"Oh no" Not another MPG Thread!

[popin]

2002 Golf GT TDI 150

There seems to be a lot of interest in how many MPG we get out of our vehicles, and rightly so with the price of Petrol & Diesel.
It has just got me thinking, we are all replying to threads posted on this subject but how do we get the definitive answer?
I personally do not reset my Multi- function Indicator(MFI) after each tank full. I feel that to get a true average of my fuel consumption, it should be over a longer time period and mixture of the journeys that I do in my vehicle. That being said we don't all do the same journeys, we don't all drive the same way, and the traffic conditions may not be the same each day. All these factors affect your MPG
I replied to a thread posted on 19th Feb by Nutty and made a mistake with my average mileage, it should read 43.9 MPG. I don't think that my car gives a bad return for the journeys I make; of cause I would like more! but at the end of the day, don't get caught out thinking that your car is not performing as it should just because someone has said that they get x amount of MPG out of their car. Think about the way you drive and the journeys you do. You can only make comparisons with like vehicles and like journeys.
Do you reset your MFI after every tank full?
Do other people take their reading from the Single journey memory(1) or the Total journey memory (2).
In my opinionall posts quoting figures on MPG should be taken from Total journey memory (2) Average fuel consumption and not current fuel consumption. And not being reset after every tank full.

Other considerations to take into account are:-
Your tyre pressures
Your tyre size
Are your brakes binding
Do you have your car serviced regularly
Is your air con on all the time

Just makes you sit back and think!

Whats your thoughts?

[Time Dependant]

I drive a 1.9 GT TDi o3 plate 80 miles a day round trip to work (40 miles there 40 miles back) and average anywhere between 50MPG to 54MPG this is dependant on how fast I'm driving of course. It's 80% motorways and I probably do an average speed of 80MPH I don't reset the MFI so I get a true reading of my all round trip from start to finish.

I'm on the standard 15" alloys and continental tyres which if I'm honest are wearing thin and need changing and realigning due to the car pulling left but to me that is a superior MPG from a car which is pretty heavy in weight and large in it's engine size.