andrec10
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The missing AWD was the only reason I did not buy one of these. My Outback does the job though, getting 31mpg on the highway!
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Diesel Fans 2013/14 cars
- Thread starter wa-loaf
- Start date
The missing AWD was the only reason I did not buy one of these. My Outback does the job though, getting 31mpg on the highway!
My girlfriend has an 2012 Outback also with a 6 speed so we have that if we really need AWD ... but my car is definitely more fun to drive than hers.
andrec10
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I use the Outback for work and skiing when more room is needed. If I want fun stuff to drive, I can choose from the following: Wifes 2012 Acura TL-SHAWD, Sons 2011 WRX and my favorite for warm weather, my 99 Vette. Actually out of the 3, the WRX gets the worst gas mileage...go figure!
twinplanx
Active member
ok, you are correct. Most OTR truckers with any sense fuel up in Jersey. Admittedly, my experience has been with a local truck fleet consisting of a hand pump for DEF... My concern is for Joe Average who just bought that brand new Super Duty Pick-up. Where does he get DEF? I would also bet the need for DEF will rule out any future conversion to Bio-diesel...
darent
Active member
that 2012 outback, 6 speed manual?
Geoff
Well-known member
No, but I have a lot of friends with diesel pickups. As you can imagine, the first time "add DEF" idiot light goes on, it becomes bar conversation for the next week. I filled two 5 gallon gas cans with DEF at a Connecticut Turnpike TA truck stop for a friend last summer. I was driving right by it on a business trip and he needed to refill. That's how I got clued in to the whole truck stop pump thing and the sub-$3.00 pump price.
I burn about 2 gallons of diesel per summer in the boat. That's it for me.
Geoff
Well-known member
As a GTI driver, I also think the option package on the Jetta diesel wagon is a deal killer. No xenon headlights. I'd like a TDi 4Motion GTI Sportwagen like you can get in Europe with all the bells & whistles. I imagine they limit the feature list on the Jetta wagon so it doesn't compete with Audi.
Yes
riverc0il
New member
There are no gas engines averaging that much. There are some compacts and small family cars getting that much on the highway but city mileage is much lower. My VW has averaged 40 MPG exactly over 20,000 miles. The gasers getting 40 MPG highway are still only averaging very low 30s. In the long term over a lifetime of miles, the diesel still comes out ahead. Hybrids are starting to be a better buy if you strictly value MPG and total cost of ownership and don't care about performance.
riverc0il
New member
Alright, maybe I was making a bad assumption here, but it seems like everyone else is making that assumption as well. What current year consumer diesel models require this at every fuel up? If this is the case, those diesel models are not good options. But I am not familiar with any current model consumer diesel cars that this is the case for.
You are obviously not driving in near Boston like I am .... still happy with 37.5 average for my drive in the commute ..
twinplanx
Active member
That's a good question. One I can't answer as I only deal with the truck end of this. Even the little 4/6 cylinder Isuzu's require a few quarts every couple of hundred miles... Also why are all hybrids gas? Wouldn't a diesel hybrid be much more efficient?
riverc0il
New member
I think there is an issue with how the engines work. A cycle issue or something like that? I can't remember. And the cost doesn't justify the minimal increase in performance either. You won't be seeing diesel hybrids ever, I don't think.
riverc0il
New member
No but my commute seriously destroys my MPG, especially in the winter. My commute is only 7 minutes one way. In the winter, my engine doesn't even get halfway to fully warmed up before I turn it off. In the winter, my work commute probably nets me about 30mpg each way at best, sometimes worse.
While it would use more fuel, I would have much better MPG with a longer commute. Also, quite a bit colder up here which again hits the MPG and I run snows for about six months as well. I suspect someone living in rural MA or even further south with a flatish and long commute without traffic could easily run 45+ average MPG without trying and maybe even 50 with a stick and exacting driving habits. My best tank was 46.something.
Sitting in traffic definitely kills the mileage on my 3 big time. Thankfully that only accounts for about 5 miles of my 100 mile round trip daily commute. With snows on, I'm averaging about 34; with the summer tires it was 35.5. I don't see much of a drop off driving fast on the highway. I average 75-80 mph for about 75 miles of that commute.
Have you thought about a frost heater? http://www.frostheater.com Warms the coolant up to temp in the morning before you head out. You'd prob get better mileage that way and you would have heat right off the bat.
riverc0il
New member
Very interesting. Not sure if it is worth $140 plus labor to install it. But goodness knows I've accidentally tried to turn on the heat before the engine is warmed up far too many times only to look down at my engine temp 15 minutes later and see it is still barely halfway there! :roll:
I'll have to poke around and see what other folks are saying about that product. The web site is pretty sketchy as far as a business goes...
riverc0il
New member
Looks like it needs to be plugged in, won't work for me at home, work, or ski areas. 
Looks like it needs to be plugged in, won't work for me at home, work, or ski areas.
Well yeah, it'd be mainly for home use. Plug it in with a timer so it starts up a couple hours before you need to leave. Everyone on the TDi forum seem to love them and the guy who makes them is active there if you want to direct questions to him. I don't think it gets cold enough at my place for one.
http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=367285&highlight=Frost+heater
riverc0il
New member
I live in a condo so it wouldn't work for me. I can't just stretch a cord out to my car.
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