g60racer

One advantage to TDI is you can use a greasel kit on it, go pick up used cooking oil at any burger joint every week, and not have to pay a cent for fuel again. My buddy has a TDi beetle that he has been running on In+Out fry grease for a few years now. Driving behind him, exhaust smells like french fries.

cdelena

I don't think that is necessarily true. The type of crude refined makes a large difference in the natural yield and it is reported that low sulphur diesel is more expensive to produce.

CG

Thanks guys. Finding diesel can sometimes be a headache but in a car that should run 600 to 700 miles on a tank I don't think it'll be a problem. I also own a Chevy 2500hd crew cab diesel so I know the good and the bad that go with them. Right now I just need a beater to run 80 or 90 miles a day in. I've just done a 140 mile test drive in the car and other than it being fairly slow, I liked it. I may pull the trigger on this one.

Steve C even likes them.

Chris S

I've been looking for something w/ decent mileage to replace my fiance's Isuzu Rodeo (which I hate). I'd been researching hybrids, since gas prices are only going up, but decided the Jetta TDI was worth considering. My fiance loves Jettas, so that wasn't a hard sell to get her interest. We test drove an '06 Jetta TDI w/ the DSG tranny. Needless to say, our search ended there! W/ only 100 hp, I was expecting it to be dog slow, but was pleasantly surprised. The torque, plus the 6 sp. DSG's proficiency at keeping the engine in the meaty part of the powerband, made it much better than expected.

The interior size/luxury was a nice surprise, too - who'd have thought a 50 mpg car could be so nice?

We put a deposit down on a Spice Red one w/ DSG, Package 2, and rear side airbags. I'm actually looking forward to driving it (though I won't reg., b/c my fiance has a much longer commute).

gosixers215

I could go for a Double Double right now...

I think a TDI as a beater wouldn't be a bad choice.

rai

Don't know if this is a factor, but they are horribly slow. C&D had a new Jetta TDI test 0-60 at 10.3 sec and 1/4 at 17.6sec@77 mph. C&D saw 36 mpg.

-->>click

Chris S

It must be the torque, but it felt quicker than the numbers led me to expect. My fiance's impression is that the acceleration was better than her Rodeo's, and she loved it. No replacement for the S2000, but it sure beats a Prius or similarly economical gas sipper!

rai

Don't know the $$ range you're looking at, but the new Civic with 140-hp gets 30/40 mpg is a very nice little car.

steve c

The forthcoming BMW 1-Series diesel (should they actually get it over here as they claim) is worth the wait.

I've rented them a couple times and put a few thousand kilometers on them. Fantastic vehicles, very fun to drive and decent power too -- with great economy. Ugly though.

CG

I really like the looks of the 1 series and hope they do bring the diesel over.

I bought the Golf TDI almost 3 months ago and have put right at 7000 miles on it. It's been great. Up until I moved a month ago and started driving the freeway most of the time at 85 mph I was averaging 47 + mpg. Now with the higher speeds and AC all the time I'm still getting 44 mpg. The car is great, I would like for it to be a little quicker but I've never owned a car that I didn't wish that so it's no big deal.