1.0 Ecoboost - advice on economic driving

[Vectorspace]

I just bought a 2016 (65 plate) Ford Fiesta Zetec, with the Ecoboost 1.0 engine.

And I'm loving it. But it's very different to drive from the car I drove before, which is a 12 year old Fiat Punto 1.2. And I'm going to be doing a lot more miles (500+ a week), so any advice on how best to drive it for performance, economy, and lifespan would be appreciated.

For one, the start-stop facility. I have always had the bad habit of not putting the handbrake on while waiting at a junction - either holding it on the brake (flat/downhill), or holding it on the bite point (uphill). Stop/start, of course, only works if I put the car in neutral and lift the clutch, so I am struggling to get into the habit of doing that, especially when I don't know how long I will be waiting. If I'm first at the lights and I cannot see the lights for the other direction, I can't anticipate when they will change. When I was holding it on the brake or bite point, I can react and pull away immediately when the lights change. But with stop-start, I have to go through the actions of pressing the clutch, putting it in gear, finding the bite point, and releasing the handbrake before I can pull off, and I don't like keeping the cars behind me waiting while I do that.

Also, I wonder just how much extra load all the stop-starting puts on the battery, and how that affects the battery life. I know it's an EFB battery designed for stop-start, but I don't know how EFB battery life for stop start compares to a regular battery for a non stop-start? Does it last for less time? And do the fuel savings outweigh the extra cost of the more expensive battery with more frequent replacement?

It has less power at the lower revs than the Punto, I assume because the turbo only kicks in at higher revs, and/or significantly different gear ratios? So I'm finding I have to change gear later while accelerating, and be in a lower gear while cruising. E.g. the Fiesta will happily take me to 20mph in 1st, I don't know if that is a good idea or not. And the Punto will happily do 30mph in 4th gear, but if I try that with the Fiesta it sounds like it's slightly struggling, so I have it in 3rd instead.

 

I really like this car, I want it to last and I want to be economical. Any advice or comments are appreciated.

[Tom-B64]

Did you use to keep it in first with the clutch pressed down and your foot on the brake every time you got to a junction/lights? You can turn start/stop off by pressing the left button in front of your gear stick. It's a 'A' with a arrow wrapping around it, and it'll have an orange light once you press it indicating start/stop is turned off. However, you will have to do this every time you start the car and it doesn't permanently stay off.

[Vectorspace]

Yes, that's right. In the Punto, if the road was flat or downhill, when I came to a stop at a junction I would keep it in first with the clutch and brake pedals depressed. If it was uphill, I would hold it on the bitepoint. Either way, I am ready to pull away immediately.

I like having stop-start, and it works just fine. I am just having trouble breaking my bad habits and putting the car in neutral and lifting the clutch at junctions. It is just frustrating if I cannot tell when I will need to pull away. Either I lift the clutch too soon and waste some of the stop-start economy, or too late and keep the cars behind me waiting while I put it back in gear to pull away. I figure it's a knack I just have to develop.

 

[David73]

1 hour ago, Vectorspace said:

 

 

 

It has less power at the lower revs than the Punto, I assume because the turbo only kicks in at higher revs, and/or significantly different gear ratios? So I'm finding I have to change gear later while accelerating, and be in a lower gear while cruising. E.g. the Fiesta will happily take me to 20mph in 1st, I don't know if that is a good idea or not. And the Punto will happily do 30mph in 4th gear, but if I try that with the Fiesta it sounds like it's slightly struggling, so I have it in 3rd instead.

 

20mph in 1st is only 4000rpm. At the other end, it is 3 cylinders so has a different sound. If it is capable of picking up speed from 30mph, "struggling" is just a perception. The only question is whether the pick up is enough for the circumstances you happen to be in.  A manufacturer does not design an engine to have certain capabilities but is too fragile or you to use them.

[Ryan_Tango]

500+ miles a week in a petrol the car will be fine doing those miles but wouldn't you've been better off with a diesel?

[Bobr]

Several points:

a.   Holding the car on the clutch will not do the clutch much good.

b.   I'm an ex police driver and, that being so, whenever I stop the car goes into neutral and the clutch is released.   Police drivers are taught to look after the car.   This allows the stop/start system to work and will save a fair amount of fuel.   I have the same engine as you and get a regular 40 mpg driving practically 100% in a city centre. (Nottingham)

c.   Maximum torque on this engine is 1400 rpm and it will hold this throughout it's range so it is designed to run at low revs.

d.   Although the car has high gearing it will run happily in 4th at 30mph.

[isetta]

holding a car uphill on the biting point of the clutch is madness if you want the clutch to last. I don't know if you understand exactly how the clutch works or have seen inside one. I think those who understand it fully would not want to cause gbh to their clutch in that way. sorry if it sounds like I am preaching 

I turn off the stop/start (press button so orange light is on) everytime I drive it. i don't like it. Whether or not it saves fuel will depend on where you drive and how long you are stopped for at junctions. I drive about 350 miles per week, judging by my average time stopped I can't see it being a saving as I am rarely stopped for long. I would rather save my starter motor.

I have a 1.5tdci eceonetic. I have calculated my mpg over the last 3800 miles (sad i know) by how many litres I have put in it and it is just over 58 mpg (75% of my driving is motorway 60-70mph depending on density of traffic). the digital mpg says just over 61mpg.  I did not expect more in spite of the high official figures (83/94/88)

[GaryPL]

30mph is 3rd gear for me in mine.  4th at 30 and it really isn't happy.

Don't expect amazing things in terms of fuel economy. Mine will only do about 35mpg around the London suburbs and from reading posts here, that is not uncommon.

And as has been mentioned - don't hold the car on the clutch.  The clutch they mate to the Ecoboost engine is hit with an s.

In terms of tips - just enjoy it. Eeking out a couple more mpg here and there will not save you very much at all. Leave the eco mode on if you wish. That'll save you fuel and make your car feel like a tank at the same time!  Use the start  stop as much as possible.  Use decent fuels. Get the car serviced regularly.  Don't drive like you stole it.

[Blatto]

I've had my Ecoboost Fiesta 140 bhp version for about 3 months now. I must admit it took me a while to understand how to drive it for economy but I'm currently getting around 48-50mpg indicated on the dash from my usual daily commute of about 30 miles. I expect this to climb a few mpg as the engine loosens up (only done 2000 miles) and the weather warms up a bit. I think I could get 55+ mpg if I took it a bit easier on the motorway stretch of the journey 65 instead of the usual 75 indicated, (GPS says 70mph at 75mph on the needle)

The engine has a lot of torque at fairly low rpm (especially for it's tiny 999cc capacity) and will quite happily pull 5th gear at 35mph on the flat which equates to about 1500 rpm.

I know the 140 bhp version has shorter gearing than the 100 and 125 bhp models but I have driven the 125 and 4th seemed fine at 30mph to me.

I'm not so convinced about the usefulness of the start/stop function on making savings. It feels like a lot of potential wear on the starter motor for a small saving. If I owned, and was  was keeping the car for more than 3 years (it's a lease deal) I get the feeling I would have to spend out more than I'd save on replacement starters. It also just doesnt feel right with the engine off on these dark winter nights with the lights on, heaters blowing, screen heat on etc. and then expecting it to start every 10 metres or so in the traffic.

I did do a non scientific comparison with a normal commute with stop/start on for a week and the next week with it off. I reset the av. mpg dash reading at the start of each week.

With it on I averaged 49mpg indicated and the week with it off 47mpg but it was about 7 degrees C  on the week I had it On, and between minus 4 and plus 5C on the week it was off so that 2mpg difference may just be temperature related.

Last month I had to do a lot of stop start city driving and it averaged about 42mpg with stop/start off.

Then over the christmas week I did about 300 miles of mainly motorway driving (set off about 5am so roads were empty) and was averaging about 80mph indicated and that returned 47mpg.

I agree with the guys about holding the car on the clutch, don't do it, it will cause premature wear on the clutch and/or overheat it.

It may feel like it takes an age to put it in neutral and put handbrake on etc.. but in reality it's only 1 or 2 seconds, if the people behind you can't wait for a second or so then they are just poor impatient drivers.

Very happy with this little car so far handles very well, plenty of power and torque for my needs and mpg approaching 50 can't be bad.

 

[ThaiFiesta]

On 05/01/2017 at 7:25 PM, Vectorspace said:

But with stop-start, I have to go through the actions of pressing the clutch, putting it in gear, finding the bite point, and releasing the handbrake before I can pull off, and I don't like keeping the cars behind me waiting while I do that.

Just remember; the cars behind you are mostly going through that sequence also. So you're not slowing them up.

Many Fiestas also have hill assist brake, so you don't need to apply the handbrake if you've got that. 

[Vectorspace]

Thank you all for all the advice and tips.

To answer those that commented about holding it on the bite point on hills: I know it's a really bad habit because it wears the clutch, and most of the time I remember not to do it in the Fiesta. But having that habit for so long means I am even less used to doing it properly. I'm getting better though.

It does not have hill assist - or if it does then I haven't noticed the feature. I'll check to be sure.

I thought about a diesel. But I have only ever driven petrol, and I know that if I had a diesel then one day I would put the wrong fuel in it :)

[Bobr]

If it does not have hill assist then I'm sure it has a hand brake.

[chrisroberson99]

I personally don't see why you're concerned about leaving people waiting at traffic lights when leaving the car in neutral...it only takes a second to press the clutch and go into first and by that time I'm already moving (albeit slowly) although I normally don't bother with the handbrake. It's certainly worth it in order to use the stop/start system. 

Mine has hill assist although it doesn't always work, on a steep hill I'd use the handbrake.

I'm averaging 44mpg, a fair amount of my driving is country roads and driving at 30 in 4th.

[winemart2]

I must be an oddball, I ALWAYS switch off the stop/start (I suspect that the starter ring might be damaged by multi stop-starts, others on here think i'm talking rubbish), hill start assist is always off, when i'm stopped the handbrake is on and it's chill time, never hold it on the clutch. Don't give others a second thought if you use stop/start and feel you're slow at pulling away, many others are still talking on the phone.

I don't conserve fuel, I want to enjoy the drive, fairly hard acceleration, only up to 3k rpm usually unless some boy racer is looking for fun. If I hit 33 mpg that's good, 30 in 4th is a no no, 3rd is just about ok. I only do short runs.

My main worry is when something goes wrong and the grease monkeys have no idea about the problem, an expensive PITA.

So, if anyone has a brand new 1985 naturally aspirated XR2 gimme a shout.

[David73]

I have a Fiesta with torque converter auto. It's not a performer by standard measures but if I am poised I can see off anything from stationary that is not similarly equipped - because the time between driver reaction and forward roll is so much quicker than a pedal car. Though I usually do a pretend stop/start by sitting with it in neutral and the handbrake on. (I wish people would not sit on the brake pedal. Does their foot not get tired?)

When I'm not at the front, it is notable how everything ahead dithers. I don't think it has anything to do with stop start - it should be sufficient to react on orange or when cars ahead start to move - because many drivers just take their time and cars that obviously don't have stop/start are no quicker.

[David73]

On 1/7/2017 at 1:54 AM, winemart2 said:

 

I don't conserve fuel, I want to enjoy the drive, fairly hard acceleration, only up to 3k rpm usually 

That is a fuel conservation technique. The idea that light acceleration saves fuel is wrong. 

[GingerFlame]

When my car was standard (123bhp) I always used stop start.

 

Remember, the car analyses outside temperature, engine temperature, electrical power usage etc. Etc. If it doesn't feel it will have enough power to start, then it simply will NOT stop the engine. If it feels it has to start up automatically for any reason it will do this. The only time it wont start automatically is when your drivers door has been open. This will require you to push the clutch manually. This could, I suppose drain the battery, but it'd be your own fault. 

 

I achieved "eco champion" and an average of 65mpg ONCE. it lasted about and hour, I simply tried my absolute hardest to prove a point. It was actually tiring trying to drive thinking that far ahead. Usually i averaged around 35-45mpg. 

 

Now my car is running 159bhp, and will soon be running 175ish. I only ever disable stop start if ive been driving the car hard. 

 

 

Stick to the cars suggested shift points (little arrow on the instrument display) and youll be about spot on. Cruise control really helps too

On the topic of shift points. The higher point closer to 6k seems silly. But when you look at the car on the dyno, the power continues/holds all the way to the redline 

As mentioned above, i get/got better fuel economy accelerating quickly from 30-60 for example.

 

The gearbox on the 100/125 models is horrid to get used to and when running more power remains horrid due to the length of the gears. The gearbox is also made of chocolate and the syncros are pathetic. The clutch is probably the best part.. I know of people running silly amounts of torque and having no issues.

[666Damian666]

I average around 43-45mpg in my ZS 125bhp with a catback freeflow exhaust and K&N filter but mainly do motorway driving Mon-Fri in rush hour (about 15 miles each way) 

[Geez]

I’m noticing the same thing in my 2016 fiesta titanium, you have to stay longer in gears to build momentum before you change up.  I only got it yesterday so still experimenting with it but all the literature supports it. I wish second Gear had more lower speed capacity for timing approach at roundabouts for example but I guess I’ll have to use 1st gear more for that sort of thing. The question is, will it work?

[Piston Head]

Hello Vectorspace

I have been running a 1.0 100ps ecoboost for the last three years and it has done 35,000 miles.

The gearing on the five speed box is a bit odd and very high. The engine sounds quite gruff at low revs but is happy to pull from below 1400rpm.

2nd gear is not low enough for rolling onto roundabouts and resulting lack of acceleration can catch the unaware out even with the scavenging feature of this engine which is designed to help the turbocharger accelerate. I use first gear more often than with previous cars.

My car does 20 odd miles per day commuting over rural B roads and will quite happily do 50+mpg on this route. It will do better than this on the motorway at legal speeds.

I leave the stopstart enabled and use the hill start assist which I find abit agressive but it works.

Overall you just have to adapt your driving style to suit and follow the gear shift indicator for best economy.

Its been a good car, so much so that I'm waiting for delivery of a new ST Line X 140

 

[Blatto]

I've been running the St-Line 140 for the past 3 years and have been very happy with it.

The lower gearing in the 140 allows me to pull 2nd gear from about 10mph which is fine for rolling on at roundabouts.

Changing up gears on the flat in my normal mode of driving I usually change from 1st to 2nd at about 12mph, 2nd to 3rd at 20mph, to 4th at 30mph and 5th about 38 mph.

On the motorways it could do with an extra gear as 70mph is about 3000 rpm in 5th. I usually sit at an indicated 75 on the motorway as this equates to a true 70mph according to the GPS on my sat nav and dash cam. I usually average around 52mpg on my daily 64 miles round trip commute. That's calculated from mileage/fuel usage not the dashboard reading which says 54mpg.

I'm also waiting for delivery of a new ST Line X 140 hopefully around mid October, looking forward to the 6 speed gearbox which should drop the 70mph cruise down to around 2500 rpm (ish). Not sure what they have done with the 6 speed box in the new 100 & 125 BHP variants, is it still different to the 140?

 

 

[Daggerit]

I can't answer specifically about the new gearboxes but I shift at almost the same places as you with me 100PS version but then have the 6th gear on top of that for the 70mph cruising.  I can't remember the actual rpm off the top of my head but I don't think that you're far off with your 2,500 rpm guess.

[Convert]

I have just traded in my second ecoboost 1ltr Fiesta. the first was a 125 and the second a 140. The 125 managed 1 or 2 mpg more than the 140 but that's all. Both cars could get into the low 50s with careful driving, but with spirited driving I could still get over 45, and that was taking it to the red line occasionally (in the lower gears) as you will know doubt know even with the 1ltr engine, 3rd will see you in illegal territory!. The engine comes alive at just over 4000 RPM and really sings. I even had the superchip conversion on the 140 (up to 165bhp) and that didn't really effect the economy, but made it so much better with the increased torque at lower (3000ish) revs The handling is great fun (and safe) and progress is much more refined and quicker than my other drive ... a restored Peugeot 205 GTI. Ive been well impressed over 5 years of ownership!

[Eric Bloodaxe]

Interesting to see the different techniques here, which are obviously influenced by which engine and box you have, the 140 having lower gearing overall in 5 and 6 speed versions.

I find in the 140 3rd is quite low enough to negotiate main road roundabouts, 2nd for a "mini" and only use 1st for setting off.

I've given up trying to find the formula for best economy and just get on with driving and enjoying it now - I still seem to get the same mid-40's in normal use with low 50's on longer runs whatever I do.

As @Convert says, even with the lower gearing on the 140 3rd will take you into highly illegal territory. Btw Tony (and apologies as usual for straying off topic), how are you getting on with the Mk 8 ST suspension/seat as opposed to the ST-Line/Zetec S? I couldn't have coped with the Mk 7.5 ST on the roads I have to use, whereas the ST-Line has a great ride/handling balance for me, but a bit more torque would be welcome. 

1 hour ago, Blatto said:

the 6 speed gearbox which should drop the 70mph cruise down to around 2500 rpm (ish). Not sure what they have done with the 6 speed box in the new 100 & 125 BHP variants, is it still different to the 140?

The 140 does 26.16mph per 1,000rpm in 6th, so 2,675 rpm at 70. I find mine very relaxed at this speed.

 

 

[LesPes]

 Police drivers are taught to look after the car.

 

lol, yeah right.