Fuel economy query

[dancingbear84]

Hi all,

I know this is a difficult to answer question because it depends on a whole raft of external factors - driving style, terrain, length of journey etc

 

Back in August I bought a 63 plate Superb II 1.4 s on a long motorway journey I can get about 49mpg however on the more local stuff I am struggling to get much above 30

 

For comparison all other things being the same, commute, driving style etc my previous 1.2 Fabia SE estate was doing late 30s early 40s on shorter journeys. (Never did any longer trips in that)

 

I wondered if that was normal, my El Cheapo OBD error reader from Aldi didn’t pull any error codes, wondering whether to get OBD Eleven to probe further, book it into a garage or do nothing. It’s costing me about £150 to do 750 miles at the minute, just wondered if anyone else was able to report their usage or suggest some things. Most others on Fuelly are diesel and as the car has always been this way since I have had it I can’t go off historical numbers

[Ootohere]

How many miles has the car done?  Manual or DSG,? Sounds pretty good for a big car.   How short are your local trips from cold starts?    Getting 30 miles per gallon from a 1.4 TSI in a Fabia is about right if doing only 5 miles. If you keep on driving the efficiency increases to your 39 mpg.   So are there good spark plugs fitted, or a record of when replaced?  Is the air filter clean?  Tyres towards a higher eco pressure if the weather allows.  What tyres are on the car?

Edited 12 January, 2023 by toot

[bigjohn]

Probably depends on your driving.

 

I generally average mid 40's mpg and nearly 50mpg on a not to energetic run with my 1.4tsi Superb. I don't commute (used to be 64-70 miles a day!) anymore but I do have a regular 5 mile journey to my gym so that might keep it higher. One thing of note is it takes nearly 3 miles of the journey on the way there for it to warm up and the trip computer shows mid 30's to start with but is back into the mid 40's by the time I get home. I suspect if you're just driving very short distances the the economy would be in the 30's. I find the 1.4tsi rather load / hill sensitive re economy as well, however nearly 50mpg on a run is amazing for a petrol big bus.

 

Having said that my previous 1.9pd mkI Superb also took ages to warm up 

Edited 12 January, 2023 by bigjohn

[Ootohere]

750 miles from 22 imperial gallons.  34 mpg.      If, 149.9 pence a litre.  I paid that the other day at a small garage.  So £6.81 a gallon.     I get 46 mpg though with  12 year old 1.6 non turbo automatic Suzuki SX4 which is why it is a keeper. 42 mpg on 6 mile each way trips in coldest weather.  E5 makes it feel better over E10. 

[dancingbear84]

That’s probably alright then, I live in Devon, some days my commute is about 3 or 4 miles other days it is 20 odd, but Devon miles so hilly.

 

I appreciate that the superb is a big old barge, but at about 6’6 I need a car that I can drive comfortably. I was just surprised to see the FE so much lower than the fabia was despite the size and weight differences. I know I have a very frugal driving style so didn’t want to go trying to chase down problems that don’t exist.

 

I have no idea about when the spark plugs were changed, that may well be a good shout. It was “serviced” by the dealer when I bought it, I doubt the sparks were done but would assume the air filter was?

 

A while back I had a Peugeot 1.5 diesel (no turbo) that thing was amazing it took an age to get to speed, but I could hit 60+ mpg with it round Devon. Shame the rest of the car fell apart, because the engine was rock solid

[Ootohere]

The spark plugs might well be due a change, 4 years or 40,000 miles seems too often, but really if not checked you never know.  A new air filter @£16 or so can improve economy.  At least look at it. Give it a shake and a knock and then a vacuum a least. Replace if dirty.   Do not put the tyres as high as the ECO pressure, but higher rather than too low.  

Edited 12 January, 2023 by toot

[bigjohn]

10 hours ago, dancingbear84 said:

 

I appreciate that the superb is a big old barge, but at about 6’6 I need a car that I can drive comfortably

 

Yup, with you re that "big" issue. I'm 6ft 4" and love the Superb for a comfortable driving position, especially re the size of the drivers door and position of the B pillar. It's actually a problem as to which car next - now retired Mrs BJ & I  should be downsizing from two cars (Superb & Panda) to one, but what? We're at the stage in life that we like travelling, especially driving, all be it in the UK or in Europe. As the only car unfortunately Mrs BJ finds the Superb toooo big to drive though.

 

Edited 12 January, 2023 by bigjohn

[makman]

Same here. I'm 6ft5 and have a friend who is 6ft7, so the Skoda Superb is the great answer as a usable means of transport.  I get just over 41mpg for longer 200 mile runs, but local stuff sees me getting closer to 30mpg.  It is a big old bus and I don't drive it hard either. 89k on the clocks and no idea when it was last fully serviced. That will happen soon and I'll have the full service with 99p MOT done at local garage, they do sparks, oil, all filters and so on.  I have the 1.4TSi 6 Speed Manual 2013 estate.  Lovely car to drive and it is shod with Michelin Crossclimate 2 all round.

[dancingbear84]

The only car I have driven other than this for size was a bmw 3 series estate, but there was no rear leg room for the others, plus it’s a bmw and I like having an indicator stalk 🤣

 

the fact that a few of you are saying 30 odd is about right makes me feel a lot better about what I’m getting.

 

BigJohn, the simple answer is to do all of the driving yourself 🤣

 

mine is the 1.4Tsi saloon/hatch it’s great, just hate the lack of rear visibility, I really wish the s model had parking sensors… it’s on the hit list

Edited 12 January, 2023 by dancingbear84

[Smart Pro]

Anecdotal evidence would suggest that the recent introduction of ethanol in regular unleaded petrol, albeit in relatively small amounts, has a detrimental effect on fuel consumption. Maybe worth trying Super Unleaded to see if the improvement in fuel consumption is worth the additional cost per litre.

[makman]

I know that the E10 is less economical in my car.  Running it on the Super stuff gets greater mileage, but not so much that it is worth the extra expense... I do chuck Cataclean in before MOT time though, and that does help with emissions.

 

[Ootohere]

Tesco Momentum 99 (99 min) E5 is more expensive than Tesco 95 ron E10 by maybe £3 a tank,

as is Sainsbury Super 97 (min) over Unleaded 95.

 

Both might be the same or less if the E10 / 95 ron you buy is not from a Super Market.

 

Edited 13 January, 2023 by toot

[bigjohn]

On 12/01/2023 at 21:12, dancingbear84 said:

 

 

BigJohn, the simple answer is to do all of the driving yourself 🤣

 

 

 

Hmm, I wish. I tried the Kamiq which might be a compromise but I just don't get the SUV thing especially re boot size and I think they look like boxes. Also after a test drive I felt soooo at home back in the Superb. It's so comfortable and refined.

Edited 15 January, 2023 by bigjohn