wvo_biodiesel

I love this car...

stickygreen

lol...downhill with a tailwind?

We have seen about 33mpg combined since day one, but best I have seen for a trip was 41mpg in traffic, traveling at a constant 50-55mph on a flat road. Wish the GL320 would get that kind of mileage...

lkchris

Saw 73 on ours one time.

Cloudcroft to Alamagordo ... all downhill.

wvo_biodiesel

Nope, this was on the freeway--trip from Princeton, NJ to the Philadelphia airport (I actually reset the trip computer a few miles before I hit the freeway). I was simply amazed I got this mileage (I was shooting for 45mpg, my previous high).
The average fuel economy for the whole trip (to the airport and back) was 47.5mpg!!!! Proof that the mileage wasn't "helped" by a tailwind or downhill conditions. This attached pic I took after I went up some hills to my house (which I didn't go down on the way *to* the airport). It shows 47.1mpg.

wvo_biodiesel

We average about 30mpg on our GL320 CDI on the freeway. (several hundred mile trip to/from Virginia from Princeton, NJ)

We usually drive between 60-70mph.

JRAMGV8

that's awesome.....

stickygreen

\

Hope ours gets close to that someday. We are currently seeing 23-24mpg at around 70mph, but the GL has only 6k miles. I imagine that should improve as the miles increase.

Baron11

Let us know what your entire tank calculates to, the only true way to determine what your mpg rate actually is. But regardless, it seems to be great mpg.

Baron

wvo_biodiesel

Unfortunately, I've been driving around town and my average around town here is 31mpg. So my total average for the tank has been going down (although the computer says it's still around 37mpg!)
Next week I'm driving up to Boston and will definitely do the test then! (Reset computer after fill up, right before I get onto the freeway.)
Will let you guys know.

pinebaron

The average for my Bluetec despite driving in traffic is usually not less than 32.4mpg for the tank.

mycoleptodiscus

If you are running a biodiesel blend you might be getting slightly better mileage as bio has a high cetane number. I was unable to get better than 42 mpg trip averages on a 3000 mi. road trip from the midwest to the east coast and back. The best mileages were for steady-state driving. What weight oil are you running? Tire pressures? Tires? I had been expecting better mileage as the VW TDI is rated at 45 mpg hwy and I routinely got 55-60 mpg hwy with 0wt oil and a lowered suspension.

wvo_biodiesel

Took another trip to Philadelphia (this time downtown). I reset the computer right as I got onto the freeway. I managed "only" 45mpg this time on my trip there. After driving around the city, the average went down to 40mpg. I managed to get it back up by the time I got back to Princeton, but only to 43mpg.
I'll need to check my tires. I think they are inflated more than normal b/c I remember inflating them slightly above what you are supposed to inflate them to and this was a few weeks ago when it was still cold. Now the weather is much warmer and the tire pressure is probably fairly high!

Regarding oil, I use whatever the dealer puts into my car. 0W-40?

wvo_biodiesel

also, i'm not mixing w/ biodiesel right now but i'll probably make another batch in the next few weeks, since the weather is getting warmer (i like to use the sun to heat the oil).

Polar Bear

Just wondering, have you had the EGR replacement and the ECU flash DTB performed?

wvo_biodiesel

What is the EGR? (What does it stand for?) Is it the transmission sensor port leaking issue? If so, yes. During my last service, they noticed it was leaking and I was running about a quart low (transmission fluid). After this service, the weather started getting warmer and I started getting great mileage again. I'm not sure what the ECU flash DTB is about. What is that for?

Polar Bear

It happens usually around 40k miles and results in loss of power, surging, and in some cases a Check Engine light. The solution is to install a new EGR (Exhaust Gas Recirculation) valve and flash the ECU to allow it to work properly with the revised EGR valve. Seems to be very very common on the 2005-2006 CDIs.

wvo_biodiesel

Nope, I don't think I've had a problem with the EGR valve (yet). Never had the check engine light go on.

DESAL

Just so happens that my 05-CDI is going into the shop tomorrow to check the ERG because I had read about the ERG value earlier.
So the question is will the mileage go up after the repair? I sure the in loss of power, surging will disappear. I'm getting 22+/- around town and 30-36 on the highway depending on how far I drive.

Polar Bear

I noticed a slight loss of power at full throttle acceleration at low speeds - i.e. at 5mph roll and full throttle, when the turbo spooled up the car would spin the rear tires. It will not do this now. Not sure what caused the difference, but it did seem to lose the power after the ECU flash.

I don't go around with full throttle starts on a regular basis, but I do notice when something changes, and I think this is what did it.

pinebaron

I assume you mean with ESP turned off.

harkgar

I find this very hard to believe for normal everyday commuting. I note both photos showed under 100 miles of use so unrepresentative of normal use. The 2006 E320 CDi weighs about 3,800 lbs with the iron block engine, heavier than the V-8.

50 mpg is easy in something with a smaller engine and much lighter weight, like a VW Jetta diesel. I consistently achieved 40 mpg City and 50 mpg Highway in my sold 1999 Jetta TDi, Upsolute chipped.

philfna

I am getting 25 to 29 in town and 33 to 39 on hwy, but never above 40...

Polar Bear

Actually with ESP on - I never really turn it off. It will chirp the tires when the boost comes in full and ESP intervenes and prevents it from doing much. The triangle does flash and you can hear the tires squeal. Most if the time it was by accident.

I haven't tried it with ESP off. Wouldn't want to take a chance on messing anything up.

Mackhack

How many miles do you drive with one full tank of diesel?

Is the GL a brand new model? I never heard about the GL before I recently (2 months ago or so) saw one the first time ever. I thought wow that's a long ML and saw it is a GL!