Thanks for the explanation, Humps. It confirms my own ideas - which are correct in theory at least.
Small sidenote on the 'lower revs equals better economy' though.
How about driving up a steep hill? No doubt, you can imagine that at some point when running in a high gear, you can only keep your pace by depressing the accelerator further and further. I imagine that as large quantities of fuel being burned in order to get the most power out of each stroke at those low revs. And there certainly is a point where these 'slow large sequences of detonations' are less efficient that 'smaller faster sequences of detonations'.
(Yes, I'm ignoring the fact that the engine has a power band too, below which it runs lousy anyway)
Well, enough of this. I'll just run in whatever gear suits me best. Doing about 50mph in 5th is not a situation in which you can react to traffic, IMO. So if I want that, I run in 4th. But when I'm 'not going anywhere', as Steve puts it, I'll happily stick to 5th. Heck, my boss is paying my fuel anyway
I can go up that 12% hill in 5th with less than 1500rpm and full throttle! Never mind the smoke behind my car
Happy cruising!
Edo
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(2003 Silver 1.4 Tdi Exclusive(SE), 95bhp/235Nm chiptuned by ABT, black interior, sport seats, heated mirrors, TomTom3 PDA Satnav, JVC KD-SH909RB cd-receiver, Infinity Kappa 63.1 + Vifa on-dash tweeters, 12" Subwoofer on 300w Amp)