Gas mileage on a nice trip

[Danbike]

The car is a 2007 NB Convertible. We drove 300 miles with the top down, running about 70MPH, getting 31mpg. Driving home we had the top up and the AC on, running the same speed. That yielded 34mpg. It appears that the top did make a difference with wind resistance. The car is a 5 speed, and we're overjoyed with the gas mileage it gets.

[wawalker]

Originally Posted by Danbike

The car is a 2007 NB Convertible. We drove 300 miles with the top down, running about 70MPH, getting 31mpg. Driving home we had the top up and the AC on, running the same speed. That yielded 34mpg. It appears that the top did make a difference with wind resistance. The car is a 5 speed, and we're overjoyed with the gas mileage it gets.

Thanks for posting this info. I am considering a 2.5L/5 speed Jetta and wondered what it is capable of on highway trips.

[salsa-man]

Originally Posted by Danbike

The car is a 2007 NB Convertible. We drove 300 miles with the top down, running about 70MPH, getting 31mpg. Driving home we had the top up and the AC on, running the same speed. That yielded 34mpg. It appears that the top did make a difference with wind resistance. The car is a 5 speed, and we're overjoyed with the gas mileage it gets.

Wow, 34mpg? Thats awesome. I haven't done a pure highway trip to test mine yet. But I have been disappointed with the combined city/highway mileage that I get. Hovers around 22-23.

[boogety boogety]

Very nice... the manual transmission helps a bit, doesn't it!

We just returned from a 4200 mile trip, our longest in our seldom-used '06 NBC (punched it up to 17,300 on the odometer!).

Most higher tankful averages shown below reflect cruising 70-80 mph, top up (it was hot all over, as soon as we spotted birds spontaneously combusting in mid-air, up went the top and on the AC). The lower tanks were with a lot of in-town driving and/or top down motoring thrown in (Savannah, Hilton Head, DC, Knoxville, Memphis, Oklahoma City), but getting there, we did great. Here's our tanks:

32
33
30
29
27
32
26
31
30
32
33
26

Minutiae: Tires inflated to max on sidewall regardless of VW's recommendation; cruise used almost exclusively; no crazy driving; and the car was washed four times (yes, I'm anal, and yes, it helps).

[SixChuter]

Originally Posted by boogety boogety

Very nice... the manual transmission helps a bit, doesn't it!

We just returned from a 4200 mile trip, our longest in our seldom-used '06 NBC (punched it up to 17,300 on the odometer!).

Most higher tankful averages shown below reflect cruising 70-80 mph, top up (it was hot all over, as soon as we spotted birds spontaneously combusting in mid-air, up went the top and on the AC). The lower tanks were with a lot of in-town driving and/or top down motoring thrown in (Savannah, Hilton Head, DC, Knoxville, Memphis, Oklahoma City), but getting there, we did great. Here's our tanks:

32
33
30
29
27
32
26
31
30
32
33
26

Minutiae: Tires inflated to max on sidewall regardless of VW's recommendation; cruise used almost exclusively; no crazy driving; and the car was washed four times (yes, I'm anal, and yes, it helps).

I see lots of folks refer to manual transmissions getting better fuel efficiency than automatics. It seems interesting that for at least the past 2 years VW has shown the Tiptronic transmission getting better fuel efficiency than the 5 speed manual. I love my Tiptronic.

[salsa-man]

Originally Posted by SixChuter

I see lots of folks refer to manual transmissions getting better fuel efficiency than automatics. It seems interesting that for at least the past 2 years VW has shown the Tiptronic transmission getting better fuel efficiency than the 5 speed manual. I love my Tiptronic.

Yeah any advantage a manual had over an automatic pretty much disappeared with the advent of lock-up torque converters. And the earlier the torque converter locks up the narrower that gap gets. The Tiptronic locks up in 3rd under normal conditions (pretty early). I love the 6-spd Tiptronic too. It's one of the best automatics I've ever driven in terms of performance, personality, and capabilities. The only thing that worries me is longevity.

[Capri142]

We just bought our 2006 NBC. Last weekend we took our first trip in it a bit over 300 miles total...average with top down about half the time and about half of the trip at highway speeds was a bit over 27mpg.

[BAMABUG]

Drove to Panama City, FL...really close to a 300 mile trip. I got there easily on 1 tank of gas
Got 28 mpg in an automatic going 70-80mph.
I have 20" wheels on low profile 225/30/20 tires; not sure if that affected gas mileage or not...

[overlander64]

I just returned from a round-trip in my '07 NBC (29,000 miles) that covered 300 miles each way. Running 62 MPH with top down using cruise, my Tiptronic equipped Beetle averaged 35 MPG. It rained on the return trip with heavy downpours resulting in many speed changes - - air conditioner was in use and speed when it was safe to use cruise control was 62 MPH the average was 33 MPG.

Most of my regular driving is on rural secondary roads having numerous hills with the cruise set at 55 MPH. My typical average is 33 MPG with three tanks at 37 MPG. Needless to say, I am very happy with my Beetle after a decade of having my Suburban as my only vehicle for daily use (10-12 MPG)-- the Suburban now sees duty only when towing the Airstream or its 8-passenger capacity is needed.

In order to get the 93 Octane specified on my fuel filler flap, I have been using AMOCO Gold Premium.

Kevin

[DZLBUG]

Originally Posted by salsa-man

Yeah any advantage a manual had over an automatic pretty much disappeared with the advent of lock-up torque converters. And the earlier the torque converter locks up the narrower that gap gets.

While lock-up torque converters have improved mileage, this statement is completely incorrect.

At least in the case of TDI equipped vehicles, the automatic transmissions result in about 20% less fuel mileage, depending on conditions and driving style. The 6 speed DSG (not the same as your "tiptronic" which has a torque converter) does somewhat better, but still results in 5-10% drop. In terms of TDI mileage numbers, those percentages give a pretty big hit.

My 01M equipped auto usually gets an honest 40 mpg average with my driving style and 70/30 mix of highway/city driving. Once I swap it for a 5 speed, the same driving style and conditions will result in MPG numbers at or over 50 mpg. More highway driving or more advanced fuel-saving techniques will provide more than 60 MPG on a 5 speed A4 platform car with the ALH engine.