Help,Can anyone suggest a reason for my '05 plate 1.2 Panda to suddenly drop from 52 mpg overall to low to mid 40's?Dave.

s2airflow said:

Help,Can anyone suggest a reason for my '05 plate 1.2 Panda to suddenly drop from 52 mpg overall to low to mid 40's?Dave.

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I would say the weather but it should never drop that drastically, have you checked your oil, etc.?

They do run richer to warmup so the drop is more than likely to do with that. That or it's broken, serviced lately?

How are your tyre pressures? Mine are low atm.. need to pump them up! But im getting lower than average mpg

colder weather most certainly - I lost a good 6 mpg with my Panda last winter

Have you also had the engine running while you scrape ?

Have you been driving in different traffic ?


Trev

Snow, slush and traffic!
Just physically pushing through the snow and slush on the roads needs much more work from the engine. The wheels spend an appreciable amount of time slipping, if only slightly. The traffic is much more stop/go.
Then there's the other reason already given of the engine running cold for longer. My Panda, albeit a diesel, sometimes fails to reach its normal operating temperature at all in urban driving in this cold.

winter weather, dark nights, heater in use,air con for demisting, heated rear screen, lights, wipers...all draw on the battery and consequently hit fuel economy...

as mentioned above, it will run richer for longer while it warms up from cold too...my 1.2 is suffering a similar mpg hit

Thanks so far guys.It seems I'm not alone with this so I guess I shouldn't worry too much at this stage.I keep a check on consumption with everything as it highlights problems which otherwise could go unnoticed,and its paid off in the past fine style with in particular a 520 B.M.I do all my own servicing so its not sheer neglect,but I was conjuring up problems like the Lambda sensor or the ECU going down etc.With the fuel price hikes in the New Year it needs to be spot on.I suppose too that a smaller engine will show up a drop in efficiency faster than a bigger car/engine.Other than that its a cracking little motor & so far I'd get another one if they are down to £35 tax & not £120 or so.Is there any real advantage in the diesel over the petrol?Dave.

Providing you are doing the distance then yes a diseasal will be more economic than a petrol.

for short runs though you would be better off with a petrol.


Trev

If there was anything wrong with the engine the warning light would probably come on.

It is most likely a combination of the weather, dark nights and Christmas traffic etc.

Not really noticed an MPG hit on my 1.1 but due to weather I have broken my usual filling up routine so I have no idea how much I have put in I would need to check the receipts.

I had been getting 80 miles for £10 worth of fuel all city driving.

s2airflow said:

Other than that its a cracking little motor & so far I'd get another one if they are down to £35 tax & not £120 or so.Is there any real advantage in the diesel over the petrol?Dave.

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On my 1.2 Dynamic Eco, renewal cost £30 last month, a pleasant surprise as I was expecting £35...I think they reduced it in the last budget...that's only the Eco model though remember.

Bog standard 1.2 will be £110

Trev

Just checked the consumption over the last 2 tanksfull & its 43 mpg (not short runs).I've blanked off 1/2 of the rad.grille hoping to got it to run hotter (temp guage 1/2 way as normal ) but the heater is still only warm so I may cover more of the grille to get a result.

s2airflow said:

Just checked the consumption over the last 2 tanksfull & its 43 mpg (not short runs).I've blanked off 1/2 of the rad.grille hoping to got it to run hotter (temp guage 1/2 way as normal ) but the heater is still only warm so I may cover more of the grille to get a result.

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I know friends up in the highlands do blank the whole grill, works for them. I know my vecturd diesel isn't getting hot unless it's thrashed this time of year.

The consumption has just returned to 52 mpg for our 1.2 Dynamic.No change in use at all BUT it broke down last week.No ign.lights when key turned.Didn't find the actual fault so ran a lead from the internal fuse box to the ignition switch & its O.K.now.(did this fault have anything to do with the economy?)

s2airflow said:

Thanks so far guys.It seems I'm not alone with this so I guess I shouldn't worry too much at this stage.I keep a check on consumption with everything as it highlights problems which otherwise could go unnoticed,and its paid off in the past fine style with in particular a 520 B.M.I do all my own servicing so its not sheer neglect,but I was conjuring up problems like the Lambda sensor or the ECU going down etc.With the fuel price hikes in the New Year it needs to be spot on.I suppose too that a smaller engine will show up a drop in efficiency faster than a bigger car/engine.Other than that its a cracking little motor & so far I'd get another one if they are down to £35 tax & not £120 or so.Is there any real advantage in the diesel over the petrol?Dave.

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We've just replaced a written-off October 2008 MJ with a new Euro 4 1.2 Dynamic. The reason for changing to petrol is that my wife has stopped her daily 50-mile round-trip commute so her mileage will be much less. Zero tax in first year, 35 thereafter so no difference. The 1.2 has just passed a thousand miles so it's too early to be sure about mpg, but we guesstimated on 58 mpg for the MJ (which we knew) and a probably slightly pessimistic 48 mpg for the 1.2 petrol - so 10p a mile on fuel for the MJ and 12p for the 1.2 - doing 9000 miles a year (against the 15,000 plus that justified the MJ originally), the MJ would save about 180 pounds a year on fuel. Would take a long time to claw back the additional cost of the diesel, plus the 1.2 insurance will be slightly less and maintenance will be marginally cheaper. Front tyre wear was heavy on the MJ. I reckon you need to do at least that 15,000 miles per year to justify the diesel, unless you're going to do a lot of your miles heavily laden, in which case the MJ will be more capable. If you drive on the continent a lot the MJ's advantage would be greater as diesel is cheaper than petrol in quite a few countries, and you'd be clocking up the miles.

The 1.2 looks as though it's going to be a great little car - a proper small Fiat - always willing, but doesn't have the top-gear hill climbing grunt of the MJ - so long as the MJ is on the meat of its torque curve. I was always surprised by how much gear changing was necessary in the MJ to make it feel as though it was in the right gear in give and take, and minor road driving - you have to row it along with the gear lever while the 1.2 doesn't have that feel to it - despite being higher geared than the 100HP the 1.2 is pleasantly flexible. The reduced weight on the front makes the car feel better balanced, in ride and in driving. Interestingly enough, the power assistance feels less on the 1.2 so the steering is a bit less detached.