General Multijet MPG

[Trimdoner]

Just a thought, when comparing older engines like the Pug 106 or my own Uno 60DS,....

Our 106 was scraping 200k when we sold it on, and it's still going strong.
Apart from two sets of heater plugs and two cambelts, the engine had absolutely nothing else done apart from oil and filters.

Which brings me to ask: has anyone on here achieved a high mileage in a multijet yet? I'm curious how the electronic engine components manage in old age - I presume the mechanical components should be as good as any other diesel. (Before anyone has to ask, we like to get our moneysworth out of a car.. )

 

[The Beard]

The Uno managed about 130K (I think) mainly on driving lessons, before the mechanic who serviced it bought it for his sister to use. Apart from glow plugs, cam belts a clutch and brake linings, the only problem I had with it was when old s**t for brains here let it run out of fuel twice! and had to have the fuel pump rebuilt. Interestingly, (I think) was that before it was rebuilt, I shopped around for a new one. It was £900. Thinking that as it had the same size engine as the Astra, and there weren't many firms making them the chances were they were both made by Bosch. The cost of a diesel pump for an Astra? £1,600!!!

 

[upnorth]

Our 106 was scraping 200k

Bloody hell, you do get your shilling's worth don't you!:shakehead:

 

[arsedownoz]

My Panda Multijet Sporting has now done 46000m i bought it Sept 2006 so i have done around 2875m a month, it is used 100% of the time for Driving Instruction, it averages 19mph 85% town work/ Reversing and 50/53mpg its had one set of disc pads and is ready for new discs next service, on a run 2 adults and 2 kids taking it easy and not driving aggresive it will return 70mpg, a more optamistic reading of 60mpg is more the corse.Was the 106 Turbocharged i have noticed if you stick gas pedal down and use the grunt of the Turbo instead of applying gas to suit your speed fuel drops asap, i also have a Grande Punto Multijet Sporting Diesel that only returns 36mpg no matter how i drive or where it is 36 is all i get, speak to other owners who get 45mpg god knows how. Hope it all makes sense .

 

[Trimdoner]

taking it easy and not driving aggresive it will return 70mpg. <snip> Was the 106 Turbocharged i have noticed if you stick gas pedal down and use the grunt of the Turbo instead of applying gas to suit ....

Thanks for the feedback. No, the 106 was just a non-turbo 1.5D.
Our Panda has never yet reached 60mpg, best ever was 56 on a leisurely 70 mile drive on quiet moorland roads. If we even attempt to get the turbo whistling, mpg drops below 50.

All figures are measured tank to tank (ignoring the computer) calculated to two decimal points using speedo mileage/litres shown on pump/ litres x 0.219969 to convert to gallons.

Sad I know, but it's an old habit from years of recording running costs for business

 

[The Beard]

I'm sorry you're disappointed with your Panda. 2yrs. 10mths. into Panda ownership, I've got to admit I've struggled to better 55 mpg in normal usage, although I've had 62 on a fairly quick run through the Peak District. As for the other aspects of driving the car, with the exception of roadholding which is perhaps an un-avoidable side effect of a narrow car, I'm very pleased with it. The engine is flexible, quick and quiet, the ride is supple, the brakes are as powerful as they need to be and the stereo is not bad.
Recently I've driven a Fiesta Tdci (as mentioned above) and a Micra 1.3 (petrol) and personally, wouldn't choose either over the Panda.

 

[alfabarry]

I've got to admit I've struggled to better 55 mpg in normal usage, although I've had 62 on a fairly quick run through the Peak District.

My experience has been a bit like this, although in the Summer the average is more like 58. However the only time I got 62 was also on a very long fast trip, with three people on board and a roof box, to the top of Scotland & back. And yet if I do a round trip of 40 miles on clear rural roads at 50 or less with just me in the car & nothing on the roof, I can't get past 58... bizarre or what?

 

[Trimdoner]

I'm sorry you're disappointed with your Panda

I'm not actually disappointed with the car itself, only my expectations of better mpg
It's a far better small-car package than the 106 or 107/C2 and fits the bill perfectly, especially taking the overall price/spec into consideration. Five doors is a bonus (grandchild), reasonable size boot (two little dogs), power steering (me getting old and stiff) and pretty good brakes. (The 106 was never good in that area).

I find the handling pretty good for a car with no sporting pretensions, although I must admit the relatively high seating position made me much more aware of roundabouts etc at first!

It'll be going for its first service by about March, so I'll try giving the dealer some earache again just in case there's something they've missed.

 

[upnorth]

Being a new owner I haven't found out what the economy is yet but I find all this optomistic talk of 60+ mpg fascinating.

Personally if I get over 50 I'll be pleased. I think that a lot of people expect to acheive the bulls*** combined cycle figure - fantasy, unless you like baulking every other motorist. My general experience is knock 20% of that for a more realistic figure.

I know there's plenty of people who claim to regularly get 50+ out of a 1.5tonne Audi diesel but do they know how to accurately measure?

 

[oilrag]

the most obvious point for me is at low revs/low speed, a few seconds heavy diesel clatter will interrupt the normal tone,

I thinks that`s normal and that its the multijet injectors switching from softer sounding multiple injections, to single injections for a few seconds,
when cold and on the verge of stalling when setting off for example.

Its remarkable technology when compared with earlier generations of direct injection diesel engines that only gave the `single`noisy injections at all times.

regards

 

[Trimdoner]

I thinks that`s normal <snip>

Your explanation fits the symptoms exactly - at low speed/1500-2000rpm, nice smooth acceleration is interrupted by a few seconds old fashioned diesel clatter. Having little experience of Fiat small diesels I just wasn't sure whether it was associated with the fuel consumption being higher than expected.

Personally if I get over 50 I'll be pleased......

I understand your point, as any car that genuinely does 50+mpg isn't exactly thirsty, and it's difficult to compare figures unless it's done in a reasonably accurate way.
That is the root of my 'problem - our 106 achieved 60+ all its life, with mpg calculated in exactly the same way. We also had another later model 106 for a few years, and that also managed 60+.
I suppose I'd just built my hopes up that the more high-tech Panda would be better in that department. There's no disputing that it's got far better performance, but I honestly suspect if it was driven in a spirited manner for a whole tankful, I'd be seeing 45mpg.

 

[alfabarry]

I know there's plenty of people who claim to regularly get 50+ out of a 1.5tonne Audi diesel but do they know how to accurately measure?

That was my experience of a 130bhp A4TDi. We ran it side by side with a petrol Alfa 156 and the Panda mjet. We've recently used a Bravo 120 mjet which for five weeks took over the A4's role while waiting for a much delayed Sedici.

I never really liked the A4: too cold in style with appalling seat comfort and also very difficult to drive smoothly. The engine was also very noisy for a car with upmarket pretensions. But the economy was astounding given the car's great weight and very lively performance. Of our other cars, only the Panda has beterred it's mpg, and then not by very much. Tank to tank winter fillup measurements showed the A4 averaging 48-52, the Bravo 43-47, the Alfa 26-30, and the Panda 52-56. Far too early to tell with the Sedici (same engine as in the Bravo), although the trip computer suggests it will be 39-42, which is probably about right given the 4x4 penalty.

 

[Derv drinker]

I remember the mpg falling of a bit approaching the first service, and in the past with all the diesels I had, it's usually the air filters getting clogged, Having had a look at the size of it I'm surprised it's a 12k change, but ''paper'' filter elements will continually protect the engine, but just restrict airflow as they get older, must been seen as '' the loss of mpg appraoching 12k, is not comparable to cost of new filter'' and so can wait untill service interval.

 

[alfabarry]

Moved to add to this thread by the growing evidence of a marked improvement in the fuel economy of my multijet. I'm now seeing tank to tank mpg figures in the mid 60s, where previously I was in the high 50s. I can only assume that this is the result of putting on the miles (the car is now at 10K) and perhaps the fact that it was exposed to unaccustomed heavy and assertive urban motoring for several weeks recently (with consumption in the low 50s).

I've now even managed to nurse a trip computer 70mpg over about a half tank of albeit ludicrously gentle driving. I recall trying this approach when the car had done about half the present mileage and i barely managed to crest 60! I think that the engine responds well to occasional spirited use, which seems to improve it's longer term efficiency. And perhaps you need 10K plus on the clock before taking a view about the fuel economy.

 

[Toomanytoys]

A suggestion...
Take it up the bypass and drive it like you stole it for a tank full.. sometimes they need a good thrashing and a clear out..

Agree about 10k+, all engines do need loading well to get them to settle down..

might be worth speaking with someone like angeltune, they seem to have a lot of MJ experience..

 

[shortie]

Sorry to hijack your thread trimdoner but out of curiosity, how did you folk run in your engines. Did the better performing mpg'ers drive their engine normal to hard from the onset or take it easy.

 

[Flashpaddler]

I do regular trips from the midlands to the south coast in my MJ. Distance is a total of 404 miles which I can do on a single tank full costing £30. If I do 60mph I get 65mpg. If I do 70mph I get 57 mpg. My trip computer has always under read by 2-5mpg compared to manual calculations. I think the mpg is very sensative to driving style and mine plummets once above 70mph - but then again it's reckoned at 80mph, 80% of the fuel is used over coming wind resistence. I don't think the engine is that unrefined. My other car is a 150bhp 3 series diesel and I have no qualms about taking the Panda. I see it as money in my pocket and what's the point of running a bigger car when you're only one up?

 

[Trimdoner]

Running in: just normal driving - no high revs, no labouring. I waited until it had about 3K on before it was revved hard, and then only to see how the engine behaved when pressed. It's not our usual style of driving.
Apart from very occasional trips on a dual carriageway at 70 -80, it spends much of its time tootling around country roads at 40-50.

The car itself is great - but fuel consumption remains at an unimpressive 52mpg tank to tank. It's due its first 12000 service in a couple of hundred miles, so I'll ask if they can do a thorough diagnostic check at the same time.
Last visit to a dealer was at under 8,000 miles for a check on fuel consumption, but I must admit I wasn't impressed with the solution they decided on - a dose of fuel injector cleaner. If it needed that at such a low mileage, I'd be very surprised. No mention of actually looking at anything else, or even lifting the bonnet.
(The two dealers I've visited up to now don't inspire me with any confidence . The first one - where I bought the car - has ceased trading as a Fiat dealer anyway..... )

 

[cool_dood01]

Sorry to hijack your thread trimdoner but out of curiosity, how did you folk run in your engines. Did the better performing mpg'ers drive their engine normal to hard from the onset or take it easy.

I took it easy for the first 1000 miles, and have been driving it like normal since. Only had it 5 weeks and clocked up 3k. Been to France and back in it averaging 70mph and 56.9 mpg
95% of my current miles are motorway running at 70mph - 80mph.

 

[Trimdoner]

Just an update;
Went for it's 12,000 service today, still averaging 52-53 tank to tank, with average speed showing at 23-24mph between fill-ups, so you can see it's not driven hard. Onboard computer always says 56-58 mpg.
£165 for the service, and dealer didn't change the air filter - I'm sure they thought it was petrol, so it makes me wonder what sort of oil they put in..... They didn't charge the air filter on the invoice so I'll just do it myself. A bit steep for an oil and oil filter change, the only reason was to keep it in warranty.....

Apart from regular heavy diesel clatter everything else about the car seems fine, and I can only presume it would be much quieter and more economical if the engine was set up as Fiat intended.

That will be its last main dealer service anyway - the third year dealer warranty seems to exclude most things that may go wrong, and it may well get part-exed before its first MOT. I like the Panda and a good one will probably last forever, but the dealer network doesn't inspire confidence if you have a problem that isn't an actual breakdown...

p.s. I've recently been talking to a relative who has two MJ's (07's) which both average 65-70 mpg on similar rural routes using the onboard computer