Your next car?

What fuel will your next car run on?


  • Total voters
    31

nwdiver

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 27, 2015
Location
Texas
TDI
2003 Jetta TDI (sold); 2012 Tesla Model S
And say what you will about the supercharger network: I'm driving to Wisconsin next week and, leaving from near Boston, won't have to stop for fuel until I'm past Cleveland. You can't convince me that doesn't save time.
You may not have to stop for fuel... but you will/should stop for other reasons. I've done A LOT of road trips in a Jetta and a Tesla. I can say from direct experience that the Tesla does not take longer.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
OK, I'll bite. My plan for the first leg of my drive to WI next week is to get to my first fuel stop just west of Cleveland. Here's the route:


I typically run at 72 MPH (actual) which is 7 MPH over the limit for most of this drive. Google comes up with the 10:28 drive time with an average of 67.7 MPH. At 72 the total drive time is 9:54 hours. I would typically make 3 rest stops on this drive, mostly focusing on where there's a Starbucks (which, by the way, may not be where there's a supercharging station). Each stop is less than 10 minutes. So I would get to the fueling stop right around the 10:28 hours Google predicts. That stop may be a half-hour one, for food and fuel. Then I'm good for another 700-800 miles.

I'd be interesting in how you could replicate that in a Tesla.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
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Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
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'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
For some reason I can't seem to capture the screen, but Tesla predicts the drive time at 13 hours, 29 minutes. So 3 hours more than I plan to take in my TDI. Kind of what I would expect. Four stops. And of course there may be more if my need for caffeine or a rest room doesn't sync with suprecharging stations.

My final destination is Madison, Wisconsin. Ohio is about 60% there. So overall the Tesla would add 5-6 hours to the trip, or about 35% more time. For me, unacceptable.
 

turbodieseldyke

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2010
Location
Free Mustache Rides
TDI
98 jetta
Apparently, some ICE cars got stuck on the road in one of the Kalif fires this week, due to starvation of clean air. I dont know if removing the filter would have gotten them through it, but I guess this would be one advantage for an EV.

I can't imagine many people buying one just for that purpose.
 

nwdiver

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 27, 2015
Location
Texas
TDI
2003 Jetta TDI (sold); 2012 Tesla Model S
So 3 hours more than I plan to take in my TDI. Kind of what I would expect. Four stops. And of course there may be more if my need for caffeine or a rest room doesn't sync with suprecharging stations.

My final destination is Madison, Wisconsin. Ohio is about 60% there. So overall the Tesla would add 5-6 hours to the trip, or about 35% more time. For me, unacceptable.
On paper. In practice there's really not a difference. I made the trip from WA to NM several times in both my TDI and the Tesla. I can maintain higher highway speeds in the Tesla and those stops you're assuming are ~10 minutes in practice are usually more. There's usually at least one truck carrying a very distinctive load. I've always found it amusing that I would pace the truck with my charging stops after hundreds of miles. I'd pass them... stop to charge. Get back on the Interstate. Pass them again... stop to charge. Repeat a couple more times. No difference and the fuel is ~70% cheaper. 100% if you're lucky enough to have free supercharging :)

The best I was able to achieve on a road trip in the Jetta was <65 mpg. Unacceptable by any standard :(
 
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IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
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Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
My rest stops are usually less than 10 min. And I can go 300+ miles between stops if I limit my coffee intake. :). I usually run at 7 MPH over the posted limit on all roads, because I can do it without drawing any attention to myself. So in Ohio I can run at 77 MPH. Same in PA. 72 in NY. Your choice to drive the TDI at a low speed helped equalize the time. I wouldn't do that.

For me this isn't about money, at least to a point. The 45-50 MPG my TDI delivers makes the cost of fuel low enough that I don't think much about it. Saving another 20 or 30% wouldn't really matter. For this trip to WI I believe tolls will exceed the cost of fuel, depending on what route I take. It's more about effectiveness of the vehicle for this purpose and convenience.

As I've posted previously, I'd consider a Chevy Bolt as a daily, short distance driver. Makes sense, except for the out of pocket cost. An older TDI would cost less per mile over time. But It would have some benefits, not the least of which would be instant heat. But for long drives electric just isn't there. Not there for high speeds, either. Ask just about anyone who lives in western Europe. They scoff at Teslas.
 
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VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
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Location
Springfield, VA
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‘18 Tesla Model 3D+, ‘14 Cadillac ELR, ‘13 Fiat 500e
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VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 2, 2000
Location
Springfield, VA
TDI
‘18 Tesla Model 3D+, ‘14 Cadillac ELR, ‘13 Fiat 500e
But It would have some benefits, not the least of which would be instant heat. But for long drives electric just isn't there. Not there for high speeds, either. Ask just about anyone who lives in western Europe. They scoff at Teslas.
10,000 miles in 10 weeks on our Model 3. It’s there. :)

We stop for about 20 minutes every 2 hours after the first 3 to 4 hour stint. Gotta do that with the dog anyway, so the charging doesn’t end up being inconvenient. The only gripe is with the turnpike plazas not having Superchargers, so you have to get off and back on occasionally... a minor annoyance, really.

I’m going to explore some toll-free options from DC to Michigan since the turnpikes are boring and cost $30 each way. Avoiding them should add about 90 minutes, so it might be worth it to see some new scenery.

As for the Bolt, please don’t. You loathe GM (and they haven’t changed), it charges too slowly and the seats are uncomfortable.
 
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WildChild80

Veteran Member
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May 30, 2016
Location
Nashville, AR
TDI
2001 Jetta TDI 2000 Jetta TDI 2000 New Beetle TDI ALL 5 speeds
Does anyone remember when ethenol was mandated into gasoline? Ethenol prices soared, when your only choice is electric or electric, remember me saying I told you so...when everyone switches to EVs (either willingly or unwillingly) the grid will need additional capacity, guess who will pay for that along with natural disasters and stuff I can't think of yet.

Batteries at their basic form are mined in 3rd world countries, nobody cares about the amount of pollution because in some people's minds they are not real people anyway...how accurately is the pollution really calculated? If said 3rd world countries decide to pay employees more than 10 cents a day, how much will batteries cost to mfg then?

There's not much I enjoy more than driving over 700 miles and along the route knowing I have choices of where to get fuel based on price, on long road trips I draw a line and once I reach that line, a full tank of fuel will get me there...then I find the happy medium between proximity to interstate/highway and cost of fuel.

IBW, I love to make the long round trips and not have to get fuel...I drove from Nashville Arkansas to Memphis TN and back on the same tank...and got lost once to boot.

For me bottom line, I love long road trips, I can piss in a bottle if I have to if the tank isn't empty and when options are taken away, the greedy people make lots of money with no concern of your well being!



Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
That is a much better planner. My estimated fuel cost for this trip (one way) is $81. So electric is less expensive. It does show about 2 hours of charging time, which, honestly, isn't awful. I just don't know how much I'd enjoy hanging out at some random supercharging station on route 80 at 3:00 AM.

Thanks for the advice on the Bolt. You're right, I do still hate GM. Looked at the new Silverado at SEMA week before last because they'll have a inline 6 cylinder diesel this year, which sounds nice. But they still make a $50K plus truck with an interior that looks like it came from a 1998 Corsica. Amazing.
 

VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 2, 2000
Location
Springfield, VA
TDI
‘18 Tesla Model 3D+, ‘14 Cadillac ELR, ‘13 Fiat 500e
We're doing Grand Rapids, MI to Ho5G across two days at the end of December. We're staying the night at the Asa Ransom house in New York - almost exactly the half-way point. We've done the trip in one shot before, but it was exhausting and the snow made it even less enjoyable. It should be a pretty good winter test for the Tesla.

Route plan (at 20F and rain/snow): https://abetterrouteplanner.com/?plan_uuid=b635c985-ffde-4221-a818-3a1617e6acad
 
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IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
Their drive time seems a little generous. Google says 13:10 through Canada, 14:30 via US. I've made it from The Marriott Eagle Crest to my house in 13. And I think I made it from my house to Kirk Blackmores last year in 14, going through Canada. And that was with the endless construction on the 402/3.

I'm going to drive to Madison WI in one shot, which is either ambitious or stupid. I've done it before, and honestly it wasn't a lot of fun. We'll see how it goes.
 

Chris_TDI_98

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 19, 2012
Location
Hartford, CT
TDI
1998 Jetta TDI 1.9L mk3 1Z AHU
First media test drive of the VW Neo which VW is going to produce for 2020 in mainstream mass quantities, to buy at the same price as the current 2018 model year Golf TDI, with 300km and 500km range battery options, recharge in 30min to 80%.
https://youtu.be/q2Tqw9LX3QE
 
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