29.4mpg
 

I got 29.4 mpg on a 80 mile trip, in DS 8th gear. Who needs a hybrid
;)

diesels are only 6-speeds so you're talking about a gas engine? "300hp" = 35i I suppose. That's sweet... wish I had those 2 extra gears too. While cruising and feathering the gas, I can't even get the MPG needle to go above 30 without slowing down too much.

What kind of wheels are you on? 19" RFTs?

My meters were at 50 mpg, 75 mph, 1100 rpm, all at the same time. :wow:

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Going downhill section of the interstate, foot off the gas. :bustingup

Who needs to mess with the dirty diesel?

It's interesting how different people have different expectations on what "good" fuel consumption is. I've driven my dad's X5 35d on a 90km (about 55 miles) stretch of I-95 averaging 115km/h the whole time and still got 7,7 l/100km (30,5 US mpg). And that's with the ancient diesel engine and older 6AT. If I had the 40d I would probably do better.

I complain about the fuel economy on my X3 because it only achieves 8,2 l/100km (28,6 US mpg) on level highways and the long-term average listed below is 22,6 US mpg. For my standards this is too thirsty- my next vehicle has to do better than 5 l/100km or 47 US mpg on the highway. Salesmen look at me funny when I tell them that......but it's completely possible!

It's all in the driver technique- often I'm still one of the faster, if not the fastest vehicle on the stretch of highway. So my "hypermileing" doesn't necessarily come at the expense of speed.

We diesel owners are getting trolled these days .
You posted MPG of 80 mile trip, where a significant portion of it was downhill? Come on..

I have reached 99.9MPG on my Altima once going down a mountain pass. Should have made a thread about it, and conveniently not mention the mountain pass portion of it.

Maybe I should go up to Snoqualmie Pass in my 35d, reset the trip odometer on top, drive down for 20 minutes (many times in neutral), take a picture of the MPG reading, and post here :D

one time got 29 on the trip computer form home to The Dalles OR. more like 28 on a normal trip 35D

I have the 19 rfts. My x has about 15,000 miles now. I noticed that at 60 the truck was using more gas than at 70. When I put in DS I realized it was not in 8th gear most of the time at 60 so I put it in 8th for the rest of the trip. Travelled from PA to NJ so you have a sense of the terrain. This is not a troll thread, I invite anyone to do the same, use 8th gear and given my truck is one of many this should be repeatable.

I observed that even when going uphill, there are times the mpg gauge is doing over 30mpg.

FYI my speed was between 60 and 70 on this trip.

I've probably posted this previously in so many words, but I for one am delighted with the improvement in mileage I've seen in driving my 35d. My basis of comparison is my old gas fueled (4.4i) E53. In fairness, I probably shifted the 6 speed steptronic manually a lot more in the old car. Driving the Diesel, I notice that I can just leave the trans in sport mode and I don't need to shift manually very often. Anyway, I drive pretty much a 50/50 mix of flat freeway and mountain driving. I'm getting close to 30 MPG on the freeway, and around 17-20 in the hills. Both are much better than my old X5.

As for the 8 speed vs. 6 speed question, there is no doubt the 8 speed should yield better mileage and keep you running in the meat of the engine's powerband more of the time. But in the case of a diesel, I'm just not sure the 8 speed would do much to improve either the performance or mileage of a car with an engine that has 425lb ft of torque on tap. Comparing my car to my wife's 535i Xdrive with the 8 speed (300/300 gas engine) I totaly understand why the 8 speed rocks. But I'm not sure anyone with a diesel is missing to much by not having one.

Ok, I take my words back about trolling. Your first 2 posts had very little info, so had all the signs :).

I have traveled from Philly to NJ coast last summer, so I have an idea of the terrain. It's mostly flat with few hills - at least compared to W.WA.

You owe the forum to fill up the tank, and take a looong trip somewhere ;).
If the 8th gear trick works, you should get 600+ miles on a tank.

:iagree:

300hp,
No dis to the OP, but reeling 'mpg' numbers from the OBC is like saying what the Dow is doing, at any minute, on a spikey trading day, imo.

I remember your thread about your SC to NJ trip, and your 'mpg' was also noted via the OBC, at different intervals...but, do a half dozen tanks full, do the arith, and report your real world mpg, if you wish to.

It will not be "29+ mpg" on any tank, unfortunately. No arm wrestle intended, but gas X5s don't average 29, on a tank...

My best tank, a repost of the pic:
GL, mD