Is this a good fuel consumption

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#1284823 15-Apr-2015 15:22

you really shouldn't use a dollar value to calculate economy, you should use the L its buys, yes its an estimate but, as the amount of petrol that dollar value buys changes weekly, and $60 today is a lot different to $60 before Christmas.

E3xtc

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#1284835 15-Apr-2015 15:38

joker97: In lab conditions or real life? Very different numbers you'll find

Indeed! We have a CX5 and its average fuel economy isnt close (or as close as I would like it) to the "claimed" figures....sure it might be possible, but driving "normally", I rekon you need to take those figures with a grain of salt... :)

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#1284852 15-Apr-2015 15:59

E3xtc:
joker97: In lab conditions or real life? Very different numbers you'll find

Indeed! We have a CX5 and its average fuel economy isnt close (or as close as I would like it) to the "claimed" figures....sure it might be possible, but driving "normally", I rekon you need to take those figures with a grain of salt... :)

I get similar results with a similar vehicle (Mazda6) - in my experience, we get around 5.4 l/100km (it's a diesel) for only open-road driving, which happens to be what they claim for the overall figures! Our overall figure would be about 8 (about 700 km from a tank - open road driving closer to 1k from a tank) but cars like this with start/stop techology probably do a lot better relatively for urban fuel usage than those without.

I also agree the impact driving style can have on economy, given the same leaden foot my wife shares with other posters' partners! She will accelerate as quickly as possible up to the speed limit and then brake just prior to the following intersection - in a city like Palmerston North, which is often short block upon short block of roundabouts or of poorly-timed lights, this is a recipe for inefficency. Even in a supposedly efficient car like her 1.5 Honda Jazz, she'll rarely have her consumption under 9 within the city. (I think the problem is that, for her, a car is just a means of getting from A to B, and doesn't require any thinking (stick foot on accelator... drive... stick foot on brake...). Whereas I get some weird and perverse pleasure in seeing how economically I can drive in the city (given driving aggressively really doesn't make a significant difference in the time it takes to get from A to B, as that's more affected by traffic flow and light sequencing).

frankv

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#1284855 15-Apr-2015 16:05

E3xtc:

Indeed! We have a CX5 and its average fuel economy isnt close (or as close as I would like it) to the "claimed" figures....

Back in the 80s, I did some work for Todd Motors (Mitsubishi) for their fuel economy testing... they had specially prepared vehicles, computers to give instant feedback, specially constructed facilities, and a trained driver so that they could get the best fuel economy readings possible. I'm sure it works the same today. The claimed figures are about as good as you can possibly get. But it does at least give you a basis for comparison between different models and brands.

Jase2985

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#1284857 15-Apr-2015 16:06

im suprised she is that high though? our average for our jazz is 6.5l/100km, the worst ive had in it was about 8.5, and that was loaded with 4 people, and completly packed with gear, and 2 bikes on the bike rack for a weekend in Rotorua. Its was probably that bad because i like to sit just below the ticketable limit, and with all that extra weight and drag it wouldnt have helped much at all. Most other times with lighter loads its down around the 5.9-6 mark on the open road.

for me round town, Mangere bridge to Davenport daily its 6.2-6.3, and for the wife to takanini or east tamaki its about 6.6-6.8.

You partner must be very heavy on the gas, or the car needs a good service/tuneup

jonathan18

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#1284895 15-Apr-2015 16:23

Jase2985: im suprised she is that high though? our average for our jazz is 6.5l/100km, the worst ive had in it was about 8.5, and that was loaded with 4 people, and completly packed with gear, and 2 bikes on the bike rack for a weekend in Rotorua. Its was probably that bad because i like to sit just below the ticketable limit, and with all that extra weight and drag it wouldnt have helped much at all. Most other times with lighter loads its down around the 5.9-6 mark on the open road.

for me round town, Mangere bridge to Davenport daily its 6.2-6.3, and for the wife to takanini or east tamaki its about 6.6-6.8.

You partner must be very heavy on the gas, or the car needs a good service/tuneup

We have it serviced regularly, so don't believe it's that. Though how do I rule that out for sure? (A full service/tune at the local Honda dealer? I know that'll not be cheap!)

I think it's the perfect storm of her driving style combined with the weird characteristics of PN roads, especially those she uses the most often (seriously, on some "major" (it's relative in PN!) thoroughfares one can hit every single red light quite easily - and blocks are often very short with lights or a roundabout on every cross-intersection; there are also many, many roundabouts, which require at least a deceleration before going through them.

The other factor is nearly all her travel is short-distance - eg, from home to school, or home to work, home to her parents' home... for her, that's only a matter of 500m-2km (or less) each trip, and there are a number of those each day - the worst kind of driving for fuel economy.

Mark

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#1284898 15-Apr-2015 16:26

Go look up similar cars in Fuelly it's quite informative.

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DravidDavid

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#1284914 15-Apr-2015 16:31

Jase2985: you really shouldn't use a dollar value to calculate economy, you should use the L its buys, yes its an estimate but, as the amount of petrol that dollar value buys changes weekly, and $60 today is a lot different to $60 before Christmas.

All I'm saying is, I'm not interested in doing a full analysis as all that goes in to the tank is $60.00 a week anyway. I reset the meter and if I've only done 150 kilometers on 60 bucks, I know something is wrong.

I almost always hit the full mark and fill up at just below quarter. I'll completely top it off this week (about $85.00) and reset the counter to get a proper estimate on mileage. I'd imagine it would be around 550 or so.

jarledb

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#1284986 15-Apr-2015 17:30

Jase2985:
id say you could do better but jump on http://www.fuelly.com/ and see what others with similar cars are doing, as it will give you a better indication if your above/below/on par.

Didn't know about that site, that as a good tip. Have set it up on my smartphone (via the mobile page they have), so I can track my purchases and odometer. Will be fun getting an overview of the fuel consumption of every day driving vs long hauls.

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Hiamie

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#1284987 15-Apr-2015 17:31

I have a 1996 Toyota Sprinter (Corolla), automatic, I think it is 1500cc, and keep detailed records of my fuel consumption.

Most driving is Auckland city, but occasional long distance. From the last 26 fills looking at my spreadsheet...(in MPG)

Best ever 49.76 MPG
Worst ever 30.22 MPG
Typical 36 to 39 MPG

As far as I'm concerned the car is amazingly efficient. It (almost) doubles the the MPG compared to my 2000 Mitsubishi Diamante 3.5L or my old 1992 Honda Accord 2.0L.

If you PM me your email address, I am happy to send you the spreadsheet which contains much more detail if it helps.

Tony

Jase2985

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#1285039 15-Apr-2015 18:51

DravidDavid:
Jase2985: you really shouldn't use a dollar value to calculate economy, you should use the L its buys, yes its an estimate but, as the amount of petrol that dollar value buys changes weekly, and $60 today is a lot different to $60 before Christmas.

All I'm saying is, I'm not interested in doing a full analysis as all that goes in to the tank is $60.00 a week anyway. I reset the meter and if I've only done 150 kilometers on 60 bucks, I know something is wrong.

should use somethng like fuely, very simple and easy to use, and you only have to enter 3 pieces of data when you fill up and it does the rest for you.

They have a website, and mobile apps so very straight forward to use

Geese

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#1285048 15-Apr-2015 19:21

In an EFI car, would it be true to say if the thermostat is open all the time, and the temperature of the coolant is always at C line (unless prolonged idling), that it will fool the system into thinking the motor is cold and therefore to richen the mix? As in wasting fuel?

Either way, my pile of steamy kaka '94 Ford Festiva 1.3, 3 speed auto, does 380km from being absolutely full to empty line, 38 litre tank although at empty line takes 30.4 litres, therefore 12.5km/l. 310km open road/70km urban-hilly.

Maybe replacing thermostat may improve the figures, but it far better than previous car (96 Mitsubishi Legnum 2.5 V6 auto 4WD) which did 10km/l open road, 7.5km/l urban.

Jase2985

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#1285049 15-Apr-2015 19:23

IlDuce: In an EFI car, would it be true to say if the thermostat is open all the time, and the temperature of the coolant is always at C line (unless prolonged idling), that it will fool the system into thinking the motor is cold and therefore to richen the mix? As in wasting fuel?

yep pretty much

Geese

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#1285057 15-Apr-2015 19:37

Jase2985:
IlDuce: In an EFI car, would it be true to say if the thermostat is open all the time, and the temperature of the coolant is always at C line (unless prolonged idling), that it will fool the system into thinking the motor is cold and therefore to richen the mix? As in wasting fuel?

yep pretty much

I've never known a car to have so much stuff wrong with it and still function. I'd imagine if I replace it, it will blow a radiator hose or something. If it didn't, I guess though the heater would work better, which might be a bonus. I think its a Tridon TT240-180, $19. I guess I'd expect the fuel economy improvement to be pretty significant to bother.

blakamin

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#1285120 15-Apr-2015 20:58

Lol...

Mine's currently sitting on 12.3L/100kms
That's mixed driving to work. A lot of hills on the way home, 110 zone on the way there, 60 zones in both (two different routes to avoid traffic).

My old job it was 13..4L/100kms. Gridlocked Adelaide roads.

On a long trip it will rev at 2000 at 113kph. Goes down to about 8L

I love my 20 year old 4lt V8 tho, so I don't care.
And I don't take 500m to get to the speed limit after the lights go green. :D

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