Not sure about your previous cars, but our Fortes (assuming yours is a 4-speed) tend to remain in 4th gear until a very low speed eg 40-50kmh before it starts to downshift. And because of this, it slows down less compared to other cars.

In comparison, the Peugeot 308 Turbo tends to downshift much earlier between 55-60kmh and you get more engine braking, and a harsher feeling due to the higher rev count when it downshifts. Same case with the 207.

Don't worry about the "slow" deceleration when your car is still rolling at a higher speed compared to your old cars. When you're not stepping on the accelerator and simply letting it roll, you're not wasting additional fuel.

i'm using 6 speed... actually, i also drove a grand livina (1+ yrs old) and the deceleration is quite fast if compare to forte..
since everyone is the same, guess it's normal then..

Mine also same, but i think thats good when u r driving smooth without traffic jam.

Ya, u r right. But i still prefer white
Actually i saw my salesman branch got a lot of white forte stock, i think half of their stock is white color...... ( i'm from JB )

Well, I'm not the best gauge for a 6-speeder lol... Then again, the point that I was trying to get across was that one can have loads of fun and still have a decent (not best) FC. IMO the items I mentioned that were changed on my car do not impact FC as much as it does performance. For long outstation runs, maybe, but being faced with a wall of cars five days a week, and doing short runs most of the time, I think I'm doing ok. Not to mention redlining every other day Besides, lighter wheels are good for acceleration but not so good for long distance runs as they tend to lose momentum faster. Those electronic gizmos? I don't think they work too well below 3,000 rpm lol... Same goes to the aftermarket filter. Lower rpms only need that much CFM of air flow, so it's not meant to be a fuel saving upgrade, rather a go-faster add-on.

Since we're on the topic of sharing, here's what I do. I don't like to remain in low gears for long, neither does the car lol... I don't accelerate too gently, just fast enough to engage the next gear asap. I maintain steady throttle, which in lower gears the "Instant" meter will show me at around 14-15l/100km. Within 10 secs or so, I'm already on 6th, doing about 70-80km/h. At this point, I ease off the throttle to cruise at 80-90km/h, while feathering the throttle to keep speeds up. The Instant meter will then be showing between 4-6l/100km. I try to keep this speed or sometimes when the road opens up I go further to 100-110km/h. This can be done with less fuel consumed. I usually maintain throttle pressure such that the Instant meter is reading 10l/100km until I reach my desired speed. Then it's back to 4-6l/100km. My contention is the longer you remain at a lower Instant reading, the less fuel you will use. I've been able to maintain a steady 5l/100km at speeds of up to 120km/h on the Federal H/way. Imagine driving like that all the way to Penang, the FC would be phenomenal! The best tank I had so far was 8.3l/100km, still fully urban driving but I only redlined once throughout the tank. Ya, I need to grow up lol...

Same goes to uphill climbs. It's actually very hard to keep the Instant reading below 10l/100km while climbing as the car is not a featherweight (neither am I!). I reckon that 15 secs at 15l/100km is less taxing than 30 secs at 10l/100km. Also, by maintaining a higher climb speed, forward momentum is greater than gravity, which helps the car along rather than being in a lower gear and dragging the car uphill.

Sorry if I sounded harsh for that is not my intention either. I guess I didn't give enough information and that may have led you to think that I was suggesting to keep the Instant reading low all the time. It's just that with the Instant reading, I was able to study the engine's behaviour and how the ECU governs fuel delivery. For instance, I'm able to tell at what speeds the injectors are totally shut off while cruising to a stop. It's actually quite fun to see that gauge go to 0l/100km, it's like even better than a Hybrid! Free miles and smiles

Why I brought this up is because many drivers tend to shift to Neutral when coming to a stop. Or, if you were driving too slow before releasing the throttle, the car won't shut off the fuel at all. The moment the gears are disengaged, the engine needs to find other means to keep from stalling, hence fuel is used. Keeping the car in gear, momentum drives the engine, therefore, no fuel is needed at that point. This I believe, is only a fairly recent development (prolly only the last 8yrs or so). Older EFI cars (no need to mention carbies) tend to feed the engine regardless of cruising to a stop or otherwise. I've found that to enjoy a longer fuel cutoff period, my car has to be cruising from 80km/h or faster. With a downhill gradient, I can get it to cutoff even at 60km/h. Downshifting to 5 or 4 helps. For clarity's sake, cruising means taking my foot off the throttle and letting the car's forward momentum keep the car moving, while keeping the car in gear.

Anyway thanks for your clarification and hope to share more nuggets of common wisdom with you

Peace.

@gregy Wow, you really do know your car well.

Have you ever experienced a mild shudder during the fuel cut off slow down cruise?

Eg. While throttle off cruising from 110 kmh, at some point around 85-90, there is a slight shudder/jerk sensation.

Funny thing is, it does not happen all the time, consistently. Comes & goes. Perhaps more apparent while climbing up an incline/slope during this slowing down cruise.

Was wondering could it possibly be:

1. A/C compressor cut in/out
2. Gear change - downshift

Appreciate your thoughts.

This post has been edited by Lanchio: Sep 29 2011, 10:42 AM

@Lanchio

I have the same problem as well for my 6-Speed forte. It started happening after my 10k service, before that it was all good. I feel it more during traffic jam, when I pick up lightly then decelerate, I feel pretty jerky and it's not really a problem, but annoys me once a while.

what you guy think of a Forte 4 speeder(new car) 2.0, 2011 price @ RM80k?

---

Added on September 29, 2011, 11:49 amI tried both 1.6 and 2.0.. maybe experience not long enough... I don't really feel a big different between them.. any of you experience of this 2 engine can share an experience?

This post has been edited by BuFung: Sep 29 2011, 11:49 AM

u got to be kidding....2.0 at 80k??? i will even trade in my 1.6 for that!!!

nope. it's an old car. new registration but manufactured date maybe 2009/10
where got 4speed nowadays? use common sense already know.

manufacturing date is old.. that is correct...

the car sitting in car show room for already several months..

it is a new car...

I am NOT kidding you...

new forte still got rattling sound problem? or we need to get lucky to avoid that?

i dun think the 4spd version 2.0 have that...coz car is at least 90% CBU

Thanks, I'm still learning about the car. Thankfully, no Korean-inspired surprises lol... It behaves like any other Japmobile out there in terms of engine response and driving behaviour. IMO the Forte could have been a better handling car if it came with multi-link suspension at the back instead of trailing arms, but other than that I have no complaints.

I have yet (touch wood!) to experience any judder while coasting (actually this is the accepted term for moving forward without throttle input, and not cruising as I typed last night in Zombie mode). This juddering was quite apparent on my previous ride, a 2006 Civic FD. At that time, I could replicate that judder quite consistently. All I had to do was drive off from standstill, throttle off, coast a bit then step on the brakes. Very common to encounter this sort of start stop driving in daily traffic.

What happens (I believe, based on observing the tacho) is the moment I step off the gas, the ECU allowed the car to coast, since it detected sufficient forward momentum. Then when I hit the brakes to come to a complete stop, there is a rapid momentum loss. The tacho would dip to around 550rpm before coming back up to 700-750rpm in idling mode. It is during this brief moment that a slight judder could be felt from the engine, being the transition period between coasting and idling. It's as if the ECU was a bit drunk and responded too slow to the change. The faster I brake the more pronounced the effect.

A similar juddering effect also happens when the AC in my Civic kicked in during idle. The tacho dips a bit, causing a mild shiver, before the ECU sends a signal to increase fuel to counter the load from the AC. Sucky. My friend's Myvi has a more elegant solution. Just before the AC kicks in, the ECU raises engine speed slightly, then when the AC kicks in, idling speed comes back down. In this case, no juddering is felt since the engine never dips below 600rpm.

With the Forte, this occurrence has yet to manifest itself, probably in a few years when the fuel management system starts to age it could happen. It could also be due to clogged injectors or a clogged petrol filter. Only time will tell.

As for your case, I believe it has nothing to do with idle shudder/judder since the rpm is still quite high. AFAIK, since our AC compressor is the rotary type, the kick in effect is very gentle (as is the case with my car) compared to the piston type. Then, from 110km/h down to 90km/h, the car should still be in 6th so I don't think downshifting is the cause.

IINM, what you're experiencing could be the transition between acceleration (pulling the car forward) and coasting (engine being pushed by the car). When there is no positive energy to propel the car forward, the car is in fact slowing down on its own, being dragged by various loads until eventually coming to a complete stop. Try this, switch to the Instant mode, then observe the reading when you throttle off. It won't cutoff the fuel immediately, taking a brief one to two secs before you see that meter slowly go down to zero. In my case, yes I can feel a change between pulling and pushing forces (engine braking effect) but it can't be described as a judder.

If the juddering gets worse over time, it could be a sign of premature wear on the gearbox or somewhere within the drivetrain. Why not try out somebody else's Forte and compare? Maybe go to a dealer and test drive

hey guys, wanna ask a question
i found out that the amount 85,800 is included RM100 for plate number,
so if i buy the plate number myself then will the seller refund back the RM100 to me?

Thanks for the input. Yah, I think that it's most probably due to the transition between coasting & loss of momentum (due to incline/slope). The ECU most probably sense this & added fuel. So far this 6 speed G/box has been nothing but impressive. Gear ratio fits the torque nicely & the almost instantaneous shifting using paddles is amazing. Literally on demand shifting, as & when you need it.

Also agree with you on the handling. The rear torsion beam can be snappy during turns. Initially I though it was starting to oversteer but realised was not going too fast, nor too sharp a turn to oversteer (in a front wheel drive on top of that). On slow sharp corners, this Forte can snap back to centre rather quickly

Only thing I find irritating is the fuel mixture is lean (suspect CO=0.6 to meet emission laws) & SC cant help to richen the mixture.

Correct me, but I doubt the car is running lean as it might overheat the engine. In fact, running lean would actually make the car more powerful. But just curious, how did you come to the conclusion that our cars are running lean? And in what ways is it irritating you? My interest is piqued

As for gear ratios, I find first and second a little too short. Would have preferred being able to touch 100km/h on 2nd

any sifus know about this?

Hmm, so far I've never gotten back any rebate for this even though I bought my own number. Did I get cheated?

no. cannot get back.

Anyone here interested to buy KIA keychain??