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Symptom

Trip computer or range display incorrect

The remaining range, average consumption, distance to service, outside temperature or tyre pressure readout is wrong, frozen, or obviously implausible. The display measures none of it — every figure arrives from another module — so the fault is usually upstream of the screen.

The reason this matters more than it sounds is that a wrong number is worse than a blank one. A blank display tells the driver not to trust it; a plausible-looking figure does not, and journeys get planned around exactly these values.

So until it is fixed: fill up on the fuel gauge and the trip meter rather than the range readout, check tyre pressures with a proper gauge, and treat any ice or temperature warning as a rough guide in either direction.

Where two displays exist, compare them — disagreement tells you which to distrust, and agreement on a wrong value points past both of them to whatever supplies it.

Also described as: range display wrong, miles to empty wrong, trip computer wrong, mpg readout stuck, distance to empty incorrect, service interval wrong, average consumption frozen, range readout frozen, کامپیوتر سفر اشتباه, نمایش کیلومتر باقی مانده غلط, ordenador bordo mal, autonomia incorrecta, computadora viaje falla, كمبيوتر الرحلة غلط, المدى المتبقي غير صحيح, حساب المسافة خاطئ

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What this usually means

The display measures none of it — every figure arrives from another module — so the fault is usually upstream of the screen. Range, average consumption, distance to service, outside temperature and tyre pressure are all computed elsewhere and rendered here.

The reason this matters more than it sounds is that a wrong number is worse than a blank one. A blank display tells the driver not to trust it; a plausible-looking figure does not, and journeys get planned around exactly these values.

So until it is fixed: fill up on the fuel gauge and the trip meter rather than the range readout, check tyre pressures with a proper gauge, and treat any ice or temperature warning as a rough guide in either direction.

Where two displays exist, compare them — disagreement tells you which to distrust, and agreement on a wrong value points past both of them to whatever supplies it.

Range is computed from fuel level and recent consumption, so a range figure that is wrong usually means the fuel level is — which has its own entry and its own repair. A range that swings wildly after a fill is often normal, because the computer is re-learning against a step change in level.

Consumption figures drift after a software update or a battery disconnection, and several vehicles need a reset to re-establish their long-term average. That is a menu item rather than a fault.

Working through it

  • Range wrong, fuel gauge also suspect

    Likely cause
    The fuel level sender — range is computed from level and consumption
    How to confirm it
    Compare indicated level against measured fills. One fault explains both readings.
    What fixes it
    Renew the sender. The range figure corrects itself once the input is right.
  • Consumption average implausible since an update or battery change

    Likely cause
    The long-term average lost or corrupted — a reset rather than a fault
    How to confirm it
    Establish the timing. Compare against a measured brim-to-brim figure over three tanks.
    What fixes it
    Reset the long-term average in the menu and drive normally.
  • Outside temperature obviously wrong

    Likely cause
    Usually heat soak from a poorly sited sensor rather than a failure — it has its own entry
    How to confirm it
    Note whether it reads high after a stop and recovers once moving. That pattern is heat soak.
    What fixes it
    No repair if it recovers. Renew the sensor where it reads wrongly while moving.
  • Two displays disagree

    Likely cause
    One of them, rather than the source — disagreement localises it
    How to confirm it
    Compare deliberately. Agreement on a wrong value points past both to the supplying module.
    What fixes it
    Repair whichever display disagrees with a measured reality.
  • Tyre pressure readout wrong

    Likely cause
    The monitoring system rather than the display — see the tyre pressure entries
    How to confirm it
    Gauge all four cold and compare. Never trust the readout against a proper gauge.
    What fixes it
    Diagnose the monitoring system. Meanwhile check pressures manually.
  • Range swings wildly just after filling

    Likely cause
    Normal — the computer is re-learning against a step change in level
    How to confirm it
    Note whether it settles within a few miles. Settling is the design working.
    What fixes it
    No repair.

Codes that produce this symptom (41)

Listed with the codes that most typically present this way first — the likeliest place to start.

Information, not instruction

CarGeek is a reference, not a service manual. Its pages are written from public sources and from what other people have found, never from a manufacturer's own service information, so they can be wrong or incomplete for your particular vehicle. Some of what they describe carries real risk: high voltage, fuel under pressure, stored energy, hot and moving parts.

Have anything you intend to act on checked by a trained person against the manufacturer's own procedure for your vehicle. Nothing here replaces that procedure.

Others with this symptom

Be the first to write this up

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What makes one worth reading:

  • The car — make, model, year and engine. The same fault behaves differently on each.
  • What you measured, not only what you replaced.
  • What actually fixed it — or that nothing did, which is worth knowing too.

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