1.2 65 fuel consumption

mw94 · Post by **mw94** » Sat Feb 11, 2012 4:05 pm

couple of months ago i bought a 2002 9n 1.2 65bhp polo with about 50k on it. Since then I have been consistently getting around 280 miles to a full tank (usually 42 litres from fill to fuel light). This works out at a little over 30mpg which is bloody ridiculous for such a small engined car. The majority (about 90%) of my driving is on country roads probably 50-60mph on average. Has anyone else had these sort of problems with this car? I'm almost thinking it may have had it's ECU done or something to affect it this much, especially when the extra urban mileage it supposed to be in the 50s per gallon.

craggles · Post by **craggles** » Mon Feb 13, 2012 7:18 pm

interesting you ask this as im about to buy one of these cars myself,and part with a 1.4 polo (w reg) which i think is heavy on fuel,,i was hoping the 1.2 would be much better,,the one im buying has 47k on it.

fonzooorooo · Post by **fonzooorooo** » Wed Feb 15, 2012 6:14 pm

I reckon they're simply too heavy for a 1.2... I'd anticipate better economy from one of the bigger engines, as they'll be worked less hard.

We've got the 3cyl. 1.2 and the economy's not what you'd hope - Last summer, we were getting about 140-160 miles out of £20. I was reckoning on getting 120 miles out of £20 (of super) in my carbed 1.8 mk2 'rocco.

Now, it's looking more like 130 miles/£20 in the polo... (10 mile commutes - a bit better on a run)
Though you can't really compare, I'm getting 150-160 out of my '95 passat estate 1.9 tdi.(with 214K on the clock)

Cloudburst81 · Post by **Cloudburst81** » Thu Feb 16, 2012 3:49 pm

Compared to any other 1.2 i or friends have had its pretty good on fuel. Its not any worse than a similar sized car. Diesels are gonna be better on fuel but you pay a premium, if you do more than 12k a year then a diesel is the best option. My old punto sporting 1.6 was only getting about 25 mpg round town so anything in the 30s im happy with. On a 125mile journey from London my mrs used a 1/4 of a tank of fuel in my polo 1.2 of course that was taking time but it did bloody great. Thats 500miles a tank on a motorway! Plus its got a small fuel tank compared to most other cars. My polo had a 55ltr tank.

mw94 · Post by **mw94** » Fri Feb 24, 2012 2:43 pm

is there anything anyone could think of which would make make it run this badly though, i mean so differently from the mpg its meant to be getting?

fonzooorooo · Post by **fonzooorooo** » Mon Feb 27, 2012 10:30 am

mw94 wrote:is there anything anyone could think of which would make make it run this badly though, i mean so differently from the mpg its meant to be getting?

Start with a oil & filter and air filter change. Won't hurt anyway, and only takes a few mins.

Pop some fuel system cleaner in. Use decent fuel (admittedly, it seems to make little/no difference in our 9n, but I could tell which garage I'd filled up at, just by how the engine felt, in my old mk2f) - Expect better MPG on texaco/shell (regular) than on supermarket fuel. - That's before you consider super...

What tyres are on it? Standard width, or wider? (expect worse MPG with wider tyres) Either way, check the pressures.

A new set of good quality spark plugs wouldn't go amiss either. ...

All the service stuff's worth checking on a recent purchase - though you may have a receipt for the work, I've seen them that haven't actually had the work done(!) (my neighbour bought a van that'd been "serviced" only a couple of weeks earlier - oil like treacle and a thick, black air filter - probably been on since new!)

Does yours have aircon? That'll lower the MPG - even if it's switched off, the pump's still getting churned round.

The MPG on ours dropped severely when the throttle body was dying. Engine management light was on on the dash then though.

Are you quoting the manufacturer's figures, and hoping to achieve them? You're incredibly unlikely to achieve them - they're achieved in the lab, not on the road.

Dom. · Post by **Dom.** » Mon Feb 27, 2012 11:14 am

fonzooorooo wrote:I reckon they're simply too heavy for a 1.2... I'd anticipate better economy from one of the bigger engines, as they'll be worked less hard.

This ^.

LawShe · Post by **LawShe** » Sun Apr 29, 2012 7:03 pm

I get 320 to a full tank in my 9N3 GTI. Mate has a 1.2 and he sees about the same, it's got to be something to do with the engine being worked harder. I think they are notoriously bad on fuel from what I've heard

rover220 · Post by **rover220** » Sun Apr 29, 2012 7:45 pm

my 9n3 gti (remapped) get iro of 320 miles a tank with mixed driving. works out about 35mpg usually.

1.2 is gutless and the polo and its increasing size is getting quite heavy.

JB_UK · Post by **JB_UK** » Mon Apr 30, 2012 11:15 am

I've got a 1.4, the 75 bhp one and it is shocking on fuel, I'm lucky if i get 280 to a tank, i had it serviced in the summer and it was a bit better but soon came crashing back down.

Dub_Dan · Post by **Dub_Dan** » Mon May 14, 2012 12:20 pm

Do you guys believe it's down to the engine needing to be revved to give it some guts? When I had my 16v 9n it only got a little lively when I used to go past 4k revs ish... My 9n tdi is completely different though 550+ to a tank and plenty of punch low down...

moxons · Post by **moxons** » Wed May 16, 2012 3:11 pm

My son has the same 52plate 1.2 twin cam that is doing 42 mpg euban

My 330 ci is averaging 31 mpg but I can get it down to 16 mpg no problem

My guess is your been a bit heavy with the right foot

mkb · Post by **mkb** » Mon Jun 11, 2012 8:56 pm

I got a 2002 1.2 65 S [A/C] and usually fill up 10 litres a week which gets me between 80 - 90 miles (37 - 41MPG).
Light footed driving style and change gears at 2200RPM, drive 30mph zones in 5th gear doing 1500RPM.
Boring driving like this as the polo starts to become fun at 3000+ RPM.

dreidesq · Post by **dreidesq** » Sun Jul 08, 2012 6:14 am

It does sound as though something is wrong with you car.

I have a Polo dune 1.4 Tdi and over a years worth of driving using and iPhone app to map the mpg I've been getting 54mpg.

As a test last week I went on a loooong journey at 57-65mph in the motorway and I got 63mpg. I never drive like that normally.

I get to where I need to in the most direct and legal speed I can manage

.
It doesn't really make much difference to the car.

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