Focus 1.6 Estate Ghia Fuel Economy

[Breggie]

Hi everyone

Just found this forum and looks very helpful place so added to my favourites and will post regurally if I have anything useful to add!

I know there have been other posts on the topic of fuel economy but...

..I purchased a 55 plate 1.6 tdci (110) ghia with 74,000 miles on the clock, just three days ago.

Very happy with most aspects of the car having previously owned a 2000 1.8 tdci version.

However the fuel economy side of things is worring me a bit, well a lot actually.

I filled the tank up on Saturday night in Cheltenham before my return journey to North Norfolk on Sunday morning.

After filling up with fuel the average mpg was 55 and yet the distance to empty was reading 454miles.

Working on the basis that the tank holds 52 litres or 11.8 gallons then the distance to empty should be more like 650 miles, surely??

I know the distance to empty can be a bit on the cautious side but can it really be 200miles cautious?

For the sake of a test I reset the counters and on my return journey, mainly motorways, duals, and A-roads, the average was 57mpg, with an average speed of 52mph (had a couple of convenience stops!). Yet the distance to empty still was still true to the 454miles it gave me when I filled up. Suprising given I drove very effeciently at about 68mph whenever I could. Would one not expect higher mpg on this kind of journey and driving?

If the fuel warning light comes on with 50miles to empty then on a full tank of fuel driving as described above I will have to refill at 400miles!

Is this what other owners are getting?

Is it me or do the figures just not add up here? If I have cocked up my maths then big red face and apologies :)

FYI: the car has four brand new tyres, (pressures are OK), new air and fuel filters fitted last week.

Any comments and suggestions would be very welcome as one of the primary reasons I bought this model as because of the mpg for the kind of driving I do i.e. little or no town driving.

Many thanks in advance

Brian

Norfolk, UK

[jeebowhite]

I have the 55 plate 1.6 TDCI Zetec (not too disimilar to yours).

I mostly get a good mileage but on occassion get the same issue as you have.

I find that on ocassion topping up a full tank will estimate 400 miles (ish). I tend to disconnect the battery for half an hour, and then reconnect. Run the car on a tank of fuel, and then on your next topup, restart all values (average MPG, average speed, odometer etc). When you run this tank it will probably show a little less MPG than you would hope but more than it has done!

On your third topup, it should be a lot better. I also find that if you topup the car whilst its average MPG is between 30-45 MPG, this can indicate a lot less miles to be done, than if your average MPG is 50+

If this doesnt work then do the following, As you have the same model as I do near enough, and have the higher mileage, first thing you have to bear in mind is the DPF (diesel particulate filter) is probably on its last legs, that will have some effect on your average consumption.

First, try a fuel treatment such as redex, this can remove some of the guff from the fuel tank, and clear the fuel out!

Secondly, you may find it beneficial to check the service record, you may want to change the glow plugs and fuel filter (save this till last though) these can reduce mileage when they are clogged up / messy.

See how this works, you should find it will help! so far I havent had to change the glow plugs, and the fuel filter was replaced recently due to another problem.

[Breggie]

Thanks jeebowhite

Interesting suggestions.

When you have done the battery trick what sort of miles to empty does it show? More like what you would expect? I would be interested to hear if what people not experiencing such problems see when filling up.

What I don't get with this is that not only does the digital readout seem incorrect but the normal fuel gauge would have to be too as this correlates to what the digital is showing ie. have used 200 odd (needle on half) and 200 odd miles left to empty! Does this correlate on yours?

What I am trying to get my head around here is if it a genuine problem with fuel economy or a problem with the displays?

Based on the litres of fuel I have put in the tank the other day and the readouts I am currently getting on the digital but also the needle it is a genuine problem with fuel consumption.

Thanks for the points on the DPF etc. Since my initial posting I have discovered that it is due i.e. 75000 mile service even though when I bought the car on Friday the garage stamped the book for 74125 and hasn't done the DPF as part of that service!! Obviously a costly job and having spent £4600 on Friday now faced with and few hundred just a few days later!

Am going to speak to the garage again now hopefully and see where I can get too.

Thanks again for your help.

[jeebowhite]

Thanks jeebowhite

Interesting suggestions.

When you have done the battery trick what sort of miles to empty does it show? More like what you would expect? I would be interested to hear if what people not experiencing such problems see when filling up.

It tends to provide a lot more accurate results. It certainly went from a full tank of supermarket fuel estimating 434 miles to 500 miles to go (plus the 35 I had already done)

What I don't get with this is that not only does the digital readout seem incorrect but the normal fuel gauge would have to be too as this correlates to what the digital is showing ie. have used 200 odd (needle on half) and 200 odd miles left to empty! Does this correlate on yours?

I had an issue with my fuel gauge where the sender unit was misbehaving, and it did at the time affect it, however after it rectified itself, I did infact see more accurate results! However I do find that even when my fuel gauge shows maybe a quarter to a third to go, it does in fact show 200 miles to empty. This is based on what fuel it sees left, and how many MPG you are averaging, and that is how it works out.

What I am trying to get my head around here is if it a genuine problem with fuel economy or a problem with the displays?

Based on the litres of fuel I have put in the tank the other day and the readouts I am currently getting on the digital but also the needle it is a genuine problem with fuel consumption.

from my understanding this issue is basically the ECU and what the fuel / oxygen ratio is put into the engine. It could well be an issue with the fuel consumption and the fact that it is being choked, or pouring too much in, or worst case scenario an issue with the Common Rail! The fixes I advised have improvied my MPG many a time. Unfortunately I am not too clued up on exactly how it works, but I think thats the way it works...

The issue with the displays could be mechanical and could be the FSU (fuel sender unit) and it could be that when you top up, you still have a lot more fuel in the tank than your car believes! how many litres are you putting into the car?

Thanks for the points on the DPF etc. Since my initial posting I have discovered that it is due i.e. 75000 mile service even though when I bought the car on Friday the garage stamped the book for 74125 and hasn't done the DPF as part of that service!! Obviously a costly job and having spent £4600 on Friday now faced with and few hundred just a few days later!

if you get much change out of a thousand pound I will be very surprised, but they wont eat into their profit margin, so its no surprise they didnt do this for you

Am going to speak to the garage again now hopefully and see where I can get too.

Thanks again for your help.