Fuel Consumption

motorguy

As has been said really. Shorter runs = lower MPG.

I do long steady runs to work 45 miles each way and i've been averaging 66.7 brim to brim on my 1.6TDI golf. Official combined is 62.1 from memory.

cyclonebri1

Your problem is short, hence cold engine journeys. On a 6 mile journey the car will under perform for the 1st 2 miles at least, if the rest is urban there's your answer
Regardless of make and model you will half the max expectations given under those conditions

BeenThroughItAll

XftMike wrote: »

When cars drive short journeys they do not get to there optimised burn rate for fuel as the temperature of the car is low. So doing short journeys you never get into the best area of mpg that's why little city cars that are meant for little journeys do so well. You should see a increase when driving long distances.
Your Air Con is powered via your battery and in turn the alternator and it puts alot of strain on the car so it can produce enough electricity to run the Air Con hence the lower mpg as the alternator takes more energy away.
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mmm, not only some spam, but some spam with incorrect information as well. A/C compressors are driven off the crankshaft with a belt, not electrically (except on a full EV, which we're not talking about).

Reported the spam, anyway.

Foxy-Stoat_3

Your driving style will do more for fuel economy than all the masking tape over gaps, removal of wiper blades, wing mirrors, spare wheels and switching off the A/C put together.

PS, your A/C should be left on all the time to avoid possible repair work in the future.

yangptangkipperbang

Perhaps it is worth reminding people what the MPG figures in manufacturer's brochures actually represent.

They are carried very strictly in accordance with a Government test procedure. They are NOT intended to give any indication whatsoever of the sort of MPG an end user will get - the figures and the Govt website clearly state this.
It is only intended to enable a would-be buyer to ascertain if a Fiesta will use more or less fuel than a Ferrari.

"The fuel consumption testing scheme is intended to give potential car buyers comparative information about the relative fuel consumption of different models in standard tests"

http://www.dft.gov.uk/vca/fcb/the-fuel-consumption-testing-scheme.asp

Strider590

The difference in MPG between warm and cold engine, can be as much as 10%.

dailycheaptips

Check your tire pressure too! Under-inflated tires can make you lose up to 3.3% of MPG (flappy tires increase rolling resistance, so your engine has to work harder to move)

Joe_Horner

Foxy-Stoat wrote: »

Your driving style will do more for fuel economy than all the masking tape over gaps, removal of wiper blades, wing mirrors, spare wheels and switching off the A/C put together.

Very much this ^^^

By far the biggest waste of fuel is braking - it turns useful momenum directly to useless heat - and most drivers do far too much of it.

That doesn't mean you should start running red lights or using the car in front to stop you at junctions, but try to think a little further ahead and simply lift off the power a bit earlier when you may need to slow down so the car has a chance to slow "naturally".

Leaving a bigger gap to the car ahead helps here (and also hugely improves safety). With a little practice you'll find that you can sit in a lot of stop-start queues just using the accelerator gently without stopping completely, or even using the brakes, as the cars ahead accelerate then brake repeatedly.

Your brakes, clutch and fuel consumption will all thank you and, once you get used to it, you'll find it's actually an easier and more relaxed way to drive

PeacefulWaters

The air conditioning thing is interesting.

I buy into the theory that it should reduce mpg.

But I've had two cars with trip computers and tested both. A week of identical commutes with ac on and the same with ac off.

Identical fuel consumption whether on or off.

PenguinJim

That's interesting! Would you mind sharing the make/models/fuels and years of the cars? (I expect you might, so don't worry if you don't want to!)

I wonder if they are new cars..? I seemed to notice a difference in my old '96 Astra a loooong time ago. But I rarely used it, because the windows worked. I've always been operating under the assumption that car A/C eats petrol, and as a "good" MSE, I'd simply not bothered with turning it on (and it's been hitting 40C here by 9am some mornings!). Perhaps some experimentation of my own is in order...