1.4 TSI "real world" MPG

[wingco]

Hi All,

 

Can a few owners of a 1.4 TSI mk3 Octavia give me some idea of their real fuel consumption please?  Estate / hatch, manual / DSG, whatever you have.  Short commutes, long runs, motorways, driver only or fully loaded - all welcome.  But please don't go off piste - I don't need to know about this or that TDI, (been there, done that), I just need to know about your 1.4 TSI Octavia only.

 

Cheers

[gRoberts]

Whilst I don't have one yet, when researching before getting mine, the average was 45-50, doing a lot better on longer runs.

I'll be moving from a 1.9 pd which usually returns 60+ (67 best) so I will be interested in this too.

Of course, on those vehicles with it, there is the start/stop, modes and the overall conditions to think about too.

[ednmra]

I've had manual 1.4 TSi hatch for 2 years. Most driving is short distance around town stop/start and until recently it showed 38 mpg average.

But at end of October I drove to Brum and back.  By the time I got home the average mpg had gone up to 48 mpg.

[bob717]

I consistently get 50 + mpg. For example last weekend 180 mile trip to Norfolk, motorway, dual carraigway, two way roads, keeping on the posted speed limits, to many cameras these days ! and I averaged 52 mpg according to the on board display. After 17K miles in this motor and my second 1.4 TSI and a previous 1.2 I have always been impressed with this engine.

Manual 1.4 TSI SE Hatch

[gRoberts]

May be useful if people were able to clarify if their 1.4 TSI is the 122, 140 or 150 version?

[ednmra]

Mine is 140 version

[buttybox]

Had a 2013 1.4 tsi for a couple of months, onboard computer says long term average 50, fuelly type app says 48 over the last 3/4 top ups. 12 miles each way commute on duel carriageways, and I do go out and about from place of work stop/start around town. Nearly always drive it in eco mode during the week, normal mode at weekends,never had it in sport mode as yet. Not many long trips in it as yet, did get 57(according to computer on strip from Crewe to Llangollen.

Have come from a mk 2 pd140, computer used to say something stupid like 68/70 mpg, fully app said 48. I know the 1.4 has a slightly smaller tank but still feels like I get through the juice quicker in this newer car than the old PD.

[themanwithnoaim]

Mine is a DSG 140 bhp MY14 with 29k miles

I've found tyre pressures will affect economy but, HOW you drive will affect it greatly affect you've MPG

My 30ish is driven like I just stole it whenever road conditions permit so, that's the very least you'll get

Edited 20 November, 2016 by themanwithnoaim

[harrylime]

Mine is 140 version

took the words out of my mouth, as I am also interested in this

[BoxerBoy]

My good lady's 140 TSi DSG is almost a month old with 1100 miles now. Dash showed 48 mpg yesterday on a gentle 130 mile stroll on A roads. I track consumption continually on a Fill to Fill basis with the dash figures being a guide only.

If it stays above 40 mpg I'll be happy as it will be better than the recently departed Mini Countryman SD All4.

I've yet to thrash it when driving solo over some favourite roads in manual/paddle mode :-)

BTW - my old Superb 170 DSG showed me 55 mpg the other day on a gentle stroll.

[Gerrycan]

1.4tsi (15kw/140bhp), manual, estate with 225/45/17 Dunlop SportMaxx tyres, about 30months and 30,000 km old.

Formerly had a mk2 1.9pd

 

You will not match the economy of a 1.9pd with its natural advantages but overall economy should be within 5 to 8mpg unless you do a lot of high speed runs where the differences are more pronounced.

 

You will see from my Fuelly attachment that I have averaged nearly 46mpg over its life which is consistent with many others who record consumption (TMWNA apart), even 1.4tsi Superb users.

 

Australian speed limits are very heavily policed so I do not drive over the speed limit but ensure I drive at the speed limit GPS indicated.

The driving environment out of Adelaide is mixed with initial dual carriageways giving way to single lane highways so a typical 250km journey to the Murray Riverland area is initial flowing traffic with urban and highway speeds up to 90kph,during this stage I'll be lucky to average 60kmph but return an indicated average of 4.6L/100.

The next stage is about 50km of mostly motorway with speed limits of 110kph which raises the speed average to about 80kph but there is an uphill component that knocks consumption average down to roughly 5.4L/100.

From there the roads are single highway with 110 kph limits but with slower traffic, caravans, or 100kph speed limited trucks, and occasional speed reduced areas through country towns.

A long downhill section reduces average consumption to about 5.1L/100.

I'll overtake 90kph caravans but if a 100kph speed limited truck is motoring well (and most do) then I'll just sit 3 seconds behind and overtake at designated points.

Overall I'll average 90kph and get 5.1L/100 (55mpg).

The use of the air-conditioner (mandatory on some occasions ) affects consumption by about 0.3L/100 on this run.

 

Short urban journeys from cold say of 2km will only return 7L/100 (40mpg). I do a lot of these unfortunately.

Longer urban runs of 30km with 40 kph average with heavy but relatively free flowing traffic can return consumption of an indicated 4.2L/100 (67mpg), but it does require some concentration so as not impede other traffic and still maintain momentum.

 

Steady speed consumption at a GPS indicated 110kph in 20 degrees C, on the flat is a consistent 5.7L/100 on my car.

To an economical driver any compromise to the average speed should viewed as an opportunity to reduce consumption.

 

As far as I can ascertain the indicated consumption and actual consumption for my car is remarkably accurate.

 

Very happy with the car, its handling, versatility, performance (I'm only human) and potential/actual economy.

 

Just a pity the ACT version of the 1.4tsi is only available here in the Audi A3.

 

I'll just say that I do not think that a DSG equipped vehicle would be more economical for me in town, but may be better on the highway where the 7th gear lowers the revs at the 110 kph cruise by about 200rpm compared to my 2500rpm indicated in top (6th) manual gear.

Edited 21 November, 2016 by Gerrycan

[iriches]

1.4 TSI 140 manual estate here.

 

My long-term average over more than 17,000 miles is around 47mpg at present.  Details in my Fuelly page which is in my signature (but not, I think, if you're accessing this site with a phone).

 

The worst single journeys I've seen are around 25-28 mpg on short very congested urban runs - the sort of driving where 3 miles takes you 30 mins.

 

Best journey I've seen is 61.4 mpg = a 25 mile un-congested A-road journey completed at an average speed of 42mph.

 

I had a MK1 1.9 TDI 110 before this - and my long-term average in that was 52MPG, so I'm about 10% down in a car that is substantially quicker and quieter, with no Massey Ferguson soundtrack. 

 

One thing that is noticeable, however, is that the TSI is more sensitive to how it is driven.  Use the extra performance a lot and you won't see anything like my figures.  Sub 30mpg is easily possible if you treat the throttle as an on-switch.  My old 1.9 TDI used to get nearer 40mpg with such treatment.

Edited 21 November, 2016 by iriches

[Suuntobob]

HI

I am running a 2015 1.4 Tsi with DSG hatchback on Tesco 99

I  have kept a record of milage (5025 to date since June) to petrol used not relying on the computer

This is driving on economy mode approx. 90% of the time with 10% sport mode

I have done mostly to work and back 20 miles a day on Nottinghams ringroad. I have done about 6 or 7 journey's on the motorway totalling about 1500 miles

The average MPG is 44.27

            

Edited 21 November, 2016 by Suuntobob

[gregoir]

1.4tsi 110kW Combi manual

First tank Sainsbury 95 octane 42mpg calculated.Experimented with all modes. Mixed non motorway driving. Now trying Texaco 97 octane and motorway looms in a few days time. Car now seems to have a very strong pick up in Eco mode.

Edited 21 November, 2016 by gregoir

[Geek42]

One thing that is noticeable, however, is that the TSI is more sensitive to how it is driven.  Use the extra performance a lot and you won't see anything like my figures.  Sub 30mpg is easily possible if you treat the throttle as an on-switch.  My old 1.9 TDI used to get nearer 40mpg with such treatment.

 

Agreed. On average my 140PS 1.4TSI Octavia is within 10% of my previous 1.6TDCI Focus, but if you use all the horses it definitely drops further.

 

I was averaging just above 50mpg when I first got it, but now I'm generally doing mid-40's. Difference is my driving and a bit little bit of town use, where initially it was exclusively on long runs. I once got 60mpg on a long A-road run done at a pretty constant 50mph, but generally motorway runs are just touching 50 and local driving is more like 40. I don't drive fast (well, once in a blue moon just for kicks).

[wingco]

To All,

The reason I wanted to know about mpg is that I'll be replacing it with my fourth Octavia around this time next year, but I've only had diesels up till now. My thoughts are that diesel private car ownership may become untenable with future pollution legislation that I feel is not too far away. As my next car will probably be my last one, I don't want to be an out of pocket victim of some half-baked government compo scheme.

So thanks very much for the responses, you've all been most helpful, just the sort of info I needed - and g'day to Gerrican.

Cheers.

[Dempsek]

My 1.4 140 dsg spends most of its time doing short runs with 2 to 4 up and I am averaging 38mpg over hilly terrain. On long runs with 4 in I get 48 cruising at 70 where possible, drop down to 57 MPH and the mpg drops as you have to constantly accelerate past lorries.

If I was prepared to trundle at 50 the car would do in excess of 52MPG.

I do not use eco mode as I find normal to be the best in the areas I live,on my next long run I might try eco mode.

The 1.4 has one issue for me it's too easy to use your right foot and enjoy the power - if I had a TSI VRS I would defiantly have a problem with my licence.

[gregoir]

Just done two motorway trips of 330 miles each using 97 octane and eco mode plus eco tyre pressures. Stuck to the maximum limits of 70 and 50 mph through the long roadworks. 52 mpg calculated both ways. Computer indicated 54mpg.

Very pleased with that as my previous Octavia PDI 140 would get around 50 mpg. A real leap forward in petrol fuel economy as far as my experience is concerned.

Edited 28 November, 2016 by gregoir

[MorrisOx]

The 1.4TSi is a very wise choice, and you're spot-on in suspecting that sooner or later government is going to give diesel an absolute caning for enviromental (spelt t, a, x) reasons.

I've had my 1.4 TSi DSG hatch (140bhp) for 20 months now, and while the read out regularly suggests consumption of 50mpg plus, the measured reality is just under 45. That's pretty good going for a five-door auto family hatch which has a respectable turn of speed. The seven-speeds of the DSG 'box clearly make a difference but the on-off nature of DSG when moving off isn't to everyone's taste.

[Gerrycan]

That is pretty well in line with what most people with this engine would get, manual or DSG .

Any variations up or down are usually speed related.

My personal experience is that running a higher octane than the recommended 95 makes no difference whatsoever.

[bigjohn]

My personal experience is that running a higher octane than the recommended 95 makes no difference whatsoever.

 

I usually run on higher octane petrol but in France on one fill up I had to use 95 petrol. When driving up a steep hill in a built up area with the windows down I could hear a bit of "pinking" (sound reflected from buildings - car too well soundproofed to hear inside)

 

Filled up with a higher octane petrol - driving up the same hill near my accommodation I couldn't hear the pinkng

 

Having rebuilt / tuned engines in my misspent youth I know too much pinking usually means future trouble - and on these modern engines with super lightweight pistons this issue may be amplified. Myself I'll stick to higher octane petrol - especially as I usually keep cars for many years

 

Overall though I love the tsi (albeit mine is the previous generation). As well as the reasonable economy and torque it's nice to have that petrol "zap" as the revs increase - even on the humble 1.4

Edited 28 November, 2016 by bigjohn

[Gerrycan]

If you were enjoying yourself with engines then I would not have said that your youth was that misspent

I used to experience pinking on cars where I played around with the ignition timing, but otherwise nothing apparent on this car.

The several tanks of 98 Octane I put in didn't concede better economy or performance either otherwise I would be doing the same as you

I often drive around our suburbs with the windows down but never heard pinking. No hills though, flat as a proverbial pancake for 20km in most directions.

Again purely an observation, but generally manufacturers do mention in the manuals if there are performance benefits from use of higher Octane. For instance the new Mazda CX9 with the turbo 2.5L engine claims to run on anything from 91 to 98 Octane but say there is a 17kw advantage to running 98 Octane.

 

Your 46.1mpg average fuel consumption is pretty impressive with the extra weight/size of the Superb  over the Octavia.

Edited 28 November, 2016 by Gerrycan

[bigjohn]

 

Your 46.1mpg average fuel consumption is pretty impressive with the extra weight/size of the Superb  over the Octavia.

 

Clearly journey types vary but for reference my Superb I 1.9pd got about 50mpg on the same sort of driving. With the petrol Superb II (facelift) economy has been way better than I expected although it can really drop when fully laden - a very heavy duty (speed and weight)  trip through France shows up on Spritmonitor in May this year. I suspect this would be the case for all tsi cars

Edited 28 November, 2016 by bigjohn

[Dempsek]

Just completed a 94 mile round trip driving with two to five adults with luggage in the car and averaged 45mpg. The journey contained 70mph motorway cruising, a road 40/50 and town stop start traffic.

I am happy with that.

[Gerrycan]

I see what you mean about your French trip, at those speeds you would really miss having a diesel.

I had the 1.9d Mk2 Octavia which despite its poor on-paper output of only 77kw was a terrific tourer.

 

I bet you salivate a bit over what you could achieve with the lighter Superb mk3 with the 1.4tsi and ACT .

 

The 1.4tse ACT engine and the newer 1.0tsi triple pot are only available here in Australia in the Audi A3 which are more than I'm prepared to pay for a car.

We will see what is around in about 3 years time and our financial situation.

 

Big cars and big, or high performance, engines are very popular here but our speed limits are possibly the most heavily policed in the world and you can get nicked for being only a couple of km over the limit. Ostensibly it is for safety but each state raises $100m's revenue from this policy.

On a longer run, whether in my humble 1.4tsi or even humbler 2008 1.3L Toyota Echo, I sit at the GPS 110kph speed limit and rarely get overtaken. Where I have been, I have often seen them stopped by a police Q car further up the road.

 

I once received a friendly warning, but not booked, for speeding when a police car pulled up beside me at some traffic lights. In my defence it was a steep hill and I did not have a speedo on my bicycle. Wish I had a GoPro to record the incident.

Edited 29 November, 2016 by Gerrycan