Corolla 1.4 D-4d Engine Type And Mpg.

[Paulq]

I have recently bought my first Toyota - a 2005 Corolla 1.4 D-4D with 16k miles on the clock so am looking forward to many years of reliable motoring even though I cover approx 18k miles a year. I have a number of questions about the car if anyone is able to answer them:-

1. In the manual there are a number of engine types and I don't know which engine type is in my car - how can I find out?

2. What grade of oil should I be putting in and is it normal for the car to burn a little oil?

3. Finally, having read much about this particular model's famed fuel economy I'm a bit disappointed with it to be honest as I reckon I'm really only picking up about 50mpg as opposed to other people who seem to be getting in the upper 50's low 60's. Toyota's quoted combined figure is 58.9 which I am nowhere near at the moment. I don't hammer it on motorways and tend to keep to around 65mph so am a bit baffled.

Thanks in anticipation for all help.

Paul

[AidanKildare]

I have recently bought my first Toyota - a 2005 Corolla 1.4 D-4D with 16k miles on the clock so am looking forward to many years of reliable motoring even though I cover approx 18k miles a year. I have a number of questions about the car if anyone is able to answer them:-

1. In the manual there are a number of engine types and I don't know which engine type is in my car - how can I find out?

2. What grade of oil should I be putting in and is it normal for the car to burn a little oil?

3. Finally, having read much about this particular model's famed fuel economy I'm a bit disappointed with it to be honest as I reckon I'm really only picking up about 50mpg as opposed to other people who seem to be getting in the upper 50's low 60's. Toyota's quoted combined figure is 58.9 which I am nowhere near at the moment. I don't hammer it on motorways and tend to keep to around 65mph so am a bit baffled.

Thanks in anticipation for all help.

Paul

Hi Paul,

You have the 1ND-TV engine. You should use ACEA B1, API CF-4 or CF. You may also use API CE or CD (according to the manual). Something along the lines of Castrol Edge 5W 40 should suffice. My car is similar to yours. The oil level drops to about half between services but most of my driving is cruising on country roads. Some oil useage is normal but it shouldn't need constant topping-up. With easy driving I can get up to 70 mpg but motorway driving will reduce that figure. My average is between 58 and 65 depending on my mood. You could try resetting the average fuel economy reading before each drive and try to see if you can modify your driving style to improve the average figure without other road users being inconvenienced. Having a lighter right foot might not necessarily decrease your speed but might reduce your fuel consumption.

The quality of the fuel that you use has an impact. Experiment, and see if you can notice a difference in the rattle at idle, the power produced, the smoke in the headlights of the car behind when accelerating (at night, hopefully!) and your fuel consumption when using different brands. Cheapest isn't always best and some brands are markedly different.

Hope this helps...

[Paulq]

I have recently bought my first Toyota - a 2005 Corolla 1.4 D-4D with 16k miles on the clock so am looking forward to many years of reliable motoring even though I cover approx 18k miles a year. I have a number of questions about the car if anyone is able to answer them:-

1. In the manual there are a number of engine types and I don't know which engine type is in my car - how can I find out?

2. What grade of oil should I be putting in and is it normal for the car to burn a little oil?

3. Finally, having read much about this particular model's famed fuel economy I'm a bit disappointed with it to be honest as I reckon I'm really only picking up about 50mpg as opposed to other people who seem to be getting in the upper 50's low 60's. Toyota's quoted combined figure is 58.9 which I am nowhere near at the moment. I don't hammer it on motorways and tend to keep to around 65mph so am a bit baffled.

Thanks in anticipation for all help.

Paul

Hi Paul,

You have the 1ND-TV engine. You should use ACEA B1, API CF-4 or CF. You may also use API CE or CD (according to the manual). Something along the lines of Castrol Edge 5W 40 should suffice. My car is similar to yours. The oil level drops to about half between services but most of my driving is cruising on country roads. Some oil useage is normal but it shouldn't need constant topping-up. With easy driving I can get up to 70 mpg but motorway driving will reduce that figure. My average is between 58 and 65 depending on my mood. You could try resetting the average fuel economy reading before each drive and try to see if you can modify your driving style to improve the average figure without other road users being inconvenienced. Having a lighter right foot might not necessarily decrease your speed but might reduce your fuel consumption.

The quality of the fuel that you use has an impact. Experiment, and see if you can notice a difference in the rattle at idle, the power produced, the smoke in the headlights of the car behind when accelerating (at night, hopefully!) and your fuel consumption when using different brands. Cheapest isn't always best and some brands are markedly different.

Hope this helps...

Thanks very much for your reply it's really helpful.

To be honest I am a bit concerned about the fuel consumption as I reckon I am actually getting about 660 miles to a tank which, when you convert tank capacity to 12.9 UK gallons, equates to about 51mpg which I am really disappointed with. This week particularly I have kept very light footed and to 60 mph on motorways and get the same return.

Is it likely there is something wrong with the car? I previously owned a Focus 1.8 TDCi which I got better mpg from.

Thanks again.

Paul

[AidanKildare]

Here in Ireland the quality of diesel is very mixed. My car runs far better and economically on some brands over others. Try the reputable brands one by one and see if you notice any improvement. Mine runs best on Shell with Esso a reasonably close second.

The only other suggestions that I have are to give it a good hard burst of acceleration through the gears at least once a week especially if driving gently the rest of the time. Make sure that you have the correct air filter and that its not blocked (it shouldn't be after 16k miles but worth a look). Make sure that your tyres are at the correct pressure (32 psi all around when cold). Don't carry a roofbox unless its necessary and get it serviced at a reputable garage who'll use the right oil, filters etc. Apart from that I don't know what to suggest. There are other cars in the class that'll use less fuel but if you look at the lifetime running costs of the car you'll be well ahead with the Corolla - a few mpg don't really matter.

My fuel guage is very pessimistic and gives the impression of a limited range - I've never had the courage to run the car too far on 'empty' but there's always been at least 15 litres left in it after the needle has been at Empty for a while. Make sure that you're calculating your mpg on litres/gallons used, not the distance travelled between refills as it will otherwise appear short.

Apologies if some of the above is stating the obvious.

[Geriatric]

My average annual over three years has between 53 and 55mpg. It is pretty well all short journeys and is about 10mpg better than my 1.9ZX. I consider my return at over 50mpg very good. I have the MMT box and l let it get on with it most of the time but working it manually I get about 3mpg more.

[David 1998]

I only get 400 miles to a tank