another jetta warrior

[farmerpsv]

Hey all,
picked up my 2005.5 vw jetta TDI yesterday. y'all gotta get one of these. i clocked 52.6 mpg on my way into work today. they have this little computer screen that kinda mesmerizes you, it constantly monitors and updates your mpg, what a hoot watching it keep going up. just traded an suv so i'm decidedly excited. i subscribe to mother earth and home power mags, both have had articles on how to make your own bio diesel. have a neighbor friend who uses bio in his tractors, that'll be next. what fun, would be nice to be more independent from the oil co.
paul

 

[Nasty135]

Yo farmer, Yes I just had my latest visit to the Gas pumps to fill my van and a few gas cans for mowing and it was $109 OUCH!!! /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif

I'm sure others have spent much more than me ,But for me this is starting to really cut in on the family budget.

The jetta diesel is a nice car, My wifes girl friend has one and loves it ,plenty of zip(for a diesel) comfort and 52mpg for the VW diesel seems to be the norm.

I guess the bio diesel will start to become a neccessity rather than an option if this keeps up.
Maybe some will make enough bio to sell to there friends and cause a grass roots effort to take-off and force the oil companies to reduce prices /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif (but I'm no wizard in the big scheme of things)

 

[MDSteve]

We have an 04 TDI and love it. I get a steady 45mpg back and forth to work and better on trips. I just like not thinking about stopping for fuel for 600-700 miles. tdiclub.com is a pretty good site. We find we drive it more than our truck. We put just over 36K on it the first year. I just wish it could tow my 14K horse trailer or tractor around.

Steve

 

[farmerpsv]

Nasty,
yes indeed, i'm all for grass roots stuff, this country was founded on such and i believe it wouldn't hurt at all to have more of it again. my impression is most the folks i've met on this site are up for it, some very self sufficient people here...which i dearly love. no need to be dependent on the mega corp if we can build it, grow it or raise it ourselves, and barter with others little guys for things we don't choose to do.
steve,
right with you on the towing issue. jeep is making a diesel liberty with, i think, a 4500 or 5000 capacity and decent mileage too. won't quite do the 14k tho.
paul

 

[RonL]

Congratulations on your new vehicle. If I may give you some advice, from someone with experience with VWs. Make sure that you perform the scheduled maintenance within the sceduled time and mileage framework. And make sure it is documented. If you do oil changes yourself, make sure that you use the oil specified by VW ( they have their own specs ). And, again, make sure that it is well documented. If you have any problems with the car and you bring it to the dealer for service, make absolutely sure that they note it on the work order.

RonL

 

[GerardC]

<font color="blue"> ....picked up my 2005.5 vw jetta TDI yesterday. </font>

If I may ask, how much did you pay?

 

[farmerpsv]

gerard,
24k, had option pkg 1 and automatic.

 

[PBMAX]

our cousin Mike told me about a site today called TDIclub. I googled and found this... tdiclub Thought you may like it(asumming U haven't found it yer self). If I found the right one. He said they have tons of info on the VW's..... He has had his a few months now and luvs it. Black wagon 5speed. Wife and I have been discussing getting one.... will see....

 

[farmerpsv]

thanks max...yeah, found it. pretty cool. just as an update, hit 55mpg today (i'm blown away, remember, i had an suv that actually got descent mileage for an suv,toyota highlander). anyway had been filling up 3 times a week, have had the jetta a week tomorrow and still have a quarter tank (same capacity for both). so in real life, so far, have cut my consumption by 2/3 or $70/week. time will tell more, but i'm pretty excited
paul

 

[HuckBB62]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Hey all,
picked up my 2005.5 vw jetta TDI yesterday. y'all gotta get one of these. i clocked 52.6 mpg on my way into work today. they have this little computer screen that kinda mesmerizes you, it constantly monitors and updates your mpg, what a hoot watching it keep going up. just traded an suv so i'm decidedly excited. i subscribe to mother earth and home power mags, both have had articles on how to make your own bio diesel. have a neighbor friend who uses bio in his tractors, that'll be next. what fun, would be nice to be more independent from the oil co.
paul )</font>

I think the I'd love a Jetta BUT, I can't get rid of my truck (rural home and all that) I'm getting 20.7mpg, let's say a round 20mpg for argument's sake. If and only if I exclusively drove the Jetta to work the 45 miles round trip up and down the mountain, it would take me almost 12 YEARS to break even! That's not even considering the increased insurance and tags. Those two things figured in, it's closer to sixteen years. WOW!!!!!

I heard on the financial news today that for a Prius owner to break even, gasoline would have to be $5.60 a gallon. People have to do the math.

BUT, if someone's buying a commuter car anyway, it's very hard to say no to 52mpg!

 

[farmerpsv]

Huck,
i've had a truck all my life, so it was a scary switch. i bought the suv as a compromise and have a 14' trailor...found that worked pretty neat, not as convenient as the truck but holds alot more...got used to it pretty quick. when the wifes van finally died, i got her a new one that can tow. my car is indeed the commuter car. include in your equation the longevity of a diesel engine and the fact i can actually make my own fuel from waste veggie oil and the results change. i'm going for the independence factor as well as the mileage...course i understand not everyone is going to have a still in there tractor shed, but i will. my real excitement is with being more independent.
paul

 

[HuckBB62]

I guess you'd better hope it doesn't gain in popularity. As long as you're in the minority, you'll be in french fry smellin' heaven! We've got an SUV also. Can't get rid of the truck or the Denali. My buddy's got a TDI, it's a fantastic car! I particularly like the latest model's front end.

 

[arthr31]

hey there, have you started creating your own biodiesel yet? I've looked at the kits to convert the bio materials to oil, seem kinda expensive plus i'd have to collect a lot of used veggie oil, for instance... But, I have to fill up the truck this friday and am starting to fear the 2.59/gal that I have to fork out for another 20-30 gallons of diesel... thanks. -art

 

[Alan L.]

Everything I read says it takes more energy to produce biodiesel than what it saves. This would include the fuel needed for the tractors, etc. to grow the corn or whatever it is that biodiesel is made from. So you burn more fuel in the tractor and less in your car I guess.

 

[anthonyk]

Re: do the math:

Yep! I agree. I love the idea of getting 50 mpg instead of the 20 I average with my Dodge Cummins Turbo Diesel, but....
I figure it costs me about 1700.00 per year more in fuel with the Dodge rather than the econo car. I can't imagine finding any car of any quality that I could own, fuel, operate, maintain, and insure for 1700.00 per year, so the difference ain't worth buying the second vehicle by a long shot.
However, if it's your only vehicle, then I'd be driving one for sure. I used to own one of the early Jetta GLI gas versions, and it was a blast to drive!
Kinda hard to pull my tractor with though.... /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
anthony

 

[farmerpsv]

art,
been away a few, building a house. check out www.homepower.com they had an article couple issues back on how to make your own still with a hot water heater, was a separate web site for it from a grass roots organization, at work now so don't have the mag with me, but you should be able to find it there.
paul

 

[arthr31]

Thanks, Paul. I'll check that site out...