Possible fuel gauge failure on F30 LCI 330D.

I am just back from a 24hr return trip to Alford in Grampian some 350 miles there and back. I was looking forward to it as it would be my first long trip in my new F30 LCI 330D M sport sDrive. It has 17" wheels and winter tyres fitted.


The quickest way from Glasgow is over the B974 Fettercairn to Banchory hill road that cuts north from the main A90 to Aberdeen some 17 miles SW of Stonehaven. I checked the Traffic Scotland web site before setting off to check it was open. I left the A90 onto the B974 at 15:11 yesterday but...


...as I climbed into the mountains it was obvious winter had arrived...


..and the snow gates were shut. I had to retrace my route and make my way back to the A90 then drive up to Stonehaven and take the B979 north from Stonehaven then turn west on the A944 to Alford. (The route is much more complicated than this sounds.) The detour had added 40 minutes to my journey and this final stage was in the dark on frequently flooded roads. I was glad of the adaptive LED lights.


This morning I set off on my return journey and this time Traffic Scotland said the Banchory to Fettercairn B974 was closed so I returned by my outward route. The conditions on the roads from Alford to Stonehaven were appalling. There has been dreadful flooding in Grampian recently and...


...clear skies overnight had left a mixture of sheet ice, slush and standing water on the roads. Low sun on the wet and icy roads added to the driving difficulties. I had only travelled a couple of miles when I came across a nasty accident. Police and paramedics were in attendance and a fire engine was on its way. I was glad of my winter tyres and was relieved when I got to the A90 dual carriageway.

It was on my way south that I noticed the problem with the fuel gauge. It did not seem to be moving quickly enough, despite cruising at 70mph. I checked that I had not inadvertently engaged ECO pro mode (I had left it in comfort or sport mode during the trip). I even had the lights, air con, heating, heated seats and HK on, all in an attempt to get the fuel gauge needle moving faster.


Worse was to come when I got home. The trip meter showed the fuel consumption had failed to budge even a notch below 50mpg. I now have a deep distrust of the instrumentation. Does it come from the same supplier as VW use? Whatever, I was going to fill it up to get a tank full to tank full measurement but the fuel gauge was showing just under half full so it did not seem worth filling up.

I don't even have any comeback with BMW as their official combined figure for the 330D on 17" wheels is 57.6 mpg, which is even worse!.

My realistic expectations for the fuel consumption of a six cylinder 3l diesel have not been met.

Douglas

 

I feel your anguish. On the basis of "supply and demand", fuel prices will continue to fall! We will have to lay the blame at BMW's feet.

Peter

PS: Excellent mpg result.

 

Peter, as you know, the falling fuel prices are not good for the NE. The friend I was visiting was until recently a senior professional engineer in the oil industry. He was one of the lucky ones, he got early retirement, many younger folk are being made redundant.

Douglas

 

Hard to believe that figure from a 3 litre high performance diesel. I think we should all drive in Sport+ mode to help the economy.
When I last checked, my 330d was averaging approx 47 mpg overall.

Aberdeen must be a bit like a ghost town at the moment. I'm glad that I am no longer working in the oil and gas industry.

 

Exactly why I drive an M5 , yes you've guessed it I work offshore.
Come on guys help me out, ditch the oil burners and get an M car ....... you know it makes sense

 

Remarkable really if you consider it's a 1500+kg car with 250+bhp and in such cold conditions

 

good point there Ed, we should probably expect a 2-3mpg increase in the summer?

I achieved 44.7 on the last run I did, not bad from a 2 tonne monster.

 

Livster>"yes you've guessed it I work offshore".

If one were ever needed, what a great excuse/justification to drive an M car!

Ed>"Remarkable really if you consider it's a 1500+kg car with 250+bhp and in such cold conditions"

kleynie>"we should probably expect a 2-3mpg increase in the summer?"

Yes the temperature and use of electricals would not have helped but in summer I will change back to 18" wider wheels which might offset the gains in summer.

It would have been more than 50 mpg at 70mph on the dual carriageway/motorway because on the B roads for the first hour of the trip I only got 44 mpg.

 

Yes, i'd expect so!

 

Shocking state of affairs, and an excellent time to test your winter tyres out too, lots more snow in the NE Scotland today .That s excellent Mpg, but then again , I suppose the road conditions helped as speeds would have been on the lower side, definitely a good advertisement for Bmw .

 

Hi Murray, I actually got less mpg on the twisty B roads where I was driving between 20 and 50, mostly 40 depending on the conditions.