(16-04-2012 09:28am)Token Wrote: There was a thread on here in which someone mentioned that driving the Evoque in Sport Mode (to avoid confusion, selecting 'S' on gearbox rather than selecting Dynamic mode) returned better MPG than having the car in 'Drive'...of course, this cannot be the case so I set out to discredit it...but as it turns out, it is true!
I recently covered 1,500 miles in 'Sport' returning 30mpg...the previous 1,500 miles done in Drive returned 29.2mpg...this is good news, because the driving experience, throttle response, and gear changes are much improved in 'Sport'.
The driving done during each period was very similar, but there are some points to note of course:
1. I drive the car quite hard and as such, maybe this suits 'Sport' better than 'Drive'...if one was to drive in a more Range Rover fashion, maybe Drive would return better results
2. I have now done 7,000 miles and it's possible that fuel economy is improving as time goes by, and as such the 2nd 1,500 miles was maybe bound to return better economy than the first 1,500 miles
This is in no way a scientific test but I would suggest that based on the results, the fuel economy in both modes is very similar (close enough to make no difference)...so I shall be driving in Sport mode from now on as the driving experience of the car is so much better, no matter how you drive it.
There is one remaining question, is there any other potential harm being done to any of the components of the car by driving in 'Sport' all the time? (one for the clevel people on here)
And another question, what impact does Dynamic setting have on economy...anyone done a test?
P.S. All above based on SD4 on 20" wheels
I think you may have 'hit the nail on the head' regarding your driving style suiting 'Sport' mode best. Sport mode changes up more quickly, and avoids 6th. gear, so, maybe, these gear changes are occurring at times more appropriate to your intentions. I think you are also correct that 'granny-style' driving might be better in normal 'Drive'. I tend to drive in a way which is anything but sporty, and am probably nearer to 'granny mode', and, consequently, get better mileage than either of your results. I am therefore probably better off in 'Drive' myself. However, I am sufficiently intrigued as to give 'Sport' (which I've never even tried!) a go for a while, and see how it goes! One thing is for sure, it won't do your car any harm other than any long-term implications of pushing components that bit harder, but you are doing that in 'Drive' anyway.