Dave Baker wrote:
"Julian" wrote in message
...
"Dave Baker" wrote in message
...
I think low tech cars are just as capable of doing that, maybe more so. I
had an old A reg 1.1 VW Polo briefly as a stop-gap car a few years .
Hardly a fireball but 50 mpg was a considerable compensation.

So, better than the Prius then? And I bet you didn't pay more for it than
2 months worth of depreciation for the P... I'm sure we live in a land of
make believe reference the 'green' hype surrounding these new vehicles.

We've had debates about this sort of thing on uk.rec.cars.maintenance a
couple of times and my opinion FWIW is that much of the 'progress' in cars
over say the last 25 years has been retrograde. I have no doubt that
handling, ergonomics, comfort, safety has generally improved but all the
added complication has added weight and cost and use of resources with no
real net improvement in fuel consumption. Owner servicing and repairing is
almost a thing of the past because no one understands what the hell any of
the bits under the bonnet do anymore.

The average hatchback now weighs almost 50% more than its 1980 predecessor
and the one thing physics tells us is you can't shift extra mass from A to B
without incurring a fuel penalty. As a result the most economical cars I've
owned have been old, light ones with simple carburetors. The Polo mentioned
above which averaged 40 mpg although I could get 50 mpg if I wanted to drive
sedately and next best was a 1983 Metro even though I modified that fairly
outrageously with a 1380 engine, big valve ported head, LCB exhaust manifold
and straight through system and a rally camshaft. It had 40 bhp at the
wheels as standard and 84 bhp on the same rollers when I'd finished but it
still averaged 35 mpg over 20,000 miles despite getting the arse thrashed
off it nearly everywhere I went. My 1983 Astra GTE with a simple Bosch L
injection system averaged 31 mpg and my current 2.0 Focus with 20 years of
extra technology inside averages exactly 30.

I think modern engines are generally somewhat more economical per bhp but
all the extra weight exactly negates that.


Indeed. We use to think MG Midgets were marvellous cars.

My wifes ex-car..Fiat Punto - out performed a Midget in *every* respect.