MY 2010 SD4 automatic, 2.2 litres.
Driving style average, over mixed roads.
I get 35.5 mpg (note Imperial/UK gallons). For interest, compare this with my previous car, a BMW 320d touring automatic, where I got 39.5 mpg with the same driving style and road mix.

Apart from the economy and pollution issues, note that a diesel has a lot better torque / mid range pull than an equivalent petrol engine. Brian

MY11 FL2 SD4 GS
Extras to same spec as XS apart from the Satnav, plus Xenons.
Ipenema Sand, Ebony.

TexFreelander wrote:

athelstan - hey if you wanna come to Texas I'll take you to the shooting range

steady on a bit fellow, At work
At home

"I can't always believe facts I read on the web" - Charles Dickens

winner by default of the tractor vs caravan race

lets keep this on topic

different countries, different laws mean different attitudes towards things  Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

Way to go athelstan, promote international relations by tarring everyone with the same brush. Whilst I don't agree with their gun laws I'm sure not everyone is what you have so graphically described.

EDIT: Sorry Nick, I was writing before your post

I did not "tar everyone with the same brush" - I descriptively nominated a specific segment of a community, as opposed to saying that all Americans do not know which end of the candle to light.

what's a candle??? At work
At home

"I can't always believe facts I read on the web" - Charles Dickens

winner by default of the tractor vs caravan race

And clearly there are some amongst us in the UK who should be permitted to hold a firearms certificate.

And, I agree with the sentiments of Mr Pinks - let's keep it on topic. The OP raise the scenario of the police force and gun carrying and their opinion on that subject. I simply replied with my thoughts on that issue, and, to their kind offer of some firearms practise.

Back on topic.

my 2011 sport LE seems to be doing 38.4MPG normally but it did drop to 33MPG the other day on a 220 mile motorway run sitting at 75-80mph with three adults on board and a full boot.

I always wonderd why our American cousins persisted with petrol, now I know, is there any particular president or lobby group to blame.

As an aside I understand that most americans are shot in their own homes with their own guns, quite often by a family member accidentally.
Anyway our laws are no more sensible, someone runs wild with a rifle and a shotgun so the goverment react by banning all legally held pistols, a lot of people I know took up archery when they had to give up their guns and as they pointed out they had a better chance of dropping a burglar with a compound bow, which was completely unlicenced and then they could simply retreive the arrow and walk away.

I also ride motorcycles and the goverment keeps picking on me for that too, because the border around my number plate is too narrow, not the font or spacing or colour of the characters or because I have altered the letters to spell a word or any of the other things that people do to car number plates. SD4 Sport LE Firenze Red - no options or modifications yet, but it's early days.

athelstan wrote:

And clearly there are some amongst us in the UK who should be permitted to hold a firearms certificate.

I have one , but it will lapse as I no longer have the .22 rifle I required it for At work
At home

"I can't always believe facts I read on the web" - Charles Dickens

winner by default of the tractor vs caravan race

athelstan.....Why.......I know, you like a bit of trouble....

Sh*t and fan spring to mind.

1) 2009
2) 2.2 TD4
3) Normally commute through town of 6 miles followed by 10miles of country lanes. Weekend use with the caravan
4)Manual
5)Around 35mpg for the normal use, mid 20's towing around the peak district, high 20's towing on motorways and flatter A road's.

athelstan wrote:

I did not "tar everyone with the same brush" - I descriptively nominated a specific segment of a community, as opposed to saying that all Americans do not know which end of the candle to light.

EY - your percentages.............do you really believe that 40% of Americans posses little intelligence? I will research this calculation at the weekend with two Americans that are staying with us for Easter. Being in their golden 60's they will have had sufficient exposure to their fellow countrymen to express a view on that 40 percent.

Mr B S - no.

-o0o-

But I am surprised by the fact that many of you feel that it is "inappropriate" of me to express an opinion on a point of view that has been raised on a public forum. Interesting that on this day when the founder of the internet expressed his fears that governments are no longer respecting one of his founding principles; in that that the neutrality of the net must remain neutral for all to express their opinion without fear or favour.