dodgy fuel gauge?

[flickr]

hi all,
filling my petrol tank from empty only takes 15euro! and when full it never actually registers full on the gauge. along with this the gauge needle seems to drop very quickly ontil it reaches the 'black line' half way marker,then it moves much slower down to the empty 'red line'.can anyone shed any light on this for me? i've estimated to be getting around 27 to 30 mpg! not good.
i drive an mpi cooper.

[MiniMpi]

Hi there,
I have an Mpi too and the secret is when the pump clicks that it's full,
pull out the nozzle a fair bit so that the nozzle is only just in the small unleaded flap in the neck of the tank and fill away again but slowly and you will get another 5 or 6 euro into it

[flickr]

ha yeah i've done this...still only get around 12 - 15 euro in it though. its supposed to be a 35 liter tank isnt it??

[flickr]

as far as my bad mpg goes..would adding a fuel injector cleaner to the petrol help any?

[irlmin]

The gauges are totally unreliable , usually when reading empty they have about 2 gallons in them , new sender units are still available but I am afraid they won't help much , we have fitted a few and not much change from the original . you mention poor mpg , how poor you should be getting around 32/35 urban driving from a Sportpack a few more from a 12" wheel car . and yes a good injector cleaner in the tank should be used occasionally and will help , also make sure your spark plugs are good ( we only use NGK ) air filter clean and tyres pumped to correct pressure . of course weight is also a 'killer' of mpg , early minis were only 550 kg and the last Sportpacks were 750kg so add the normal stuff we all just throw in the boot , rear seat etc etc and that is a lot of weight to carry around .
G

[flickr]

well i get around 27 - 30 mpg, thats mixed driving, motorway and urban. the air filter is fine ,i could check the spark plugs and maybe an try an injector cleaner.as far as extra weight effecting mpg..ha..i best not mention that to my girlfriend(she being the passenger).

[flickr]

any recommendations on an injector cleaner or where to get it Irlmin?

[Smur89]

Hey guys,

Im having the same problem here, though the faulty gauge doesnt bother me, the poor MPG does!

Im getting about 23MPG (US) 29MPG (UK) from my 2000 mini cooper s.

any advice?

you can look at my fuel ups and stuff here.. ive been keeping track of them to work out my mpg and possibly find a solution. www.fuelly.com/drive/smur89

I bought a petrol can with about 6litres in it the other day, so im going to see how far i can get after that red line has come and gone, because, as has already been said i should have another 10-12 litres in in the tank... Ill get back and let you guys know how i get on.

[Smur89]

Sorry link should be http://www.fuelly.com/driver/smur89/cooper-s

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[irlmin]

Fuel consumption is dependent on many factors ie , the type of journey you usually undertake , the driving style , the efficency of your car ie when was it last serviced correctly , tyre pressures , etc etc , in fact even the amount of stuff you have in the car --- you know the usual stuff like spare jackets , valeting gear , it all affects consumption , usually a Sportpack should do around 30/32mpg average in normal urban driving , with perhaps as much as 45mpg on long relaxed motorway / A road journeys , the Sportpack / MPi minis have a 2.7:1 final drive ration which is brilliant for relaxed cruising BUT not too good in town as you find yourself in 1st/ 2nd gear most of the time in traffic due to the long gearing , I would say make sure your valve clearances are adjusted correctly , throttle body clean and cable adjusted correctly , correct spark plugs and leads ( NGK plugs ) your air filter is clean , also make sure your tyres are at the correct pressure and that your alignment is correct , then you can look at your driving style !!! you know the usual stuff ie no sudden acceleration / deceleration , use your gears efficiently etc etc , We have done some 'Economy Runs' here at the MCOI as events and its amazing how much MPG you can squeeze from any Mini with a bit of care . in fact We must organise another economy run in early 2010 ,
G

[Smur89]

Actually not too concerned anymore. I thought it was 23 mpg (uk) because that's what shows up when I go to the site and look at it. Quite happy withthe 29 odd mpg

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[Smur89]

So, update on my test. I had to top up today sooner than I would have liked to.

So, I got another 40miles from the tank when the gauge read empty. (150 miles from last fuel up). I reckon I'd get another 30 or so miles out of it. Will push to get 180 miles from the latest fuel up.

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[MiniMpi]

Not sure what i'm getting out of my Mpi but figure around the 30mpg mark, all dependent on way i drive it.....

[iwanagofast]

And you're is tuned as well Ferg. 20 euros usually fills the 30 from the red. Though we don't get the cheap fuel you get in Cork! Oh and a tank ususally gets Grace back from Meath.

[Smur89]

Right lads, on my last fuel up, i managed to go 188miles. and even at that, i had no complaints from the engine.

even at 188miles, i still had about 3 litres left in the tank, going on capacity and amount of litres it took to fill it back up...

So, there ya go, i wont be pushing it much more!

This is with a 2000 Rover Mini Cooper Sport. 1275cc. 7.5 Gallon tank.

Hope this helps!