Fuel requirements D90 Puma - Birdsville/Poeppels Cnr to Innamincka

[MuzzyDelta90]

In the midst of planning our Trek to the outback and I will be taking my MY2012 D90. The part of the trip that we really have to plan the fuel requirements for is west from Birdsville to Poeppel's Corner via Big Red, then south along the K1 track to Clifton Hills and then across to Innamincka. I have the standard 60 litre tank in my beastie and will be using jerry cans to supplement the fuel load.

Have any fellow forumites done this in their Defenders, and if so, how much fuel did you require. I realise that conditions can vary enormously out there. The other vehicle I am going with is a 4.2 diesel Patrol which has a 120 litre tank and planning another 2 x 20 litre jerry cans as back up. I have 2 x 20 litre jerry cans plus 2 x 10 litre plastic fuel container giving me a total of 120 litres. Will this be enough for a D90?
cheers
Andrew

[debruiser]

Are you towing a trailer?

[Leroy_Riding]

cant say I have ever been out that way (although it is planned!)
general rule for me at least if I am traveling in a place like that is to take my cars worst fuel efficiency, then work out KM's to that then double it so.

if im going 500kms and my worst consumption from a tank has been 13l/100km then I would take 130Lts of fuel, this way I know I have enough, in event of super bad consumption, loosing one jerry to a puncture or something like that.

Thats just me, I am sure other people will have differing opinions though.

Leroy

[Lagerfan]

Can't help you on the numbers but one lesson we learnt on our recent trip was a loaded D90 does get through the fuel. We were running at about 10.5l/100km pre-trip but with the roof rack, second spare, roof top bag, 3 x fuel jerrys, 2 x water, bull bar, rear bar, bikes and all our other cr@p on board (my guess is about 650kg all up) we went up to 14+l/100km at times.

[MuzzyDelta90]

Nope, not towing a trailer - I believe that it's not recommended for the SA desert areas, and I believe that it's just extra weight and stress on the vehicle that it doesn't need. I am not going to try and load it up too much, but we do have to carry food, fuel, water, and grog. Everything else is optional, well maybe we do need a tent, bedding and cooking equipment etc etc

[gusthedog]

Remember to take wine in bottles! Goon bags (casks) wear through and leak. Tinned beer does the same and you have to cool bottled beer. I'm a big fan of Shiraz. Spare t-shirt or rag around the bottle and voila! :)

Oh and get a long range tank tight ass :)

Jerries in the back of a 90 will severely limit your space. And they're too bloody heavy to pour in a deefer anyway!

[MuzzyDelta90]

I also do a lot of hiking where you take everything along on your back - kitchen, wardrobe, bathroom, bedroom and wine cellar. Plastic wine sacks are good because carrying glass bottles is dead weight - what you carry in, you carry out. However, quality wine is decanted into plastic bottles to save weight. You really learn to travel light this way - and it's a really invaluable skill when it comes to packing overseas travel bags and also cars for big trips.

I know jerry cans can limit space, but I can't justify spending thousands of dollars for fuel tanks that will only get used infrequently. I found that the smaller 10 litre containers can be stashed away in small spaces and a few of these are more space friendly than the bigger 20 litre ones, plus, as you say, they are easier to poor. But then again, jerry cans got Rommell across the Western Desert in the African campaign during WW2 - although I hate to think how many jerry cans you need for a Panther tank.

[Rustbucket]

Interested to hear of people's fuel consumption experiences as we are doing the same trip W-E. Have been told we must carry 160 liters. Patrol 4.2 180-200 liters.

[Lagerfan]

I found that the smaller 10 litre containers can be stashed away in small spaces and a few of these are more space friendly than the bigger 20 litre ones, plus, as you say, they are easier to poor.

This is a good idea, also much easier to put up top if you are storing them on the roof, saw a lot of folks doing this in the NT. Personally had no trouble using the 20l (metal) Jerrys up & down from the roof and re-filling from them but ask me again in 10 years... Just make sure to use any jerrys from up top asap to get that centre of gravity down closer to where it should be and minimise stress on the roof rack.

After our experience I would start with a 400km per full tank on the D90 and work from there, with the standard 60l tank basically assume 15l/100km and then anymore is a bonus. Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it!

[Bushie]

By my quick calcs you are looking at just under 700kms at your 120litres should be plenty, it allows your consumption to go out to 17l/100 and I couldn't see you getting anything like that.
Other than the stretch from Birdsville to Poeppels, you will mostly be running in swales and across floodout type of country ie fairly flat, certainly Warburton and Walkers crossing are flat.

Running a fully laden 110 I've rarely approached anything like that type of consumption.

see
http://www.aulro.com/afvb/multi-state-reports/61384-edjits-tour-madigan-line-2008-a-3.html#post829154
http://www.aulro.com/afvb/multi-state-reports/157021-beadell-bombs-other-blasts-edjits-tours-bushies-report-2.html#post1761676
http://www.aulro.com/afvb/queensland-reports/110894-edjits-cape-york-trip-2010-a-2.html#post1316213

Just have a look at the average consumption the individual legs may not mean a lot due to combinations of LR tanks/jerry cans etc


Martyn

[Loubrey]

This is a good idea, also much easier to put up top if you are storing them on the roof, saw a lot of folks doing this in the NT. Personally had no trouble using the 20l (metal) Jerrys up & down from the roof and re-filling from them but ask me again in 10 years... Just make sure to use any jerrys from up top asap to get that centre of gravity down closer to where it should be and minimise stress on the roof rack.

After our experience I would start with a 400km per full tank on the D90 and work from there, with the standard 60l tank basically assume 15l/100km and then anymore is a bonus. Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it!

Lagerfan,

Not much extra info on the fuel requirement for this trip, but you can achieve pretty decent range in a 90 with jerries without spending the money on the aux tanks. I used to carry 55 liter (main) + 35 liter (Front Runner LHS) + 80 liter in 4 jerries as per the picture. The previous owner installed the aux tank as I would never have been able to afford it in those days!

The 90 has always been happy carrying the jerries on the roof regardless of people's opinion on centre of gravity. I worked and toured with that configuration for many thousands of kilometers through Africa. The tent, 4 jerries and the luggage obviously overloaded the roof (not too clever), but the 90 took it all in its stride.

The pictures are from a Botswana tour around 1998 with the LROCSA...

Cheers,

Lou

[Lagerfan]

Hi Lou,

I've got no problem with jerries up top, just very limited experience! But they worked a treat for us recently, so much so I'm keen to get another double holder and do exactly what you've done in those pics. I was just passing on the advice we got which was to use the ones from up top first and as soon as is practical to get the weight down.

MuzzyDelta was saying about having some stored inside the 90, not sure I'm keen on that option, space & stink!

Cheers,
Heinz

[steveG]

Recently did Mt Dare to Birdsville via Rig road and Warburton Crossing which was 750 odd kms, and would be pretty much the same split of dunes and flat as what you've got planned.
Used 95L in the county, and a Puma 110 we were travelling with was getting similar but usually slightly better consumption on other legs so I'd guess it would have been about the same for that.

Steve

[Loubrey]

Hi Lou,

I've got no problem with jerries up top, just very limited experience! But they worked a treat for us recently, so much so I'm keen to get another double holder and do exactly what you've done in those pics. I was just passing on the advice we got which was to use the ones from up top first and as soon as is practical to get the weight down.

MuzzyDelta was saying about having some stored inside the 90, not sure I'm keen on that option, space & stink!

Cheers,
Heinz

Hi Heinz,

Yes agree with you on using the "rack" fuels first to drop the weight as quick as possible. I still carry a coil of transparent 3/4" reinforced hose for siphoning the fuel straight from the jerries while on the rack. As the guys posted, far too heavy to try and pour! I usually use the two outer ones first as well to reduce the rolling moment, however that's relatively small.

I've got a "jiggle" valve fitted on the suction side and a stopcock (90 degree full shut) about 500mm from the bottom end for more control over the flow. The "jiggle" valve is often a PITA though and I usually end up siphoning "old school", hence the transparent hose... Australian diesel is IMO the worst tasting in the world! (Maybe I'm just getting old...)

Cheers,

Lou

[n plus one]

Recently did Mt Dare to Birdsville via Rig road and Warburton Crossing which was 750 odd kms, and would be pretty much the same split of dunes and flat as what you've got planned.
Used 95L in the county, and a Puma 110 we were travelling with was getting similar but usually slightly better consumption on other legs so I'd guess it would have been about the same for that.

Steve

Interesting, I just ran the French West to East in a Puma 110. Track was in poor condition and I averaged 17.9/100 in the sand (ie 91l for 507km).

To the OP, you'll get much better running the K1 as it parallels the dunes. Birdsville to Peopels is pretty easy going - our speed tripled over this section compared to the earlier sections of the French.

You won't get any fuel smells using metal jerry cans.

[carlschmid2002]

cant say I have ever been out that way (although it is planned!)
general rule for me at least if I am traveling in a place like that is to take my cars worst fuel efficiency, then work out KM's to that then double it so.

if im going 500kms and my worst consumption from a tank has been 13l/100km then I would take 130Lts of fuel, this way I know I have enough, in event of super bad consumption, loosing one jerry to a puncture or something like that.

Thats just me, I am sure other people will have differing opinions though.

Leroy

I agree. I now have 140 litres of fuel in tanks and I can carry 2 x jerries on my Rijidij rear bar. I usually carry water on the rear. i have always found my 90 would do 400km for a standard 60 litre tanks no matter what the terrain. With the extra tanks I can now plan safely on 1000km. I am not a fan of carrying jerries in the vehicle. They leak and make a horrible mess. If you don't want to get extra tanks get a rear carrier or strap them to your roof rack. You can buy plastic fuel tanks that you could put on the floor in the back or strap to the roof. Remember, that when driving over sand, let your tyres down to at least 30PSI or even 20PSI and you will get much better fuel economy. I was shocked that the standard pressure in my 90 is up around 40 PSI.