Driving a HDI diesel

[Welly]

Muffindell, it was mjb's fault he changed the subject to Petrols. Eric joined in here (being a Petrol head an all).

....carry on.

[Eric]

Eric, the subject relates to the HDi406 which is diesel, not petrol as you think. Most diesels red line at high 4k - 5k, most petrols (unless it's a Jap screemer) red line at 6k-6.5k.

Mat

Yup I guessed the HDi was a Diesel when I last filled up ;)
So I also know where diesels redline and I also know most 8v petrols have usable power to around 5.5k with a 6k (+ a little bit) redline where as 16v petrol generally have a slightly higher rev limit due to the 2nd cam profile and the power band being slightly higher for economy.

And I didn't start the petrol head talk as Welly said

Also I'm quite enamoured with tractors now I own one, I'd be very suprised if I go back to petrol.
Although I will be buying an oil burner with a little more go next year.

[Welly]

I'd be very suprised if I go back to petrol.

ERIC - Wash your mouth out with soap - you know you didn't mean that.

Although I will be buying an oil burner with a little more go next year.

Oh yes, what's all this then? tell me more fella. Hey, why not get yours mapped??

Welly

[Eric]

I'd be very suprised if I go back to petrol.
ERIC - Wash your mouth out with soap - you know you didn't mean that.

Yes I know, it shocked me when I said that, but I'm starting to realise that performance and economy can be had together although in slightly diluted form.
Also I quite like the easy and relaxed low end torque of a diesel, sometimes needing to get the engine above 5k on a 16v petrol for it to go was a bit of a pain.
I do miss the rev range in the diesel sometimes, it's annoying to have to change gear just as things are getting tingly - But for cruising which a lot of my mileage is, Diesels are far easier and more relaxing to drive.
I've also found myself being relaxed and serene after each trip in the HDi rather than explosive and hyper charged after driving the 306.

Although I will be buying an oil burner with a little more go next year.

Oh yes, what's all this then? tell me more fella. Hey, why not get yours mapped??

Welly

I could get it mapped but it'll still be an economical diesel that wasn't designed for performance so although improved a different diesel car would have to be the answer for me.

TBH: I'm really not happy with a 0-60 sprint time of more than 8 seconds, it makes me unsettled on dual carriageways and busy junctions with the speeds of traffic around.
I'm also used to some fairly swift performance, my GTi-6 was the slowest car I've owned for a while, before that the MR2 was 0-60 in 5.4 (That's standard 220BHP I was running closer to 300BHP.) the Rover Turbo was a 7sec flat sprint to 60, the Nissan 300ZX Twin turbo was a high 5 second car to 60.
Now I'm in the HDi, which is lovely to drive but just too slow for me.

I think the next car will be a 330D, 530D or E280-E320 Merc.
At least then I can get all the toys I like, a good ride, reasonable economy and handy performance.

All made possible by my shares that I can sell next year from my company

[Welly]

Mmmm, I got sick of revving my Honda. It got quite frustrating in the end where I couldn't be bothered with all the effort, the noise etc.

Diesel cars are very good cruisers. I was amazed at how quickly the HDi would reach 80MPH, and then just sit there at about 2600 revs

I do know exactly what you mean here though Eric as I have been caught many a time exiting a roundabout up a dual cariageway and wishing I had more BHP/Torque to join the run more easily, you catch up eventually but far too late.

A 530/330d would be just the job I feel but beware of certain areas of concern, mainly the Turbo, the MAF and the Crankcase breather filter set up. The lads over on BMWland have produced loads of useful info here.

A friend of mine has got a 55 reg E280sport and it's a lovely motor, sounds awsome with it's multi-cylinder engine

There is something about driving the HDi that does make you relaxed, over relaxed sometimes! I find myself charging through the most impossible gaps with a sense of superiority and unfussed.

[Eric]

Mmmm, I got sick of revving my Honda. It got quite frustrating in the end where I couldn't be bothered with all the effort, the noise etc.

Diesel cars are very good cruisers. I was amazed at how quickly the HDi would reach 80MPH, and then just sit there at about 2600 revs

I do know exactly what you mean here though Eric as I have been caught many a time exiting a roundabout up a dual cariageway and wishing I had more BHP/Torque to join the run more easily, you catch up eventually but far too late.

A 530/330d would be just the job I feel but beware of certain areas of concern, mainly the Turbo, the MAF and the Crankcase breather filter set up. The lads over on BMWland have produced loads of useful info here.

A friend of mine has got a 55 reg E280sport and it's a lovely motor, sounds awsome with it's multi-cylinder engine

There is something about driving the HDi that does make you relaxed, over relaxed sometimes! I find myself charging through the most impossible gaps with a sense of superiority and unfussed.

Yup exactly how I feel.
The GTi-6 was great but always with the rev it from 5k- just over 7k to go and sometimes I just wanted a quiet relaxing drive home after doing a long day at work and with the Koni suspension and stainless exhaust with decat that car was anything but quiet and relaxing ;)

I've seen the horror stories about the BMW turbos going
Scary stuff, but it looks like it's the 325td before 04 that had a design fault and the later ones fixed the issue.
Still scary stuff.

[rodney]

Hi I have a 2.0 HDI, if your doing 30 ish stay in fourth it better on fuel you should get about 51-52 mpg at that and at 45mph you can hit 3rd but the turbo should'nt lag in 4th at that speed are you shure that the waste gate valve is working ok?? can you hear the turbo sing when you put your foot down,mine goes like a bat out of hell

[muffindell]

Yeah, mine goes very well too, not much passes me and looking back at some of the quotes I ask why would anyone worry about a 0-60 time on a dual carriageway, surely you would be moving on it to start with? 0-60 times are a useless indication of performance, unless you're a traffic light freak! In gear performance is more relevant to everyday performance and the 406Hdi does very well in that area. Put it another way, my wife's Mini Cooper cannot keep up with me on on in gear performance, but does accelerate very well from rest. Get a remap - the car will pull smoothly to redline without problem, it will also give better fuel consumption (about 8%); long term effect on engine, well that's very subjective but estimate approx 1-2% less on total life, and since the engine should last 250K+ I don't consider it to be a problem.