Which engine 1.4 or 1.5

BigJase88

Jase
Apr 20, 2008
3,767
1,069
I use Tesco Momentum. I know its not vpower but still 99 ron and better than running it on 95

Guess i will book it in

My long term on dash shows

1380 miles
35.7mpg
34mph average
43hrs 41 mins driving time

Would upload a picture but deleted my photobucket years ago
 

BigJase88

Jase
Apr 20, 2008
3,767
1,069
Oh and when its cold yes a lot of steam or whatever coming out the back end only for first couple of miles
 

SilverPilgrim

Active Member
Apr 3, 2019
57
24
UK
Like some others here, I would also recommend the 1.4 TSI with ACT (cylinder de-activation).

Had the 1.4 ACT (140PS) in my previous Ibiza and even after a remap it would do 45mpg commuting and 50+ in motorway driving. Very smooth and responsive.

Regarding a performance hit, I know that the Leon is a heavier car but not massively so. The 1.4 TSI has lots of very usable torque and is more than capable of shifting larger cars in the VW group range such as the Passat, Touran and various Audi & Skoda saloons.

As long as you aren't regularly carrying 4+ people and/or loading the boot up fully, then you should never feel that you are lacking in power.

Don't be put off if you are looking at the 1.4 and see different power outputs (140 vs 150PS), as you will not notice a difference in day to day driving.

As for the transmission, that would be entirely down to your preference as I think the fuel consumption difference between manual and the DSG is negligible.
 
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BoomerBoom

Active Member
Jun 1, 2018
692
251
Oh and when its cold yes a lot of steam or whatever coming out the back end only for first couple of miles

No, that's normal - it's if you have a constant dribble of liquid water emerging that the mixture is wrong.

I was following a brand new polo the other day, along a dual carriageway for several miles so the car was clearly hot, but when it pulled away from a roundabout a gush of water came out of the exhaust. I'll bet his fuel economy was pants as well.
 

BigJase88

Jase
Apr 20, 2008
3,767
1,069
No, that's normal - it's if you have a constant dribble of liquid water emerging that the mixture is wrong.

I was following a brand new polo the other day, along a dual carriageway for several miles so the car was clearly hot, but when it pulled away from a roundabout a gush of water came out of the exhaust. I'll bet his fuel economy was pants as well.


So whats the problems with this GPF then?
Dud’s from the factory?

I have no idea if i have a constant dribble of water. As i cannot see the exhaust tip when driving. But can only notice the steam / water or whatever it is for around the first couple of miles. After that it clears up
 

KXL

KXL
Dec 15, 2016
1,581
197
London, UK
Well, the GPF 'restricts' the engine a bit in a bid to lower emissions, but it could also reduce mpg. My personal experience with petrol brands/types...I usually use Shell/Esso/Jet/Texaco regular 95 Ron. Esso 97 gave me smoothest engine, Vpower gave me most mpg (according to trip computer). Momentum 99 didn't give me anymore mpg compared to the branded 95 RONs. Plus I read that Mometum gets 99RON via ethanol unlike the Vpower, which is a true 99RON. Or so this article below says:
https://www.raccars.co.uk/news/are-you-a-fuel-snob
Perhaps switch away from supermarket fuel for a few tanks and see if things improve?
From your figures, unless you drive exclusively in the city (London city that is) the figure as other suggests should be in the 40s mpg wise.
 
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BigJase88

Jase
Apr 20, 2008
3,767
1,069
I tried the 50mph in 6th on a flat road and instant mpg was between 40 and 50 mpg. Average of about 45mpg

I live rural pretty much so driving is a mixture of a and b roads, even on a 200 mile motorway trip with cruise control set at 70mph returned mpg for the trip was 42 mpg
 

KXL

KXL
Dec 15, 2016
1,581
197
London, UK
Ouch, even my Volvo V40 which I consider the most un-economical 1.5turbo (old school torque converter Auto) out there, does 45mpg in those conditions which I thought was very poor. Flat road @ 50mph gives me instantaneous about 50-55mpg, whereas Ibiza EcoTsi gave me 65-70mpg. @Rallynav should be the figures should be what the 1.5 Evo 130 can expect... does yours for some odd reason not engage 2 cylinder mode or something? Eg...on the dash, does it show '2 cylinder' mode at all, or the eco leaf symbol?

I take it you have a manual and change gears around 2000-2500 rpms?
 

BigJase88

Jase
Apr 20, 2008
3,767
1,069
Ouch, even my Volvo V40 which I consider the most un-economical 1.5turbo (old school torque converter Auto) out there, does 45mpg in those conditions which I thought was very poor. Flat road @ 50mph gives me instantaneous about 50-55mpg, whereas Ibiza EcoTsi gave me 65-70mpg. @Rallynav should be the figures should be what the 1.5 Evo 130 can expect... does yours for some odd reason not engage 2 cylinder mode or something? Eg...on the dash, does it show '2 cylinder' mode at all, or the eco leaf symbol?

I take it you have a manual and change gears around 2000-2500 rpms?

Yes its a manual 1.5tsi 130 evo
Yes i changed gears at about that rpm. Probably in 4th gear about 35-40
5th gear 45-50
6th gear 55-60

And im nursing it trust me
Yes it does engage 2 cylinder mode, pops up on the central display part of the dash with the eco symbol, generally your only engaging 2 cyl mode on a downward non load slope or on an almost flat surface with very little engine load
 

KXL

KXL
Dec 15, 2016
1,581
197
London, UK
Is it still less than 2500 miles on the clock? I feel your frustration 'with nursing it.' Never had to do that with the 2.0TDI Leon I had (light food, medium foot, lead foot, get within 5mpg). 1.0TSI (light foot, medium foot, within 5mpg). 1.5T Volvo (light foot, medium foot, within 15mpg, oops)....

Perhaps put a tankful or 2 of Shell Vpower and see if that 35mpg average creeps towards 40?
 

BigJase88

Jase
Apr 20, 2008
3,767
1,069
Is it still less than 2500 miles on the clock? I feel your frustration 'with nursing it.' Never had to do that with the 2.0TDI Leon I had (light food, medium foot, lead foot, get within 5mpg). 1.0TSI (light foot, medium foot, within 5mpg). 1.5T Volvo (light foot, medium foot, within 15mpg, oops)....

Perhaps put a tankful or 2 of Shell Vpower and see if that 35mpg average creeps towards 40?
Mileage is 4400

Yeah i know what you mean my old civic type r was 27 mpg heavy foot, 30 mpg light foot

I always went with the heavy foot option
 

nickbrown_500

Active Member
Dec 6, 2009
134
4
Nottingham
Cheers for all the replies, pretty much answered the question that there isn't much between the engines. So its more which ever one I find at the time.

Cant help but notice while currently looking that there seems to be more 1.8 TSI leon with DSG fitted, at exactly the same price as the 1.4 TSI.

Guessing to the majority the 1.8TSI may not be as sought after.
 

SRGTD

Active Member
May 26, 2014
2,388
1,279
Cheers for all the replies, pretty much answered the question that there isn't much between the engines. So its more which ever one I find at the time.

Cant help but notice while currently looking that there seems to be more 1.8 TSI leon with DSG fitted, at exactly the same price as the 1.4 TSI.

Guessing to the majority the 1.8TSI may not be as sought after.

I have the same 1.8 EA888 engine in my VW Polo GTI (slightly higher power output in the Polo GTI than in the Leon). IMO, it’s a great engine - good performance and also economical for a 1.8; I regularly get around 43 - 45 mpg in daily use and more on a long run. Insurance on a 1.8 Leon is likely to be a bit more expensive than a 150 bhp 1.4 or 1.5 Leon though.
 

ima

Active Member
Apr 6, 2014
53
7
I have the same 1.8 EA888 engine in my VW Polo GTI (slightly higher power output in the Polo GTI than in the Leon). IMO, it’s a great engine - good performance and also economical for a 1.8; I regularly get around 43 - 45 mpg in daily use and more on a long run. Insurance on a 1.8 Leon is likely to be a bit more expensive than a 150 bhp 1.4 or 1.5 Leon though.
I wish my mpg was close to that in my 1.8 st. I can’t get better than 33mpg average of mixed driving which is exactly the same as when I had the same engine in the Polo GTI!

Saying that it is a great engine and much more enjoyable than the 1.4 ACT I had before.
 
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DAN@ADRIAN FLUX

Active Member
Forum Sponsor
Sep 27, 2016
301
71
Hi.
If you need any help with insurance at all for any model your looking at then please feel free to drop me a line.
Regards,
Dan.
 

BigJase88

Jase
Apr 20, 2008
3,767
1,069
Basically the 1.5 is the new 1.4

Also with the 1.5 you can get the newer spec 18” wheels instead of the old spec.

New spec wheels generally indicate its a 1.5 new spec. But there can be changeovers

This is my one


05-A4985-D-8-C1-A-4-C36-B7-B1-826-EE9-D4-ABC5.jpg

30-BB32-E3-21-B5-4812-9-BB5-A63-C9-CCBA247.jpg
 

G.P

Active Member
Sep 3, 2011
1,241
38
Worcestershire
I wish my mpg was close to that in my 1.8 st. I can’t get better than 33mpg average of mixed driving which is exactly the same as when I had the same engine in the Polo GTI!

Saying that it is a great engine and much more enjoyable than the 1.4 ACT I had before.

What was your average MPG in the 1.4 ACT?
 

ima

Active Member
Apr 6, 2014
53
7
About 42 mpg in same conditions but into the mid 50’s on the motorway. It was a very economical engine. However power was all over by 4000 rpm whereas 1.8 really waking up then so I never feel like I’m willing the engine on like I did in the 1.4. If that’s not your thing the 1.4 was a great engine of its type.