Volkswagen Beetle diesel, what do you know about them

[Silver Bullet Ram]

The gas prices are killing me and thinking about something more effecient. I have heard as much as 50mpg with these. Longevity? Durability? Thanx in advance.



Gary

 

[KLockliear]

Ours got 44-46mpg. Run good for only 76hp to the wheel stock. 94hp with injectors was more fun.

 

[Silver Bullet Ram]

I plan to keep it stock, just to drive back and forth to work.

 

[GFritsch]

Read my sig--45-50+ mpg

 

[Silver Bullet Ram]

I am seeing the new beetles have this thing called pumpe duese, what ever that is. Also you have to use their synthetic oil that no one makes from what I have searched on the net.



Gary

 

[SMorneau]

Check out tdiclub.com for information than you want. Check the FAQ.



My wife gets 50mpg on her 03 Jetta. But there are a couple of minor mods that must be done for longevity. Nice little ride even stock.



The Amsoil 3000 Heavy Duty Diesel oil is popular with the TDi crowd.

 

[djbobo]

How much will 50 mpg (Golf tdi manual) save vs. 20mpg. (Dodge manual 2wd) ??



Let's see..... Based on 1000 miles per month 1000/50 = 20 gal. & 1000/20 = 50 gal.

A difference in 30 gal. per month for a savings of - times that by $2. 00 a gal. or about say $60 a month

About enough to cover the additional insurance costs of having another car.



Worth it or not?????



I know I know I've been wanting one for awile to



dj

 

[Riflesmith]

2004 VW TDI's have the pumpe duese fueled engine. It is basically VW's version of common rail.



My wife's 2003 Beetle gets 50-51 MPG with performance injectors installed. Was getting 47-49 in stock form. She loves the car.

 

[hammersley]

djbobo - you hit the nail on the head - It's even better if you take $25,000 or whatever they cost now - since they won't deal on em - and use that for fuel:



$25,000 Cost of VW

12,500 Gallons of Fuel you could buy at $2. 00/gallon

30 Additional Gallons Consumed/Month

35 Years of fuel that VW cost would purchase



AND this doesn't take into account that you could put that $25,000 into an investment and make more than teh additional $$$$

 

[JLEONARD]

We have a 99 Jetta TDI diesel and I love it. It's really the wife's car and she really likes it. It does get close to 50 mpg.

It's also pretty quick, even in stock form.

Took it on a 2 1/2 hour (each way) trip last weekend... thing stayed at 80 mph or above most of the trip... only used 1/2 tank of fuel.

Jay

 

[bramage]

We just sold our '01 beetle TDI. We loved it but after having a kid it was just too small. We replaced it with a '97 passat tdi which now has 160,000 miles on it. These cars are very dependable nither one has ever let us down. As for longevity my uncle bought his '98 jetta TDI brand new and has over 370K on the clock. These cars will wear you out before you wear them out. The only thing I would suggest would be to buy a 5 speed (all of the cars mentioned above are) I have heard the automatics are not up to par with the rest of the car.

 

[BJMarshall]

I'm very pleased with our 04 Jetta. Very impressive torque and wonderful mileage. I researched these for 3 years before buying. The PD has been running in Europe for several years. I believe it to be a proven design. I think the operation is similar to the older Detroits with unit injection. It's just a little more hi-tech. Someone let me know if I am wrong.

 

[Eric Kahn]

I have 52,000 on my 2002 TDI New Beetle, I average just over 40 MPG, but I do not try to get good mileage and most of my driving is city, on the highway I have gotten about 45 MPG with the AC on

 

[lschultz]

Got 67000+ on my 01 NB. Only thing I have done to it is replace the timing belt. Going to put tires on it at 70000. Did the EGR mod way back on it. 54 is the best I have got on it. Ususally get 50 + on every tank. Use Amsoil 5w30 in it. Bought it just to commute to work.

 

[Chief USA]

I was seriously considering a TDI until I found out that the cam drive belt must be replaced EVERY 60,000 miles. VW has since raised the replacement interval to every 80,000 miles but still not good enough for me. They should have used a gear or chain drive. The factory EGR system makes a huge mess in the intake sytem if left unmodified. Great looking and running cars otherwise!

 

[JeffreyHahn]

Timing Belt

Timing belt change is now 105k.

 

[HoleshotHolset]

New Beetle TDI

The only reason I'm selling mine is due to the fact that I bought the '98 Dodge and still have my '94...



I'll miss that car...



Matt

 

[jcarey]

We have two Jetta TDI turbo-diesels, a sedan and a stationwagon. We keep an Xcel spreadsheet to keep track of mileage in both cars. My wife does 85-90% highway driving and gets in the low to mid 50's per tankful. I drive the other mostly city (I go through the city to get to work). I get in the low to mid 40's with one winter tank getting around 37. Highway, I also get in the 50's. Great cars.

 

[Heavy Duty]

I am shopping for a used VW TDI. Any suggestions on what to look for? Is the Jetta better than the beetle? Any suggetions? Thanks.

 

[HoleshotHolset]

A Jetta would certainly make it easier for your backseat passengers to get in/out of the vehicle... and they'd have a lot more legroom than with a Beetle.



Jettas are a little less flashy and tend to blend into the woodwork... whereas a Beetle sticks out in the crowd in almost any circumstance.



The Jettas had a TON of electric window problems - which was fixed in the newer models. The Beetles never had that problem...



Matt