Really bad fuel economy on 2014 2.0 CRDI 170bhp DSG L&K Combi

[Columk]

Hi guys,

 

I've seen a few posts out there but none really provided anything that would help me so i thought i would post fresh and see if anyone could provide any help/guidance.

 

I've a late 2014 2.0 CR 170BHP L&K Combi, 2 wheel drive with 33K miles on the clock. I bought the car from a main Skoda dealer back in Sep of this year with only had one previous owner and a full dealer service history. Now that i've had the car a few months i've noticed how bad the fuel consumption is, i'm averaging 19-22MPG on short trips and thats when the engine is up to temp and on medium journey's (30-50 miles) i get an average of 39-42 MPG. I typically fill the car to the brim and on the current tank of fuel i've traveled just over 145 miles and left with just under half a tank!! I would expect to get around 430-460 miles on a tank and that's on based on driving around town. I've had a 2006 Octavia 2.0 PD 140bhp (manual) from new and not only is the fuel economy much better (typically get around 460 miles to a tank and again this is mainly town driving) but it feels a LOT more powerful!. 

 

Something else that i've noticed with the Superb is the power or rather a lack of it or so it seems! My Octy 2.0 PD feels like it has a lot more torque but since i've not driven any other 2.0CR 170BHP Superb's with DSG it's really hard to know as i've seen other people mention that the CR diesel's are a lot more progressive than the PD's which dump all their boost in one big dollop so this might be me having to get used to the CR over the PD but again i can't help but feel that this might be relating to the poor fuel economy i'm getting.

 

I plan to book it in with the dealer after Christmas but before i do i wanted to get some feedback from anyone else driving a similar Superb and if they've experienced the same and had it to the dealer and what the outcome was in the end.

 

From other posts people have suggested driving habits, tyre pressures, alignment etc so here's a summary of what i've done and how i drive the car:

• 18" Sirius Alloys with brand new tyres inflated to 40PSI front and rear
• Wheels all aligned by dealer as new alloys were fitted after i bought car as existing were all buckled.
• I drive in D mode the whole time and am not hard on the brakes when coming to a stop or hard on the accelerator when taking off
• I'm not driving around with any unnecessary weight in the boot. Mainly just my wife and 2 young kids

Another issue i have is with the brakes as they seem very loose and not at all progressive. Because of the lack of progressive feel you tend to apply too much pedal and therefore slow down and stop too hard. I'll take a look around the forum to see if this is simple as air in the system and a simple bleed or potentially a problem with the master cylinder but if you have any ideas again your feedback is appreciated.

 

I might be over thinking some of this but these issues are really stopping me from loving this car and to be honest i think this is a great car and hope to get all of this addressed without too much back and forth to the dealer. I've attached a pic of my pride and joy.

 

 

thx all

Colum

 

[stubie141258]

Well I have got the same engine in manual form and I'm getting just under 40 on a 20 min commute back and forward to work. But recently did a 150 mile round trip and got 60 going there with 56 coming back.

 

Stubie

Edited 18 December, 2016 by stubie141258

[linni]

I get 9,5 l/100 km (31 mpg) when towing 1,5 tons trailer.

Usually I do around 43 mpg (6,5 l). And mine is 4 wheel drive. 2 wheel drive should get 0,5 liters less (50-ish mpg).

Mine runs on 18 alloys as well. When driving on 16 winters the consuption is reduced by by a half of liter, doing around 6 liters, 47 mpg

 

But, when doing first trip in the morning to work on cold engine, about 8 km, the average is around 12 liters, 24 mpg.

[jafo]

I think you should change your driving behaviour - or at least give it a good "reset" from time to time ;)

I had the same problem with my Seat Leon 2.0 DSG 170 and then Superb 2.0 DSG 170 4x4 - right after the purchase they were very sluggish but after long trips Manchester-London - after the purchase - and hard driving they started to perform much better with better MPG.

When you only drive slow - without revving it from time to time - DSG learns your behaviour and car become sluggish with poor MPG. This also have negative impact on DPF.

[Sheldon.Cooper]

It's a heavy car and the diesel DSG uses about 10 - 15% more fuel than the same car with a manual gearbox.

It's worth giving it an Italian tune up.

Also might be worth looking at purchasing VCDS from fleabay, I'm not condoning piracy but there are leads and software on there for around £40 which will tell you exactly what's wrong and as garages can charge you £50 to do the same thing it's well worth it.

I had an Octy III 150TDI with DSG for 3 years and for the first 15000 miles was only averaging 44mpg and that's a lighter car. Then the engine freed up and it was 48ish.

[Ootohere]

From post #1 your way of checking your MPG seems all over the place.

 

eg, 

if you normally brim and you have done and you then cover 145 miles and the fuel gauge is showing half a tank, go brim the tank and see how many litres it takes.

 

Do the brim to brims and see how many litres are required. then do your 4.546 litre conversion.

 

As to a Manual using less fuel than a DSG with the same engine, 

that might be on the Skoda / VW test figures, maybe with some drivers, but 'Fuelly' is the way to check that out with others.

Some can get good MPG with a manual and some can not and have not a clue how to.

DSG's can be nice and easy but Diesels do take a good while to get to an efficient fuel economy because of the 10 or more miles required in some temps to get to a 

'Efficient Operating Temperature'.

Then you might get a Very Good Economy, just to have Regens ruin that.

 

Maybe try hardly ever using the brakes, it is an Automated manual, do down shifts manually and back to 'D' to do upshifts.

Hypermiling is dead easy in a Diesel DSG, the car helps you to do it.

(Newer ones even more, 'Coasting Function', is built in to the DSG / ECU.)

 

PS

2006, Euro 4 Emissions.  2014 Euro 5. with Defeat Device.

EU Test results possibly rubbish, & not Real World anyway'.  'Just for comparison, of the lightest a car can be with a light driver inside a temperature controlled building going no place, sitting on a rolling road.

http://skoda.co.uk/pages/fuel-consumption-statement.aspx

Edited 19 December, 2016 by Offski

[Sheldon.Cooper]

Offski, the diesel DSG combination has a higher Co2 rating than with a manual box because it's not as efficient at transferring the power.

I agree look at fuelly but I have had almost 40 cars and could always hit around 84% of the quoted combined mpg figure, my Octavia diesel it was 66%. Maybe that's the artificial government tests skewing the lala fantasy land figure but the same 2.0 150TDI engine in a manual car, 6th gear is approx 30% lower revving for the same speed....that on its own means you will never get the same mpg from a DSG on 6th as it's revving higher and using more fuel.

[jonathan.tong]

Offski, the diesel DSG combination has a higher Co2 rating than with a manual box because it's not as efficient at transferring the power.

 

 

When in-gear, the only place I can see the DSG losing power is because the clutches are bathed in oil. Otherwise it's a computer controlled manual gearbox but I agree that 6th gear is not very tall on the DSG which is a shame.

 

FWIW our 14-plate 2.0CR170 DSG L&K twinboot (so the same apart from the body) returns an indicated ~55MPG on a run. I've not put the Superb through Fuelly but we often get 600 miles from a tank which suggests a real-world 52ish MPG. Compared to my Octy III Greenline (1.6CR110 manual), our Superb had far more progressive torque delivery (no obvious turbo lag).

 

We're also on 18" factory OEM (whatever they're called) a little over the recommended pressures according to the fuel filler flap. We're also on 4x GoodYear Efficient Grip Performance.

[Ootohere]

RE Co2  g/km figures that VW Group Manufactures gave with Euro 5 Emissions engines i think they can be taken with a pinch of salt, 

as NoX figures could.

That is the VW Defeat Device Scandal. that includes the totally unbelievable official EU Test Results, not only USA's cheating for Smog Tests.

 

Check the same engine / gearbox combinations in a VW, Audi compared to a Skoda or SEAT and see when VW / Audi get lower Co2 g/km figures even with a heavier vehicle.

 

It did not stop there, 

look at late 2015 & Euro 6 VW, Audi & SEAT's with "Co2 Irregularities" which became called 'Implausible Co2 results'. resulting in VED's changing for some models.

Lots are fiction, testing done by the manufacturer and given over to get a VED class.

 

So yes a manual may achieve better fuel consumption than a DSG, 

but the person that will know that in the real world is the one driving both the manual and the DSG the way they drive and comparing,

otherwise there is Location, Location, Location & use, load, tyres, weather and the various equations.

None of which the EU Testing gave real Co/2 figures for.

 

PS

Just last week the breaking news was 

Audi A3 2.0TDI under suspicion',  That is Euro 6 TDI's suspected of False or 'Implausible' Co2 / NoX emissions. 

Vorsprung Durch Technik, just make them up as we go along.

Edited 19 December, 2016 by Offski

[Tall-Pete]

First up having driven a PD and a CR (octavia) I'd opinion that the PD has more of a kick in the back effectu. Since your looking for it, try the DSG in sport and give it a heavy boot when in 3rd. If it's going to give you the kick you're looking for, I expect that's where you'll find it.

Back to the boring bit...

Driving style matters a fair bit. It's taken me a few weeks to get the best from a DSG but on a straight motorway it should not make a lot of odds. Try a steady 60 on the flat and see what you get for 5 minutes. If you can find someone with VCDS they can take a code read.

Tyres - a sport tyre even a high pressure will add rolling resistance. Alignment never hurts.

Brakes - presume no hot wheels? Badly adjusted hand brake? popped to mind as warm brake fluid = soft pedal.

Lights - as in a regular regeneration light popping up?

Fuel quality - I would hate to get involved in this argument but the bottom of a station's tank is probably not pretty ( if anything like what I see professionally). A tin of decent engine cleaner might help. Don't know what the collective wisdom is on best product these days for automotive use.

Getting less probable...

Dodgy wheel bearing? Probably too young for that but give them a spin.

Finally someone on here will know for sure (I don't) but anecdotally when the Fabia EGR valve got stuck it's fuel consumption was a lot worse. Took ages for the warning light to finally show up. New EGR valve gained about 5mpg.

42mpg would not surprise though. My Octavia CR170 manual got about 44 on a regular day.

[TerryJP]

I am one of those nerds who log every litre of fuel and every mile driven [ I know it's sad but..]

 

I have a 63 Reg  170   L and K Estate with a DSG gearbox, so basically the same model as yours.

These are my consumption figures over the last 63,485 miles. I do a fair amount of long runs which obviously improves the overall figures. I log the miles and litres every time I fill the car, which is always to the brim, and the best I have achieved on a fill is 55 and the worst 35 mpg. :-

 

I am a careful driver and am still on the original brake pads with loads left before they need changing.

 

Total Miles Litres  Cost  MPG  p/mile  63,485 6,159  £    7,240.65 46.80  £   0.1141        

[linni]

 

I am a careful driver and am still on the original brake pads with loads left before they need changing.

       

 

 

I just got mine changed for the first time at 180 000 kilometers on clock.

[geoki]

As mentioned earlier an 'Italian tune-up' might do the job. I have a 140cr combi I with dsg. We tow a caravan in the summer, the car feels noticeably sprightly after its first tow of the year, and a good engine workout.

Leaving it in sport mode for a while may clear it out.

[Nathanio]

I am one of those nerds who log every litre of fuel and every mile driven [ I know it's sad but..]

I have a 63 Reg 170 L and K Estate with a DSG gearbox, so basically the same model as yours.

These are my consumption figures over the last 63,485 miles. I do a fair amount of long runs which obviously improves the overall figures. I log the miles and litres every time I fill the car, which is always to the brim, and the best I have achieved on a fill is 55 and the worst 35 mpg. :-

I am a careful driver and am still on the original brake pads with loads left before they need changing.

Total Miles Litres Cost MPG p/mile 63,485 6,159 £ 7,240.65 46.80 £ 0.1141

Me too! I've had mine for 5000miles and it's averaging around 42mpg or 13p mile.

My journey to work consists of 21 roundabouts and that doesn't do my economy any good.

This time of year is always hard on cars. Winter diesel, low temps, wind and rain.

[tweenster]

It's worth giving it an Italian tune up.

 

:D  :D  :D

[lichfielddriver]

650 miles on 1 tank

 

:nerd:

 

sometimes glad i only bought the 1.6

[linni]

Did just a longer trip to Lithuania and back, real-time consuption 5,01 l/100 km, 56 mpg.

[peterposh]

check your air filter

[Danny 57]

Maybe the original poster (18th Dec) went away over the festive period.

[Gazdok]

I have your model from 2014 just with 4x4. I average 42MpG, I normally do 80 - 90 on motorways.

The SII DSGis not the best for town driving.

 

With regards to your sluggish braking power, you can adjust the brake servo to give a more progressive response if you have access to a VCDS or VCP lead.

[Veracity]

I am another nerd who keeps regular brim to brim records.

 

My L & K diesel estate auto 4 x 4 estate has averaged approx 41mpg over 27,000 miles of careful motoring

 

Maxi Dot shows approx 15% above what I am achieving in 'real time'

[linni]

 

Maxi Dot shows approx 15% above what I am achieving in 'real time'

 

I managed to get correct figures on Maxidot after increasing fuel consuption calibration with VCDS by 15% exactly.

[peterposh]

my brakes were rubbish on the 4 x4 when I bought it as a demonstrator with 7 k , I'd assumed it had been hammered and the brakes glazed. I made a vow never to get an ex demo model and when I changed the rear pads the braking improved dramatically

Edited 5 January, 2017 by peterposh

[psycholist]

Driving a car hard won't usually glaze the brakes. Lots of gentle braking usually does this as the brakes get hot enough to glaze the pads but there's not enough braking load applied to break the glazed material off. A few hard brakes from 70 mph to about 30 on an empty motorway massively improved the brake bite for me when I bought my car.

[TheRobinK]

my brakes were rubbish on the 4 x4 when I bought it as a demonstrator with 7 k , I'd assumed it had been hammered and the brakes glazed. I made a vow never to get an ex demo model and when I changed the rear pads the braking improved dramatically

 

I guess there is always a risk when its a demo.

 

That said, mine was a 10 month old demo, 5000 miles on the clock, owned by Skoda Ireland, immaculate and Skoda gave me the full reset on the warranty.

 

And I got it for €9,000 less than list price.

 

I'd take that risk again   :p