Fuel economy
Hi folks nice to be here.
I've just bought my first G its a 1989 230GE Auto and as you would imagine it's quite thirsty. I gather pretty much all G's are :)
Just wondering if anyone has any idea of ways to get a better fuel economy from it without spending too much money. I'm going to service it so new fuel, air and oil filters will likely help. Can it be tuned to make sure there's no excess fuel being burned etc. or is this a waste of time/money for the relative savings.
Any other ideas greatly appreciated.
Cheers
Wes
Welcome on board.
A truism of life is that poor perfomance goes along with weight and age..
Pushing a 2.5T brick through with an engine based on 80s engine technology is just not that efficient.
Not sure how much improvement you will see from any of the above eirther; some more specific items that are worth looking at might be listed here
http://www.benzworld.org/forums/w201-190-class/1667628-k-jetronic-troubl...
You could of course upgrade to a later merce turbodiesel engine ;-) You'd probably never make the costs of the conversion back, but it wouldn't be slow and at 25MPG you'd at least feel you were getting your money's worth!
The 230GE is one of the most economical versions about in the G-series. You should be getting between 14 -18, average mixed driving conditions stretching to 22/24 mpg at best on constant long tour driving at reasonable steady speeds..
Make sure you drive under correct tyre pressures given your loading, do not excessively and un-necessarily load up your vehicle for general traveling, remove roof racks when not used. That's all you can do. Moderate your driving habits.
If you look under 'alternative fuels' SingG has posted some great points and changes you can do/make improvements. Some of the simple things you can do is:
A) Tyres - if you All terrains or Mud terrains on it - swap them out for Normal road tyres
B) Tyre Pressure - make sure you check them frequently
C) Driving style - This has the main affect on your fuel. You can learn to 'cost' behind some of the big trucks, no high revs, etc.
To improve it more you can go LPG or try the hydrogen stuff.
Let us know how you get on.
Spider1V
Hi, I have just bought a 1983 280GE. I was not expecting fuel economy but it can average 8mpg doing a steady 70mph on a motorway which seems excessive. Is that to be expected? I have replaced the thermostat as it seemed to be runnning cold but it hasn't made much difference. Any comments gratefully received.
Chris
Wow Chris thats juicy ! , you should get driving sensible on motorway approx 70mph about 15 mpg maybe 18ish
Hi, I have just bought a 1983 280GE. I was not expecting fuel economy but it can average 8mpg doing a steady 70mph on a motorway which seems excessive. Is that to be expected? I have replaced the thermostat as it seemed to be runnning cold but it hasn't made much difference. Any comments gratefully received.
Chris
That is very juicy! (and I drive a V8! - 
) and no thst should not be the case! Consider the following:
wide tyres, under inflated wide tyres, heavily laden, are obvious causes of increased fuel consumption, having an auto box, [the 5 speed manual is better] is also a consideration, if your local MOT station has a gas analyzer go there armed with a long reach 3mm allen key and adjust the fueling to factory settings or let them do it, might be worth checking for fuel leaks too
Or go a lot slower!
Yes, motorway driving at 60-70 is best economy. Dont thrash it at 80 plus. Around 16-18 should be right. I suspect your bosch k jet fuel system needs checking. Low pressures give high mpg. Check fuel filters from the tank forward. Adjust ignition timing, check plugs. What rpm at 70 mph?
If you are getting such poor fuel economy and have checked for external fuel leaks, corrected tyre pressures, emmisions etc then I would recommend you go back to basics. For the engine to use too much fuel it must be getting in to the engine in the first place. Check fuel pump delivery pressure, your G uses a constant injection fuel system too much pressure means excess fuel consumption. Check the height of the air throttle plate as this again can allow too much fuel into engine. Check the injection system for any air leaks including the boot on the bottom of the air intake housing. Providing the engine compressions are in good order and the ignition system is tuned correctly you should see 15mpg easily.
Hi, I have just bought a 1983 280GE. I was not expecting fuel economy but it can average 8mpg doing a steady 70mph on a motorway which seems excessive. Is that to be expected? I have replaced the thermostat as it seemed to be runnning cold but it hasn't made much difference. Any comments gratefully received.
Chris
Keeping the engine properly tuned up is a start. The correct valve clearance settings, correct ignition timing, good spark plugs, and correct emissions are all contributory to efficient engine running. Good air, fuel filters, good distributor and rotor arm are as important.
Making sure you have no brake binding to add to drag and check tyre pressures. The normal coolant temperature is the needle sitting on the middle-single line at a 12 O'clock position. If you have cool air blowing at the heater matrix even though the coolant temperature is as I have described it to be, then it could be the heater valve has seized shut or you have a matrix that is blocked up (rare)
Many thanks for all the replies. I have got it in the garage for new spark plugs, new plug leads, check valve clearance settings and adjust thermostat - it has been runnning with the needle at the first quartile line rather than half way so I am thinking that may be the problem.
Chris
Hi Chris,
Amongst my previous comments, I have just remembered, since your vehicle is in the garage, get them to check the viscous fan coupling so that it is NOT permanently locked on; as it can be for temporary and emergency use. If they feel it necessary ask to do a compression test and give feed back on their findings.
All sesnsible suggestions particulalrly the compression test to check if it is a valve or piston ring problem. I would also have the fuel system checked by an authorized Bosch test centre together with an exhaust gas analysis. Maybe worth checking that the cold start injector does not stay open all the time. I also haved a Auto 280 Ge SWB and the motorway consumption at 70 mph is about 18 mpg. Mind you the speedometer is not very acurate when compared with the GPS.
The last 280SWB auto I has was over 3 years ago
it was well serviced and on a bad day fully laden 70/80 motorway driving it gave 15/16 MPG
and driving about town or off roading and giving it the wellie the worst i got was 12mpg
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