48 MPG and Still Going Strong

source : Generator Reviews

NEVER-ENDING EXPERIMENTATION

The price of fuel has gone up - way too much. In response to this:

• I’ve written already about how to boost power in your car with a hydrogen generator.
• I’ve told you how to use evaporated water-alcohol infusion (EWAI) to do this also.
• I’ve shared my experience with mixing acetone in gasoline to help save fuel.
• I’ve also shared my experience with powering my car with biodiesel, too.

All good experience and hopefully great advice. But what I haven’t shared with you the fantastic car that has (patiently?) enabled me to do a lot of experimentation with it so that I could share my experiences with you:

A Volkswagen Jetta TDI Sedan.

This is a German-designed diesel-engined work of technological wonder. With great fuel economy to boot.

WHY SO HAPPY? - IT’S THE ENGINE

Quite simply, I love my car because it has a small diesel engine. Why is diesel so special? For me, because it can run on more than one kind of fuel.

Sure, I’ve dumped other combustible fluids into my fuel tank to see what happened - stuff such as an alcohol/water mix, engine oil, transmission fluid, #1 fuel oil - all with varying degrees of success or failure. But the main two squeezes that do it for me and my TDI are:

- Petroleum Diesel (EXPENSIVE) - A diesel engine can run on that expensive petroleum-based diesel fuel one buys at the pump. With weekly trips to the fuel station, we lend solid proof of our slavery to the Middle East and their fuel mongers. OR…

- Vegetable Oil (FREE!) - I run my car with recycled fryer oil I pick up from a Chinese restaurant. Read about my adventures in biodiesel here.

Before I rave about my car, first we’ll have a little history on the engine that powers it…

THE DIESEL ENGINE CHANGED THE WORLD

Barely more than a century ago, the mechanical technology bug had bitten many people as the world arrived upon the early Industrial Revolution Era.

Back then, there was no gasoline or diesel fuel. In a world whose temples and churches had for centuries lit their hallways with lanterns filled with olive and rapeseed oils, an innovative young German man by the name Rudolf Diesel took the combustibility factor to the next step. Diesel is credited with the invention of an amazingly simple and reliable internal combustion engine that ran on 100% vegetable oil - peanut oil to be exact.

In the sense that his engine was powered by oil derived from an organic source, we have forgotten one important fact:

Biodiesel was the first engine fuel - first used more than 100 years ago!

A GREAT CAR

Some years before I bought my Jetta, I had done loads of research on it. In its earlier years, the Volkswagen Jetta model had gone through its trials, whether powered by a gasoline or diesel-engined “TDI” (the diesel engine signifier).

By the time I bought my 2003 Jetta TDI as a used vehicle (with only 15,000 miles from CarMax) in year 2004, I figured Volkswagen had shaken enough of the bad kinks out to make this into a great car. While driving my TDI off the sales lot, I was filled with an eager anticipation of the reliability and joy it would provide to me through years of service. These 4 years and 155,000 miles later, I am glad to say the car has lived up to my expectations.

43 MPG IN-TOWN / 48 MPG ON THE OPEN ROAD

When I first read the manufacturer’s proffered fuel efficiency at 38 MPG in-town and 48 MPG on-the-road, I was thrilled. When I found out my car actually performed better than that, I was astounded!

On one trip I took to South Dakota - which was powered entirely by 100% vegetable-based biodiesel - I got 53 MPG! This I attributed to driving with a brisk wind at my back all day long - which lends evidence to the argument that driving slowly actually does a save on fuel.

NOT ALL DIESELS GET GREAT MILEAGE, BUT…

Not all diesels get great mileage. Gigantic cargo trucks (for example, like a Mack truck) and those 10-cylinder monsters (General Motors / Cummins) that project foremen drive around in muddy construction sites were designed well before the fuel price-gouging racket began. These big bruisers were designed to haul big loads with what once was a cheap and powerful fuel. Now, no more…

With the emergence of the small-engine diesel engines such as those seen under the hoods of Volkswagen’s TDI Jetta, Passat, Golf, and New Beetle, we see the emergence of a new line of customers looking not for raw power, but better fuel economy.

MAINTENANCE?

In these several years and many miles later, I have had only to do the following for my car - all of which fall under regular maintenance for this car:

- head lamp replacement (3 times)
- radiator flush (2 times)
- tire replacement (3 times)
- brake pad and disc replacement (3 times)
- timing belt replacement (1 time)
- intercooler cleaning (1 time)
- oil changes once every ~50,000 miles (read about this here)

At about 170,000 miles she’s still going strong. Compare this to a regular gasoline car (especially of American make), which folks usually start thinking of throwing away after 100,000 miles.

LESS PARTS = LESS TO TAKE CARE OF

This low maintenance issue doesn’t surprise me one bit.

Depending on how old the diesel car you buy is, you can count on having upwards of 40% fewer moving parts to take care on a diesel engine - all of which could cause you serious trouble and up-keep on a regular gasoline engine. Parts such as:

- spark plugs
- spark plug wires
- points
- condensers
- on and on…

And how does “no tune-ups required for diesels” sound?

PACKS A PUNCH - COMES WITH ALL THE TOYS

My car has neither lost power nor gone down in mileage efficiency. Being a German car, it handles and tracks solidly in snow.

And depending on which year and model one buys, a TDI may have anti-lock braking (ABS) and anti-slip control features to help protect one in adverse weather conditions even further. All the gizmos found on regular gasoline cars can also be found on a diesel-engine car.

ENOUGH TO MAKE ONE’S GIRLFRIEND JEALOUS

With all the raving and loving attention I lend in the favor of my Jetta, my girlfriend has taken to bouts of jealousy and derisive comments about my “Iron Maiden”. My answer to this?

“Well, honey…, Why don’t you try it?”

She took it for spin. Suddenly she is in the market to buy a new car - and not surprisingly: she wants a Jetta TDI diesel.

- John

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