Landrover Td5 Fuel Economy

hi i have a discovery td5 2004 (the new one with the facelift) and i live in the south of italy, i often make trips to england and back with a 3.5 ton trailer sometimes fully loaded. haven't had any problems (touch wood) but was wondering on how i could improve my fuel economy. i was thinking of doing the egr valve thing but i have a EU3 disco so it has the control on the intake aswell and so it would efectivly just starv the engine of air.

when doing long distance i use the blue diesel which does improve fuel consuption quite abit and saves me 2 stops of filling up when going from italy to england, also i just climb to 100kmh and then put the cruise control on and leave it as its near enough straight roads, no traffic or road works.

so if anyone has got any ideas on how i can get better fuel economy i would be greatful.

thanks
mike

Eat fewer pies :drum:

Sorry that was childish, apart from getting a re-map you seem to be doing everything possible that I can see, maybe someone else will be able to make a suggestion other than a re-map.

Out of interest, what mpg do you get, I have a TD5 2001 and I get 23 mpg on a mixed run and 25 mpg on an motorway run doing about, aghem, 70 ish.

Mines standard, going to do the EGR valve and a re-map soon hopefully.

Lol pies arn't the issue but its croissants all the way from italy to england and then its a good old fry up lol.

as for mpg its anything from 22 mpg to 29 mpg, when towing 3.5 tonne on the way to england it depends where i am as italy and switzerland can be very hilly but when i reach france and its all flat and no traffic it uses hardly any. infact from switzerland to calais i only used 1 tank of blue diesel. which i was quite imprssed with.

also when i leave the cruise control on when going up steep hills it jumps down gears, should i let it do this or take over and juggel it with the pedal trying to keep it in the higher gears. havent had any warning lights or anythign just wondering if its bad for the car if its reving at 4000 revs for 5 - 15 mins at a time. or if its in a high gear will it be putting excesive strees on the engine.

mike

3lloydm said:

.... infact from switzerland to calais i only used 1 tank of blue diesel. which i was quite imprssed with.

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'Scuse my ignorance - what's blue diesel?

3lloydm said:

also when i leave the cruise control on when going up steep hills it jumps down gears, should i let it do this or take over and juggel it with the pedal trying to keep it in the higher gears. havent had any warning lights or anythign just wondering if its bad for the car if its reving at 4000 revs for 5 - 15 mins at a time. or if its in a high gear will it be putting excesive strees on the engine.

mike

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I'd switch off the cruise control and use the throttle to manage the speed and gear - that way you can ease off the pace a bit and avoid thrashing up the hill.

all over europe they sell blue diesel its got a higher summink. like higher octane petrol basically u get more miles out of it. i dont think its sold in england but u do definatly get more miles out of it.

i only cruise at 100kmh max which is 62 mph, so i wouldnt say it was thrashing it. but i supoose it is with all that weight on the back of it lol

mike

Put an extra 2-4psi air in your tyres. Won't help much, but it was a tip from the old days to eek out a little more mpg. Don't go any higher though or you'll start getting uneven tyre wear issues.
Although we don't run blue diesel here, we do get an additive called Millers powersport 4 diesel which raises the cetane rating & also cleans the injectors. Well worth trying, it did raise the mpg of my Freelander by around 10%.

i would definatly try to keep my revs below 2.5, no higher than 2. when motoring.. I have a 2003,and on a long run will get 32/33 mpg..

I think towing that weight in a auto, you should be happy with your mpg !.
I dont think you,ll better it !. ( 25 mpg average ).

sorry my mpg is disco only.GS 7seat manual.. not towing...when I first bought it I filled the tank and went up to the Inverness Scotland, I got more than 650 miles on one tank ie 21.gallons..same 2 1/2 years later still good milage.

We've got high centain diesel in a few stations over here but ive never bothered with it cos mine aint puter controled so it'll squirt the same amount in as with normal diesel. More power but no improvement on mpg. As for improving your mpg when towing 3.5 ton I realy dont think there is much you can do thats going to make a noticible difference. Your moving 5.5 ton with a 2.5 diesel so its always going to be working hard. As has already been said dont let it rev at 4000rpm for any length of time, a couple more psi in your tyres and drop the speed by 5mph. might get you close to an extra 1mpg... mabey.

Could also ease back on the up hill sections and let her go (up to your speed limit) on the down bits. Average speed would be similar but less energy (derv) used. Dont let the engine labour at high road speeds, best drop a gear and drive slower until the road flattens out or headwind drops.
Better to climb a hill down one gear on a lighter throttle even if the revs are higher, then make the time up on the downhill bits if you can. Also ,every time you apply the brakes you are wasting fuel, drive as if you have little or no brakes and see how much fuel you save in traffic.
There will be a road speed at which the engine is most economical, you may be driving a little above or below this speed, you will have to experiment and check fuel consumption at every fill up, I do , and my trip to Zummerset this weekend returned 40.2 mpg at 60/65 mph (420 miles).

thanks everyone for the replies doesnt look like theres lots of options for me but will appreciate any more input.

thanks

mike

yh ok will give it a try in my next trip. cheers

got to not use the cruise control

just what is the maximum weight that a discovery 2 can actually pull. as the 3.5 tonne is really just a legal weight and also accounts for hills and stuff?

mike

3lloydm said:

just what is the maximum weight that a discovery 2 can actually pull. as the 3.5 tonne is really just a legal weight and also accounts for hills and stuff?

mike

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:scratching_chin: Mmmm........... I think they can tow more weight downhill than uphill.


Not sure what happens at the bottom of the hill though?? :rolly:

lol i mean on a flat straight i have been overweight once or twice picking up pallets of blocks and sand. i was just wodering has anyone taken theres to a limit?

3lloydm said:

yh ok will give it a try in my next trip. cheers

got to not use the cruise control

just what is the maximum weight that a discovery 2 can actually pull. as the 3.5 tonne is really just a legal weight and also accounts for hills and stuff?

mike

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Hey Mike, the max capacity (according to Land Rover) of a TD5 is actually 3.5 tons, so you are getting pretty good gas mileage for having it towing it's max weight.

Also, I looked up some stuff, and (according to Land Rover) the TD5's get their peak torque at 1,950 rpm's, so try setting the cruise with it around that area and see what you get. (Although i'm not sure how fast that is).

3lloydm said:

all over europe they sell blue diesel its got a higher summink.

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It's like our V.Power or ultimate diesel.

I've driven a Td5 at near 6 tons on the road and got about 30 something mpg, 56mph on cruise.

3lloydm said:

hi i have a discovery td5 2004 (the new one with the facelift) and i live in the south of italy, i often make trips to england and back with a 3.5 ton trailer sometimes fully loaded. haven't had any problems (touch wood) but was wondering on how i could improve my fuel economy. i was thinking of doing the egr valve thing but i have a EU3 disco so it has the control on the intake aswell and so it would efectivly just starv the engine of air.

when doing long distance i use the blue diesel which does improve fuel consuption quite abit and saves me 2 stops of filling up when going from italy to england, also i just climb to 100kmh and then put the cruise control on and leave it as its near enough straight roads, no traffic or road works.

so if anyone has got any ideas on how i can get better fuel economy i would be greatful.

thanks
mike

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If you want to improve your mpg you need to:

1. Get the engine working more efficiently &

2. Adopt a different driving style.


Engine efficiency:

A. Do the De-EGR thing, works even better on Euro3 cars as you can get rid of the valve which is currently partially blocking the inlet tract, cost about £30;

B. De-Cat the exhaust - currently you will have a cat in your exhaust downpipe, get rid using a non-cat downpipe, cost about £60;

c. Change your air filter much more regularly than manufacture specs. The vehicle is working hard and sucking air like a mad thing, so put a new one in REGULARLY;

D. Check your tyre pressures often, make sure they are well up, especially if towing a big lump. I run 2.1 at the front & 2.6 at the back unless towing heavy stuf then the back goes up to 3.2.

E. Have your tracking checked, if it's not right it introduces drag, which you don't want;

F. Check for binding brakes, even if only slight will mean less mpg.

G. Don't use aircon unless you really have to, reduces mpg by about 10%



It's all about efficient running really, reducing drag wherever possible, don't use electrical systems unless you have to, creates more drag via the alternator.

Considor removing the the viscous and keep in the boot. Both our TDi's run without fans and run perfectly. Improves mpg by about 5%.


Driving Style:

Using the cruise control, whilst being convenient, is not the best way to get highest mpg imo. Especially when towing heavy loads I would suggest that you need to accept that you will slow down a bit on long climbs with 3.5tons on the back !!

I use cruise when running solo and when running at 110-130kph as I find that no matter what hills I come across on motorways, the cruise can manage them WITHOUT having to drop a gear (which also drops you out of Torque Converter lock-up).

When pulling heavy loads, manage your approach to hill climbs so that you stay above 80kph, that way you'll stay in 4th gear and lock-up, which is the most fuel efficient package. IF that's not possible, then select 3rd and good time before the hill slows you down, as the box will stay in 3rd gear lock-up so long as the vehicle stays above 70kph.


There's a few things to think about

3lloydm said:

.....
just what is the maximum weight that a discovery 2 can actually pull. as the 3.5 tonne is really just a legal weight and also accounts for hills and stuff?

mike

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Its a legal thing. Trailers over 3500kg must have a "proper" braking system, not just overrun braking. According to my book, with auxillary braking sytems the D1s are good for 4000kg. Doing a recovery on someone stuck in mud could easily have an effective weight of far more than that, and on flat hard surface I have pulled a laden 38tonne lorry with an old tired 200Tdi.

Maximum towing weights are calculated by the amount that can be pulled from a standing start on a specific incline. Hence why diesel cars are often a little higher than the same model in petrol (more torque) and bigger 4x4s have some very high weight limits, torquey engines and very low gearing once the transfer box is set in low.