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Re: BBC Panorama

Posted: Thu Dec 03, 2015 9:39 am
by waremark
sussex2 wrote:We have a Citroen van (1.3 tdi Fiat engine) which has gear changing lights.
I can say absolutely that if you were to change gear when the light flashes you would be verging on the dangerous. I earnestly believe that to encouraging people to be in 4th or even 5th in urban situations is irresponsible advice.

The manufacturers all tell us that the most economical way to drive is to have the engine actually rumbling or on the edge of rumbling whenever strong acceleration is not called for. Some do it by the use of gear change indicators, some by the settings of their dual clutch gearboxes. What is wrong with rolling through town at 1,200 rpm?

Re: BBC Panorama

Posted: Thu Dec 03, 2015 9:50 am
by sussex2
waremark wrote:
sussex2 wrote:We have a Citroen van (1.3 tdi Fiat engine) which has gear changing lights.
I can say absolutely that if you were to change gear when the light flashes you would be verging on the dangerous. I earnestly believe that to encouraging people to be in 4th or even 5th in urban situations is irresponsible advice.

The manufacturers all tell us that the most economical way to drive is to have the engine actually rumbling or on the edge of rumbling whenever strong acceleration is not called for. Some do it by the use of gear change indicators, some by the settings of their dual clutch gearboxes. What is wrong with rolling through town at 1,200 rpm?


I prefer to have reserves of acceleration and flexibility that a lower gear offers. I do not believe that a town with umpteen hazards is the place to be rolling through.
I adopt the same thought process irrespective of the road and may well (especially in the Mazda) use lower numbered gears for the same reason.

Re: BBC Panorama

Posted: Thu Dec 03, 2015 11:06 am
by chriskay
That photo of your dash, Insanity, appears to tell you you're in first gear and should change down. :?:

Re: BBC Panorama

Posted: Thu Dec 03, 2015 5:20 pm
by TheInsanity1234
chriskay wrote:That photo of your dash, Insanity, appears to tell you you're in first gear and should change down. :?:

No, it's telling you to change down to first gear. It tells you your current gear, accompanied by a dot, but when it decides you can be in a different gear, it tells you what gear it thinks you should be in, accompanied by an arrow telling you whether you should change down or up.

So, in the case of the picture (not my own, I just stole it off Google Images), the car would've been in 2nd, with the anti-stall pushing it along.
The gear change indicator will furiously tell you that you're supposed to be in 5th when you're in 3rd at 40, but it refuses to tell you to change down until the anti-stall is activated.

Today, on my drive home, for some reason, I was feeling lazy, so I never went over 3rd gear and kept the engine above 2500 rpm, and although the fuel consumption plummeted to below 35 mpg, the car seemed to thank me for it. The engine felt a lot more responsive even from lower down, and normally when I arrive home, it's making a grumbling diesel-y noise, but tonight, I had the window down and it was sounding better. Sort of a contented engine noise, if that makes sense.

Also, that peculiar vibration I was feeling above 2500 rpm seems to have gone away after I revved the engine to 4000 rpm and kept it there for about 30 seconds.

Re: BBC Panorama

Posted: Thu Dec 03, 2015 7:23 pm
by akirk
TheInsanity1234 wrote:Sort of a contented engine noise, if that makes sense.


love that :D

took the z3 out for a run today (it gets one a week in this weather!) and had the same feel...
mind you that sounds good just standing still!

Alasdair

Re: BBC Panorama

Posted: Thu Dec 03, 2015 10:43 pm
by TheInsanity1234
akirk wrote:
TheInsanity1234 wrote:Sort of a contented engine noise, if that makes sense.


love that :D

took the z3 out for a run today (it gets one a week in this weather!) and had the same feel...
mind you that sounds good just standing still!

Alasdair

It definitely sounded much happier than usual. From the outside, when it was arriving home lately it was grumbling and making all sorts of diesel-y noises, but I arrived home and had the window down a touch, and when I stopped on the drive I realised the engine seemed to be making a nicer noise, closer to a petrol, and it just seemed happier in general.

I wonder if maybe my 'excessive' use of the revs might've cleared out a DPF which was a bit sooted up?

Re: BBC Panorama

Posted: Fri Dec 04, 2015 7:06 am
by Adamxck
An Italian tune up was probably exactly what it needed :twisted:

Re: BBC Panorama

Posted: Fri Dec 04, 2015 2:42 pm
by sussex2
The scandal has mainly concerned VW* and I wish anyone dealing with them the very best of luck.
My own experiences have taught me that you will have to jump through hoops, backwards and with your arse on fire, in order to get any positive results.

*At the moment but I have little personal doubt that they are all at it.

Re: BBC Panorama

Posted: Fri Dec 04, 2015 2:52 pm
by jont-
sussex2 wrote:The subject is VW and I wish anyone dealing with them the very best of luck.
My own experiences have taught me that you will have to jump through hoops, backwards and with your arse on fire, in order to get any positive results.

I suspect social meedja is the way forwards (as sadly it seems to be the only way to get anywhere with any large company :(). I still wish I'd posted to twitter the picture of the 20 year old Lotus jump starting our 3 y/o Skoda, shortly after they had replaced the engine under warranty (but washed their hands of the succession of niggling faults that followed).

Re: BBC Panorama

Posted: Fri Dec 04, 2015 3:00 pm
by sussex2
jont- wrote:
sussex2 wrote:The subject is VW and I wish anyone dealing with them the very best of luck.
My own experiences have taught me that you will have to jump through hoops, backwards and with your arse on fire, in order to get any positive results.

I suspect social meedja is the way forwards (as sadly it seems to be the only way to get anywhere with any large company :(). I still wish I'd posted to twitter the picture of the 20 year old Lotus jump starting our 3 y/o Skoda, shortly after they had replaced the engine under warranty (but washed their hands of the succession of niggling faults that followed).


I've never had a VW group car that was anything other than mediocre from a reliability point of view.
There is a perceived air of quality but that is all it is; which sadly now includes Porsche.
I cannot justify spending my money on a new vehicle from the group whilst the chance of having to jump through hoops in an incendiary fashion lasts.