[Jignesh]

Hello,

I recently got Fuel Efficiency of 16 KMPL on my trip to Lonavala. The trip was of 244 kms with 200 kms on highways & 44 kms inside Lonavala with medium traffic & ghats. A/c usage was for 90% of time & speed was maintained betweem 80 & 100 KMPH.

I feel Fuel Efficiency of 16 is on the lower side? What to other WagonR K10 say?

Thanks,

[dhrupadh]

Originally Posted by carzone

Tanked up today.
Driven about 50Kms and already theres 1 bar down.
1st bar was down at about 35kms!!!
Counting 10 bars for 35 litres, 1 bar has 3.5 litres!!!
that comes to an average of 10kmpl!!!
Though it was more than 75% city with 100% AC!!!

Hey, dont bother too much. If you observe carefully, the bar drops are not linear in terms of the amount of petrol consumed since the shape of the tank plays a major role in this. I have observed certain bars last longer than the others on the same stretch of the road with same traffic conditions.

Having said that, dividing the total capacity of the car's tank by the number of bars will not be a very accurate representation of the petrol consumed for each bar.

Rather, what you can do is, take a highway trip and record the KM reading at each bar drop. When you subtract each reading with the previous one, you'll get a very good idea about the capacity of each bar. That will be the right way to estimate how much petrol was consumed since the last bar drop.

Hope that helps

Originally Posted by Jignesh

Hello,

I recently got Fuel Efficiency of 16 KMPL on my trip to Lonavala. The trip was of 244 kms with 200 kms on highways & 44 kms inside Lonavala with medium traffic & ghats. A/c usage was for 90% of time & speed was maintained betweem 80 & 100 KMPH.

I feel Fuel Efficiency of 16 is on the lower side? What to other WagonR K10 say?

Thanks,

I am yet to take my (petrol VXI) car out on the open roads. But with 50% AC usage in the city, I am getting around 13. So 16 sounds good to me. But I remember people claiming more here. Would those noble souls enlighten us with their numbers?

Originally Posted by amitayu

recently my wife's office cab which happens to be a new Wagon R met with an accident...apparently quite sharp! :O

Hey Amitayu, Glad to hear that everyone was safe. Thanks to the modern technologies, most of today's vehicle are designed with safety in mind. Though some are still taking the Indian car market and its consumers for granted by cutting corners around important features like safety to reduce price and stay competent in the market.

[Jignesh]

Originally Posted by dhrupadh

I am yet to take my (petrol VXI) car out on the open roads. But with 50% AC usage in the city, I am getting around 13. So 16 sounds good to me. But I remember people claiming more here. Would those noble souls enlighten us with their numbers?

Hello Dhrupadh,

Your fuel efficiency of 13 on City with 50% AC usage is good. Under same driving conditions & 50% Ac Usage my figures in City are around 12.

But people here have indeed claimed better Fuel Efficiency in City & on Highways.

Yes, you are right, we definitely need some WagonR K10 lover here to explain us on getting better fuel efficiency of this otherwise great Car.

Thanks,

[carzone]

Originally Posted by dhrupadh

Hey, dont bother too much. If you observe carefully, the bar drops are not linear in terms of the amount of petrol consumed since the shape of the tank plays a major role in this. I have observed certain bars last longer than the others on the same stretch of the road with same traffic conditions.

Having said that, dividing the total capacity of the car's tank by the number of bars will not be a very accurate representation of the petrol consumed for each bar.

Rather, what you can do is, take a highway trip and record the KM reading at each bar drop. When you subtract each reading with the previous one, you'll get a very good idea about the capacity of each bar. That will be the right way to estimate how much petrol was consumed since the last bar drop. Hope that helps

thank you dhrupadh. But i think theses some problem with my car because on the last full tank, the fuel lasted till about only 340 kms and them i had to refill(last bar started flashing).

Till now have driven about 315 kms and there are 8 bars down. That is around 28 litres going by my theory.

That comes to an average of about 11. Though it is an improvement above previous average, but i don't find it impressive for a 1.0 3 cylinder engine. It was driven with 100% A.C. in mumbai traffic with around 20% highway driving.

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by dhrupadh

I am yet to take my (petrol VXI) car out on the open roads. But with 50% AC usage in the city, I am getting around 13. So 16 sounds good to me. But I remember people claiming more here. Would those noble souls enlighten us with their numbers?

As per the SA, until an oil change, mileage wont be that good it seems. However, when I insisted for an oil change in the second service, he wouldn't do so and insisted I get it done in the third service. Wonder what his problem is if I am paying up for the oil and doing it well before the service.
Coming to the mileage part, our WR is a beater car. It gives around 11-13 in city that after being Idled for AC, and with no concern for economy. Hence, I can call that as good mileage. However, some light footed and conservative driving had got me 14.5 for a tankful, 100% city and around 80% AC.
Recently, I got the chance to hook up the tech2 scanner at my dealer and got the SA to sit beside me and monitor STFT readings as I drove the car under various conditions.

For those who want to know STFT before I carry on, in simple it stands for 'Short-Term fuel trim'. It is the adjustment in fuelling made by the ECU depending upon inputs from various sensors.

What are fuel trims?

Observations:

• Most of the times we can find STFT to be negative, ie engine running a bit leaner. This shows the crave for FE. In my SX4, this is not so negative, and the car was manufactured when FE was not that serious of a matter, ie nearly four years back in the BS3 Era.
• Under idling, STFT is Zero and if left at idle without load, ie the AC etc, it slowly goes to lean mode again, until accelarator is pressed.
• A sudden press of the accelarator shifts to positive STFT. A gradual press, however will keep STFT either negative or zero at max. That will go on till as high as 4500 RPM.
• Under driving conditions, as I have told previously, if you floor the pedal, irrespective of whether the car is able to accelarate or lug, STFT jumps to positive mode. So conclusion - its obvious, do not floor the pedal if the car is not able to pick up. Downshift.
• Under 2k Rpm, the car is as if it is experiencing turbo lag. Please do not let the engine run in this state unless it is in first or second gear. In third, below 2000rpm, STFT again becomes positive. Same in higher gears. Let the engine roar, she wont consume much fuel then compared to keeping it at low speeds and flooring the pedal.
• Letting the car decelarate well before stops can put it to lean mode and again, you have three advantages: Better braking, better brake pad life and some fuel savings.
• In a bid to maintain STFT as lean as possible, I had to drive with a light foot in the APPROPRIATE gear, so that the lightest throttle input would give you pickup. The SA also told me he would explain this to other owners, as most of them used to follow the shift points set by MSIl, ie the 1st gear -10kmph and so on. I am sorry but this wont work here at least. Most of the times this will lug the engine and therefore increase fuel consumption rather than decreasing. I will take this theory in the case of carburetted vehicles, where air fuel ratio is constant and keeping revvs low will give you better FE.
• Frankly, I havent really driven in the thought of getting better FE, but at least given the conditions the car is driven, the FE attained is decent. By switching off the engine instead of prolonged Idling, keeping air pressure at 33psi(I keep it at 31 as the ride is not so bouncy), I may be able to get better FE.

I am no OBD expert nor an automobile engineer. From what I knew of fuel trim, and thanks to the SA, I just cured my curiosity to study what happened inside the ECU on the run. So, I neither have any theories to support this issue nor I would like to debate that I am right. Corrections, if any are welcome but not is criticism.

[Jignesh]

Originally Posted by audioholic

Recently, I got the chance to hook up the tech2 scanner at my dealer and got the SA to sit beside me and monitor STFT readings as I drove the car under various conditions.

Hello Audioholic,

These are indeed very good findings. A real opener.

I always kept my WagonR K10 in higher gears at low speeds & kept on flooring the Accelator pedal, never knowing that this increases fuel consumption in my Car. Also I believe this is what generally advised to shift to higher gear as soon as possible.

Also I was always happy to see my WagonR running under 2000 RPM in 3rd & 4th Gears, never knowing that it is actually consuming more fuel.

I don't know whether these facts are till dates brought up by anyone on T-BHP. I would suggest you to start a new thread on this.

Thanks a lot,

Regards,

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by Jignesh

Hello Audioholic,

Also I believe this is what generally advised to shift to higher gear as soon as possible.

Also I was always happy to see my WagonR running under 2000 RPM in 3rd & 4th Gears, never knowing that it is actually consuming more fuel.

See, you must shift to higher gears as early as possible. I am not debating upon that fact. But what I mean to say is that, in some cars like the WagonR with bad low end power, shifting up prematurely will just do no use. Also, you can run the car in 3rd and 4th gear at low RPMs, but in that scenario, when you want to accelerate and you press the gas pedal, the engine will struggle to pick up unless the car is going downhill or under no load. That will result in increased pressure on the acc. pedal. Obviously, to give some sort of accelaration, the engine has to increase fuelling. I usually keep the car always between 2k and 4k rpm in higher gears. Only in first and second gear this rule is not so practically possible or necessary. When the car is in this range, the slightest of throttle input will give me response, and the engine is also free to revv. I dont have statistical information or the knowledge goof enough to start a new thread so I am putting it up here just for the sake of answering some low mileage posts here.

Just try it out. You will find a difference in the FE you achieve. Under this practice, I was able to extract 15.5kmpl from my SX4 on the highway at an average speed of 90-100kmph(appropriate gear, lightest throttle input), which is good for the car's standards. Havent taken the waggie on the highway so cant comment.

[DCEite]

I am just loving my petrol hatchback which drives like a Turbo charged diesel. :-)

The kick in 3rd gear post 40 kmph and in 4th gear post 70kmph is just too addictive. Having a hard time following the run-in period. My car has done 900 kms now and waiting for 64 more kms after which i will open up her more.

[desertfox]

I always wanted to buy a Maruti, right since way back in 1985 when it was launched. A Maruti would be fun to have. I bought a Wagon R in June 2010, Fire Black REd ( Maroon ) LXI, mainly for my wife to drive. I love driving this little car at times. Till date it has clocked only 3000 km mainly driven by me, my wife still unfamiliar with RHD cars are MT cars her last Car was a Mercedese E 190 with a Straight six 2600 cc engine that delivered some 220 bhp!

Back to WagonR the guys from Maruti service are surprized why just 3000 km in almost 30 months now that is 100 KM a month! Well it goes to a mall 300 yards from my house in Gurgaon and there is no gas station on the way. I see my driver fill it up with Rs 200 worth of Petrol in a water bottel or two. SO one day about six months ago I took it out, filled it up and drove it to the Tughlakabad shooting range and back about 90 KM. The tank is still 3/4 full!
Plan to take it to the shooting range again this weekend.

[audioholic]

Currently at 45oo kms on the ODO. Low end without AC has really improved and with AC it is still sluggish. However, it is blissful to hear the three pot puttering silently and hence, I switch off AC and listen to the engine note.

The bad things first till date:

• Door pads are wafer thin, compared to my SX4. The SX4 surely has better build than the other marutis. "Expect" my waggy to rattle in the future.
• Quality of PW switches, cup holders, some other plastic parts sucks.
• Once the car picks up speed, you are not so confident in making sudden manevours, or at least I am not. Whereas in my sedan, I am quite confident of that.
• Plastic parts show up age if not dressed regularly. This from a one year old waggy of my uncle which has been beaten around for 30k already! Mine wont be so bad though
• Somehow I liked the 13 inchers on my uncle's waggy for ride quality compared to my 14 inchers. THis is obvious, but still I would prefer a higher side profile

Okay, now I am not crying about the car, as this is a mere 4 lakh rupee car and I seem to be having high expectations. Then lets come to the highs.

• Nice anti stall assistance- The car can launch itself in medium inclines without the accelarator. Just hold half clutch and the engine accelarates slowly to prevent stalling. IMO saves clutch as well as unnecessary revving.
• Accelerates all the way to glory after 2k RPM. Without AC, you can expect good response as early as 1.5k itself. No issues with engine and transmission.
• Useful electric mirrors. Neighbours are amazed by the way the car is parked everyday, in the tightest parking lot.
• Good quality, for a maruti, when it comes to the cluster, combination switches, dashboard.

Overall, a huge for
MSIL for improving this product and giving us what was needed - practicality!

[carzone]

Originally Posted by audioholic

Currently at 45oo kms on the ODO. Low end without AC has really improved and with AC it is still sluggish.

I have got 7.7k on the ODO. The response with AC of is awesome. It pulls almost from 10kmph in 3rd all the way to 70kmph till I have tested her. But with the AC on, I need to downshift to 2nd at speeds below 20kmph. With the AC off, it really is a fun car to drive.

Originally Posted by audioholic

The[*]Door pads are wafer thin, compared to my SX4. The SX4 surely has better build than the other marutis. "Expect" my waggy to rattle in the future.

SX4 has some great build quality. My uncle has a 2 year old car with about 16k on the ODO and still free of any kind of rattles. Its a pleasure to drive.

Originally Posted by audioholic

The[*]Quality of PW switches, cup holders, some other plastic parts sucks.

Exactly. The switches quality could have been better. It would not have cost MSIL more than some thousands which according to me cannot be a deal breaker for a 4L car.

Originally Posted by audioholic

The[*]Once the car picks up speed, you are not so confident in making sudden manevours, or at least I am not. Whereas in my sedan, I am quite confident of that.

SX4 is a highly stable car because of the weight. WagonR is extremely light weight and hence is unstable at high speeds. Even the slightest undulations on the road at high speeds makes me slow down. But, looking at the shape and aerodynamics of the car, I don't think this car is made for high speeds.

Originally Posted by audioholic

The[*]Nice anti stall assistance- The car can launch itself in medium inclines without the accelarator. Just hold half clutch and the engine accelarates slowly to prevent stalling. IMO saves clutch as well as unnecessary revving.

Didn't know about this. Will have to try it out. Thanks for enlightening us.

Originally Posted by audioholic

The[*]Accelerates all the way to glory after 2k RPM. Without AC, you can expect good response as early as 1.5k itself. No issues with engine and transmission.

As said above, with the AC off, it never fails to amaze me. With the AC on, I wish I had some more power on tap. Don't have a tacho(LXi) so can't comment on the RPM's.

Originally Posted by audioholic

[*]Useful electric mirrors. Neighbours are amazed by the way the car is parked everyday, in the tightest parking lot.

This is one thing other than the tacho I miss on on my car. Have driven SX4 VXi with both these features and they do come handy at times.

Originally Posted by audioholic

The[*]Good quality, for a maruti, when it comes to the cluster, combination switches, dashboard.

Though the plastics could be a bit firmer and the quality better, but I really like the modern design as compared to the older gen waggie. Wish they had utilized the space below the handbrake and above the left part of dashboard a bit better. No complaints though.

Originally Posted by audioholic

TheOverall, a huge for
MSIL for improving this product and giving us what was needed - practicality!

This car shouts practicality in and out. MSIL launched it for the person who needs more space at an affordable price and needs to travel in the city. MSIL has a winner on the cards but I wonder why did MSIL put in such a low end response in a car mainly to be driven in the city.

[rrnsss]

I am looking to purchase a wagon R as my City car. I have always been eyeing this car since 2008. But Now I may go ahead abd get it. Looking at a Lxi model. Discounts offered is 40K. Really love the soft touch clutch and the pleasant nature of this car. Hassle free driving in Chennai chaotic traffic. Was hoping to find a 2011 model in the dealer stock so that I could get deeper discounts, sadly none available,

[Jignesh]

Originally Posted by rrnsss

I am looking to purchase a wagon R as my City car. Was hoping to find a 2011 model in the dealer stock so that I could get deeper discounts, sadly none available,

Hello RRNSSS,

Yes, new WagonR K10 is really good city Car & also I have found it very stable at speeds of 120 kmph on highways.

If you are open to buying used Car then you may find good options. I myself get a October 2010 WagonR K10 VXi with 17000 in ODO for Rs. 3,10,000 in Mumbai. You should search for a similar deals in Chennai also.

Thanks,

[rrnsss]

Guys, I looked at old cars and they are being quoted at a very high price. So makes more sense to go for a new one. Is there any updated/upgraded Wagon R in the works? If so how far ahead in the future?

[Jignesh]

Originally Posted by rrnsss

Is there any updated/upgraded Wagon R in the works? If so how far ahead in the future?

Hello RRNSSS,

Updated WagonR? The currently WagonR (K10) is less than 2.5 years old & selling good numbers (infact it was selling very good number before massive petrol price hike). Also the design & build is quite futuristic & will not fade out for next couple of years.

I don't think & also have not heard Maruti looking to update the K10 wagonR in near future, atleast for next 2 years. Also Car Manufacturers seems to be more interested today in either offer new Variants in Diesel or CNG fuels.

Thanks,