MPG of a 1600 VX on Webers
MPG of a 1600 VX on Webers
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Discussion

P50

Original Poster:

1,034 posts

192 months

Friday 14th September 2012
quotequote all
As title,

Petrol's getting a bit silly these days price wise.

I know these car's weigh nowt. I assume the 1400 K will be most frugal. Anyone have the figs for the various models? Especially the VX. I assume carbs are worse than injection?

I intend to use it quite a lot so MPG matters to me a lot more than if it did 1500 miles a year...

framerateuk

2,934 posts

213 months

Friday 14th September 2012
quotequote all
Depends on which gearbox and how you drive the car too?

Mine's a 6 speed 1.6 Sigma, and according to my calculations, when I picked it up last week, on the 200 mile trip back (which was mostly motorway) I managed about 37mpg (maybe slightly more, I can't remember the exact price of the petrol). If I had the 5 speed with the longer throw 5th I could probably have done better.

That was at 70mph all the way back (about 4000rpm).

P50

Original Poster:

1,034 posts

192 months

Friday 14th September 2012
quotequote all
It's a 5 speed so has overdrive top I would assume.

I understand the 6 speeds are geared lower in top?

HustleRussell

26,484 posts

189 months

Friday 14th September 2012
quotequote all
I have a 1.6 VX 'classic', and as you've already suggested, it's a very different proposition to the injected cars. Before I took it racing, I used it on the road for a year- 23 to 25MPG was the norm for mixed driving with no motorways. It ain't a technologically sophisticated car!
When racing it does about half that (I count on a litre every two minutes).
However, the 'smiles per gallon' factor is much more favourable- the raspy induction noise from the twin DCOEs is so addictive that I found myself pootling about in a delberately low gear so I could hear them singing. To this day I love driving wet races, because the roar of the webers on partial throttle is amazing!

Edited by HustleRussell on Friday 14th September 14:26

HustleRussell

26,484 posts

189 months

Friday 14th September 2012
quotequote all
P50 said:
It's a 5 speed so has overdrive top I would assume.

I understand the 6 speeds are geared lower in top?
Yep, in the 5-speed box, 5th is overdrive. In the 6-speed, 6th is direct.

P50

Original Poster:

1,034 posts

192 months

Friday 14th September 2012
quotequote all
HustleRussell said:
I have a 1.6 VX 'classic', and as you've already suggested, it's a very different proposition to the injected cars. Before I took it racing, I used it on the road for a year- 23 to 25MPG was the norm for mixed driving with no motorways. It ain't a technologically sophisticated car!
When racing it does about half that (I count on a litre every two minutes).
However, the 'smiles per gallon' factor is much more favourable- the raspy induction noise from the twin DCOEs is so addictive that I found myself pootling about in a delberately low gear so I could hear them singing. To this day I love driving wet races, because the roar of the webers on partial throttle is amazing!

Edited by HustleRussell on Friday 14th September 14:26
Hmm? given a VX's weight and only a 1.6 litre engine 23ish is a pretty fierce consumption.

In fact it seems the engine is consuming approx half the Webers admitted hydrocarbons and is slinging the balance clean out the exhaust ports! Nothing new there then! 70's Alfa Twin cam anyone?!

I think I'll hang out for an injected 1.6 (or possibly 1.4) K series with IRS and a more frugal appetite for petroleum.

Footnote - I accept that Webers coming on cam make a fantastic roar!

Tango7

693 posts

255 months

Friday 14th September 2012
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The 1600k series car is excellent on fuel and can do around 40mpg with relative ease (5 speed / 120bhp). The bigger power K series cars aren't too bad with SLR/R400 being v.low 30's on a run and probably mid 20's when pushing on a bit. My old HPC (2 litre VX with 45 Webers) did around 26-27 on the road. I think the worst car I ever had for the road with a tuned Xflow that did 20 mpg if I was lucky and when travelling with a couple of K series cars, they used to find it hilarious that I could only do 90-100 miles before forced to refuel - the Xflow sounded better though...

Bryan C

10 posts

227 months

Friday 14th September 2012
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Recently bought my 1400 K series 5-speed with mpg in mind as a factor. Had recently sold my 1600CVH Westie with twin 40's and was getting 22mpg at best.
Just got back from France in my S3 last week and between fill-ups, varied between 49.5mpg over 207 miles of virtually all motorway at a steady 60mph, dropping to 39mpg which included plenty of 3rd / 4th gear blatting around country lanes and some heavy traffic crawling through town areas.
Pretty impressed with that.
Petrol over there was 5p / litre cheaper than here too !

P50

Original Poster:

1,034 posts

192 months

Saturday 15th September 2012
quotequote all
Bryan C said:
Recently bought my 1400 K series 5-speed with mpg in mind as a factor. Had recently sold my 1600CVH Westie with twin 40's and was getting 22mpg at best.
Just got back from France in my S3 last week and between fill-ups, varied between 49.5mpg over 207 miles of virtually all motorway at a steady 60mph, dropping to 39mpg which included plenty of 3rd / 4th gear blatting around country lanes and some heavy traffic crawling through town areas.
Pretty impressed with that.
Petrol over there was 5p / litre cheaper than here too !
OK that pretty much sums it all up.

I'll sniff out a 1.4 or 1.6 5 speed K series. Balls out performance is not what I'm after. These car's are quicker than most on the road to 60 even with a 1.4K.

I'm not big on the cycle style front wings so want the old style Lotus 7 look. In fact the more classic the better. I'm a luddite so green/yellow with black or red leather will be what I want. Mind you realistically you get what you're given as I've found a watched kettle never boils when searching for a car.

I've noticed most 7's for sale seem to be oldish. As in mid 90's to 2001. Where's all the mid noughties cars?

In fact what does a roadsport 125 do to the gallon? A metric chassis car seem a good idea!


coppice

9,698 posts

173 months

Saturday 15th September 2012
quotequote all
I had a 1.4 5 speed SS; go for the 1.6 5 speed or get a six speed on a 1.4. The 5 speed is absolutely bloody useless on the 1.4- first too low and the rest far too high, 5th especially.Trust me on this !

Bryan C

10 posts

227 months

Saturday 15th September 2012
quotequote all
coppice said:
I had a 1.4 5 speed SS; go for the 1.6 5 speed or get a six speed on a 1.4. The 5 speed is absolutely bloody useless on the 1.4- first too low and the rest far too high, 5th especially.Trust me on this !
I don't doubt this, although I never had the opportunity of fore-sight to try a 6 speed, and the extra £2 1/2K to buy a 6 speed would probably have broken the camels back cos I extra-specced everything else onto the car. I bought my 1.4 S3 as having a similar performance to my 1.6SeI Westie ie BHP, 0-60 etc., What I did find was that you have to keep the 1.4 buzzing and certainly not go into top below 2500-3000 revs or stay in top when you slow on gradients where the Westie would trundle along in top with that low down torque.
Still, know that I just love the car and have just added a few more miles onto my insurance for Autumn blats.

Caterhamfan

370 posts

199 months

Saturday 15th September 2012
quotequote all
HustleRussell said:
I have a 1.6 VX 'classic', and as you've already suggested, it's a very different proposition to the injected cars. Before I took it racing, I used it on the road for a year- 23 to 25MPG was the norm for mixed driving with no motorways. It ain't a technologically sophisticated car!
When racing it does about half that (I count on a litre every two minutes).
However, the 'smiles per gallon' factor is much more favourable- the raspy induction noise from the twin DCOEs is so addictive that I found myself pootling about in a delberately low gear so I could hear them singing. To this day I love driving wet races, because the roar of the webers on partial throttle is amazing!

Edited by HustleRussell on Friday 14th September 14:26
I had a 1700 Supersprint and got 30mpg if I cruised at 50mph, otherwise it did about 20mpg - except on track days when 10mpg was about the best I got. Mind you, at night you could see that it shot 3 foot flames out the side exhaust on the over-run laugh