Why don't TDI's like winter

[Seatman]

I think it's the human element, I don't really like winter either and tend to eat more, your car's got soul man lol

[Cogen Man]

Originally Posted by chef73

I have a 2010 Jetta Sportswagen and it barely gets in the 30 range during the winter is there anything i can do to improve the gas mileage for the winter like using a fuel additive

Oh, I forgot. It will get better mpg if you use diesel instead of gas. Yes I'm a smart ass.

[chgofirefighter]

Heating up the car during park in the garage for 5/10 mins wouldn't help? ;(

[camotruck]

I often thought of adding a piece of cardboard to block the air flow across the radiator,Like the big rigs do. Has any one done it?

[Jim W]

Originally Posted by chef73

I have a 2010 Jetta Sportswagen and it barely gets in the 30 range during the winter is there anything i can do to improve the gas mileage for the winter like using a fuel additive

Will first off how fast do you drive MPH? When you drive the car do you drive in city traffic of stop and go only or do you drive mainly on the highway a lot?

My wife drives a 2011 TDI Jetta in the Chicago land area and last winter she average 34 MPG with country driving. Mainly 45 to 50MPH driving in a little stop and go traffic, if she does a lot of driving in the city the MPG's will drop to around to 32 MPG with winter fuel.

I hand calculate all of her mileage and maintain this on a excel spread sheet. The spread sheet is done in one year increments so I can track trends on the health of the car.

Hey by the way be thankful for ever you are getting in MPG’s with your Jetta this is way better than what my Ram Cummins get’s in the winter 14 MPG’s.

Jim W.

[camotruck]

my Driving is 90% 10% Highway/City I do 100 miles a day my 2006 1.9 5 speed man was getting an honest 52 MPG. I took me 100k to get there from 0 - 40K I got around 40 from 40K - 100K I crept up on 46 and then on to 50 +. I always ran Stayadine. In my 2010 2.0 6 speed man I'm hoping to get 55+ I've only had one tank through it with no additives. I have Michelin low rolling resistance tires on the 06 and factory continentals on my 10 with 36K miles right now.

As far as your Cummings ... I feel ya. my F350 7.3L 5 speed crew cab. 17 MPG on her best day.

[Al747]

Interesting stuff, in the winter i had a Kenlow heater fitted in the cooling system, greatly improved the short start stop diesel consumption. Dont know about the electric bill though!!

[no-blue-screen]

Originally Posted by chef73

I have a 2010 Jetta Sportswagen and it barely gets in the 30 range during the winter is there anything i can do to improve the gas mileage for the winter like using a fuel additive

Check tire pressure. Remember that winter diesel has less energy content as they mix in #1 fuel to lower the gel point. In your region I think generally speaking you should expect a 10% reduction in the winter. Depending on where you get fuel too....those on highways or near them may tend to winterize further to keep it from gelling as the truckers and other diesels head north....which of course would further reduce fuel economy.

I use power service white bottle in the winter every other tank. Grey bottle in the warmer months every other tank for lubricity.

I created a fuel economy video based on my passat if you are interested:

http://youtu.be/zgyjVvEuDLo

[Radfox]

This is all very interesting. I was thinking that there was something wrong with my 2006 that I just bought. My first weeks fuel mileage after driving like a granny ended up at 39.9 MPG. Needless to say I was really bummed. So on this run i have been driving more normal to see how much worse its gonna get. i've been watching my avg on the trip computer and I noticed that during my cold early morning 17 mile commute i am hitting around 37 mpg by the end of the trip. Then later in the day when I drive home I'm hitting 51 MPG. I was thinking that I had some type of cold weather problem but it sounds like the car is not getting warm enough.