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Old 10-19-2011, 03:59 PM   #6 (permalink)
svc
EcoModding Lurker
 
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Finland
Posts: 10

C5 III HDi - '11 Citroen C5 HDi SX
90 day: 38.47 mpg (US)
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Thank you all.
I've been following the costs of my cars quite thoroughly already few years.
Fuel is always the greatest cost and therefore easiest to cut. So my point is not so environmental but more about money. Of course reducing fuel consumption lowers also relative emissions.

This also leads to a bit selfish conclusion that the costs of all modifications need to be paid by the mod itself in reasonable time.

PSA's DW10 ATED engine used in my car is already quite economical considering it's design age, so it's not easy to better the economy with very dramatic numbers. It seems that best ecomod is to let my wife to drive. She clocks easily around 51 to 52 mpg.

And naturally Nordic winter is a challenge. At -20 C fuel economy is anyway something else than ECE or EPA numbers. Modern diesels tend to need an auxiliary heaters to keep the cabin warm which also raises the fuel consumption even 0.5 liters / 100 km. That's around 10% worse in all measures.

One mod could be to make another fuel tank for the heater which would also allow to use regular heating oil instead of more heavily taxed diesel fuel.

Hotter thermostat is possible in cooler climates. Ease and cost of change depends much of the engine itself. Some manufacturers do not use standard thermostats and in that case the price can be easily 100-200 euros. Raising the engine temperature betters the economy via better thermal efficiency at least in theory. How much, it's difficult to say. My estimate is less than 1%. Then again it may help to keep the cabin warmer without auxiliary heater.
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Every man needs his toys: Citroën C5 HDi + Saab 9-5 2.0 BioPower
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