romad
Top Post Dawg
Sitting upright in the seat behind the steering wheel, with both hands on the steering wheel.
and this:Like I stole it.
Daily to 3500rpm+I shift at NO LESS THAN 2500 RPM.
So jealous! I could never break out of the low 40's no matter how I drove my 04 BEW. If I didn't have to tow jet skis, I'da gone with the ALH...
Hahaha, awesome!http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyVXoFvUBn0
An ALH can't tow jet ski's? I've gotten 40+ while towing them too... Pulled just one of them on that double trailer about 700 miles one weekend last summer, and it was like there was nothing there..
That is pretty much what I do. If I need more power, I will shift at higher rpms (as high as 2300 rpm) but if in just need to coast, I will shift at 1500 rpm.As long as my shift into the next gear drops to the rpm's to 1600+ it feels fine. Below 1500 feels like its lugging it. I generally shift 2000-2300 depending on which gear I am, and traffic.
+1 Oilhammer, I drive it like I stole it too. And still get 42 mpg!Like I stole it.
Well my mechanic made a point to say "Don't baby it" whenever he checks mine out. Says German cars are made to be driven a little aggressively.Looking for specifics on how to achieve best fuel mileage. I shift at around 2,500-3,000 RPM to avoid 'build-up', especially with city driving. Let me know your techniques.
Cheers,
Nick.
You would be surprised how little it changes it. I did an hour drive yesterday and if I tried I probably would have got 50 on the scan guage, but I was "playing around" with a guy in an expedition accelerating as fast as I could from every stop and going from 90kmph to 120 kmph on the highway and I still got around 43, sure I lost 7mpg but it was a heck of allot more fun! Just try shifting a 2500-3000 for a tank and I bet you won't see as much of a drop as you think. Gas engines seem to be notorious for bad milage when driven hard, you cold probably half the milage of a corolla from driving it hard.After reading posts I might try going a bit higher into the RPM's. I just worry those extra rev's are going to drop fuel mileage.
Its funny you mention the Corolla. I had a 2011 Corolla with a manual transmission. The car is rated for 28 city, and about 35 highway. On a highway trip with the cruise set to 75 I averaged 24mpg.Gas engines seem to be notorious for bad mileage when driven hard, you could probably half the mileage of a corolla from driving it hard.
LOL! Me too!Like I stole it.
Apparently you're not suppose to bog down a diesel. Good luck with the semi annual intake cleanings.I'm on the opposite end. I shift around 1400RPM's all the time. I go quickly through the gearbox achieving 5th really quickly even at speeds below 35MPH. Occasionally, if I need good acceleration for on ramps or a quick move into traffic from a stop, I'll go WFO and carry the R's up around 3k before shifting. I might do that too if I find a Prius or a Smart car too...just to unload a little carbon on them...but my Jetta only gets that loaded up to accomplish that once a week or so.
^^^What he said^^^^I drive mine like I stole it. I'm kind to it during the initial warmup but after it's up to temp I drive it like I stole it.
When accelerating normally with a COLD engine, I shift at NO LESS THAN 2500 RPM. I don't wind the p!$$ out of it but get it up to at least 2500 RPM. I try to avoid hard acceleration during the initial warmup period.
When accelerating normally with a WARM engine (i.e., up to operating temp), I shift at NO LESS THAN 3000 RPM. This cycles the VNT mechanism in the turbo and keeps it operating freely. By winding it up to 3000 RPM or higher guarantees I'll land at 2000 RPM or slightly higher to hit the torque sweet spot in the next gear . Bottom line is I stay operating between the torque peak and HP peak on the engine's torque and hp curves. The engine has a nice power band in this RPM range and I've learned to USE it. It's all the more fun when your TDI has performance mods.
Whenever I need maximum acceleration, I wind it up to somewhere between 3500 and 4000 RPM before each shift. I love doing this on long highway on-ramps, especially uphill ramps.
Whatever I do, I specifically AVOID heavy throttle in any gear when under 2000 RPM to prevent lugging the engine. I'll downshift if need be. It's OK to putt through a parking lot at low RPM, but at light or no load and no throttle. All I'm saying is avoid having your foot to the floor at low RPMs with a heavy load that keeps the RPMs low.
After I've finished accelerating and reached CRUISE speed, I use whatever gear puts the engine in the 2000-ish RPM range or slightly higher.
These are general rules that apply to the life of the car and are part of Drivbiwire's break-in guidelines. I've been practicing them since day one with my TDI ownership (02 Golf, 05 JWagen, 10 JSW). After a combined total of more than 420k miles, with close to 300k of those miles with performance mods, I can say the guidelines WORK and are good for your TDI's long term health.
TDIs thrive on being driven like they were stolen.