tips for fuel economy

MikeMars

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 6, 2008
Location
UK
TDI
Vento 1.9 TDi (retired), A4 1.9 TDi (rear end collision), VW Passat 1.9 TDi (retired), Audi A2 1.4 TDi
...but i noticed that my rear brakes get hot after a normal short distance traveled.
...
Yes, you've definitely got a dragging brake issue there... Can't help on how to fix it.
 

Dieselmad

Well-known member
Joined
Sep 22, 2011
Location
Fochville, South Africa
TDI
Jetta MK4 1.9Tdi,
I have found the problem. The left rear park brake cable didnt released properly. I adjusted the cable and gave it more slack. Hopefully my fuel economy will improve.
 

Dieselmad

Well-known member
Joined
Sep 22, 2011
Location
Fochville, South Africa
TDI
Jetta MK4 1.9Tdi,
So i checked again and saw that the left rear park brake are still not releasing properly. So i did a temporary fix with a spring(see pic). When i have more time i will then open the calipers and see what i can do to improve the spring release mechanism.
 
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misfits

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 1, 2013
Location
NH
TDI
2013 Jetta 6M
Hi everyone. I've been lurking here for quite somtime. I've always said that if my 1 ton powerstoke gots 27 mpg, they outta put diesels in cars. I remember when VW had the diesel Rabbits back in the 70's & they were good for 50+ mpg back then.

I'm the new owner of a 2013 Jetta & love it. I've gone thru the thread & only thing I'd like to point out is, coasting down a hill without being in gear is wrong. Under commercial truck driving regs a vehicle not in gear is a vehicle "out of control".

Looking forward to 50 MPG!
 

Spanish Key

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 24, 2012
Location
CNY/ADKS
TDI
2013 Jetta 6M
Outside temps make a big difference, I've found--to the tune of about 5 mpg in my case. Sometimes more when it's below zero. I coast as much as I can get away with, and try to keep the engine speed between 1,800 and 2,400. That's the sweet spot with this engine, and you'll notice (if you haven't already) that you'll get much better fuel economy in that range, because the fuel burns more efficiently. It's not hard to exceed 50 mpg on a long trip in warmer weather (above 40, I've found). But between the short trips and my wife driving the thing, my overall average over 4K miles is just over 41. I expect that to improve to 45 or better once spring hits.
 

psd1

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 4, 2011
Location
OR
TDI
2006 Jetta 2013 Passat SE 6Man
Hi everyone. I've been lurking here for quite somtime. I've always said that if my 1 ton powerstoke gots 27 mpg, they outta put diesels in cars. I remember when VW had the diesel Rabbits back in the 70's & they were good for 50+ mpg back then.

I'm the new owner of a 2013 Jetta & love it. I've gone thru the thread & only thing I'd like to point out is, coasting down a hill without being in gear is wrong. Under commercial truck driving regs a vehicle not in gear is a vehicle "out of control".

Looking forward to 50 MPG!
I agree on coasting out of gear, but these aren't commercial vehicles. Laws vary by state. I personally got better numbers in the jetta coasting in gear.

I'll bet you a dollar to a donut that your power stroke doesn't average 27 MPG. Anyone can pull down a stellar tank now and then. I would also wager a guess that it's a 2 wheel drive and a 7.3 if you consistently turn in real good numbers.

I wish you luck with the Jetta!
 

misfits

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 1, 2013
Location
NH
TDI
2013 Jetta 6M
I agree on coasting out of gear, but these aren't commercial vehicles. Laws vary by state. I personally got better numbers in the jetta coasting in gear.

I'll bet you a dollar to a donut that your power stroke doesn't average 27 MPG. Anyone can pull down a stellar tank now and then. I would also wager a guess that it's a 2 wheel drive and a 7.3 if you consistently turn in real good numbers.

I wish you luck with the Jetta!
Thanks.

The truck was a 97 with the 7.3, 4 wheel drive, 3.55 axles. Consistent 26-27 mpg. Toss an 8' camper in the back, a tricked out jeep on a car trailer & we'd get a solid 14-15 mpg heading down to the smokies or out to the dakotas. As long as you kept the rpms below 1800, you were good to go.
Anything over 2k & it was pig.

I hear whay you're saying about coasting. I did a bunch of coasting today in stop & go traffic. I personally wouldn't coast down a grade.

The cars a dream. Took a 125 mile trip down to MA this morning. Locked the cruise control in @ 60 & didn't have to wait to long to break 50 mpg, average mpg today 53. It was 54.8 when I got off the highway but the stop & go traffic on the way home put a small dent in it.
 

psd1

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Location
OR
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2006 Jetta 2013 Passat SE 6Man
Thanks.

The truck was a 97 with the 7.3, 4 wheel drive, 3.55 axles. Consistent 26-27 mpg.
Lower power 7.3 with the best gear available for MPG. Nice trucks, 95-97's Fords with the PSD is where where my love/lust came from for a full size diesel truck...and my username. If I could find a clean/lower mile 95-97 4x4 1 ton Crew with a long bed I would be hard pressed not to buy it.

Glad you're happy with your car, we just tipped the 1100 mile mark in the 13 Passat and are absolutely loving it!
 

misfits

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 1, 2013
Location
NH
TDI
2013 Jetta 6M
Lower power 7.3 with the best gear available for MPG. Nice trucks, 95-97's Fords with the PSD is where where my love/lust came from for a full size diesel truck...and my username. If I could find a clean/lower mile 95-97 4x4 1 ton Crew with a long bed I would be hard pressed not to buy it.

Glad you're happy with your car, we just tipped the 1100 mile mark in the 13 Passat and are absolutely loving it!
The 7.3 was the best motor ever to be put in a pick up. To bad Ford got greedy cause the 6.0 & 6.4 are dogs. I looked at the 12/13 trucks with the 6.7. Spent sometime cruising the powerstroke nation website. Most of the guys are putting up 20 mpg if they're lucky. Goodbye Ford, hello VW. I owned a bug & scirocco (sp) back in the 70's :)

My wife owned a priuis (sp) for 3 years so I got to play w/ that. I had one day that I hit 64 but the average was 56 in the summer, 48 in the winter.

When the economy tanked I got my CDL & drove OTR for a year. One of the things the trucking companies are teaching drivers is a technique called progressive shifting. It's basiclly upshifting @ lower rpms, & using the service brake in lieu of running the gears when slowing down or coming to a stop. Driving a truck this way had most putting up 7.5 mpg compared to 5. If you're a trucking company w/ 5000 trucks on the road,
this mileage difference is huge when you're buying 10,000 gallons of fuel daily.

So in addition to the priuis & what I learned about driving a TT I think most w/ the newer VW's can put numbers up in the low to mid 50's if their owners change their driving habits.

Stay off the pedal, upshift early keeping the rpms low, don't downshift when coming to a stop, use the brake & keep those rpm's under 1800 when highway driving.

Yesterday I noticed at 60mph on the highway with cruise control on, the motor just hummed along at 1500 rpms & I averaged 53 mpg door to door. Driving at 70 doesn't get you there much quicker....

I'll keep track of the mileage & after a few fill ups post some results.

Till then, take care!
 

Spanish Key

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 24, 2012
Location
CNY/ADKS
TDI
2013 Jetta 6M
Stay off the pedal, upshift early keeping the rpms low, don't downshift when coming to a stop, use the brake & keep those rpm's under 1800 when highway driving.
Interesting. I'll be checking in to see how you're doing.

I do just the opposite. I think I get better fuel economy by keeping the engine speed between 1,800 and 2,400 rpm, which includes shifting in that range. In fact, I'll downshift when coasting in gear so that I can resume accelerating above 1,800.

Doing that on a recent 500-mile round trip on the NYS Thruway, I averaged 47.5 mpg at speeds between 65 and 80. In warmer weather, that trip yields over 50 mpg.

That car has plenty of power all up and down the scale, but it's right there when you need it above 1,800 rpm. Kind of like driving a V8 that gets 50 mpg.
 

psd1

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 4, 2011
Location
OR
TDI
2006 Jetta 2013 Passat SE 6Man
The 7.3 was the best motor ever to be put in a pick up. To bad Ford got greedy cause the 6.0 & 6.4 are dogs. I looked at the 12/13 trucks with the 6.7. Spent sometime cruising the powerstroke nation website. Most of the guys are putting up 20 mpg if they're lucky. Goodbye Ford, hello VW. I owned a bug & scirocco (sp) back in the 70's :)

My wife owned a priuis (sp) for 3 years so I got to play w/ that. I had one day that I hit 64 but the average was 56 in the summer, 48 in the winter.

When the economy tanked I got my CDL & drove OTR for a year. One of the things the trucking companies are teaching drivers is a technique called progressive shifting. It's basiclly upshifting @ lower rpms, & using the service brake in lieu of running the gears when slowing down or coming to a stop. Driving a truck this way had most putting up 7.5 mpg compared to 5. If you're a trucking company w/ 5000 trucks on the road,
this mileage difference is huge when you're buying 10,000 gallons of fuel daily.

So in addition to the priuis & what I learned about driving a TT I think most w/ the newer VW's can put numbers up in the low to mid 50's if their owners change their driving habits.

Stay off the pedal, upshift early keeping the rpms low, don't downshift when coming to a stop, use the brake & keep those rpm's under 1800 when highway driving.

Yesterday I noticed at 60mph on the highway with cruise control on, the motor just hummed along at 1500 rpms & I averaged 53 mpg door to door. Driving at 70 doesn't get you there much quicker....

I'll keep track of the mileage & after a few fill ups post some results.

Till then, take care!
The reason the7.3 went down the road was emissions, Ford couldnt get it to meet the new teir II standards, so they introduced the 6 oh no, which was supposed to provide something like 15%+ better economy/power...but then ULSD raised it's ugly (less MPG) head and then head gaskets etc. The 6.4 was a stop gap motor, and it showed. Although it was a better motor than the 6.0, it never returned ANY economy in its stock form. I personally prefer the 5.9 Cummins for the monicker "best engine in a P/U ever".

A agree with your OTR experience and instruction, except to use the brakes instead of downshift, I havent heard of that and would have to wonder if the FE gained would be significant enough to cover the costs of brakes?? Doesnt using the service brakes in an OTR truck make it difficult to get into the correct gear when the time comes? I own a T800 KW and always use the engine brake and downshift through the gears accordingly.
 

FVWVWF

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 18, 2011
Location
Canada
TDI
Sold - 2012 TDI Highline Manual
... the7.3 ....
I dont have anything to add other than I used to have a '97 f250 powerstroke. Two fuel tanks, 4x4, long bed, fully loaded. One of the best things I've ever owned. Went through 4 starters in 3 years on that sucker.
 

misfits

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 1, 2013
Location
NH
TDI
2013 Jetta 6M
A agree with your OTR experience and instruction, except to use the brakes instead of downshift, I havent heard of that and would have to wonder if the FE gained would be significant enough to cover the costs of brakes?? Doesnt using the service brakes in an OTR truck make it difficult to get into the correct gear when the time comes? I own a T800 KW and always use the engine brake and downshift through the gears accordingly.
As we know on a otr rig you need to keep the rpm's up in order to downshift without grinding the gears. That's why most people float.

Here's a good example: Most trucks take ramps at 15-20 mph. If you're driving a nine speed (actually an 8 speed) & say your coming into an exit ramp, your going to downshift to 8th or 7th prior to the ramp to begin slowing down. Using the service break to slow you down to say ramp speed, with progressive shifting you can just clutch the girl into 4th without reving the motor. You've allowed the motor to idle instead of reving her up to 2500 rpm's to catch a lower gear. That's one part of progressive shifting where the fuel savings come into play. I don't know if this type of shifting increases the brake service period but if you've got 5000 trucks on the road & each truck see an increase of 1.5 gpm, that's alot of fuel you're not buying.

Did a 72 mile one way trip down to MA today. Door to door put up a 58.6 mpg number for that porion of the trip. Coming home the winds were blowing & hit every red light on the route 101a fron nashua to milford but still managed 54.4mpg for the total trip. This was the standard 60 mph w/ the cruise control locked in. Over the weekend I had to run down again & was late, 75-80 mph, no cruise control & pulled a 49.0 mpg for that trip. I'm impressed..

Did my first fuel up today, 8.51 gallons, 381 miles on the odometer. Don't know if the tank was topped off when I got her but that works out to 44 mpg average.
 

Lance71

New member
Joined
May 14, 2013
Location
California
TDI
2006
'95 Ford F250 7.3 Power Stroke Gets 14 MPG- HELP!

My son's '95 Ford F250 7.3 Power Stroke Gets 14 MPG. Any ideas on how to increase this to over 20 MPG?

Thanks!
Lance


Thanks.

The truck was a 97 with the 7.3, 4 wheel drive, 3.55 axles. Consistent 26-27 mpg. Toss an 8' camper in the back, a tricked out jeep on a car trailer & we'd get a solid 14-15 mpg heading down to the smokies or out to the dakotas. As long as you kept the rpms below 1800, you were good to go.
Anything over 2k & it was pig.

I hear whay you're saying about coasting. I did a bunch of coasting today in stop & go traffic. I personally wouldn't coast down a grade.

The cars a dream. Took a 125 mile trip down to MA this morning. Locked the cruise control in @ 60 & didn't have to wait to long to break 50 mpg, average mpg today 53. It was 54.8 when I got off the highway but the stop & go traffic on the way home put a small dent in it.
 

boettj-tdi

Member
Joined
Dec 26, 2010
Location
Wakefield, RI
TDI
2006 VW Jetta
Great information. I am another lurker. On my last tank I achieved a total of 616 miles at 46mpg for the first time. Right now I am commuting 2 hours back and forth to work. I was able to get 46mpg by reading your tips. Now I am hungry to increase that number. Below are some changes I've made to my driving habits. I'd love to hear what you think.

1. I quick shift to get to 5th gear in a low rpm. Typically I hit 5th on a flat at around 35 mph.
2. If on an incline, I will quick shift as best I can to 5 mph below the speed limit. On the downhills, I will slowly tick up my speed using the CC +.
3. The speed limit for the majority of my ride is 65mph. I still use 73mph as my traveling speed. Only time a break that speed is when a jack wang gets in my way. I'll break CC by touching the clutch and coast down to match their speed, and reset the CC. Once clear of the jack wang, I slowly tick up the CC + on downhills only.
4. I've not removed all of the stuff from my car. Tonight I'll be removing everything out of the car that does not need to be there. Hopefully this will help bring up my numbers.

One question I have is about replacing the computer chip. I've not seen that mentioned in this thread. Are there any advantages to purchasing a new chip? I've heard through the rumor mill that some chips can get you 5-10mpg.


Thanks again.

06' VW Jetta TDI - 5spd manual.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Most software changes (the term "chip" is a little outdated, but the basic idea is the same) are for performance gains, not fuel economy. That said, some of the milder tunes on an otherwise stock engine, if driven properly, can indeed net a couple MPGs. But once you feel the potential extra power under your right foot, chances are you won't drive it the same... the temptation is just too great.

So, in the end, if your goal is highest possible MPGs, you're probably better off leaving it stock.
 

MikeMars

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 6, 2008
Location
UK
TDI
Vento 1.9 TDi (retired), A4 1.9 TDi (rear end collision), VW Passat 1.9 TDi (retired), Audi A2 1.4 TDi
Great information. I am another lurker. On my last tank I achieved a total of 616 miles at 46mpg for the first time. ...
Congratulations :)

... Right now I am commuting 2 hours back and forth to work. I was able to get 46mpg by reading your tips. Now I am hungry to increase that number. Below are some changes I've made to my driving habits. I'd love to hear what you think.

1. I quick shift to get to 5th gear in a low rpm. Typically I hit 5th on a flat at around 35 mph.
2. If on an incline, I will quick shift as best I can to 5 mph below the speed limit. On the downhills, I will slowly tick up my speed using the CC +. ...
When you are in hilly terrain, you would do better with the cruise control turned off. The trick is to have a very steady right foot :) Let the speed bleed off slightly on the uphill, and increase naturally on the downhill. If you have a manual, drop it into neutral briefly on the downhill if the hill is not too steep.

3. The speed limit for the majority of my ride is 65mph. I still use 73mph as my traveling speed. Only time a break that speed is when a jack wang gets in my way. I'll break CC by touching the clutch and coast down to match their speed, and reset the CC. Once clear of the jack wang, I slowly tick up the CC + on downhills only.
No idea what a Jack wang is... if it's an 18-wheeler, why not match speed at a safe distance? Your MPG will be a lot higher due to the lower speed, and other traffic will move around you without being aggressive because they are focussing on the 18-wheeler.

Here the 18-wheelers are limited to either 50 or 56mph. Don't know what their speeds are in your country.

4. I've not removed all of the stuff from my car. Tonight I'll be removing everything out of the car that does not need to be there. Hopefully this will help bring up my numbers. ...
For stop/go driving, weight is important. I do not personally think it is very important for highway driving.

...One question I have is about replacing the computer chip. I've not seen that mentioned in this thread. Are there any advantages to purchasing a new chip? I've heard through the rumor mill that some chips can get you 5-10mpg.
... generally the people saying that are the people selling the chips! 5-10mpg is grossly exaggerated in my opinion. There are two effects of a tune which will give you slightly increased MPG if you are careful. a) ignition will be closer to the peak compression point (AKA TDC), and b) you will have more torque lower down in the RPM range, which means that you can use a higher gear than otherwise.

If you get yourself a tune, it should be for enjoyment primarily. A modest mpg increase might be a side-effect, but don't bank on it. It certainly won't save money in the long run because the tune will cost more than the fuel saved.
 

TonyJetta

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Sep 15, 2005
Location
Tucson, Az
TDI
'15 Jetta TDI SE / '06 Jetta TDI DSG Pkg0 / '96 Passat TDI
boettj-tdi,
look for low rolling resistance tires. One type that I've had particularl luck with, on my '06 and '96, is Bridgestone Ecopia series. On my '96, I gained ~3mpg. On my '06, I gained ~1.5mpg. But, we just got the tires on the '06, so the verdict is not complete yet!

Tony
 

boettj-tdi

Member
Joined
Dec 26, 2010
Location
Wakefield, RI
TDI
2006 VW Jetta
No idea what a Jack wang is...
Jack Wang comes from Tim Allen's Last Man Standing. He uses the term to refer to idiots essentially. My use is for people that don't know how to drive. Especially those that have no clue how to yield when merging into traffic.
 

boettj-tdi

Member
Joined
Dec 26, 2010
Location
Wakefield, RI
TDI
2006 VW Jetta
I filled up yesterday and essentially repeated my last tank. This one was 603.6 total miles filling with 13.036 gallons for a total of 46.30.

On this tank I am slowing my overall speed down:


  • 65 mph zones I am traveling at 65.
  • 55 mph zones I am traveling at 55.
  • 50 mph zones I am traveling at 52.
  • 45 mph zones I am traveling at 50.
  • 35 mph zones I am traveling at 40.


When you are in hilly terrain, you would do better with the cruise control turned off. The trick is to have a very steady right foot :) Let the speed bleed off slightly on the uphill, and increase naturally on the downhill. If you have a manual, drop it into neutral briefly on the downhill if the hill is not too steep.
I've heard this comment before, and will try this on my next tank. Before I switch again, I want to see how my speed changes impact this tank.

... generally the people saying that are the people selling the chips! 5-10mpg is grossly exaggerated in my opinion.
Based on this comment, I will pass on "the chips".

Another question is why would quick stopping result in lower mileage? Not sure how that translate in lower mpg. I avoid quick stopping to reduce the impact on the breaks.

Thanks again.


06' VW Jetta TDI - 5spd manual.
 

MikeMars

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 6, 2008
Location
UK
TDI
Vento 1.9 TDi (retired), A4 1.9 TDi (rear end collision), VW Passat 1.9 TDi (retired), Audi A2 1.4 TDi
... Another question is why would quick stopping result in lower mileage? Not sure how that translate in lower mpg. ...
In most cases it is best to stop slowly using engine braking or even coasting, & avoiding the use of brakes.

However there are situations where it makes sense to brake early to slow you down, so that you can use engine braking for longer when coming up to lights (hoping to still be moving when they turn green).

In what context did you see quick braking discussed?
 

psd1

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 4, 2011
Location
OR
TDI
2006 Jetta 2013 Passat SE 6Man
Based on this comment, I will pass on "the chips".

Another question is why would quick stopping result in lower mileage? Not sure how that translate in lower mpg. I avoid quick stopping to reduce the impact on the breaks.

Thanks again.
Read this before you give up on "chips" or tunes. http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=359906 The increases I gained are easy to follow in my Fuelly link. I only wish GDE offered a tune for my 2013 NMS.
 

TonyJetta

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Sep 15, 2005
Location
Tucson, Az
TDI
'15 Jetta TDI SE / '06 Jetta TDI DSG Pkg0 / '96 Passat TDI
I've been babying mine for fuel economy, it looks like it's time for me to go thrash it a little bit!
Thrash...no

Run hard & shift low....3/4-full throttle, shift by 3000-3200 when hot. Run up to 4k WOT in 3rd 1-2x per week to keep the wastegate/VNT moving.

Tony
 

boettj-tdi

Member
Joined
Dec 26, 2010
Location
Wakefield, RI
TDI
2006 VW Jetta
Just by changing my driving to the speeds listed in my previous post, I am noticing a difference in my total miles at 3/4 and soon to be half a tank. I am anxious to see what mpg I'll achieve on this tank.

As Mike stated, hypermiling will be my next step. I'm using that method when I drive my wife's Explorer, and I've noticed a nice increase. Not that I can hope for numbers like 30mpg for it, but I would be happy if I could get a tank to 25+mpg.

boettj-tdi.
 

boettj-tdi

Member
Joined
Dec 26, 2010
Location
Wakefield, RI
TDI
2006 VW Jetta
The results are in just from using the speeds listed above:

609.9 miles filling up with 12.021 gallon for an mpg of 50.30. I love it.

More tank using this method and I will switch over to hypermiling.

Boettj-tdi
 

PressEnter[]

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 5, 2013
Location
Saratoga Springs, NY
TDI
2013 Jetta 6M
I started hypermiling with my previous car, and was amazed how much my FE improved just by altering my driving style slightly.

Of course, in my Mazda I was happy when I got 400 miles out of a tank. I am at 620 on my current tank, and it's still on the 1/4 mark :)
 

MyWifesTDI

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 26, 2008
Location
St. Louis
TDI
2004 Jetta GL 5M (sold), 2002 Jetta Wagen GLS 5M (sold), 2015 Golf TDI S 6M
Most software changes (the term "chip" is a little outdated, but the basic idea is the same) are for performance gains, not fuel economy...

So, in the end, if your goal is highest possible MPGs, you're probably better off leaving it stock.
And in long run it keeps costs down, is that not the essence of economy?
 
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