Are We There Yet? (Diesel Jetta blows away hybrids)

Autoweek Magazine ^ | 24 April 2006 | KEVIN A. WILSON

[Dawggie]

My Sprint (may it rest in peace) used to get 60 to 65MPG. I got sick and tired of little put put cars and bought a truck.

[Drill Thrawl]

You're gonna love it. I'm getting 46 in the city. Nice low torque, handles steep hills beautifully. Nice stearo execeptional handling once you lose the frog tires. 95 is (speed not road, is rather comfy. :)

Do it.

-Drill

[Disambiguator]

How about a two-wheeled car? They're pricey, like hybrids, but a lot more fun, I would imagine.

http://www.peraves.ch/monot.htm

[thackney]

I find it funny that "DUH!!!!" no one has matched a diesel (or turbo-diesel) internal combustion engine to a hybrid electric chassis.

Freightliner, FedEx roll out new hybrid electric trucks

[Daaave]

Mercedes-Benz C 111

This is the turbocharged diesel car I've always wanted.

"In the course of 60 hours, four drivers established a total of 16 world records – thirteen of these applying to diesel-engined cars and three to cars in general, irrespective of their type of engine. During the tests, an average speed of 252 km/h was recorded, and Mercedes-Benz proved impressively that diesels also have sprinter qualities."

cartype.com/

[miliantnutcase]

I hear ya. I'll stick to my 4500lb. extended cab Sierra that can blast from 0-60 in 6.4 sec.

[FreedomCalls]

>I would get a VW Jetta except for one thing... its a GAY car.

No, this is a gay car:

http://www.ux1.eiu.edu/~cflds/FrenchAd2_Hyundai.htm

[FreedomCalls]

>I hear ya. I'll stick to my 4500lb. extended cab Sierra that can blast from 0-60 in 6.4 sec.

And you'll watch the gas gauge as the needle visibly moves downward towards empty as you blast away. What do you get: 13-14 mpg?

[jonrick46]

I want one!

[miliantnutcase]

15.6mpg my last tank. I get 17 on the highway. I have to drive a truck though because cars don't have enough leg room for me. My last car was a cadillac that got nearly the same milage. ;\

[miliantnutcase]

In fact I wouldn't mind a TDI or a malibu at all. I go to car shows just to sit inside and try everything and I haven't found a car underneath the luxo-barge range that I can comfortably fit into. :(

[FreedomCalls]

>15.6mpg my last tank. I get 17 on the highway.

That's actually not too bad for a big Sierra. Last year I looked at a Tundra that got worse than that and so I passed on that deal.

[TChad]

Mercedes turned their engineers loose to break a bunch of records with different engines in the C111 body. I liked the idea of a Wankel engine gullwing C111 as a 300SL successor, but no luck.

[Erasmus]

Another C-111

[Paladin2]

You should go for a test drive. A fat torque curve at low rpm can be interesting.

[Paladin2]

The station wagons were made in Germany through 2005.

[Kozak]

* Smells own fart *
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

[Kozak]

Biodiesel smells like french fries cooking.

[Fresh Wind]

An old saying:

"People buy horsepower and drive torque."

[KeyWest]

I have a 2000 Jetta TDI (diesel). Starts fine in Maine winters without any heaters. 47mpg in summer and 43 winter stop-and-go city/freeway driving. 50+mpg freeway only. Drove from Maine to Erie, PA on one tank of diesel: 710 miles, 52mpg at 70-75mph (averaged 62mph w/stops).

The TDIs have their problems but most can be fixed by a good DIY and instructions on Fred's TDI website.

It is an outstanding car. I cannot complain about acceleration with my manual 5 speed, especially on hills, where I pass most all gassers. On a level road at 65mph the gasser will accelerate faster than my jetta, but most of that is on freeways, so I have no problem. I am more circumspect on two lane roads, but that only means I wait until it is very safe to pass.