[thebutcher316]

Hi all,

Glad to be joining what seems to be such an active forum! I've just taken over ownership of an 2010 i30 SLX Diesel Auto with 60,000 k's on the clock (company car) - which had the dreaded Diesel Auto Gearbox problem (gears slipping, clunking into reverse etc)....

For the first week of my ownership, I had to baby it around waiting for the service day (gearbox replacement) and managed to use an entire tank in the process.....only problem is, I was driving it like an old grandma, never letting it rev over 2,000 rpm - and still I only managed to squeeze 740kms out of the tank (still said I had 60kms to go on the DTE calculator) before I filled it, and fuel economy was at 7l/100.

Now I've had the gearbox replaced, of course I am not babying it as much because I can now drive it properly, and fuel economy has decreased to 7.2l/100 - but this seems to be way out of line with what others on this forum are experiencing......I've seen reports of people getting 980kms city driving, even up to 1400kms - is there something else wrong with my new car or something I can do to get my fuel economy down??

I've been thinking about investing in one of the eBay performance chips but dont think this is the answer - any ideas anyone? I do mainly city driving, stopping and starting in traffic for about 43kms (1 hour total - live in Adelaide).

[2i30s]

welcome aboard butcher.    if you've had the auto trans replaced for a new one its going to be a contributing factor in your fuel consumption.    it needs to learn your driving style and also it will need to loosten up being brand new.  IMO.

[Phil №❶]

Welcome to the forum TB316,

There is quite a lot of interesting discussion regarding fuel consumption. I think the key factor in your statement is the traffic conditions you are encountering. Am I correct in assuming that the 1 hour stop start driving is a regular event. If it is, then I don't think that there is going to be much improvement. The best I can obtain is about 6.5 L/100 but that includes some freeway driving up to Mt Barker where I live. In traffic conditions like yours, my Commodore uses 14 L/100 so it could be worse. Try to minimise idling at traffic lights, that's100% wasted fuel. Alter your travel times and routes if that's possible. I also slow down and try to catch the green rather than stop at lights, traffic permitting. Maybe some of the almost 3000 members will have some additional tips for you. Good luck. 

[rustynutz]

I do mainly city driving, stopping and starting in traffic for about 43kms (1 hour total - live in Adelaide).

I think there lies your problem, if you were doing more highway driving I'm sure your economy would be much better....

Btw, Welcome to our little forum.... 

[thebutcher316]

I knew the engine and ECU were capable of learning one's driving style, but I didnt realise that the gearbox could "learn" as well.....good to know

As for the gearbox, I believe its actually reconditioned, not brand new, I was surprised when the dealer told me it would be replaced with a recon under warranty but after checking several other threads on the forum here apparently that's Hyundai's common practice - and I suppose it's actually good because a new gearbox could potentially have the same problem the old one did - apparently a valve in the gearboxe's struggle with the torque on the Diesel - or at least thats what I gathered from my research.

Thanks for the tip 847563 - yes, you'd be right in assuming the stop/start travel is a regular event, to and from work, 5 days a week from Seaford to Kent Town - strangely I have noticed that the fuel economy does get better on the way home - this would be, as you say 847563, because I am stopping and starting less (I go to work at 8:30 but often dont leave the city until 6:30, 7 so I miss the peak hour on the way home).

[Phil №❶]

That's a fair hike, Seaford to Kent Town. Hope you've got plenty of nice music to listen to. BTW,  just call me 84 or QR Code my avatar.. 

[thebutcher316]

Yeah 84, two days after I got the car I had a play with the stereo and set up the USB - so got plenty of music to keep me going! Took me a full week to tune the audio settings to perfection (I'm an audiophile - used to have a VY Commodore with a $3000 audio setup and came third in a sound-off in 2008 @ 136db's) but sadly when the car went in to have the gearbox replaced, they pulled the engine and disconnected the battery and all my settings went Got it sorted again now though so she's all sweet

Anyone got any great tips for getting scratches out of the leather steering wheel? My boss is a real watch fan and they've put a couple of quite deep scratches into the wheel I used shoe polish which covered them perfectly for a week but the polish wore off

[Phil №❶]

136 dbs  A lot of us here have tinnitus and you'll be joining our special club too if you're not careful. Did you have to have the motor running, the system would have been pulling a few amps @ that rate.

Regarding the scratches, this is only a guess as I've never needed to do it but what about a small amount of clear or black nail polish to act as a glue to press the leather back into shape. 

[thebutcher316]

Yeah, had to leave the engine running, or start it up every 15 minutes - got caught a few times while "gettin busy" with romantic music on finished, and went to start the car only to find the battery was flat

[Phil №❶]

 

[rustynutz]

Round 2 while waiting for the RAC?   

[neptune]

@TB....you will probably find when you have read past posts that the 1400km  was from a manual and the 900 odd km was an auto that did a country trip.....

as for the scratches in the steering wheel...find yourself a good car detailer...they have these little tricks to bring those things up like new....

[Doggie 1]

Welcome to the forum.
I have a diesel manual and while I've had several tanks at over 1000 kms during my ownership, the norm for me now is that is not the case.
I do tend to do a lot of idling (if I'm in a carpark I tend to leave it running with air con on) and my average seems to be 6.2 - 6.7 l/100km at the moment, city driving.
Having said that, yesterday I refuelled and did a country trip of around 200 kms and upon my return to Perth my average for the trip was 4.7 l/100.
Dave

[Flyyte]

Hi butcher. Your post was especially interesting to me because we've only just acquired an i30 1.6 diesel CW with manual 6-speed box and had actually wanted to continue on with auto shift -- we haven't driven a manual for many years. But the price of diesel over here in the UK is such that a re-mortgage application is necessary every time one draws up at the pumps (I've just paid £1.50 a litre, equivalent to £6.82p a gallon.) The rolling road consumption figures claimed by manufacturers are always pretty fatuous so we never wholly believe 'em, but the consumption difference between the i30 auto and the i30 manual was uncomfortably noticeable.  We're somewhat more fortunate than you in not having to commute to work anymore as according to the Government we're economically inactive (tst tst, how disgraceful) and so our motorised meanderings are for leisure and pleasure only. Our estate, with now 5,200 miles on the clock from new and, therefore, an engine that's not yet fully loosened up, ihas returned 52.6 mpg overall according to the trip computer during the past 800 miles. We don't particularly hold back on acceleration or cruising, and so a large element of our travel so far has been on UK motorways at speeds of between 75mph and 80mph.

We're happy with the i30 CW but yes, we miss the auto (and cruise control.) Here's hoping your auto's consumption continues to improve: stop start and idling urban driving is always going to be a sod; I'd be interested to hear of your auto's performance in free-running motorway conditions  on longer distance trips?  (PS: sorry for inability to compute stuff in kilometres, it's just that in England we're still working on the basis of miles per gallon and, of course, continuing to pay Window Tax according to how much glass a vehicle dares to have.)

[Phil №❶]

Flyyte 52.6 mpg is 5.36 L/100 Ks 

[Doggie 1]

Flyyte 52.6 mpg is 5.36 L/100 Ks 

Thanks for the conversion. 

[AlanHo]

Make a note

To convert mpg into L/100 km - divide 282.5 by the mpg

To convert L/100 km into mpg - divide 282.5 by the L/100 km


Simples

[Doggie 1]

Thanks. I think. 

[thebutcher316]

Did a bit of country driving over the Easter weekend.....(approx 500kms) and managed to squeeze 844.6 kms out of the last tank, with the DTE calculating 50 kms left......so was pretty impressed this time round - have started using BP's Diesel Ultimate which seems to have noticably improved the actual acceleration performance of the car - will definitely be opting for this now instead of the crap Mobil is peddling - luckily my work fuel card can be used at all Mobil and BP servos

[Dazzler]

That's great for an Auto Scott  (Ilike BP but it is usually a few cents dearer down here...)

[Doggie 1]

Good stuff 
I like bee pee too.

[mantaray]

I too live in Adelaide, and find BP ultimate diesel much better, around town I manage 7.1 -7.5 on a trip to Melbourne, it drops to 5.5-6, no babying, using the car like it should be. The first time It went up Mt lofty freeway, I couldn't believe the grunt, this was coming from an El falcon.

[Dazzler]

I too live in Adelaide, and find BP ultimate diesel much better, around town I manage 7.1 -7.5 on a trip to Melbourne, it drops to 5.5-6, no babying, using the car like it should be. The first time It went up Mt lofty freeway, I couldn't believe the grunt, this was coming from an El falcon.

Hi Mantaray nice to see you on .. and nice feedback 

[thebutcher316]

I too live in Adelaide, and find BP ultimate diesel much better, around town I manage 7.1 -7.5 on a trip to Melbourne, it drops to 5.5-6, no babying, using the car like it should be. The first time It went up Mt lofty freeway, I couldn't believe the grunt, this was coming from an El falcon.

Back in '06 I bought my first car (I mean using my own finance, without parental help), which was a VY Commodore with 30k on the clock, and I almost wrote it off coming home to Mannum from the dealer in Murray Bridge because I was used to driving an EA Falcon with a blown head.......put my foot down in readiness to overtake a semi and it took off like a rocket and I almost flew off the other side of the road!   

[onine]

I have a i30 diesel auto 2years old with 30000 kms on the clock I have just completed a 2500 trip, Brisbane ,Sydney via a friend property in central west NSW back to Brisbane, which included highway and city driving. From Sydney to Brisbane on the Pacific highway there were a lot of roadworks so speed fluctuated a lot. I got 6.1l/100km. The fuel economy has got better as the car gets more Kms on the speedo

[Dazzler]

That is a good figure for the Auto onine 

[Phil №❶]

I have a i30 diesel auto 2years old with 30000 kms on the clock I have just completed a 2500 trip, Brisbane ,Sydney via a friend property in central west NSW back to Brisbane, which included highway and city driving. From Sydney to Brisbane on the Pacific highway there were a lot of roadworks so speed fluctuated a lot. I got 6.1l/100km. The fuel economy has got better as the car gets more Kms on the speedo

What tyre pressures are you running & what is your typical driving style 

[mjt57]

Yesterday, on a drive to Melbourne (about a 320 km or 200 mile round trip) for the first time I saw the calculated fuel consumption indicator drop below 5 to 4.9 l/100km. It was only briefly, though.

I filled up whilst in Melbourne. According to aCar, the Android app for tracking such things I got 6.1l/100km from the last fill to this one. Before that it was 5.7, then before it, 6.2.

As for total range for each tank fill, I get about 750km to the low fuel light. I fill to the first click (I'm not a brimmer). And I believe that this is as accurate as "brimming" it, as the fuel going in is always around the same (43l) if I fill shortly after the low fuel light comes on.

The car's done 8,300km (about 5,000 miles) now. Maybe it's still loosening up. Dunno. But short of driving it like a granny and never going over 60 kays I dunno how people can get 4.5l/100km. And I'm not flogging it, either.

Whatever even at this rate it's still as cheap as chips to run. Petrol here is now more expensive than diesel, ($1.50/l v $1.49/l) so that's some consolation, I s'pose.

As for "Ultimate" diesel none of the BP servos that I use have it. For those who live in or around Melbourne I'm talking about that huge one on Eastlink which I used once, the two BP servos on the Princes Freeway east of Melbourne near Officer, the ones near Long Warry (further east) or the ones around Latrobe Valley.

I have a BP fuel card as part of the car's lease so I don't use other brands. I could but it's a PITA getting the cost reimbursed. And I miss out on the fuel discount as well as the GST exemption.

[Dazzler]

Around 6 is great  as it is the overall ADR average figure for the Diesel Auto I think.. Not sure where the 4.5 came from for the Auto???

[rustynutz]

As for "Ultimate" diesel none of the BP servos that I use have it. For those who live in or around Melbourne I'm talking about that huge one on Eastlink which I used once, the two BP servos on the Princes Freeway east of Melbourne near Officer, the ones near Long Warry (further east) or the ones around Latrobe Valley.

I've got the same problem over my way, not a single servo with "Ultimate" or "Vortex" anywhere.
At least over your way you have Caltex Vortex (Trafalgar) which I've used a couple of times now.

After BP's refusal for compensation after my recent water in the fuel debacle, I'm not really keen on using BP any more but given that the majority of the servo's around here are BP I'm gonna find that pretty hard....