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[YcMing]

Hi there,

I think i am in the process of buying another forfour, but this time a cdi. I am doing 140 miles return trip each day with say 30 miles of that is in town.

Could i ask what sort of mpg are people getting? Currently I have a charade which returns 50 mpg, so if the cdi can do 60 mpg + then it's a great value for me to move over.

And is the engine capable of doing high miles? The one i am looking to get has already done 115k.

Thanks
ming

[Scoobysook]

Hello.
High miles are not a problem. But mpg maybe similar. It obviously depends on how you drive it. Mine is mapped and gives about 45 I find.

[YcMing]

I drive it at between 70 - 80 mph, for the whole journey, would that give closer to the 60 mpg mark ? Also is road tax 110 ?

Thanks
Ming

[Ocracoke]

The road tax is £110 p/a if the car was originally sold with 15" alloys and/or air-conditioning I think. Those without these tend to sit art £30 p/a (typically, these are Pulse spec cars).

When I was weighing up which 454 to get originally, the CDI was appealing and if I was doing more motorway miles (I used to do about 100 miles a day for work with about 95% of that on the A55 in North Wales), I might very well have bought one with a Semi-Automatic gearbox but then my office closed, so I ended up getting a 1.3 S-A instead, which driven in a calm manner, gives perfectly respectable economy as well.

I can't see why, in either S-A or Manual flavours, the CDI won't manage approximately 60MPG but as noted, it isn't what speed you cruise at, it is how you get there and how well you stay there

[CrazyG]

I agree with all the previous comments re how you drive and the type
of route, traffic etc etc.

My remapped S-A CDi can delivery over 600miles per tank at a constant
60+mph...but most of my driving is either 'spiritedly' up the M25 to S2smarts
and my model slot car club (twice a week), or playing hard with the other
cars around town, where a full tank lasts me 350-400miles....
And my manual CDi (unmapped at the time) showed a fuel consumption
figure on the multi-function screen of 72.8mpg average at a constant
70-80mph when I drove it down from close to Donnington race track
down the M1 to my home.
Hope that gives you some guidance.

[YcMing]

You guys are super informative . I think i know enough now! Going to work, i am never in rush to go fast thanks . At 60MPG it is a massive increase to my charade and car is pretty cheap as well.

Thanks
Ming

[YcMing]

Forgot to add if it can get 450 or above it means i only need to fuel up once a week. Currently in the charade i have to do it 3 times a week as it got a small tank!

[YcMing]

I have owned a smart cdi for less than 30 mins than the engine blew up! Got my money back.

Now got a colt auto diesel after doing some reading,  I am worried about the auto box?

Anyone got any experience with the 44 diesel auto box?

Thanks

[CrazyG]

Same engine and semi-auto (AMT actually...Automatted ManualTransmission).

I've had my CDi AMT for well over 7 years....and never had a major
issue with the AMT.  Once maybe twice it dropped into 'N' at a junction
or traffic lights, but that was becasue it needed the clutch adjusting.
Just ensure that the clutch is adjusted every year at the service interval
on the correct equipment. Not sure what Mitsi use, but for Smart it's the
Star machine.

Word of advice...never put the car into 'N' when at traffic lights or in a
stream of slowly moving traffic (motorway jam type)....just apply the
handbrake. And if ever you have trouble engaging 'R', select A, and
then smoothly but swiftly pull the selector across and back into R in
one fast fluid movement...do not pause at N.

And if it ever needs a new clutch then it will without any shadow require
a new dual mass flywheel as well.

[YcMing]

That made me feel better now!  Thanks for the tip about the n and r.

How much do you pay to get the clutch adjust?  This one already had new flywheel. And clutch.

Also do you find at low speed,  low Rev the gear change is not as smooth as mechanical automatic , hope that makes sense.

Thanks
Ming

[CrazyG]

Understood....
But you have to understand that this is no 'normal' automatic.
It is an Automatted Manual Transmission....it has an actuator that
presses the clutch lever, whereas a 'normal' auto has a fluid
flywheel transmission that 'soaks up'/smoothes out any gear
changes.
The most notable change is down the AMT gears....2nd to 1st
can at times when in a traffic crawl can be felt as if hitting a brick
wall....especially so in a CDi rather than the petrol versions.

As for cost of clutch adjust...it depends who does it.
If it were a Smart...and it was at an independant, then it should
be inclusive in the yearly service. Otherwise about £40-60.
MB would be more. But as you've got a Mitsi Colt, then I can't
really say.  But no matter what, it must be set up properly on
Mtis's version of the Star machine, or expect to have problems
and issues.

[YcMing]

Thanks, I'll need to find somewhere that does it!

[YcMing]

Doing a lot this weekend with the both car.

I have the diesel got a fuel filter.  Are these easy enough to change? 

Thanks

[Scoobysook]

Yes. There' a guide to search for. It's behind the air box take it off and the scuttle panel by the bonnet. It's held by one clip to the body, 2 pipes with clips. Best to get some fresh diesel to fill and prime the filter and aid a quick start.

[CrazyG]

As Scoobysook rightly points out...there is in fact a guide
for this.....
http://www.forfour.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=548.0

Please please  do take the time to look in the 'childboards' of each
section of the car for any guides you may require...or....when you
get some spare time look through each of those to familiarise yourself
with where things are located for future reference. Or....
use the search engine....details on how to use that are in the:
Forum Info & Help section.