Last updated on March 1, 2010
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"That's a DIESEL?"  is a popular question received by TDI owners.  Very few Americans look at a sleek new car and think about it being powered by a diesel engine.  With the exception of the $51k+ R350 by Mercedes-Benz and the $45k 335d by BMW, Volkswagen/Audi is the only group to offer diesel powered passenger cars in North America (and the only economical diesels rated for over 40 mpg).   VW offers the only diesel powered passenger car mated to a manual transmission.  Diesels have benefits.  Although I'm a bit of a leadfoot, regularly tow a trailer, and compete in SCCA events, my lifetime average economy over 325,000 miles is about 44 mpg.  I can get over 50 mpg simply by DRIVING THE SPEED LIMIT.  My longest tank was 802 miles on 14.58 gallons, yielding 55 mpg.  My most economical road trip was to and from Boston from Washington DC.   I achieved 57 mpg on the way up and 60.5 mpg on the return trip... all with a bit of self control... NO SPEEDING.  See more details regarding my fuel economy at FUELLY.COM. :-)

With today's climbing fuel prices, going diesel is a good route for SAVING MONEY.  Personally, I like the idea of sending less of my money to the Middle East.  ECU reprogramming and simple injector nozzle swapouts can boost horsepower and torque by over 40% and can even increases fuel economy by ~5% (if you can keep your foot out of the floor).  With such an upgrade, you'll be driving as much torque as your V6 counterparts (I'm at 315 lb/ft),  but with double the fuel economy.  Suspension, exhaust, air intake, and body modifications are also applicable to TDI-equipped cars.  It's safe to say the TDI is the best performing ECONOMY CAR on the road today.  Click here to read more about MY TDI or choose other links below.