General MPG and how to improve it - Grande punto 5dr Active 08 plate

[EddieGP]

Hi ive just recently bought a second hand GP 08, with 67,000 miles on the clock, has been serviced every yer since new. I live in the city but have to commute out. Driving this first week just in the city so far its averaging 34mpg, which is shocking as i thought it would do more. Hopefully It get a lot more on the motorways.

Is the MPG a general problem with these models and/or how can i improve it? Im not a reckless driver.

Ive previously owned a fiat bravo 1.6 tjet which had a very decent mpg.

 

[g8rpi]

Hi ive just recently bought a second hand GP 08, with 67,000 miles on the clock, has been serviced every yer since new. I live in the city but have to commute out. Driving this first week just in the city so far its averaging 34mpg, which is shocking as i thought it would do more. Hopefully It get a lot more on the motorways.

Is the MPG a general problem with these models and/or how can i improve it? Im not a reckless driver.

Ive previously owned a fiat bravo 1.6 tjet which had a very decent mpg.

Hi Welcome to Fiat Forum.


Which engine do you have?

 

[DGPunto]

What engine? My 2006 1.2 Active averages close to 50mpg

 

[aurick86]

there is no 1.6 t-jet!
it's either the 1.4 tjet(with wich 36mpg is good) or 1.6 diesel .. which explains the better mpg.

 

[EddieGP]

apologies forgot to add, its a 1.2 Active - its not been modified.

Ive not been driving it carelessly or over revving it, so I was at a loss to why the very low 34 mpg.

the person who i bought the car from has only averaged about 4500 miles per year on the car for the past 5 years. could this have anything to do with the cars current low mpg

 

[g8rpi]

Sounds like it needs an Italian tune-up

More seriously I'd run a few tanks of premium grade (Ultimate, V Power) branded (BP Shell) fuel through it. They have higher levels of detergents etc and will help clean out any deposits.
Check it's had a new set of spark plugs too.

Robert G8RPI.

 

[EddieGP]

The tank im running it on now its the standard unleaded petrol. I'll run the next tank fully on that top notch fuel to see if it helps.

Willing to get the mpg numbers up before i start making longer trips in addition to the city driving. What sort of thing will the tune up entail and how much would it cost?

new sprak plugs shouldnt be too expensive, right? I should be able to change those myself too.

Anything else i can do to improve the mpg? Ive even signed up for an eco driving thing, never thought i would but hey, got to save those pounds.

 

[g8rpi]

An "Italian Tune-up" is thrashing the car at high load and revs supposedly to burn out deposits. Not really recommended, I'll give your car one for free ;-)

Robert G8RPI.

 

[DGPunto]

If it was me I would:
1. give it a good service
2. check the brakes aren't dragging and the tyres are at the right pressure.
3. turn off the city steering if you have that turned on (it uses a lot of power)
4. check the pipes (one big, one small) under the airbox as they rot through upsetting the fuel/air mix (they're comparatively cheap to replace from Fiat)

Nothing to do with the MPG but as a preventative measure check the scuttle drain pipe and if you don't have the modified type get one: https://www.fiatforum.com/grande-punto/337783-modified-scuttle-drain.html?337783=#post3360376

 

[Ben D]

I'd definitely check the above as suggested and give it a service.
My 1.4 8v gets about 46 mpg on a run and 41 in general town driving.

Cheers

Ben

 

[Bernievarian]

A lot of small reasons can accumultate and result in low mpg:

- dirty air filter
- broken pipes / leaks in fuel lines
- deffective petrol vapour recycling device
- wrong gap on or worn spark-plugs
- tyre pressure too low
- bad Wheel alignment
- un-necessary weight in the boot
- roof bars
- lead foot
- ...

Car serviced on a yearly basis doesn't mean it was well done; i.e. blowing an air filter is not enough, it really needs replacement !

BRs, Bernie

If someone here helped You fix -or better, understand- your issue, hit the thanks icon @ bottom right corner, it's free and makes us feel helpy ;-)

 

[aurick86]

All of the above, and don't go by what the display says. calculate it. it can easily be 20% off.

Same thing for your 1.4, doen't meat it's actually getting that.
I know for sure that my Bravo is a bit optimistic with the mpg it displays.

 

[Bernievarian]

On top of that, even if using the tank full method, there is still the optimism of speedo/podo meters; it may say you've done 100miles, while you actually did only 90 !

Hit the higway and go for a 10 miles run (according to highway distance signs) and check what your podometer says; you'd then have the correction factor to compute your REAL mpg.
BTW: the refill should be done in the same conditions as the original tank fill: same gas station, same pump#, same orientation (ground may be out of level), nobody in the (empty) car, same time of the day, same temperature, etc ...

On mixed use, my 1.3mjt needs 5,2 l on average per 100km which equal(ish) to 54 mpg , established by collecting EVERY pump receipt since 102 000 km... (which btw could very well be 90 000 or 115 000 ;-)

BRs, Bernie

If someone here helped You fix -or better, understand- your issue, hit the thanks icon @ bottom right corner, it's free and makes us feel helpy ;-)

 

[DGPunto]

Mine likes NGK plugs: http://www.ngkpartfinder.co.uk/car_commercial_extra.php?id=14326

Agree above a decent service and check for air leaks

Think about getting hold of a copy of MES, you'll need it at some stage: http://www.multiecuscan.net/