[narayan]

You can refer my thread where I have posted pictures and details of the roof rack that I had installed. I still have not removed it allthough it was installed for a specific trip only where we were carrying A LOT OF LUGGAGE !

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by narayan

You can refer my thread where I have posted pictures and details of the roof rack that I had installed. I still have not removed it allthough it was installed for a specific trip only where we were carrying A LOT OF LUGGAGE !

I am surprised you got 13.8 kmpl on that trip. I recall speeds in the 100-110 range? Also your bags were upright. Mine were all lying flat.

Maybe I am just hyper exuberant with the accelerator and the gear shifts. And yes, my speeds were higher as well on many sections of NH4 (where road and traffic allowed).

How many members in the truck? Total weight for them? A/c front and back on? What speed setings?

[narayan]

Originally Posted by ebonho

I am surprised you got 13.8 kmpl on that trip. I recall speeds in the 100-110 range? Also your bags were upright. Mine were all lying flat.

Maybe I am just hyper exuberant with the accelerator and the gear shifts. And yes, my speeds were higher as well (north of the "accepted/official" 120 limit of mention of Team BHP) on many sections of NH4 (where road and traffic allowed).

How many members in the truck? Total weight for them? A/c front and back on? What speed setings?

Just rechecked my post in the ownership thread. 13.8kmpl was in the last leg of the journey by which time I had dropped off my relatives ( AND THEIR MASSIVE LUGGAGE ) at Trivandrum and so the drive was just 3 of us with our luggage inside the car.

But still overall FE for the trip with bags placed vertically ( but placed breadthwise) was still 13.2kmpl ( 4 adults + 3 kids )

I feel the FE drop due to speeds is far more than the drag due to luggage.

i.e. Even if you have a lot luggage but stick to 60-80kmph the FE would be far better than no luggage and speeds of 120kmph +

[ebonho]

Hmmmm so speed is the kicker.

Damn! (can't do nothing about that)

[DHABHAR.BEHRAM]

Originally Posted by ebonho

Hmmmm so speed is the kicker. Damn! can't do nothing about that

Dear Vistasp - oh yes, you can! I get slightly more than 800 kms on one tankful of diesel. I pass through the spine of the city everyday and I also do a 350 / 400 kms round trip on the expressway every weekend. It all depends on driving style, for which one has to first know exactly how to sit properly in the driver's seat. 9 people out of 10 sit incorrectly, I see it every day. Tire size has to be spot-on, also the tire pressure, which denotes the coefficient of rolling resistance. Without any extra effort, I still end up overtaking almost all the average guys on the road. The trick is consistency. There is a huge advantage to be gained in this way. You come very close to driving in "constant speed fuel consumption test" mode, only you do it on the road instead of on the VRDE track. Most of the time, the engine trundles along at idling speed or very close to idling speed. At the same time, V-bar (average speed) does not suffer!

This is called "Vehicle Behavioral Feel". Cool naa? .

Best regards,

Behram Dhabhar

[sasi405]

Originally Posted by ebonho

Hmmmm so speed is the kicker.

Damn! (can't do nothing about that)

Speed is indeed the kicker. In my recent Gurgaon-Shimla-Gurgaon trip, I got 14.5kmpl with two adults and 3 suitcases (the baby doesn't count).
In my weekend trip to Jaipur, I managed almost 16kmpl, with 3 adults and 3 suitcases (the baby doesn't count, again). Speeds in both cases were usually between 90 and 100kmph and ACs were on throughout. Also, in my style of driving, I rarely accelerate beyond 2200rpm. I change gears quite early (and thankfully the Storme has good low end torque and turbo).
I usually get about 525-530km on a full tank before the amber light starts blinking.

[condor]

Originally Posted by DHABHAR.BEHRAM

.. one has to first know exactly how to sit properly in the driver's seat. 9 people out of 10 sit incorrectly, ...

Sir, can you explain the sitting position part ? Where do people most go wrong - is it the foot-on-clutch ?

[jkdas]

Originally Posted by condor

Sir, can you explain the sitting position part ? Where do people most go wrong - is it the foot-on-clutch ?

He added a extra tank :P

800 is just wow! I get around 560 for my 2.2l before lights come up. With the 'box' and not so aggressive riding I get 12kmpl.

[condor]

So does it mean that DB sir is also now driving a Storme ?

[sasi405]

Originally Posted by sasi405

I usually get about 525-530km on a full tank before the amber light starts blinking.

This time, I have got 570 till the amber light came on.

[narayan]

Originally Posted by DHABHAR.BEHRAM

Dear Vistasp - oh yes, you can! This is called "Vehicle Behavioral Feel". Cool naa? .

Best regards,

Behram Dhabhar

sir - sorry but your message is extremely cryptic and very generic. 800kms on a tankful translates to 14.54kmpl which by itself is not hard to achieve on a pure highway drive at very sane speeds but you say 50 % was in traffic. Hence the actual FE for the highway run will be quite high. did you use air conditioning ? what was the average speed ?

pls provide more details on this VBF/Sitting position etc unless its confidential internal information

[DHABHAR.BEHRAM]

Originally Posted by narayan

Sir, 800kms on a tankful translates to 14.54kmpl. What was the average speed? Please provide more details on this VBF / sitting position etc unless its confidential internal information

Dear narayan / condor /sasi / jkdas - cool it guys, I never mentioned that I drive Storme! I never mentioned in which car I got 800 kms in a tankfull, so going to 14.54 kmpl is not in the right direction. I have purposely not mentioned the car. The intention was to make you guys aware that it can be done, in any car. The tool is "VBF".

VBF is a vehicle evaluation module which has been developed out of real world simulation testing. This information gets converted to various DVPs (Design Validation Plans) which need to be met before the vehicle sees itself in production. Obviously, this is internal information. .

Best regards,

Behram Dhabhar

[sandeep_vgl]

Guys...my Storme LX is just one month old and has done 2800 kms. I am facing an issue where after gear shifts, when i accelerate, there is a noise (tak tak tak) coming from somewhere below the engine. It stays on for a second or two. It happens during the initial acceleration after every shift. This was reported during my first service but not rectified. The sound is very much audible with windows rolled up.

Last week i was on a 400 kms drive and in between i noticed that there was a sudden power loss and a huge shudder from engine. All the warning lights came on and the AC blower stopped functioning. As soon as i switched off the AC things returned back to normal. This happens as soon as i switch on the AC. During this time, the reading lights, park lights and even the headlights flicker continuously. The power loss issue only lasted for a day and never cropped up after that.

Any idea on the what the reason could be? All help would be appreciated since i could directly ask the service engineer to check these particular things to rectify the above issues.

[condor]

@Sandeep

1. Regarding the noise - please confirm that you press the clutch fully during gear-shifts

2. Power-loss : did you get the vehicle checked after that ?

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by DHABHAR.BEHRAM

Dear Vistasp - oh yes, you can! I get slightly more than 800 kms on one tankful of diesel. I pass through the spine of the city everyday and I also do a 350 / 400 kms round trip on the expressway every weekend. It all depends on driving style, for which one has to first know exactly how to sit properly in the driver's seat. 9 people out of 10 sit incorrectly, I see it every day. Tire size has to be spot-on, also the tire pressure, which denotes the coefficient of rolling resistance. Without any extra effort, I still end up overtaking almost all the average guys on the road. The trick is consistency. There is a huge advantage to be gained in this way. You come very close to driving in "constant speed fuel consumption test" mode, only you do it on the road instead of on the VRDE track. Most of the time, the engine trundles along at idling speed or very close to idling speed. At the same time, V-bar (average speed) does not suffer!

This is called "Vehicle Behavioral Feel". Cool naa? .

Best regards,

Behram Dhabhar

Dear Behram, we need to have our long overdue rendezvous at the Turf Club, during which you can train me in all these super secret driving techniques (VBF/ABC/XYZ, etc.). Please leave work early and give me a call.

I am going to our holy village of Udvada this weekend or the next. Will practice your techniques and report improvement if any over the 800 odd kilometers. Hope I can do it in one tankful too ......

This morning that's how I drove to work. Shifting up at / under the first mark beyond 2000 rpm. Cruising between 1500-2000 rpm in 4th or 5th (where the road/traffic alows). Nice driving the Storme like that. Very unstressed. Peaceful. But I doubt I can drive like that on a highway. The first aggressive guy who passes me, and I will be off hunting him down and gobbling him up .....