Renault 1.5DCi donkey - do these grenade...

[Junkman]

What I'm asking though is whether there is some special way of driving them in order to achieve such mileage?

I mean, to get an even rudimentary sense of motion from a Diesel, one best replaces the accelerator with a toggle switch, no?

I can only get those from A to B faster than the continental drift if I drive them digitally.

So is there a technique to make them move at a reasonable velocity without nailing the throttle 100% of the time?

[Lukas]

The only thing I can say is: Use the torque, not the power. Let it pull, not rev. That worked well for me all the time.

[willswitchengage]

Don't brake, don't drive over seventy, don't go over 2000rpm

[Cavcraft]

I could get 'real life' 60+mpg out of a 206 1.4HDi van without even trying.

[skattrd]

Junkman - general "eco" driving.

Long journeys - short stop/start kill your mpg.

Try and keep off boost, unless accelerating hard.

Try not to accelerate too hard where possible.

Drive with a light foot, feather the throttle.

Ease off the throttle and coast where possible.

Try not to brake where possible.

Don't drive too fast, 50-60mph gives best mpg

Slipstream where possible.

 

I've managed to get a genuine 64mpg out of my 200k old 1.9tdi VW (on veg) driving like this.

I find "eco" driving is mind numbingly boring, and I can't keep it up for too long, so my average is usually just south of 60mpg.

[Cavcraft]

That's the flip side to it all of course. It's fucking boring doing 60mph (or whatever) on a long run and it's also tiring driving slow cars as the concentration levels are far higher imho, as you need to read the road ahead much further in advance.

So I'd suggest you need something like Chris's TDi where you can have economy and decent power if you need it too.

[gearoil]

Mate of mine ran a couple of 1.5 Kangoo's, last one hit 170k with no problems - other than 3 rear beams... But that was purely his own fault.

[Micrashed]

That's the flip side to it all of course. It's fucking boring doing 60mph

I managed to eek 52MPG from the 1.0 PETROL micra on a trip to Edinboghorror doing 60 all the way there.

 

Twas boring as fuck mind. The return trip took less time (even with a pub stop at Ecclefechan) and averaged 39MPG.

 

[Cavcraft]

I admire you 'Fuelly' boys, because I'm far too fucking lazy to join up and put details in or whatever you do.

[skattrd]

I admire you 'Fuelly' boys, because I'm far too fucking lazy to join up and put details in or whatever you do.

It takes 2 minutes Billy, I generally do my updates on a smart phone whilst waiting to pay at the petrol station.

It's quite good if you're a sad anorak who likes number (like me).

[Mr_Bo11ox]

I always work out my MPG, every time I fill up, never got round to using fuelly though. if I had a smartphone it would be as quick to update fuelly as it is for me to sit in the pez station hogging the pump while I piss about using the calculator 'app' on my shit old Nokia

[Junkman]

OK, now here we have 30-ish, 40-ish,and as a 'best' 50 mpg on an epic long distance run at a mind numbing 60mph.

I managed to do all of these, too. But people claim figures like 70 mph. I ask how. How is it possible?

How does one have to drive to achieve 70mpg? What is the trick?

Not 30, or 40, or even 52 mpg, mind.

I ask how one can achieve 70 mpg, while still making headway over land, and the other motorists not dragging one out of the car to lynch one.

[Richard]

Don't you insist on an automatic gearbox?

 

I don't think 70mpg out of a little diesel car is an outrageous claim. I think a diesel 106 in good condition could manage that too. I used to get high 40s out of my HDi Xantia Estate and I drove it pretty hard.

[sporty-shite]

My best in the Clio was 74mpg average over a journey from Bolton to Kent and back, when we collected my long departed T3 bus. I dove there at around 70mph all the way. Mrs S drove back, following me in the notoriously slow 1.7 diesel bus at around 55-60. It wasn't fun, but it didn't cost much.

 

In normal driving, mixed between motorway, stop start traffic and urban, the Clio did around 50mpg, which I thought was pretty damn good. And that was driven by Mrs S, who never thought of eco driving, and just drove as she liked.

 

Should never have sold that car, really......

[cort16]

I think the 1.5 Dci Clio was the car with the highest MPG in production at the time. Renault are claiming 88 mpg for their new 1.5 Dci Clio.

 

http://www.parkers.co.uk/cars/reviews/facts-and-figures/renault/clio/hatchback-2012/58076/

[Junkman]

I had to drive this miserable piece of shit back to Blighty from Austria last Summer:

 

 

1.5 dci, correct?

 

Apart from being the most uninspiring place I've ever been outside a porta-loo, I got something in the neighborhood of 35 mpg out of it, just marginally better as with my 405 2.0 GTX Auto petrol on the outward trip two weeks before. The Renoir was cramped, noisy, badly sprung and about as lively as a canal boat. The most annoying thing though was a TomTom screen, about DIN A5 sized, upright on top of the dashboard that you couldn't fold flat, neither could you stop it displaying the time one hour off in Europe, two hours off in Britain (bring your own software if you hire one of those atrocities). Unlike with the Peugeot, this wasn't travelling, it was an ordeal. I'll happily sink those few more bob into the tank of the Pug, since the plus of live quality I get in return is priceless.

[Mr Lobster]

This was my old one -

 

Our old Kangoo by Mr Lobster, on Flickr

 

When it worked alright it was great. Properly useful, sliding doors are GR9 4 KIDZ and it had a massive load capacity. Ok to drive and could see 55+mpg on a run without any effort. Had 110k when I sold it last October.

 

Downside - it did spend a lot of time in the garage. Turbo (x2), first was very noisy and seconded recon unit had the seals fail after a few weeks. Also had - starter, alt belt tensioner, cambelt and the last straw was snapping a rear torsion bar whilst 400 miles from home. Second hand rear axle sorted that and it then got replaced by something newer with slidy doors that does around half the mpg.

[Lacquer Peel]

My 13 year old Czech veg VAG manages 50MPG+ with careful, fast driving.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

I get 42 in the doblo 1.9D, slightly disappointing but most of my miles are done chasing up and down the A50 at 70ish so I suppose thats the reason

[willswitchengage]

I think the 1.5 Dci Clio was the car with the highest MPG in production at the time. Renault are claiming 88 mpg for their new 1.5 Dci Clio.

 

http://www.parkers.co.uk/cars/reviews/facts-and-figures/renault/clio/hatchback-2012/58076/

 

We all know that's a pile of shit.

 

Size of car x mass of car x is it a diesel = fuel consumption. Add 10% for common rail, direct injection etc

[Micrashed]

Well, four pages in the Kangaroo I went to look at was frankly a pile of dung.

More miles than the vendor claimed, missing wheel trims, missing bits of interior trim worrying camber of rear wheels which suggests rear arm bearings are shagged. So I didnt bother.

Which is a shame, because otherwise I actually quite liked the car, the size was OK, felt nice and airy and there was plenty of room for my lardy Northern arse. Even the seats were comfortable.

[oman5]

Don't you insist on an automatic gearbox?

 

I don't think 70mpg out of a little diesel car is an outrageous claim. I think a diesel 106 in good condition could manage that too. I used to get high 40s out of my HDi Xantia Estate and I drove it pretty hard.

 

 

Pug 106 1.5D is awesome on fuel. mine did an easy 68mpg without hypermiling

[M'coli]

I still think this is a valid discussion, because the Clio 1.5 DCi is beginning to look cheap enough to be cheap wheels if and only if the donkey can be trusted.

[Junkman]

More miles than the vendor claimed, missing wheel trims, missing bits of interior trim worrying camber of rear wheels which suggests rear arm bearings are shagged.

 

Sounds shite enough to make it at least marginally desirable.