12 Mods, 129.8% MPG - - - VW Passat Shenanigans

[dfeldt91]

I've got another 15,000 miles on my tires but would like to get narrower tires to help with rolling resistance and aero.

My current tires are 195-65-15's. I'd like to get 165-80-15's. Here is a comparison.

1.18" narrower and 13 less revolutions per mile for the new tires as they are slightly larger.

With a 2% increase(guessing), it wouldn't make sense financially to change the current tires for narrower ones since it costs to get them balanced and put back on if I ever want to use them again....So, I'm going to try to find lightweight wheels then mount the new ones to those and get some covers for aero. Lighter tires, lighter wheels, slightly larger tires, aero covers = MORE MPG!!

I'm also going to block the lower grill and order a lower engine cover(Front Belly Pan)

Oh boy, the adventure begins...

[redpoint5]

Originally Posted by dfeldt91

I was just checking out specs for the Passat and found out that the 2001 Passat has one of the lowest drag coefficients of vehicles on the road today at only 0.27!

I'm tied with your Cd of 0.27 in my TSX, but my 6-speed gearbox was designed by drag race engineers instead of family sedan engineers, so I only manage 30 MPG.

6th gear is a real shame because you would need a race track with a 5 mile long straight to use it, but it's still geared too fast for highway cruising. Basically, it's pointless for racing and useless for fuel economy.

Congratulations on your new ride and fantastic hypermiling.

[dfeldt91]

Originally Posted by redpoint5

I'm tied with your Cd of 0.27 in my TSX, but my 6-speed gearbox was designed by drag race engineers instead of family sedan engineers, so I only manage 30 MPG.

6th gear is a real shame because you would need a race track with a 5 mile long straight to use it, but it's still geared too fast for highway cruising. Basically, it's pointless for racing and useless for fuel economy.

Congratulations on your new ride and fantastic hypermiling.

Hey! An Oregonian.

I do like those TSX's. That is unfortunate about the 6th gear though. A lot of car companies just use things like that to sell cars. People hear 6 speed and come running. My Golf is a 5 speed, I never use fourth and rarely use third(Only on steep hills) so I understand the useless gears lol.

[dfeldt91]

Yesterday was an interesting day. Drove 50 miles to the next big city, got to the busiest part of town and my alternator died. Got stuck and called a tow truck. Couldn't get the alternator fixed in the Autozone parking lot so I got a ride home. Went back this morning and got it fixed....Kinda.

Good news: Got a $250 alternator for the base alternator price since they were closing and I was out of cash. They wanted to see me get home so they gave me a free belt, tools and $100 off the alternator! Autozone is awesome!

In the process I had to cut off the AC belt so I no longer have to worry about the parasitic drain of HP from the condenser. The belt is too long so I have the tensioner bolted on lower with only one bolt, going to go fix it soon so I don't lose the belt on the highway.

Did notice a few MPG increase without AC and Alternator on the Highway which was nice.

[oil pan 4]

I didn't know a cheap autozone alt was $250, but that sticks with the reoccurring theme of nothing cheap.
I really recommend setting some money aside for when it breaks.

[MobilOne]

Was this experience a hint of things to come?

[Xist]

Does the Autozone alternator have a lifetime warranty?

I do not remember how long the warranty on my new Napa alternator was, but I spent $150 and it was not the least expensive one they had.

At least you know how to replace it if you ever need to!

[redpoint5]

In the US, European car parts cost double other brands.

My friend had a 2002 VW Golf that had an alternator die. Replacement was $250.

He now has a 2011 Golf TDI, which I'm waiting to see how it will rob him.

[oil pan 4]

Originally Posted by MobilOne

Was this experience a hint of things to come?

Yes.
We got our mark IV 1.8t engine bug about 3 years ago with a little under 80,000 miles. Today its just over 90,000 miles. It was at the dealership from june or july 2015 to nearly 2016. Most of that time was waiting for an ECU to come available for less than $800. It was just tempting to buy the $925 ECU I kept finding online and having the car running again fast but the jewish portion of me would not allow it.
I knew the ECU was bad but the dealership insisted on trouble shooting with ridiculously expensive parts, guess they knew they wouldn't make any money on the bad ECU diagnosis since they couldn't get one.

For the sake of everyone else hopefully jetta and Passat 1.8t ECUs are not as rare and expensive as turbo sport bug ECUs should anyone need one.

I also get the feeling the VW dealerships don't want to mess with anything more than about 10 years old.

[dfeldt91]

I got a lower grill block installed today. What a fun time, not... The wind was intense with gusts to 40mph occasionally. Not fun when holding a 4 by 8 sheet of plastic.




Doesn't affect engine temperature negatively. Can't attest to a quicker warm up as my car warms up extremely fast which is awesome.