VTR. Since the engine management system picked up a fault with the exhaust sensor (sorry, can't remember name but I think it's something like the lambeth sensor? - not great with car engines!), and I've had it fixed, I've been noticing problems with fuel economy. Since my car was serviced in September, I've been lucky to get 300 miles from a tank. During the last two months, I'm struggling to get 250 per tank. This has gone from 54 to 39 mpg, which is starting to make a big difference to my petrol bills every month. I just wondered if anyone else has suffered from something similar. I realise certain factors affect the mpg, as mentioned on this thread, but I'm starting to think there is something more serious at fault with the car. Any comments would be appreciated. Cheers.

5th January 2009, 20:13

hey man, lambda sensor was replaced based on what you've said. How is the engine running? performance still ok?

ads

5th January 2009, 20:21

Ah cheers, that's the one. Performance seems to be ok, which is why I'm getting a little worried. I'll probably wait until payday then take it to a local garage. The engine mgmt system light has come on again, so maybe they can pick something up.

5th January 2009, 20:29

that was what I was going to ask, but I guessed that there wasn't a light or you would've mentioned it in the first post lol

I'd check that lambda sensor once more (connection could be loose)...

ads

5th January 2009, 20:32

actually when the ECU light comes on, the ECU reverts to a 'safe' mode, basically like windows, it runs without sensing from lambda and another one which I can't remember off the top of my head, which means the efficiency drops as a result. It only does this when the ECU suspects a fault with one of the sensors...

ads

5th January 2009, 20:32

Yeah, I forgot to mention that important bit about the ems light! cheers

6th January 2009, 09:26

Also mate, the winter weather hampers fuel economy too.

13th January 2009, 16:09

i followed your tips religiously for a while and it saved me alot of money soo many thanks mate. now with the vts engine and tb and everything else i still get excited and give it a boot which is hurting my pocket but i will calm down soon

14th January 2009, 18:04

Nice guide mate. half us here i bet aint toooo economic, but what with the money crisis it might not be a bad idea to remove my air filter LOL

Jay

14th January 2009, 18:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dose2k

Nice guide mate. half us here i bet aint toooo economic, but what with the money crisis it might not be a bad idea to remove my air filter LOL

Jay

If you read lol it says if you are carful with your right foot an after market air filter is good for mpg

20th January 2009, 09:58

In my 1.5D i can fill up about £15 from empty which goes to about half tank and i get about 200miles.
Is this good..im not sure.
Mind does need a service which im going to be doing next week!

23rd January 2009, 06:35

ads wanna see what MPG u can get out the clio

6th March 2009, 18:25

this is good stuff, but u want me to cruise at 5200 rpm ill be doin about 110mph or have a got this a little bit wrong?

9th March 2009, 12:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by seano

this is good stuff, but u want me to cruise at 5200 rpm ill be doin about 110mph or have a got this a little bit wrong?

Lower gear?

Does seem really high though

11th March 2009, 19:12

I was on a website the other day called www.wonderhowto.com and a guy on there doubled his mpg from about 17mpg to about 34. Firstly he did the usual things like tyre pressures and servicing. After that he was getting around 24mpg iirc then he says 'here's the bit the fuel companies don't want you to know' he reckons adding pure acetone (nail varnish remover, must be 100% acetone) gives you a good increase in mpg. He gained an extra 10 mpg from adding something like 2 fluid ounces of acetone to his tank. I haven't tried it because i don't really know anything about acetone and i didn't want it rotting any seals in my engine or any other damage it may or may not do. If anyone wants to try it i'd be interested in the outcome or if anyone can tell me if it's just a load of breeze.

13th March 2009, 16:25

Just joined as I'm thinking about getting a VTR and I saw this thread. What's the best mileage any of you guys have managed out of a VTR? I have a 40 mile commute every day, all on the motorway where I sit at about 60.

26th April 2009, 01:24

Very useful thread

11th May 2009, 18:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by maaaahtin

Just joined as I'm thinking about getting a VTR and I saw this thread. What's the best mileage any of you guys have managed out of a VTR? I have a 40 mile commute every day, all on the motorway where I sit at about 60.

Hi mate welcome, I used to drive 25 miles each way to work and would get and 47mpg in my VTR. You should do well if you stick to 60

(if you can stick to 60 that is)

21st May 2009, 22:33

Nice read

2nd June 2009, 20:50

sounds good

23rd June 2009, 00:16

I bought a ScanGaugeII last year and mounted it in the dash on my VTR and by watching the mpg gauge go up and down, you soon change your driving style

My best average on a 200 mile round trip was 52.8mpg but a lot of the trip was on motorways

23rd June 2009, 01:26

right I've just overhauled this slightly... hope it makes more sense than before and improves your mpg's

any q's then just ask!

ads

23rd June 2009, 01:33

Just done this and I'm getting 40mpg in my vtr. Would be interesting to find out other vtr owners mpg...

26th July 2009, 20:42

what a legend

31st July 2009, 10:45

will be trying it out cheers

31st July 2009, 13:38

Very informative post!

7th October 2009, 02:45

ad awesome thread totally changed my driving style.

Quote:

Originally Posted by AnthonyVTR

Just done this and I'm getting 40mpg in my vtr. Would be interesting to find out other vtr owners mpg...

yeah i can get into the 50's with my vtr.

30 mile commute to work each day on a road's.
revs max @ 3k. engine braking hardly ever touch my brakes, only time i do is when i need to down shift front 2 to 1st.

havent took the vtr over 65 in a few weeks.

ad few questions;

does lowering affect mpg at all ? i guess it would have little effect at all.

im currently running proxies on the front and hankooks on the rear ( came with the alloys), any suggestions on tyres that would give decent mpg, but still be good for the winter.

and does a de-cat affect mpg at all ? i would assume it wouldnt.

8th October 2009, 04:17

new on here only got car yesterday and this has made me a happy man lol great info on here

11th November 2009, 13:39

im getting nearly 60mpg even in the cold months!

17th November 2009, 21:16

what a thorough guide - well done sir!

29th December 2009, 19:16

awesome thread, il remember this for whenever im low on moneys

2nd January 2010, 02:33

ok guys, cheers for the responses and pm's and stuff.... I've made a few changes to the guide.

Hope it helps!

Ads

31st January 2010, 16:27

Is it common in the UK to use super plus fuel (98 octan) for the 1.6 16V?

31st January 2010, 17:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by enthrone

ad few questions;

does lowering affect mpg at all ? i guess it would have little effect at all.

im currently running proxies on the front and hankooks on the rear ( came with the alloys), any suggestions on tyres that would give decent mpg, but still be good for the winter.

and does a de-cat affect mpg at all ? i would assume it wouldnt.

Sorry mate, I never saw this the first time round. Depends on the level of lowering really dude - but ultimately, the effect is pretty low in favour of increasing the mpg's. There are issues with extreme lowering where the wear rate on the driveshafts increases, therefore there's some additional mechanical resistance going on which is going to lower the fuel efficiency. Overall don't be too worried.

Tyres... I'm running Michelin Exalto's, which are fairly balanced between dry, wet, eco and performance. They aren't cheap but the wear rate is phenomenal. Pretty much anything premium is going to be good for the winter and generally offer lower rolling resistance during cruise. But maintaining pressures will have a bigger overall effect on the mpg.

r.e. Decat. I decatted my car in summer and recently recatted the car at christmas and to be honest I couldn't see a difference, I have a log of the trip mpg and charts which support this too. So again nothing to worry about, technically there is a reduced restriction but at light throttles this makes minimal difference (although at heavier throttles the benefits are much more pronounced)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oxas16V

Is it common in the UK to use super plus fuel (98 octan) for the 1.6 16V?

I've used since the day I bought it, and some other owners do the same.

Ads

31st January 2010, 19:27

Fine cause I do the same, in my opinion the engine runs less raw like with the 95 octan fuel, especialy on higher revs, vibrations are also less with the better fuel.

Robert

31st January 2010, 20:55

I found the same Robert so I've stuck with it since!

ads!

11th February 2010, 13:55

great read this found it very helpfull thanks!!

14th February 2010, 04:23

Im already an MPG whore.... thats what i get for being a delivery driver

22nd February 2010, 22:23

brilliant guide, started putin these tips into play 2day afta fillin up

5th April 2010, 20:16

very interesting read good work mate

11th April 2010, 22:52

I get roughly 42mpg urban in a standard VTR, through all times of trafic with my job being a delivery driver

26th April 2010, 19:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by adsayer

I've received a lot of questions with regard to how to improve MPG, so I've tried to document this as clearly as possible below

Engine
Often dodgy MPG is an early sign of things not right in the engine department, therefore it makes sense to keep the engine well maintained. Regular engine oil and air filter changes are an easy way to keep on top of the engine health and keep your fuel consumption thus running costs low

Please be aware of the fact that an engine will consume a LOT OF FUEL when starting the engine from cold - this is something that cannot be avoided but CAN BE minimised to ensure the cold start does not consume more fuel than absolutely necessary. Avoiding regular short journeys is the key factor but if unavoidable then try to time your start ups so that you make your short trip with the engine warm from a previous outing or something.

Don't let the engine just idle until heat is built up... Remember when you're idling your doing 0 MPG so it's costing you to cover absolutely no distance at all!

Similarly, do not race the engine to build up heat quicker. Best mpg is achieved by being extra concious of very light throttle use during warm up.

Accelerating & Torque
Torque is the pulling force you observe when accelerating i.e. when you're pushed into your seat. And, as you'll probably feel, this force varies throughout the engine rev range.

It is also a nice, if very rough, indication of where an engine is at it's highest efficiency. As a rough rule, where the engine develops peak torque the engine will be at its most efficient. Therefore attempt to maintain your revs around your peak torque figure when accelerating up through the gears - the exception is the VTS/GTi engine (1.6 16v) where the peak torque figure is stupidly high in the rev range and not really a sensible figure to reach for gradual acceleration routines - for VTS/GTi owners, aim for shifts around 3000-3500 rpm

Peak Torque:
1.0 3600rpm
1.1 3800rpm
1.4 3400rpm
1.5D 2250rpm
1.6 3000rpm (Mk1)
1.6 3500rpm (Mk2)
1.6 16v 5200rpm

Cruising
When cruising, for instance in 30, 40, 50, 60 and 70 mph limits, it's to be the highest possible gear without labouring the engine i.e. making it judder or generally straining it. On level roads 30mph in 5th shouldn't be a problem, if it's an uphill stretch of road you may need to downshift to 4th or even 3rd to main speed without labouring the engine - so choose your gear accordingly. If you're accelerating up to next speed limit, say when exiting a town/residential area, again try to VERY slowly increase the speed (which again should be achievable in 5th for most) to achieve best mpg.

Decelerating
When decelerating, avoid using the brakes, instead allow the car to slow naturally by using engine braking. This method is MORE efficient than taking the car out of gear and coasting - please be aware of this, additionally it's also potentially dangerous. During coasting, fuel is still injected into the engine to keep the engine idling. Whereas when the car is left in gear the momentum of the car maintains the engine revs and therefore far less fuel is used. NOTE, Saxos still inject some fuel into the engine under engine braking, unlike modern engine where virtually no fuel is injected.

MPG 'Boosters' - Super Fuels & Off-The-Shelf Fuel Additives
Fuel additives and Premium fuels are increasingly popular amongst Saxo Enthusiasts some offer octane boosters or higher octanes to boot, as well as specialised detergents that clean the fuel system and aid combustion. Premium fuels such as V-Power, BP Ultimate, Total Excellium etc, although offering fuel rated at 99RON as well as a host of additional chemicals aiding combustion and fuel system cleanliness, are an overkill for a Saxo as the Engine Management System cannot fully utilise the benefits on offer.

First things to be aware of are:

The standard Saxo ECU is capable of adjusting ignition timings up to 98RON (according to model documentation) meaning that whilst the full abilities of 99RON Premium Fuel can't be achieved, there is still a margin where the engine can make use of the benefits that come with using a higher octane fuel.
Note: Standard UK fuel Octane rating is 95RON

Engine's that typically benefit more from higher octane fuels are ones that are Naturally Aspirated with high compression ratio's, or engine that utilise force induction (Turbo/Super charged - although standard saxo's are not charged). Below is a compression ratio's for the various models:

1.0  9.4:1
1.1  9.7:1
1.4  10.2:1
1.5D  23:1 - note that the information in this section regarding octane rating does not strictly apply to the 1.5 Diesel engine - Cetane rating take precedence
1.6  9.6:1 (Mk1)
1.6  9.6:1 (Mk2)
1.6 16v  10.8:1

excluding the diesel engine variant, the 1.6 16v has the highest compression ratio which is close on bordering the limit at which standard forecourt fuel (95 RON) can be used without detonation (pinking) and as a result is most likely to respond well to the usage of Super Fuels. Consequently, if driven appropriately, modest gains in MPG can be achieved too. On the other hand, the 1.6 8v engine has a relatively low compression ratio and therefore is unlikely to respond as well to the use of super fuels.

Therefore for most owners it may be more cost effective to opt for periodic fuel additive treatments. Off-the-shelf Fuel Additive Treatments are more specific in cleaning the fuel system than purely to increase the RON number compared to Super Fuels, but are a good way of carrying out a periodic cleaning of deposits within the engine and fuel delivery system. A highlight of this method is the control over the dosage (i.e when a thorough clean is needed) and timing according to amount of miles driven for instance. You DO NOT need to put additives or premium fuel into the tank each and everytime - simply adding a 'treatment/premium' tank every few weeks is sufficient to maintain good fuel system health - in doing so improving the running of your engine and keep running costs to a minimum.

The Car
Weight is the enemy for just about everything related to car performance and dynamics, and the same can be said for MPG. Increased weight means the harder the engine has to work to achieve the same results as a car weighing less, which means more fuel consumed and more expense.

Therefore, an easy way to improve your MPG is to do simple things such as removing built up junk from the back and passenger footwells, anything useless in the boot like 6x9s and subz, and getting rid of your fat mates will all help decrease the amount of fuel your car consumes as a general rule for every extra person in the car the fuel consumption will increase, typically in the region of 1-2 MPG.

A tyres job is to generate friction be thankful it's there; but sadly friction is the enemy in decreasing the amount of fuel your car consumes, so wherever friction can be safely minimised, improvements in MPG can be made. Wider tyres will typically generate more friction as they tend to run softer compounds and lower tyre pressures, so if you're intent of getting bigger rims, limiting the width to a sensible figure is advisable.
Choice of tyre brand will heavily affect the levels of friction and the mpg you can achieve. Track type tyres (ie soft compound such as Toyo R888's) generate relatively high levels of grip/friction and therefore should be avoided if you want to save fuel! (incidentally saves the R888's for the track, they're crap for day to day British Weather). Many manufacturers create tyres specifically designed for low friction (such as Michelin Eco's), but this will come at the slight detriment of corning and braking grip - if you're not too concerned with whether you're the fastest young'n in the land to get to the nearest McRags then I wouldn't worry too much about the lower levels of grip.

Cheap (un)branded tyres are a false economy in many respects, usually to increase the levels of grip to sensible and safe levels (in the dry), the manufacturers forgo heavy investment in R&D and opt to make a softer compound tyre - whilst from a safety view, in the dry this is good, tyre wear is usually high, MPG is high and in wet weather conditions can give rise to unpredictable grip levels - as a result the Cost per Mile of running a cheap tyre is likely to exceed that of running a premium branded tyre

Don't ever purchase cheap tyres... they're a false economy and you'll be an idiot for buying them!

Regardless of tyre choice, make sure you're getting most of them by using the correct or selectively choosing your own tyre pressures, check them regularly, when do it when cold and make adjustments if necessary. Below is a list of the recommend tyre pressure for various models

165/65R14 (i.e base models and 1.4s) 2.2bar/32PSI Front, 2.0bar/29PSI - Rear
185/55R14 (VTR and early VTS models) 2.5bar/36PSI Front, 2.2bar/32PSI Rear
195/45R15 (VTS and common aftermarket alloy size) 2.3bar/33PSI Front, 2.0bar/29PSI Rear

If you have a Sub Woofer system in the boot I suggest increasing the rear pressures by 0.1 - 0.2bar

Weather
Cold air is favoured for the performance enthusiast but surprisingly, cold weather affects the engine in ways will usually harm MPG. The engine will remain colder for longer, so on early morning start ups the MPG can be pretty terrible. Once at operating temperature a larger proportion of the energy from the combustion will be used to maintain the engine temperature, thus less useful energy is used to move the car. So don't worry too much if your fuel consumption increases noticeably during the winter months

Humidity to certain extent is good for MPG as water vapour in the cylinder will turn to steam during combustion as well as cooling the charge, effectively retarding the ignition, causing a slight (and probably unnoticeable) increasing in power. So less throttle is needed and and consequently less fuel needs to be injected.

Improving MPG
Easy
The easiest way to improve your MPG is to adjust driving style. Accelerating hard, using the upper revs and driving above 80mph will consume a lot of fuel and make you look a tit. Instead, accelerate gently, avoid heavy braking and use the highest gear as you sensibly can at cruise. If on motorway try to stick to 70 and hold your speed. If you choose to drive at 75mph, try to stay at 75mph. Fluctuating the speed, i.e racing some other idiot on the road or overtaking another car for no reason, will harm MPG. With good anticipation skills, unless of course you hit a traffic jam, you should never need to drastically reduce or increase your speed on a motorway.
Check tyre condition and pressure
Remove any junk from the car.

Moderate
Further improvements in driving style are:
Begin to Read the Road. This means look far ahead, predict what will happen and determine whether youll have to modify your speed to suit the conditions. With the extra time you've got to adjust your speed, you can make the changes much more gradually and therefore increase your changes of improving your MPG. For example there are traffic lights further up the road that have been on green for while, it makes sense that theyll probably go red as you approach or before you have time to go past them, so sense would suggest to begin to gradually ease off the accelerator pedal and let the car slow down, the less brake the better. NOTE: this also forms part of the Advanced Driving Course.

If weather conditions are in your favour, you can increase the pressure in the tyres by up to 0.2bar. This will 'stiffen' the tyre slightly creating a reduced contact patch and so reducing friction, thus aiding MPG, although be warned your grip will lessen.

Check and if necessary replace your engine oil with a Fully Synthetic derivative. Similarly check and replace if necessary the air filter.

MPG Whore
The driving style is further improved. Basically as slow acceleration and deceleration as safely possible without being a prat to other road users. When cruising on A-roads and Motorways stick to as slow as you can go (again without being a pain to others), a sensible guide figure would be around 55 mph which is a good balance between getting to a destination and achieving good mpg.

On motorways slipstreaming can be implemented. As a car/lorry progresses along a road, it effectively pushes air out of it's way and creates a wake behind it, which if you're sufficiently close, allows your car to maintain it's speed with much less effort than previously required. NOTE this can be bloody dangerous, so concentration of the highest order is required and I'm will not accept blame should you:
a) rear end a car/lorry
b) the police arrest your ass for 'dangerous driving' or similar offences

When carrying out such a driving technique, it's best to choose a lorry as their speed fluctuation is much less that a normal car and the drivers are much more used to having a row of slow moving cars pacing behind them doing the same thing as you are.

Further improvements to your 'Reading the road' technique, if you see a incline approaching, begin to gradually accelerate by rough 10 mph, then once on the incline allow the car to slow back to your cruising speed as you reach the top. When going down hill aim to maintain cruise speed rather than speed up.

Electronics turn everything you can live without, radio, heaters, lights (if safe to do so). The alternator, which provides power to engine and it's ancillaries, runs off the engine and therefore if more power is required to supply electric to all your devices that are on, then the alternator will demand more of the engine.

Remove anything unusable/unneeded from the car, rear seats, spare tyres etc

If you're willing, have the aerial removed from the vehicle and the bodywork where it used to be flushed - the aerial is a major sore point for aerodynamics so remove it if you can.

Example: One of my runs

From a 45 litre tank with what I estimate to be around 2 litres left...

That was from NA to Brighton and back again (going a slightly weird route).

I'm guessing that was around 78-80MPG. I'm afraid it's not my best run, but sadly the weather wasn't on my side. However it give you an idea of what is achievable if you're prepared to apply a few simple tips to your driving and condition of your car/engine.

Questions:

Ive just changed tyres and my MPG has dropped
Don't panic, it's not a major concern...!
See here:-
http://www.saxperience.com/forum/sho...ight=tyres+mpg

Will Premium fuels such as V-Power and BP ultimate aid MPG?
In all likelihood yes, but it's marginal and ultimately depends on your engine and your driving style. As discussed above, some engines are more likely to respond better than others. In addition the cost of purchasing a premium fuel may outweigh the benefit of slightly improved mpg.

'My MPG has just (or progressively) gone crud'
First of all, a cold weather spell may have a nasty effect on MPG and is usually the biggest culprit, so always ensure whether, in particular if you're on a motorway that wind direction and speed is not to blame. Check your tyres haven't deflated excessively, check your air filter. Check what modifications have recently added been added to the car or engine. Has your driving style or regular drive changed?

'Does an induction kit increase MPG?'
Because highest mpg is attained when using part throttle the flow of air through the engine is relatively very low anyway... as a result an induction kit is unlikely to affect the mpg adversely at part throttle and/or light loads... Induction kits are (in theory) suppose to increase the flow of air into the engine at wide and wide open throttle. As a result the fuel has to be increased to match the air/fuel mixture. So if you boot it it'll in theory improve performance - but hurt your MPG.

So ultimately it depends how you behave.

Make sure you clean your air filter regularly too!

Caution with 'Open' style induction kits is needed, there is a tendency for hot air from the engine bay to be induced into the engine, the local hot air has a lower density than it's cooler equivalent outside the engine bay. This additional heat has the consequence of effectively advancing the ignition of the fuel and so reducing engine torque. So if you're at cruise you'll have to open the throttle further to maintain your speed than would otherwise be necessary, which would increase the load on the engine and likely to cause the ECU to respond by putting extra fuel (running slightly richer) and reducing fuel economy.

Below the official MPG figures for saxo models organised into three scenario's... These are good reference values for you to aim for if you're wanting to improve your mpg figures or tell if there may be a problem with your car.

Typical MPG's for Saxo Models:

1.0
Town driving - 34MPG
Mixture driving - 45.6MPG
Motorway driving - 55.4MPG

1.1
Town driving - 32.8MPG
Mixture driving - 43.5MPG
Motorway driving - 53.3MPG

1.4 (manual)
Town driving - 32.1MPG
Mixture driving - 43.5MPG
Motorway driving - 54.3MPG

1.4 (automatic)
Town driving - 26.9MPG
Mixture driving - 35.8MPG
Motorway driving - 44.1MPG

1.5D
Town driving - 40.9MPG
Mixture driving - 53.3MPG
Motorway driving - 65.7MPG

1.6 Mk1
Town driving - 28.5MPG
Mixture driving - 38.7MPG
Motorway driving - 48.7MPG

1.6 Mk2
Town driving - 32.1MPG
Mixture driving - 42.1MPG
Motorway driving - 51.4MPG

1.6 16v
Town driving - 24.8MPG
Mixture driving - 34.9MPG
Motorway driving - 44.8MPG

Hope this helps... please give feedback if you have any questions, comments or criticisms

(C) Adsayer

AMAZED at this mate. did a quick stint to bristol and back and roughly got 55MPG out of my 1.1i. good stuff (Y) (was keeping it steady at like 50/60 Mph though)

17th May 2010, 20:08

Great thread... I record all my fillups(litres, price and miles on clock) now i can work out my mpg over certaing dates and my total average mpg.. 1.1 litre guving me 48mpg average over the last year

24th May 2010, 11:54

really usefull thread ta

29th May 2010, 10:21

Great guide mate have you heard off hho generators.
There's a diy kit you can make quite simply that converts your car into a hybrid thus partly running on water (not literally in the tank don't try it you're car will DIE) apparently they can increase milage by 50%
I'm making one next week hopefully if it works I'll post a guide

29th May 2010, 10:23

http://www.ehow.com/i/#article_2262517
how to make hho generator to slash your mpg

30th June 2010, 00:42

Quote:

am currently getting 34 mpg out of my mk2 vtr.... but thats with short journeys, town driving, heavy foot... i tired the sensible option for a while and seen 39 mpg at my highest with again short journeys etc

Same here. Got MK2 vtr and got around 49mpg from some sensible town driving. Averaging around 34 normally being a bit of a cock. lol.

12th July 2010, 21:30

just read that bit on tyre pressure- 36psi for 185/55 14's
Been to 4 major tyre garages and they all said the same thing. DON'T DO IT!!
The guy said to put 36psi in is just crazy,and that theres no need for it. Said to put in 31 front & rear

12th July 2010, 23:07

Quote:

Originally Posted by nappert

just read that bit on tyre pressure- 36psi for 185/55 14's
Been to 4 major tyre garages and they all said the same thing. DON'T DO IT!!
The guy said to put 36psi in is just crazy,and that theres no need for it. Said to put in 31 front & rear

I've had garages tell me that sticking a lower profile tyre on my sisters van wouldn't adjust the speed of the vehicle... But anyway, that is their choice I suppose to put 31 psi, my garage stick in a set value but then expect to change them to my preferred values. Don't shoot the messenger, I was giving the recommended values from Citroen themselves. But I'm going to DISAGREE 100% with what you've posted.

If the garage have told you to put 31 in front and rear then I'd really suggest looking at another garage, since the front is much heavier than the rear on a saxo, and therefore the fronts need additional pressure to counter the additional mass pushing down on the tyre - else you'll have increased wear on the front.

25th July 2010, 19:10

good info thanks

26th August 2010, 23:54

HaHa I put neaerly Full tank in £37.90

and 1/2 way used but got 203 Miles out of it! :o Outstanding!

31st August 2010, 09:59

Just come back from my grans.
Drive a Saxo VTS with Newman PH3 Cams
Filled up with 20 litres of Shell Optimax, over 190 miles I worked out I averaged 42mpg.

This is sticking to the 70mph speed limit.
It's slightly better on petrol than my 106 GTI was.

11th October 2010, 12:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aly

Just come back from my grans.
Drive a Saxo VTS with Newman PH3 Cams
Filled up with 20 litres of Shell Optimax, over 190 miles I worked out I averaged 42mpg.

This is sticking to the 70mph speed limit.
It's slightly better on petrol than my 106 GTI was.

It'll be slightly lighter perhaps ?

21st October 2010, 18:19

very usefull info, thanks!

25th November 2010, 13:33

good read thanks

18th December 2010, 13:01

Most i've had out of the VTS is 42mpg, and i definitly have a lead foot

18th December 2010, 13:08

Quote:

Originally Posted by adsayer

I've had garages tell me that sticking a lower profile tyre on my sisters van wouldn't adjust the speed of the vehicle... But anyway, that is their choice I suppose to put 31 psi, my garage stick in a set value but then expect to change them to my preferred values. Don't shoot the messenger, I was giving the recommended values from Citroen themselves. But I'm going to DISAGREE 100% with what you've posted.

If the garage have told you to put 31 in front and rear then I'd really suggest looking at another garage, since the front is much heavier than the rear on a saxo, and therefore the fronts need additional pressure to counter the additional mass pushing down on the tyre - else you'll have increased wear on the front.

Seconded. 31psi in the fronts must feel horrible, let alone be torturing your tyres

Also, I averaged 47mpg this last tank full on mostly combined (A, B and town road) commutes. 386 miles between fillups felt good

18th January 2011, 11:33

Adsayer, when you did this...what model did you drive? The Diesel?

27th January 2011, 00:43

Quote:

Originally Posted by _-john-_

Adsayer, when you did this...what model did you drive? The Diesel?

I should think so with it only revving too 6k! And if he got that mpg out of a VTS his name should be changed from Adsayer, to God.

This is such a great thread, particularly in the current climate of ridiculous Petrol Prices. Being wary of when to change gear at the correct rev's (I was not completely 'eco-ing' it), I managed to get 47.3 MPG with a mixture of a town/motorway driving (mainly town), thats with a random misfire code too!

17th February 2011, 09:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by adsayer

bosh.

That was from NA to Brighton and back again (going a slightly weird route).

I'm guessing that was around 78-80MPG. not my best run, weather wasn't on my side. But gives you an idea.

Holy Shit!! i only get about 450 miles on a full tank!! but thats town driving!!

6th March 2011, 21:39

I know that the most efficent speed from a aerodynamical point of view is 56pmh but curious what the 1.1 mark 1 engine most effcient speed was from an overall perspective, anyone got say a scan guage 2 to find out?

18th March 2011, 23:11

Very informative read - well done

22nd March 2011, 10:53

good guide buddy

22nd March 2011, 12:24

Thank you everyone

Needs a few tweaks here and there - as it's not a very fluid read. But hang in there it will be done!

Ads

18th April 2011, 22:26

I have a 1.1, if i do 30mph in 4th the mpg can get it about 45-50 eaisly

28th April 2011, 23:22

Impressive!!

My record in thr vts is 430 miles on a tank

28th April 2011, 23:30

How are people getting 400miles+ in their vtr/s? The most I can get is 330 miles from tank full to light on my vtr and that is driving economically. The last mpg run I measured was 36mpg.

29th April 2011, 13:33

Are you limiting your runs to town driving or short journeys?
If it's economical town driving you're not going to get 40+ mpg

30th April 2011, 01:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by adsayer

Are you limiting your runs to town driving or short journeys?
If it's economical town driving you're not going to get 40+ mpg

I do a mixture like a 5 mile run to work and back 5 times a week and drive to Crawley (about 22miles from Brighton and back) twice a week. My car does need a service which I'm planning to do soon but it is completely standard apart from the resonator box I have removed and a sub in the boot. I don't see much difference whether I take it easy changing gear under 3k revs or floor it past 5k revs. I have been spending upto £200 a month on petrol.

24th May 2011, 17:21

great guide...

and im impressed with the mileage in the diesel

i managed around 550 on my diesel (all town driving) which is a 50/50 mix of diesel and veg oil

i get 55mpg

24th May 2011, 17:55

for town that's excellent.

I need a 1.5d back in my life.

24th May 2011, 18:00

Currently getting around the 50mpg mark with my little 1.5d 106. not to bad but I aint used to driving a derve, sure once its serviced and I change the glow plugs I will get better. I'll keep this updated

24th May 2011, 18:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by adsayer

for town that's excellent.

I need a 1.5d back in my life.

cheers

and thats not slow town driving

its my work horse delivering takeaways lol

28th May 2011, 11:47

I just read the article which is quite usefull and thanks a lot. I got a question though does a 2003 saxo has DFCO (Deceleration Fuel Cutoff) cause you mentioned that saxos injects fuel while engine breaking. I thought that most car manufactured from 1999 and later had DFCO

30th May 2011, 08:42

also does the diesel use any fuel while de-accelerating?

6th June 2011, 12:24

Id never thought this much into saving fuel its very interesting, thank you

7th June 2011, 00:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by Manolis

I just read the article which is quite usefull and thanks a lot. I got a question though does a 2003 saxo has DFCO (Deceleration Fuel Cutoff) cause you mentioned that saxos injects fuel while engine breaking. I thought that most car manufactured from 1999 and later had DFCO

A 2003 saxo definitely does (any saxo with the 3 plug ECU basically). See BobC's Bosch M(E) 7.4.4 ignition-injection ECU tutorial. I'm not sure on the single plug though but I suspect not.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kirk46

also does the diesel use any fuel while de-accelerating?

The engine on the 1.5d is a basic mechanical type derived from an early 90's 1.4d - so it doesn't have 'cut' during deceleration since the lever on the fuel pump just hits the idle screw (and so chucks in idle-ish levels of fuel which is tiny enough to be almost negligible). As diesel engines go it's not super efficient (even compared to mechanical turbos nevermind the latest generation common rail jobbies) - but it does make up for that fact by being as simple and reliable as it can possibly be - and shoved in a light car.

Quote:

Originally Posted by JTheLegandary

Id never thought this much into saving fuel its very interesting, thank you

No problem at all!

10th June 2011, 12:03

Ive been using this for the past few days and its made SUCH a diference. I cant beleive how much petrol ive been wasting driving like a tit haha.

14th June 2011, 13:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by adsayer

Firstly, I'm not sure where it should go. Mods, move at will

Ok Ive have quite a few people contact me regarding MPG, either calculating it, what is good MPG, how to pull babes, how to get decent MPG, why is someone getting bad MPG etc etc so Ive complied this little post to explain literally everything I could possibly think of I want everyone to understand it so Ive gone for the person completely new to MPG approach. Please dont see it as patronising, its not.

MPG
MPG stands for Miles per Gallon. This is a measurement of how far a car can travel on the gallon of fuel. The more you travel on a gallon of fuel, the higher the MPG and crucially the cheaper your travelling costs will be. Your cars MPG is dependent upon the engine, the transmission, the aerodynamics, the weather (yup the weather plays a big part on MPG), the weight, but most critically the way you drive.

Calculating MPG
Some cars actually calculate this for you however their accuracy is pretty limited so its always a much better practice by applying your brain and doing it manually.
The way to do this is:

1) Fill up the car to the brim, be warned this will take around 10 minutes to fill the tank up completely and you'll have to do this at least twice if you want to measure the mpg once. A more realistic method, although less precise tank to tank is to top until the nozzle clicks. Wait a few seconds then beginning filling again, click. Wait a few seconds and beginning filling until it clicks. So 3 clicks with a good pause in between.
2) Reset the trip distance monitor on the dash
3) Drive around
4) Come back to a fuel station and then repeat step one.
5) Make a note of the fuel put into the car and the distance on the Trip Computer.

Then get your calculators out
Take the distance and divide it by the number of litres put in - This will give you an answer in miles per litre of fuel.
Then multiply that value by 4.55 (or if you're extra nerdy 4.54609188)
This will give you your Miles Per Gallon for that tank.

Example:
I drive for 300 miles
I fill up and put in 29.34 litres.

So 300 / 29.34 = 10.22
Then 10.22 x 4.55 = 46.5 MPG

Simple as that

Below is a rough guide to improving your mpg/reducing your running costs...

Can I ask where the figure 4.55 comes from, or am I just being stupid?

14th June 2011, 15:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by S202FSC

Can I ask where the figure 4.55 comes from, or am I just being stupid?

It's a good question and you're not being stupid. The figure comes from the conversion from Litres to Gallons... there are 4.546 Litres in a Gallon (imperial). I just rounded the figure to 2 decimal places hence where the '4.55' comes from.

Ads

26th June 2011, 18:29

Had a thought the other day, keeping your windows up in the summer might be hard but itd help the aerodynamics?

26th June 2011, 18:31

I always put mine up at higher speeds, and use the fan instead on as cold as it will do and it's normally fine temperature wise

27th June 2011, 18:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by adsayer

I've had garages tell me that sticking a lower profile tyre on my sisters van wouldn't adjust the speed of the vehicle... But anyway, that is their choice I suppose to put 31 psi, my garage stick in a set value but then expect to change them to my preferred values. Don't shoot the messenger, I was giving the recommended values from Citroen themselves. But I'm going to DISAGREE 100% with what you've posted.

If the garage have told you to put 31 in front and rear then I'd really suggest looking at another garage, since the front is much heavier than the rear on a saxo, and therefore the fronts need additional pressure to counter the additional mass pushing down on the tyre - else you'll have increased wear on the front.

I have a label on the door of my 1.1 mark one saying 32psi on front tyres and 29 on the back. Curious why citroen said 36psi to you :s

27th June 2011, 18:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by JTheLegandary

Had a thought the other day, keeping your windows up in the summer might be hard but itd help the aerodynamics?

Summer is a bit of a nightmare for RHD saxo owners but at town driving speeds it shouldn't be a problem having the windows down - as you increase your speeds on to A Roads and Motorways then having the windows down would be adverse to saving mpg - but you've got to be comfortable

Quote:

Originally Posted by 04jtb

I always put mine up at higher speeds, and use the fan instead on as cold as it will do and it's normally fine temperature wise

I'm the same - it's a bit too windy at 70 mph to have the windows down even half way so the fan goes on max - even if it does work the alternator harder

Quote:

Originally Posted by kmak577

I have a label on the door of my 1.1 mark one saying 32psi on front tyres and 29 on the back. Curious why citroen said 36psi to you :s

Because you read the wrong bit that's for VTR tyres 185/55/R14- see the part about 165/65/R14 tyres and the recommended pressures for 1.1s

29th June 2011, 14:01

Great read.
Mines actually pretty good looking at your tables and considering it's problems. But I'll be working on my mpg now. Something else for me to get ocd about.
Thanks given.

4th July 2011, 18:54

Great read, learnt i need to grow up when driving

4th July 2011, 19:13

Thanks guys... I'm in the process of putting together v2 of the mpg guide as v1.111 reads pretty badly. I'll pop it up once I've checked it and got some of my other projects out of the way.

Ads

11th October 2011, 17:24

£15 petrol (£1.36 per ltr)
110 miles!
none of which were m way driving

14th November 2011, 12:26

Awesome read... I'll never achieve these mpg figures Haha, but I did enjoy the read.

27th December 2011, 14:30

thanks

1st March 2012, 17:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by nathan9279

Great guide

Stop bumping shit trying to get 100 posts they will just be deleted.

1st March 2012, 19:35

To be fair. I'd made a few small updates so it's worth a reread if anyone wishes

18th March 2012, 22:32

Is it possible to get a decent MPG with the VTS if driven sensibly, been reading mixed reviews, dont know if I could settle for the more economical VTR haha!

18th March 2012, 22:36

I regularly get ~45 mpg from the VTS (highest being 55), my average for the ~40,000 miles I've driven currently stands at 41 mpg. They're not bad if they're looked after and driven sensibly from time to time

26th April 2012, 13:36

I must admit I was pleasantly surprised when it came time to fill up my 2000 VTR for the first time.

229 miles from 22 litres (of Sainsbury's Super 98RON)

Works out at a reasonable 47.36mpg.

2nd May 2012, 13:20

Thanks!

4th June 2012, 19:51

great post m8 ,helped me alot ,

19th June 2012, 16:48

Interesting read mate, especially with the petrol prices these days

25th June 2012, 18:06

That was good. I've got an orange engine light on, and reading this i've realized my consumption is catastrophically bad. Gonna need that sorted now.

25th June 2012, 18:07

And also how does electronics and air-con effect consumption?

11th July 2012, 06:12

thank you, i will regard it as a good idea
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like shopping when i have a good time
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10th September 2012, 21:44

Apparently i get 44mpg from a furio. But seems like i drink petrol.

23rd October 2012, 00:52

really good guide

29th December 2012, 21:52

Just worked out what I'm getting and managed an actual of 46.8 in my MK2 VTR.

That's at 65/70 on the clocks mostly, town driving and M25 traffic

Also had a period of 80+ and some traffic light grand prix with a 1 series. Which I won! Haha.

So I reckon 48 or even 50MPG is achieveable its just weighing it up between fuel saving and actually getting somewhere. Haha.

Cheers

27th February 2013, 21:45

Got a 1.4 auto, fuel consumption is awful- under 20 mpg (clean air filter) any ideas?

7th March 2013, 17:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by markalex

Got a 1.4 auto, fuel consumption is awful- under 20 mpg (clean air filter) any ideas?

Scrap it.

My last tank in the Vtr i averaged 47mpg mix of motorway 65mph and hooning. very happy.

1st May 2013, 03:14

For those with iPhones there's a really useful app that works out your mpg every time you fill up, it's free as well. It's called Road Trip LE

25th May 2013, 19:53

guys can any one help me out,im from holland and got a 1.6 8v vts.im in the oppertunity to buy a 16v version engine with gearbox and exhaust and ecu and what do i need more to convert?as i will need to know before monday cause after im finished taking all parts from the donor its going straight to the car grave yard lol.

25th May 2013, 19:54

also i would like to know if its a lot of work

24th July 2013, 13:02

Another quick update not that anyone cares

MK2 VTR.. Mainly all motorway driving at 70 cough a little more at around 3000/3500 RPM and some town driving, got 435 Miles out of the tank which is an actual 51 MPG.

That's not bad at all IMO!

7th September 2013, 08:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by iVTR

Another quick update not that anyone cares

MK2 VTR.. Mainly all motorway driving at 70 cough a little more at around 3000/3500 RPM and some town driving, got 435 Miles out of the tank which is an actual 51 MPG.

That's not bad at all IMO!

I think I have found the best answer. Thanks for your advice.

------------------
path of exile items

6th January 2014, 17:20

At the minute mines not moving any where because the radiator needs cleaning and it's stopping my car from starting

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6th January 2014, 17:21

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6th January 2014, 17:38

Oh yeah and I've got 26 miles from when the petrol light came on... and that was cutting it VERY shortly I did poo my pants.

8th December 2014, 19:41

i know its an old post and sorry for digging it up, but as a new driver, insurance rapes you, its good to try save money anywhere possible.

when i bought the car it needed a service (about 600 miles left to next service) to save money i did it myself.

i started my first months drive using 'normal' unleaded and got on average of 45mpg. doing the same journey of; farm, home, work, home. on a daily basis. (10-15 miles a day)

and doing the same this month with tesco's 99 premium stuff. (get money off vouchers so pay less for it)

so far im getting 50-55 mpg

not a huge increase but saves money i guess...

any way nice guide/thread

7th January 2015, 10:43

Blowing zorst makes MPG sucky.

7th January 2015, 10:43

Quote:

Originally Posted by Barry123

Firstly, I'm not sure where it should go. Mods, move at will

Ok Ive had quite a few people contact me regarding MPG, either calculating it, what is good MPG, how to pull babes, how to get decent MPG, why is someone getting bad MPG etc etc

made me giggle

24th April 2016, 19:10

Thank you, this guide was very helpful for me.
I have a Peugeot 106 1.5d for about 1.5 year and i never really calculated MPG, because i didn't want to fill up to full (especially twice) the fuel tank, so i just waited for the low fuel warning light to to blink up on the dash and then i went to immediately to fill lets say 2 gallons and then zeroed my odometer and waited for the warning lamp to light up again and then calculated upon how many miles i went with the car with 2 gallons fuel.. This was not the most accurate solution, but for a while i have a feeling that it consumes more fuel.. let's say i get -10MPG on average compared to older measures..
This is a wild idea, but can i just fill up a can with fuel, toss it in the trunk, and let the car to run out of fuel completely and then refuel it from the can.. So exactly the same method without filling in so much fuel..