Am I going to be in the wrong car?

I haven't decided where I am going to land yet, but my commute is going to be either 11 miles or 5 miles. The longer commute will include 6 miles of freeway. The shorter commute, I might get her up to 35 MPH a few times, but no more.

My question is, am I going to cause myself grief in the future? Sure, all the stuff that can give me grief is under warrantee until July of 2026 (I doubt I'll hit 100k by then). A VW dealer is not really all that handy to me now. I used to work down the street from one. I'd just drive over to them and get dropped off. They would just come back to my office and pick me up when I was done. Combined time out of my life for an oil change was 20-25 minutes total.

Yeah there isnt much reason to own a tdi if you are going to be driving 10-20 miles per day... If you like the interior i would buy the gas version, cheaper and easier to deal with for short trips.

With Gas prices compared to diesel, it seems that much of the advantage is being taken by the Big Oil companies. And then the DPF fluid and more complicated emissions systems. Seems like it would be a tough choice for your situation.

I would lean towards what Lex said and go for a car that has everything that you need!

I think I'm going to end up with the 11 mile commute, which for 6 miles I can go 60 MPH. I'd love to leave it alone if that trip won't cause me grief in the future. I must have had the perfect commute before at 25 each way. My lifetime average is 42 MPG. I can tell my next fill up is going to be lower than my record low of 40.5 MPG. Of course, I'm still on the same tank that I filled in late March.

I changed course. I'm going to have the 5 mile commute. I will probably exchange it for some half ton truck or SUV if I can't find more driving than my commute.

Get a bicycle, and single-handedly save the environment.

(This is a joke)

I would be taking the long scenic route to / from work.

06bluebeetletdi said:

I would be taking the long scenic route to / from work.

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I checked the long way the other day. It is 7.5 miles with 2 miles at on the freeway. Time is probably the same, so that will be my route.

This is not the commute for a tdi. It can still be done though but you will have to monitor and adjust for regens to happen as needed. I also wouldn't expect stellar fuel economy either. Mid 30's to low 40's maybe. Check Fuelly for some good numbers.

A cheaper used electric car would be an ideal choice for this commute.

I've been doing a similar commute for over 25 years. 18 of that in VW diesels. The last 2, I've been doing in my FCA diesel. If you like the way the diesel works and you have the ability to get it out and stretch it's legs often, then go for it. I have almost 150k miles on my 10 JSW and have had no major engine issues.

Wrong tool for the job. There aren't many vehicles that would be worse for that driving pattern.

Lightflyer1 said:

This is not the commute for a tdi. It can still be done though but you will have to monitor and adjust for regens to happen as needed. I also wouldn't expect stellar fuel economy either. Mid 30's to low 40's maybe. Check Fuelly for some good numbers.

A cheaper used electric car would be an ideal choice for this commute.

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I wouldn't know how to monitor and adjust for regens. I never know when it regens. Every once in a while I figure out it was in the middle of one when I shut the car off.

I think I'm just going to get rid of it. $12k will make it the second cheapest Passat TDI in my area and at 45,000 miles, I think I'll be the lowest mileage. I'll just drive my truck until I find a clean Tahoe in that price range.