V50 Engine 2.0D : V50 fuel consumption and tank size!

Hi folks. New to forum and new to Volvo so go easy on me eh?

I have just bought a V50 2.0Diesel S. 2004 '04 with 46,000 miles.

The issue I have is that when I filled the vehicle up for the first time, I only managed to get 38 litres into the car despite that fact that I was deep into the red on the gauge.

I then drove the car for 318 miles before hitting the same area of the red and still only managed to get 38 litres in (vice the stated 52 for the tank) which equates to circa 38MPG!!!!!

I metioned this to the mechanic in the garage I took it to for another issue and they said that the car does have 'an unusually large reserve' (16 litres large?) and that the MPG was down to my style of driving

Bear in mind that my previous car (a re-mapped to 185BHP Fabia VRS) produced 52MPG for the same run to work and back from its 1.9 Tdi. The Fabia is smaller but only 80kg ish lighter!!

I suspect that there is something amiss but I am not sure where to look first:

MAF sensor?
Boost leak?
ECU?
Injectors?

Any help would be very appreciated!

The other issue I have is that the engine fan is on almost constantly. The mechanis told me that this is because the engine fan is used to compress the coolant for the climate and that again it is my fault for running the aircon. The auto filter option whatsit on the climate seems to come on all the time and show the 'A' light illuminated. Does anyone else have the same issue?

Thanks folks! I just need some ammo to approach the dealer as my warranty expires on Apr 22nd. as they say ' you make the bullets and I'll shoot em!'


Regards

[bircham]

My wife's V50 also only gets 38/39 mpg average and never changes - no matter how we drive or how long we drive for - it just sticks at 38 mpg. My previous 2004 Audi A6 1.9tdi avant multitronic never varied from 41mpg so the V50 is pretty disappointing. There are many threads about this poor consumption with no apparent 'cure' - they just seem to be poor on mpg.

Jon

[Marmoset]

Hi

Mine is giving me about 42-44 mpg depending on how fast I'm driving that week. If you have the info centre that tells you how many miles to empty I usually find I can get to 15 miles to go with about 440 miles showing on the trip. The reserve is large but I run mine quite a long time on the red using the computer to tell me the rest. The orange light comes on with about 7-8 litres left I think and I can usually get 45 litres in with no problems. I find it improves a lot after a week of particularly hard thrashing! Perhaps it's not fully run in yet

I don't run my air con an awful lot in winter, just a few minutes in the morning. Leave the recirc on 'A' as it turns itself on if it detects some nasties in the air - it doens't turn on the air con though.

I suppose the engine fan issue depends on the driving - mine is on quite a lot through the city but I suspect it isn't when on the motorway.

[Pacman]

Hi

My 06 2.0D also gives 38mpg...no matter how I drive. Things are slightly worse if I use supermarket diesel, so I always try and fill up using "quality" fuel...I find Shell to be the best.

I too never run with my aircon on in the winter. I have the climate control set to Automatic, but I manually turn the aircon off.

Paul

[v50Dom]

Hi,

I am also a new Volvo owner. My mpg is working out at around 45mpg. That's mostly motorway to and from work and then me horsing it around at the weekend as the acceleration from this 2.0 turbodiesel is still a novelty!

The red 'put fuel in now' light comes on when the computer shows 80 miles to empty. After a further 30 miles, the computer estimate drops rapidly. I fill up then and manage to get around 44 litres in.

Oh and I only use aircon for the morning defrost.

Cheers,
Dom

[chris500ie]

hi all

glad i bought the 1.6d then, get 47mpg on ave, using the tried & tested full tank to full tank and pen and paper to work it out.
Aircon is on all the time, might turn it off this week and see how things improve if at all

regards

chris

[TXJockey]

Hello on a similar thread I only get 400 miles out of a tank (ie from full to start of reserve). This is based on a combination of motorway and urban driving. When I first noted what I consider poor economy I was told to change my driving style, which I duly did following the discover that the turbo kicks in at 2500 revs. Even after doing this and not running the A/C etc it still only does 400 miles to the tank. As I dont have the Info Centre I cant push it while it's on the reserve (neither do I want to). The car is used from Harratts in Huddersfield with a little over 42k on the clock. Harratts have looked at it and said it's all ok but suggested I run a diesel cleaner which I am doing. Its also been suggested to use branded fuel, and as such I have filled up with BP, rather than Sainsbury's. So I am going to see how it goes, however consider the 2.0D engine is supposed to be so economical I find these figures hard to swallow. Does anyone else have this experience ? I think if it doesnt improve I may look at getting a non turbo version. The annoying thing about it all is that I now cant reject the car under the 30 day thingy because it's now elapsed.

[nozmeister]

You've not said how many MPG you're getting. I find the reserve light comes on with a few gallons still left in the tank, anytime from about the 420 mark and I reckon I'm getting 45mpg.

If you divide 400 miles by how much fuel you put in the tank when you refill it you'll get a better idea.

[Alec Dawe]

Had my S40 2.0D for 18 months and 30,000 iles now (ex demonstrator with about 7000 miles when I bought it.
MGP has gradually improved, I average about 45-46 mpg now, mix of dual carriageway, main roads, country lanes and city driving.
Best consumption was over 50 mpg on a fast run from Norfolk to Yorkshire and back.. computer was showing 57MPG which = about 51 or 52.
Computer normally shows between 52 ans 52mpg, which is a ral consumption of as I said, 45-46MPG.
Fuel consumption is now about 4 MPG better than my wife's C-Max, with the same engine, but the aerodynamics of a brick.
I'm happy with the fuel consumption, but have seen several comments on much poorer consumptions.... software upgrades make a difference; supermarket fuels are worth a 2 to 3 MPG decrease. I use some ReDeX evey now and again, not a gentle driver. Engine responds to being booted now and again to clean out the crap. I wonder if the exhaust particle filter is liable to blockage if driven gently or in town a lot?

[SteveTDCi]

For the 2.0 38 ish ain't bad, the old VW 1.9 is very frugal. Just under 40mpg is similar to what the same engine does in the Focus. As for MPG, I tend to use the urban figure as a more achievable figure to aim for. BTW my golf gets just under 44mpg thats mixed driving and chipped with no easy life.