D5 (2005 on) Fuel consumption question

[RoyMacDonald]

Great minds think alike Alex.....You posted while I was still typing my post. :-)

Roy

[Sid60ish]

As others have said; diesels do give improved economy as time goes by. My previous Skoda TDi improved markedly from 10k miles on. My S60 D5 is getting better as 10k approaches. Stick with it; I'm sure you get happier but bear in mind you're driving a large car with an auto 'box.

However, bear in mind that official MPG figures are based on specific test protocols and real-world driving conditions almost never replicate them. An article I read recently suggested that most true car economy figures were around 8% less than manufacturers' claims. This is not the manufacturers' fault. They can only report figures based on formal EU test methods. Apparently, the manufacturers are trying to get the tests changed to better reflect real-world driving as, of course, they get all the hassle of disgruntled owners complaining of "poor" economy.

There's nothing worse than a Volvo owner who's gruntle has been dissed.

[Chris139]

Yes, it is a large car with an autobox. My S60 D5 geartronic (2003, 163bhp with 40,000 miles) averages in the early 40's but I only live 3 miles from work. On a run it will do over 50mpg.
Collegues are always suprised that it isn't better but they are comparing other makes that have 2 litre units with 90bhp - 130bhp (Ford, Citroen, VW etc). The D5 is larger with an extra cylinder to feed and the power is between 163-185 bhp.

Anyone have the 1.6D V50 that they can comment about ?

Regards,

Chris

[lowranger]

Originally Posted by Clan

That is probably the worst figure i have seen on a V70 D5 , but about average for an XC90 D5 .

Once you have the first 18000 service it will improve . But driving style has a big effect , are you making full use of it's acceleration as it is a novelty at present ? set the readout to instantaneous mpg and keep an eye on it for some days that will show you the areas when mpg is poor and you can adjust driving to suit . Don't forget to reset the average mpg for each journey to check for improvments on a daily basis , do you have any long hills to go up on your route ? Staying at 50 mph is not the way to get good mpg , if you can get to 70 for long periods it will make a big improvment .

Your low mpg is not typical , most averarge mid 40's with everyday use and on long motorway runs 50+ is possible with the 163 bhp version. If i drove a
D5 hard everywhere i would expect 30 mpg .

D5 V70: I agree well worth watching the instantaneous mpg, just by easing off very slightly you can make big differances to consumption. Use it's acceleration and you can see where the fuel is going.
Best average I've ever had (on the cars own calculation) so far has been 70mpg! That was cruising on open A roads about 55mph probabley with a tail wind! A 75mph motorway run shows 48mpg and a 65 mph motorway run 56mpg. I've found using cruise will also make it use more fuel as its maintaining speed up hills where if you're looking for economy you could ease off a little.
Our all round average seems to be about 37mpg on day to day runs to work so I'm pleased with the consumption for the size of the car.

[jackass]

My D5 S60 G/tronic averages about 35mpg on my commute (17 miles with a mix of fast a-road and stationary traffic).

Driving home from the petrol station last weekend (about 15 miles again as i'd gone shopping) I only managed 28mpg and that was all dual carriageways.

As mentioned, watching the instantaneous can help - you can easily hit <20mpg accelerating from 60mph to 70mph if you are aggressive or you can stay the right side of 30mph without a great reduction in performance.

On a trip to Scotland (~500miles) I managed to average 48mpg, including a B-road blast from Matlock to Edinburgh (with the gearbox locked in 4th).

[S60D5NI]

Just new to the site - so sorry for what seems a late response to this thread.

I have an S60 D5 185 manual with 11k on the clock. Use consists of daily commute of around 10 miles each way in mixed traffic and weekend trips to the shops etc. On average I would see 42 MPG. During the week this would be as high as 48, but weekend short start-stop trips will pull it back overall. I still enjoy the oomph factor and if you use it, you loose it (i.e. use the oomph loose the MPG). With very light throttle and limited hold-ups, I have seen as high as 52 MPG on the commute, so it is possible if your restrained!

A few thoughs (especially given your post was in January) -
The diesel you buy in winter is not the same as summer - it contains additional anti-waxing agents which lower its CV (claorific value) meaning MPG will be less.
Winter driving will mean lower MPG - cold starts is an obvious direct contributor, but wet roads also add to the drag of the tyres so pulling MPG down. This is especially true with the wide section tyres manufacturers now fit.

I ran a TDI Passat for many years. In winter I would see an average of just over 40 MPG, but same use in summer would see this increase to 48 MPG.

So.... let her run in a bit more an see what the summer brings - it should improve!

[Stuart Salter]

I put 70 litres in and did 551 miles in my s60 d5 auto with 151k the computer said that mpg was in the late 40s.

I worked it out and it was about 35 mpg, not bad but not good either.

Are these tuning boxes any good for fuel economy?

[Model flyer]

Hi . I have a V70 D5 02/03 model . I regularly get 42 to 44 MPG . I dont have the infomation /MPG cmputer fitted so have to do it the old fashioned way i.e fill up to brim ,record milage and fill to brim again then calculate the milage. I was suprised when I towed my caravan the first time as it returned 30MPG excellent!. My car has done 154000 so is well run in . Hope the MPG improves .

[carcomm]

I have recently bought a 2007 S80 2.4D with 25000 miles.

I've previously owned 2 original model S80 D5, firstly a 2003 manual & then a 2005 geartronic, I've also owned a V70 D5.

With both of the old cars i was geting a typical average fuel consumption of 45 - 50mpg on longer trips & around 38 on local use.

The new model is lovely, however over the last three tank-fulls I'm averaging just 27mpg.

The dealer has checked the car & can't find any problems. If anything I'm driving more gently than normal now - trying to improve consumption.

I've seen a few similar threads but has anyone solved the problem or are any S80 owners getting much better MPG? What should I expect? I was certainly hoping for 40mpg +.

[oilburner]

From my experience:

Old 2005 S80 D5 auto does 25mpg around town, 35 combined and around 45 on a long 70mph run

New 2008 S80 D5 g/tronic does 18mpg around town, 28mpg combined and around 37 on a long 70mph run

The old D5 is mine and has done around 39k miles now, the new D5 was a loan car and I ran it from 100 to 2k miles, so wasn't fully run in when I parted ways with it. Being so heavy, I doubt it would improve much over time.