Lincoln 2000 Continental Owner's Manual page 21

The DTE function will flash for 5 seconds and sound a tone for 1 second
when you have approximately:
40 km (25 miles)
16 km (10 miles)
DTE is calculated using a running average fuel economy initialized by the
factory. This value is not the same as the average fuel economy display.
The running average fuel economy is based on more than 800 kilometers
(500 miles) of driving history, and is reinitialized if the battery is
disconnected.
If the FUEL LEVEL ERROR message is displayed, there is a problem
with the fuel indication system and you should contact your dealer for
service as soon as possible.
Checking your highway fuel economy using the electronic
message center display
The following procedure will allow you to accurately monitor your actual
highway fuel economy. Since this procedure requires the vehicle speed
control system to be set to highway speeds, it must be run only on
suitable roadways where long distance speed control can be safely
maintained.
You may notice gradual improvement in fuel economy over the course of
your vehicle's break-in period (approximately 1 600 kilometers [1 000
miles]).
1. Set the speed control. Refer to Speed control in the Controls and
features chapter.
2. Press the Distance to Empty
(DTE) Economy (ECON) control
until "Average Miles per Gallon" is
displayed.
3. Press the RESET control to clear
the DTE/ECON system memory.
Actual highway fuel economy is
now displayed. This current average measure will change as the
speed control system changes the engine speed to maintain a constant
vehicle speed. This is most noticeable in hilly environments.
It is important to press the RESET control after setting the speed
control to get accurate highway fuel economy readings.
Instrumentation
DTE ECON
RESET
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