Google Docs & Spreadsheets

[Poor_John]

Dear All,

Anyone interested in recording and publishing their fuel consumption? I have used Google's on-line spreadsheet software to create a basic table and have put in my readings for December 2006. See link below:

http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pJNq_XqWH-I7e36kRnrhQSQ

Anyone want to join in?

John.

[driveforward]

I approximated my average mpg today at around the 52 mark, which seems a bit low.. I might take a closer look at this next week :)

Ian

[driveforward]

One week, 434 miles and 32 litres of fuel later I now have accurate figures to calculate my MPG.

For the week 61.7 MPG - that's more like it :D

[whuy]

Certainly. Here's mine, for all of 2006:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=ptOYIZbjXdnDcwxGmPraFdg
Aiming to beat the magical 70 mpg / 4 litres/100km barrier this year

[Poor_John]

Thank you Werner.

I will watch your spreadsheet with interest.

Any Petrolheads want to join in? Any 1.2 TDi or TDi 90 owners interested?

John.

[stevesingo]

Happy to join in with a 1.6FSi.

About 47mpg on a run and 37 in town.

Steve

[Poor_John]

How are your spreadsheet skills Steve? Care to put on record your fuel consumption over the next few weeks / months / years. If you buy your fuel from Tescos or Sainsburys, ask for a receipt and write on it the number of miles reached. This gives you all the information you need to monitor your fuel usage.

Anyone know how to make available a Google spreadsheet that is set up for this purpose?

Anyone else care to join in? It only takes a minute or two...

John.

[Alan_uk]

Here's my data for the last 2 years
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pIeHNXg57w4BQE_qvrOtXIg

It's for a A2 SE TDI 75bhp with Climate always on.

The base is a bit unsure (i.e. was the tank at the red mark, which is my usual fill point). I'm getting around 62 mpg

[whuy]

Alan, you have to publish it and then post the link. The link you now posted is of the spreadsheet itself, to which we don't have access, of course.

[stevesingo]

How are your spreadsheet skills Steve? Care to put on record your fuel consumption over the next few weeks / months / years. If you buy your fuel from Tescos or Sainsburys, ask for a receipt and write on it the number of miles reached. This gives you all the information you need to monitor your fuel usage.

Anyone know how to make available a Google spreadsheet that is set up for this purpose?

Anyone else care to join in? It only takes a minute or two...

John.

I'll see if I can knock something up.

Steve

[lyndonbuck]

Hello there Steve sorry to be nosy but you're not the same Steve Singo from the BMW car club forum are you?

[Poor_John]

That would be great Steve,

If it helps, you can create your spreadsheet in Excel and then import it into Google Spreadsheets.

Still need more petrolheads...

John.

[mjs4x4]

Too depressed to publish my 1.4 TDI (75bhp) figures. I don't get much less from my 150bhp Octavia Estate Petrol Turbo - still trying to figure out why!!!

Mike

[Jeetesh]

Hi, Can I join in on this, I dont have an Audi A2 anymore as it had to go to make way for a company car. I would be happy to share my experiences as it has been my most reliable car ever.

I have nearly 83000 miles of fuel consumption figures all on Excel spreadsheet as I was always trying to acheive more and more. I have had between 48 and 78 MPG but my average across the whole 83k is 62 mpg.

I have some hints and tips that may help you all improve your MPG figures and obviously the spreadsheet. If anyone wants the tips or the spreadsheet let me know.

Ex-owner of
Audi A2 1.4 TDI SE 75, Climate, Metallic, Symphony, DIS, Grey Nappa Leather, Heated front Seats, Sport Seats Purchased March 2001 and sold December 2006.

[Poor_John]

Hello Jeetesh,

The more, the merrier, as far as I'm concerned. It is what WEB2.0 is all about.

Bring it on...

John.

[Poor_John]

Too depressed to publish my 1.4 TDI (75bhp) figures. I don't get much less from my 150bhp Octavia Estate Petrol Turbo - still trying to figure out why!!!

Hello Mike,

The point of this thread is to find out what is normal, not to win prizes for being the most economical. Normal for me is anywhere between 30 and 70something. Perhaps I need to offer a prize for the owner who publishes the worst and best fuel consumption in 2007??? I might stretch to a nice bottle of Cava.:)

John.

[mjs4x4]

Yes John - I know what you are saying - my comment was tongue in cheek.

I am still trying to find a suspension / tyre combination that actually makes my Sport feel like I want to get in and drive it and an A2 fuel consumption that makes me think of a reason to leave the Octavia Turbo at home.

To be honest - at the moment I am struggling on both counts - and the A2 is relegated to the school run!


Mike

[driveforward]

Update for the last week:
384.8 miles, 28 litres of fuel used, giving: 62.5MPG - I think that might be my personal record that I'll struggle to beat now I've just had it remapped :rolleyes:

[driveforward]

Right, now online for all to see:

http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=p8eXmGFRBhGp4W106zozTaA

[Jörgen]

Here are my (petrol) results;

http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=ptyE9FgArpQNfB7DKkgnzSg

though not sure about the gallon and miles conversion...

[Adrenaline]

i never get no where near that kind of economy i have a tdi 75 and the norm is 40mpg i mean it is urban but even on a trip to scotland from halifax for £47 worth of diesel i got 540 miles

[whuy]

Jörgen:
To be 100% exact, x l/100km corresponds to 74575/(264*x) mpg, or (approx) 282.481/x mpg (and vice versa of course: y mpg corresponds to 282.481/y l/100km). That's UK gallons of course.

[Jörgen]

Thx Whuy, made some corrections and this should be it then;

http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=ptyE9FgArpQNfB7DKkgnzSg

[dickhilt]

Adrenaline,

Realistically, living in Halifax you can't expect a lot more, it's so hilly and I find that terrain is one of the biggest influences on economy. I've recently moved from Dewsbury (same problem) and now live near Selby. It's all flat and my commute is most all A road and M62 motorway to near Wakefield. No congestion and all near level. I'm now seeing a regular 62 to 64 mpg over a full tank and a best so far of 67 mpg plus. This is all winter driving so I'm confident of cracking 70 mpg when the temperature rises. Driving style is also important as many others have stated. Interestingly I've just bought the wife a Toyoya Aygo 1.0 petrol and that has just averaged 56 mpg on it's first tank of fuel so it bodes well for when it's run in!

[spike]

Re the poor fuel consumption reported by some TDi owners -
I've seen a few reports of intake manifolds clogging up with carbon deposits on other VAG models (no A2's yet). It appears to affect cars used for short journeys and is caused by a combination of crancase breather oil mist and hot EGR gas both being routed into the intake manifold. See link for pics of a partially clogged manifold.
http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=53541&page=2

Cheers Spike

[Jeetesh]

- Add a couple of psi to each tyre, it decreases rolling resistance, Michelin Pilot premacy tend to be good for economy, better than bridgestones or pirellis
- remove all unnecessary junk we all carry in our cars
- ensure oil is topped up
- try a fuel additive, this added 3-4 mpg to my car
- remove the back seats, this would add circa 6mpg although not good for security as it leaves items exposed. If you have surprise passengers its not good so this ones a bit extreme. It does however improve overall performance for nothing, fantastic for outrunning rep mobiles on motoways.
- Ease off towards red lights and avoid stopping where possible
- Dont sit with the engine running unnecessarily
- Turn the climate to economy mode
- Drive where possible at constant speeds without heavy acceleration or deceleration
- drive behind some one else in strong head winds on motorways (not tailgating), you'd be surprised at the difference this makes
- Turn off unnecessary electrical items, heated seats etc. This you probably wont notice any difference.

I used to do most of these things and I would average anywhere between 60 and 70mpg regularly and this was diased towards motorway to urban 60%/40% respectively.

Previous comments on that area of the country make a huge difference, when I was living in Essex I would get circa 10mpg more than where I now live in Halifax.

Happy motoring!

[Adrenaline]

- Add a couple of psi to each tyre, it decreases rolling resistance, Michelin Pilot premacy tend to be good for economy, better than bridgestones or pirellis
- remove all unnecessary junk we all carry in our cars
- ensure oil is topped up
- try a fuel additive, this added 3-4 mpg to my car
- remove the back seats, this would add circa 6mpg although not good for security as it leaves items exposed. If you have surprise passengers its not good so this ones a bit extreme. It does however improve overall performance for nothing, fantastic for outrunning rep mobiles on motoways.
- Ease off towards red lights and avoid stopping where possible
- Dont sit with the engine running unnecessarily
- Turn the climate to economy mode
- Drive where possible at constant speeds without heavy acceleration or deceleration
- drive behind some one else in strong head winds on motorways (not tailgating), you'd be surprised at the difference this makes
- Turn off unnecessary electrical items, heated seats etc. This you probably wont notice any difference.

I used to do most of these things and I would average anywhere between 60 and 70mpg regularly and this was diased towards motorway to urban 60%/40% respectively.

Previous comments on that area of the country make a huge difference, when I was living in Essex I would get circa 10mpg more than where I now live in Halifax.

Happy motoring!


hey im from halifax too

[Alan_uk]

Here's my data for the last 2 years
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pIeHNXg57w4BQE_qvrOtXIg
It's for a A2 SE TDI 75bhp with Climate always on.


I've now concluded my Optima experiment - an expensive one!

Over the period 27 Nov 06 to 26 Feb 07 the A2 used 160.18 litres, all being Optima except 5.02 filling on 18 Dec and the c 5 litres in the tank at the start. The A2 travelled 2,173 miles in that period.

Mostly A roads with a guestimate of 50% dual carriageway travelling at 65-70 mpg. and the rest at 55-60 mph. Much use of headlights.

The average fuel consumption was 61.73 mpg (4.61 Litres/100km). This is exactly what I have been getting over the last 2 years normally using Tesco's fuel. It is winter (of sorts!) so......

Allowing 6% for the non-Optima, 3% for headlights (some say a 3 mpg hit) and colder weather, then the Optima is probably giving 10% better fuel consumption which is far less than the almost 20% price premium! This was an expensive experiment. I've now gone back to Tesco's fuel to see if the situation changes markedly.

Click the link to see the data
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pIeHNXg57w4BQE_qvrOtXIg

[dickhilt]

That's very interesting reading Alan, you've been a very good guinea pig for the rest of us!!
I notice the sign on the pumps only claim "up to an extra 28 miles per tank" from memory at the BP Ultimate Pumps, it's therefore vastly over-priced!
I've been sticking with ordinary BP and Jet diesel and my average has settled down to between 66 mpg and 69 mpg overall.
I had no idea that using headlights uses up to 3 mpg more, is this true?
The only thing I've done to improve economy is run the climate control on ECON and keep the sunroof closed! If it really does make such a big difference I'll stick to side lights in built up areas where possible!

[Alan_uk]

I had no idea that using headlights uses up to 3 mpg more, is this true?

Recall reading something like that on this forum but I can't find it. It may be an urban myth.

But see this forum thread on the subject of summer/winter fuel consumption differences. Example data there suggests the difference is 3 mpg (from a number of factors including headlights).
http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?v=i&t=20656

[spike]

Hi Alan
I had a quick look at the honestjohn link. Hopefully i'm not going over old ground but can add a few more reasons for a drop in fuel consumption during winter months.
All service stations change to 'winter diesel' around Nov throught to March. I understand this has a lower calorific value and density which both have a negative effect on fuel economy
Not only does the engine take longer to get to operating temp but the gearbox, diff, wheel bearings all absorb more power until they warm up.
Travelling any distance on wet roads means the tyres disperse thousands of gallons of water, absorbing energy and making the engine work harder.
In addition to headlights, heated rear screens, wipers and the electric auxiliary heater on later cars (early cars have the fuel burning coolant heater) all add to the electrical load.

Cheers Graham

[Alan_uk]

All service stations change to 'winter diesel' around Nov throught to March. I understand this has a lower calorific value and density which both have a negative effect on fuel economy. ........

Hi Graham, I recall now that being mentioned earlier - perhaps it was you! Thanks for repeating that and all the other reasons.

So, what's your opinion re Optima and Shell's equivalent?

[spike]

Hi Alan

Personally I don't use these premium diesel fuels. Honest John in the Telegraph often sings their praise but I have never read anything scientific which shows they are worth the money. As far as I know, all diesel engines are designed to run on standard fuel which meets the EN 590 spec so that's good enough for me.

Cheers Spike

[Alan_uk]

Honest John in the Telegraph often sings their praise but I have never read anything scientific which shows they are worth the money.

Hi Spike, I was sceptical but having read other claims like HJ thought I would have a go, hoping at worse it would be marginal, but that now seem to have been optimistic.

[dickhilt]

Just managed 72 mpg overall on my latest tank of ordinary BP diesel (402 miles before fuel light illuminated and the buzzer woke me up!). Just can't see how paying the extra for ultimate would make any difference, the engine just seems so efficient. Obviously very well pleased with the little car.
Trouble is, probably like several others on the forum, it's becoming a bit of an obsession trying to raise the mpg every tank!

[Xiter]

[quote=Jeetesh- drive behind some one else in strong head winds on motorways (not tailgating), you'd be surprised at the difference this makes
[/quote]

What distance are you talking about? For safe driving you shouldn't be closer than three seconds. Which makes about 90 meters at 110 km/h (70 mph).