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Old 03-27-2020, 09:36 AM   #1
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Freightliner LBCU fuel use accuracy

On longer trips I have tracked our miles an fuel usage on the LBCU unit which has 3 trip meters in it.
The 3 meters are labeled as: TODAY, LEG, and TRIP.
I set the TRIP meter for the entire trip, I use the LEG meter for fill up to fill up. The TODAY meter is reset each morning.

I then look at the LEG meter fuel usage to know about how much fuel I'll need to pump and mpg I'm getting.

It seems that I always need to add at least 10% to the number of gallons the LBCU unit says I used. That also makes me feel not quite so good about the mpg it says I'm getting.

Any one else do this and have any experience to share?
Thanks in advance.
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Old 03-27-2020, 09:54 AM   #2
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A lot of things are factored in such as generator usage while traveling however if you're not using the generator, your readings are about the same as mine. A very long time ago I quit trying to calculate my mileage. All I do now is look at the fuel gauge and when it gets low, I fill up the tank and not concern myself about mileage.
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Old 03-27-2020, 10:11 AM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LJowdy View Post
A lot of things are factored in such as generator usage while traveling however if you're not using the generator, your readings are about the same as mine. A very long time ago I quit trying to calculate my mileage. All I do now is look at the fuel gauge and when it gets low, I fill up the tank and not concern myself about mileage.
Same here!
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Old 03-27-2020, 10:19 AM   #4
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I have had three different units in the past 15 years and neither one has been accurate. I currently have an Allegro Bus on a Powerglide chassis. It registers at least 20% better mpg than actual. I just stopped resetting it years ago. I even had it replaced when the coach was new and the replacement was no different. I now have the Silverleaf unit that tells me more than I need to know about the engine including fuel used, fuel remaining and mpg. It is right on with the important things with the engine, but the mpg accuracy is no better.
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Old 03-27-2020, 06:13 PM   #5
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Thanks for the reply's, was about what I expected.
I'll most likely keep using the gallon used + 10% information for fill ups.

A couple years ago in Amarillo, I had a truck pump not shut off when full and I got a shot of diesel from my back pocket down to my shoes. Never stood with by back to the filler cap since. Too many engines running to hear the tank getting full. If I had been watching the gallons, I would have known it was about full and probably only got the diesel on my hand and arm.

I went inside with my diesel soaked pants & shoes to let them know and the girl at the counter DGAS, (didn't give a shxx) but said she could smell me.

Perhaps I should have offered not to call the fire dept. to report their defective equipment and fuel spill if they agreed to not charge me for my fill up. But I wanted to get on my way.
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Old 03-27-2020, 06:32 PM   #6
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I also found my LBCU reads about 10% high. I added a Scan Gauge D to my instrumentation. You can manually enter a correction factor into the fuel consumption calculations, so after about 10 fill ups, I now have calibrated fuel consumption indicators. I like keeping track, it's just the way I roll.
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Old 03-28-2020, 07:32 AM   #7
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I'm amazed at how accurate mine is. I reset at every fillup and it is always +/- 1 gallon on how much fuel is taken.
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Old 03-28-2020, 03:21 PM   #8
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Yep,
I too quit worrying about fuel mileage a long, long time ago. All it does is depress me. If I wanted fuel mileage when traveling, I'd have kept my VW diesel bugs which never, ever went below 42 mpg, no matter what kind of load was in it. As for the coach, yep, when it gets low in fuel, I estimate about how many gallons I got left, (with some form of reserve) and, look on the map to see if I can make to a given spot/town. These things are rolling gymnasiums with the aerodynamics of a building so, we just fill it when it needs it, and try and have fun.
Scott

P.S. Yeah, we too have both the Medallion Information Center that can display the fuel mileage, trip and all that. And, we also have the Trip-tek camera overlay on our monitor. It will display all that garb too. Again, just to depressing. Fill it when it needs it. Go and enjoy life.
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Old 03-28-2020, 04:22 PM   #9
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Be kind to your Freightliner LBCU. That sucker quits and your looking at $500 plus.
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Old 03-28-2020, 04:31 PM   #10
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No worries about mpg. I simply watch the trip odometer and fuel at about 700 miles, or 1/3 tank. I do however keep a log and occasionally do the math, then usually head straight to the liquor cabinet.
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Old 03-28-2020, 04:47 PM   #11
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"alank"......On my 2014 Dutch Star with LBCU, it was exactly like yours, showing about 10% less than what I was actually using in fuel. That was straight engine use, no other fuel usage, such as the generator. I also run the SiverLeaf vmpsc program and could see they were almost 1 mpg apart in mileage, with the SilverLeaf being more accurate at less mpg.

Fast forward to my 2019 Dutch Star, with the new glass dash, the fuel and mileage has been almost spot on. It's a little off when I do some long hard hill climbs on a tank. I too use the information for fill-ups so that when I get close, I can stick my ear close to the opening and hear the fuel backing up. I no longer try to squeeze in that last drop and shut the pump off.
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Old 03-28-2020, 05:36 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by alank View Post
On longer trips I have tracked our miles an fuel usage on the LBCU unit which has 3 trip meters in it.

The 3 meters are labeled as: TODAY, LEG, and TRIP.

I set the TRIP meter for the entire trip, I use the LEG meter for fill up to fill up. The TODAY meter is reset each morning.



I then look at the LEG meter fuel usage to know about how much fuel I'll need to pump and mpg I'm getting.



It seems that I always need to add at least 10% to the number of gallons the LBCU unit says I used. That also makes me feel not quite so good about the mpg it says I'm getting.



Any one else do this and have any experience to share?

Thanks in advance.


Yes it is usually at least 1 to 1.5 mpg over what I actually calculate manually
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Old 03-28-2020, 07:48 PM   #13
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Diesel down to 2.09/gal up here in the N.E.
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Old 03-29-2020, 12:43 AM   #14
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No fancy tech in my ‘02 Dutch Star! When I bought it 8 years ago I spent about a half hour setting up a few spreadsheets to keep track of things. I use the same recording system I have for the past 55 years— jot down the odometer on the fuel rec’t. In the coach, I keep the odo and the generator Hobbs meter. The sheet separates out the gen fuel and gives me net fuel to engine. I can mentally calculate how much fuel I need within +/- couple of gallons.
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