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I have been driving 6-gear diesel cars (now on my second one) for nearly  7 years now.  The only thing you should notice (and you will) is that if you drop below the idle RPM the car will shake and probably stall. This 'shaking' is due to the high compression ratio of diesel engines and not a fault.  Sounds as if your car does have a problem.

Driving in town I find 4th gear best as it reduces frequency of need to change gear, and the power advantage (less effort for engine) seems to give better mpg than a higher gear.

When towing on M-ways, the mpg between 5th and 6th gears is pretty much the same, but 5th gear puts less strain on the engine.

Bertie. 

A mate of my brothers works at a Peugoet dealer. I went in there with him yesterday to get a tyre and saw a notice on the reception wall warning owners not to use supermarket fuel as it waxes up and clogs the fuel filter causing the car to stall and lose power.

It stated that branded fuel (BP, Esso etc) has the appropriate additives to prevent this and that it is not a quality issue with the car blah blah. Thought it was a load of hogwash - as if that was the case it would effect all cars. But it made me consider that there must have been a few Peugoet owners with the same problem as the OP?

I have strict instructions to fill the Passat up at Tesco (Club Card Points) and touch wood have not had any problems. But all cars are different I suppose.

Maybe you should get a new fuel filter fitted and see how you get on using BP et al?

Keep us updated..

On several occasions, there have been claims that supermarket fuel is inferior.  This is rubbish.  All fuel companies are required by law to ensure that their fuels meet minimum DIN standards.  I doubt there is little or no difference in buying at branded stations or the supermarkets.  I have seen branded tankers supplying the supermarkets.

For quite a number of years I have only filled up at either Sainsbury's, Tesco or (occasionally) Asda, and also at French supermarkets.   My car's performance matches (MFD display) the mpg claimed in the car's brochure.

Recently, in Truro, a local woman shopper said she would not fill up at that sainsbury's pumps because, at one time, fuel had been added to the wrong tanks. Realistically, this error can happen anywhere, at either supermarket or branded fuel ststions.  Depending on the ratio of wrong fuel, the effects on vehicles could vary from negligible to total operating failure.   Perhaps adding wrong fuel is more common than we think; in many cases being probably being addressed immediately, and no company is going to advertise the error unless problems begin to arise that can't be covered up.   This is probably the true cause of bad reports about fuel performance.

Bertie.