S3 mpg

[recomdos]

Hi all,

Sorry for asking as I bet this has been discussed a lot, but I can't seem to get the search facility to return common feedback on people's MPG returns on the new S3's. Anyone have a link to a thread / want to give me what they're finding. Ideally driving steadily as it would be the other half driving most the time.

Cheers!

 

[oli356]

Stats on my PFL. Motorway journeys are usually low to mid 30s, though the FL can get better with its 7th gear it seems. My average of 29 is quite high I'd say but I do a fair few motorway journeys, my 8 mile work commute I'm happy to get 27 ish, 25 ish is average maybe (winter not helping ofc), 30 is basically highest i've got for it. My highest for any one journey was 41 or something like that over 180 miles.

 

[recomdos]

Super - thanks for this.

 

[Ron240]

The above is pretty much spot on I would say.
I also have an 8 mile commute to work and around 27 or 28 is what is to be expected.....with Winter temperatures having a negative effect on this.
Short journeys kill mpg.

 

[Adam14]

FL here. Average around 37mpg but majority of my commutes are dual carriageway so a lot of steady cruising

Sent from my SM-G965F using Tapatalk

 

[Daz4311]

Jesus....ive never got better than 25mpg

 

[AlS3BE]

Jesus....ive never got better than 25mpg

Me too

 

[Svenedin]

I have the FL. Around 38 mpg at the moment on Winter tyres. More like 43 mpg in Summer. This is motorway/dual carriageway over about 80 miles. In town, awful mpg. Maybe 20 mpg. If having fun rather than commuting mpg drops to about 33 mpg for motorway.

 

[oli356]

Jesus....ive never got better than 25mpg

Have you never been on a dual carriageway / motorway not cruising at like 120 then lol?

 

[TYb]

3 door FL, S tronic, average over 25k Miles is 33.8, during summer it was around the 36mpg mark but has dropped off in the cold.

The majority of my driving is motorway commuting, I do get caught in the Bristol rush hour on the way home which doesn’t help either. The economy only really seems to kick in once I’m up into 7th gear.

 

[winrya]

Mines (fl 310)averaged 34mpg for its first 4500 miles. Recent temps, lights on, heated seats, heaters has knocked a good 6mpg off my cruising consumption.

 

[Tictap]

My fl saloon is averaging 30.2 mpg mixed driving.

 

[Pook]

27 average, 13 mile commute, mix of roads.

 

[wab172uk]

Never taken any notice of what mpg I get. If I was that concerned about mpg I wouldn't have bought a 300bhp 2.0l turbo car.

But, I get about 350-400 miles per tank. What ever that works out to be?

 

[Audi Bairn]

So many variables but for what it’s worth:

In my 2 year old FL Saloon S Tronic

Previous commute (pre-Christmas) was 20 miles on back roads 60 and 30 mph limits returned 28 mpg

Current commute (since Christmas) is also 20 miles on main roads and short section of motorway (30, 40, 60 & 70 limits) returns 35 mpg going and 32mpg coming home due to slightly heavier traffic.

Had over 40mpg on long drive up to Inverness as it’s 60/70mph sections under average speed cameras on the section from Perth to Inverness

 

[Daveotto]

Over 2 x S3 SB's (both PFL) and 1 x S3 FL Saloon and a total of about 35k miles with a general mix of all types of driving I averaged 32mpg in each car.

For comparison getting around 29mpg in the Cayman over the first 1500 miles

 

[golty]

32.8 mpg in 8500 miles on a 2018 FL. Awful MPG in stop start traffic but pretty good a motorway cruise, 40+ is easily possible if you keep it at 70

 

[Svenedin]

Never taken any notice of what mpg I get. If I was that concerned about mpg I wouldn't have bought a 300bhp 2.0l turbo car.

But, I get about 350-400 miles per tank. What ever that works out to be?

I quite agree. For 310 hp it doesn’t absolutely guzzle petrol like a sailor swilling beer on a run ashore so I don’t really pay that much attention.

 

[Ron240]

This is the way I see it.
In recent years I have become used to owning nice powerful cars and working my way up to this one, which is the most expensive I have ever owned but just slightly less powerful than my previous car, although it does accelerate faster.
None of these cars have offered exceptional fuel consumption, but relatively speaking they are actually pretty good. To give an example of that my 2005 Focus 1.6 petrol with 115bph returned similar mpg to my newer cars which had 250bhp plus.....and actually worse than a later Focus with 180bhp.
I am in the fortunate position of living close to my workplace so my weekly commute is only 80 miles, but if I had to travel significantly further then I would have to seriously consider the car I drive because I wouldn't want to be spending upwards of £50 per week on fuel alone.
So no the fuel consumption was not a factor in me buying this car, but only due to my personal circumstances.

 

[Han4mi]

I get 44 mpg on average from my 2018 S3:

My best so far is 52 mpg:

 

[Ron240]

I get 44 mpg on average from my 2018 S3:
My best so far is 52 mpg

While these figures are impressive, even the lower one is not a realistically achievable target for the majority of owners.

 

[AlS3BE]

I get 44 mpg on average from my 2018 S3:

View attachment 173922
My best so far is 52 mpg:
View attachment 173923

There are days I would be happy getting half that

 

[Dh1990]

I get 44 mpg on average from my 2018 S3:

View attachment 173922
My best so far is 52 mpg:
View attachment 173923

No idea how u achieve these figures I’ve got a 2018 fl also , I’ve tried once or twice on a long run to get a good mpg , never got above 35 and that’s not thrashing it at all , I wouldn’t of bought it if I was bothered about the mpg however . Just happy to own one really

 

[IgorFB]

Does efficiency mode make any noticeable difference? I mainly drive in Auto.

 

[winrya]

Does efficiency mode make any noticeable difference? I mainly drive in Auto.

I’ve tried and the only time I notice any difference is whether the gearbox is in sport or drive. Comfort/efficiency/dynamic when in d I always end up the same

 

[HertS3]

I would've thought efficiency mode would give you slightly better figures (due to the coasting feature) but I don't think it would be a huge difference. I drive in efficiency mode a lot on school run (especially nowadays as there's a temporary 3 way traffic light which I have to pass on the way there and back!).

 

[Adam14]

I've done a few commutes to work to keep variables as similar as possible and think I got a higher average MPG of around 0.3, as opposed to just driving in dynamic. Drove the same, so no harsh acceleration, pre emptive release of gas etc. Never use it anymore as just makes the accelerator really sluggish,

 

[HertS3]

I leave it in efficiency for the missus for that very reason, she's not used to the power lol

 

[Han4mi]

No idea how u achieve these figures I’ve got a 2018 fl also , I’ve tried once or twice on a long run to get a good mpg , never got above 35 and that’s not thrashing it at all , I wouldn’t of bought it if I was bothered about the mpg however . Just happy to own one really

There are a few factors that determine how efficiently you drive. It's important not to accelerate too aggressively. Efficiency and coasting are an option for lazy drivers, I keep mine in dynamic all the time and still get awesome mpg. You need to know the road well, so making the same commutes before and after work helps a lot. This allows you to think ahead and reduce the speed before you hit a corner etc. I use my brakes as little as possible. Basically I keep my foot on the gas just enough so the engine doesn't brake. The car deaccelerates most efficiently this way. I always leave distance between me and the car in front or overtake them. Never drive closely behind them, not only for safety but also efficiency (if they brake you will brake too, regardless if it was necessary or not). Always use the highest gear possible, but never below 1400 rpm. Sometimes the stronic gearbox holds 6th too long, I switch it up manually if the road conditions allow for it (don't do it if going uphill).

Some people might laugh that this is stupid and I should have a different car for saving fuel, but it's really the best of both worlds for me in the S3. For daily commutes to work I have an efficient cruiser which consumes the same amount of fuel as most petrol cars. When the weekend comes or I want a little fun I put the gearbox in S and enjoy the sporty drive.

 

[Han4mi]

Does efficiency mode make any noticeable difference? I mainly drive in Auto.

Tested this and the difference between efficiency and dynamic (gearbox in D, not S) is barely noticeable. Efficiency makes everything dull and slower to react. If you know your car well it won't make any difference.

 

[Han4mi]

I would've thought efficiency mode would give you slightly better figures (due to the coasting feature) but I don't think it would be a huge difference. I drive in efficiency mode a lot on school run (especially nowadays as there's a temporary 3 way traffic light which I have to pass on the way there and back!).

Letting off the accelerator a bit (not completely, just enough so the engine doesn't brake) is more efficient than coasting in most scenarios.

 

[IgorFB]

Tested this and the difference between efficiency and dynamic (gearbox in D, not S) is barely noticeable. Efficiency makes everything dull and slower to react. If you know your car well it won't make any difference.

Dynamic puts the gearbox in S by default right? Do you then flick it back to D? Sorry I’m new at this!

 

[Han4mi]

Dynamic puts the gearbox in S by default right? Do you then flick it back to D? Sorry I’m new at this!

Yes, that will do the trick. It will also go into D by default if you restart the engine.

 

[Damo S]

Depends how you drive it. The claimed mpg figures are achievable if you drive sedately and have an efficient driving style, and I think this is easier in a manual as you can get it into 6th early and stay there (which the engine is more than happy doing at low revs). Start booting it and fuel will disappear rather quickly, which is how most people drive them and that is fair enough.
They are also complex engines for which the ECU does a good job of trying to compensate for running problems without telling you about it, and this can can result in much poorer fuel economy than you would otherwise get.

 

[dragon]

30k miles average of 36mpg.

FL Stronic

 

[Ron240]

With all this talk of mpg and gearbox settings I decided to try something.
I use the Individual settings - gearbox on auto, suspension on comfort with everything else on dynamic.
My commute to work is only 8 miles so engine is only starting to approach normal working temperature by the time I get there, which is never good for recording fuel consumption. Anyway I get between 26-28 mpg for this journey at this time of year.

Today I changed gearbox to dynamic which put it in S mode (I believe it will be in D when I start my car after work) and done my normal journey to work.
Result was 22.6 mpg.
I will see what I get on the way home, but I have already decided that dynamic with S mode does not suit my normal gentle driving style. The gearbox takes too long to change up (3000rpm) and is far too quick to change down.

P.S. The above figures reflect badly on my ability to drive economically, but like I've said before short journeys kill mpg.

 

[Han4mi]

With all this talk of mpg and gearbox settings I decided to try something.
I use the Individual settings - gearbox on auto, suspension on comfort with everything else on dynamic.
My commute to work is only 8 miles so engine is only starting to approach normal working temperature by the time I get there, which is never good for recording fuel consumption. Anyway I get between 26-28 mpg for this journey at this time of year.

Today I changed gearbox to dynamic which put it in S mode (I believe it will be in D when I start my car after work) and done my normal journey to work.
Result was 22.6 mpg.
I will see what I get on the way home, but I have already decided that dynamic with S mode does not suit my normal gentle driving style. The gearbox takes too long to change up (3000rpm) and is far too quick to change down.

P.S. The above figures reflect badly on my ability to drive economically, but like I've said before short journeys kill mpg.

This engine needs to get warm before you can get decent economy out of it, it's terrible when cold

 

[Pook]

Yea Dynamic and S gearbox is reserved for when you want to hoof it, it is a lot of fun but not for your everyday driving I don’t think.

 

[Damo S]

This engine needs to get warm before you can get decent economy out of it, it's terrible when cold

So are all cars to be honest but at least the s3 gets up to running temperature very quickly (exhaust heating the coolant). It takes a good 15 miles or so of driving before the oil is at operating temperature and that makes a difference to the economy as well (although not as much)

 

[Jassyo06]

Like @Daveotto l have had S3's for the last 4 years 32 mpg over 39k miles