Lupo 3L

[Laurentiu]

Hey there, welcome and congrats on this gem of a car that you own !
You need to quickly set up a FUEL LOG in your signature so we can all admire

[robchalmers]

Sorry to hear about your experiences of VW customer service / dealer service crews. From my experience they're no better or worse than other manufacturers though but each of us is isolation.

I love the 3L - can't get enough of 'em after i drove one im deutch a couple of years ago. i was even thinking about doing a home brew version based on the 1.7sdi (3.6L/100km)- thanks to your self study I think i'll ditch that concept!!!

oh btw bonnets - I believe Lupo cup race cars ran carbon fibre ones and there are a few knocking abut on the continent,

[Unheard]

Originally Posted by Laurentiu

Hey there, welcome and congrats on this gem of a car that you own !
You need to quickly set up a FUEL LOG in your signature so we can all admire

As it is always so good and i am not doing anything to change it yet i tend not to really log exacty what its doing. I enjoy not really having much concern over the fuel dial because its a refreshing change. When i get the car back on the road i may start to lod my return more strictly.

Originally Posted by robchalmers

Sorry to hear about your experiences of VW customer service / dealer service crews. From my experience they're no better or worse than other manufacturers though but each of us is isolation.

I love the 3L - can't get enough of 'em after i drove one im deutch a couple of years ago. i was even thinking about doing a home brew version based on the 1.7sdi - thanks to your self study I think i'll ditch that concept!!!

oh btw bonnets - I believe Lupo cup race cars ran carbon fibre ones and there are a few knocking abut on the continent,

do they give you a space saver spare or a can of squirt??

I dont think its just something i have noticed many people in germany find VW customer service shocking and that surprised me when i found out.

In the UK its a total lottery where you go. I am unfortunate that i live in one of the more affluent areas where people dont worry so much about the expense of repairs. I always find they are incredibly arrogant in my local dealers. If they gave fantastic service i could over look that but I suspect if i drive outward form London / Surrey area i could find much better service. My uncle who lived in London for many years always use to get his car serviced when on holiday in devon. Even after the fuel used to drive there he still saved on the cost of a service and aways swore that he was treated like a king compared to anywhere in London.

It is an addictive car to drive, a very unique driving experience. If i were you i would look at the 1.4 TDI over the 1.7SDI, The SDI can get good FE but it's an NA engine so not ideal unless you only sit on the motorway at a constant speed. The 1.4TDI gets good milage but its an engine you would much rather live with. Rather than the Lupo i would look at the audi a2 1.4 TDI its the same engine as the lupo but packages in an all aluminum body with a 0.28 Cd. I also believe that audi do an aerodynamic kit for them it consists of some under body panels. If i had not got the 3L i would have got myself a lupo or a2 TDI i was looking at the time i found the 3L for sale.

I have looked for info on the cup car but its not easy to come by there was also the GTIs they sold in Japan i imagine there are many carbon bits to be had in japan but i cant find them. There is a company that make the carbon bonnet over here so i may get one once at some point.

It did not come with a space saver just a can of tire weld. That didn't really bother me as i had a space saver in the Sport but got rids of it as its quite useless anyway. i have never had a puncture where its gone down straight away so fingers crossed it wont happen any time soon.

[vtec-e]

Gotta love that 1.4tdi. No timing belt so little or no worries there. Turbo is a hoot AND it pulls like a good thing in the snow!

[robchalmers]

drove my friends 1.4tdi, got to admit I love the sound of the little 3-potter!

I was going for the sdi because i've found a couple of cheap ones going for a song on fleebay! that and there was a panel damaged arosa sdi in the scrappy near my house i only missed out on it because I didn't get back quick enough with the cash! the 1.7 would be fine for me, I do spend alot of time at constant revs on the M6. From what i've been told its not far off a short-throw version of the NA 1.9 engine in my polo, which is great because the lupo/arosa is basically a short wheelbase 6N polo anyway!

[AJI]

Many thanks to the OP for posting all those images from the handbook (I presume that's where they're from!).

The Lupo 3L fascinates me, I'm a big fan of all VAG's 1.4 and 1.2 3-cyl tdi models, they all achieve fantastic economy. My previous favourite and the one I'd have bought would have been the A2 TDI, since they did a higher powered version with 90bhp which not only achieves very impressive economy but has good performance too, plus of course the A2 is very aerodynamic, light, spacious and looks great.

Having read about the 3L now though I'm sold - the amount of little things that VW have done to it over the regular diesel versions is amazing. Proper engineering which is great in a world of electrical engineering.

Unfortunately most VW diesels of any sort are out of my budget at the moment (might just be able to squeeze to a 1.9 sdi or tdi soon when I buy a winter daily driver) but the 3L is going on the list now when such time comes that I can afford it!

Highest economy car I've driven up till now is the Smart ForTwo Cdi, which is quoted at 3.3 litres/100km (85mpg in UK gallons) and in my hands managed a still impressive 3.8l/100km or about 74mpg UK, even with lots of aircon and headlights useage. It's great seeing what some of these small diesels are capable of.

[Unheard]

Originally Posted by robchalmers

the 1.7 would be fine for me, I do spend alot of time at constant revs on the M6. From what i've been told its not far off a short-throw version of the NA 1.9 engine in my polo, which is great because the lupo/arosa is basically a short wheelbase 6N polo anyway!

That type or driving would be fine but an NA diesel would kill me with the type of roads i drive on. That is why i love the 3L it still has a bit of poke when you need it most. Its hard to understand quite why VW brought out the Lupo when it was so close to the polo. Dont get me wrong personally think the Lupo is a better car and i would say that as i have 2 but they really were treading on each others feet a bit.

Originally Posted by AJI

Many thanks to the OP for posting all those images from the handbook (I presume that's where they're from!).

The Lupo 3L fascinates me, I'm a big fan of all VAG's 1.4 and 1.2 3-cyl tdi models, they all achieve fantastic economy. My previous favourite and the one I'd have bought would have been the A2 TDI, since they did a higher powered version with 90bhp which not only achieves very impressive economy but has good performance too, plus of course the A2 is very aerodynamic, light, spacious and looks great.

Having read about the 3L now though I'm sold - the amount of little things that VW have done to it over the regular diesel versions is amazing. Proper engineering which is great in a world of electrical engineering.

Unfortunately most VW diesels of any sort are out of my budget at the moment (might just be able to squeeze to a 1.9 sdi or tdi soon when I buy a winter daily driver) but the 3L is going on the list now when such time comes that I can afford it!

Highest economy car I've driven up till now is the Smart ForTwo Cdi, which is quoted at 3.3 litres/100km (85mpg in UK gallons) and in my hands managed a still impressive 3.8l/100km or about 74mpg UK, even with lots of aircon and headlights useage. It's great seeing what some of these small diesels are capable of.

No they are what is calles self study guides. They are for internal use. I assume for training and service department so they understand the cars.

Audi did also bring out a 3L A2 but they only sold around 6,000. The 1.4 is a very tuneable engine. As you say the good thing is they have good power but still return fantastic FE.

I was very disappointed when i found out the new audi a1 would not be made out of alloy. I suppose if was they would cost more and like the a2 it would not sell in very high numbers. It appears people would rather save at the point of purchase rather than when filling up. Its understandable really because a huge proportion of people that buy new cars will sell them on or trade them in would way before any return would be seen. The A2 is still up there with some of the best currently being sold in terms of MPG.

Its such a shame just think of all those fantastic TDIs that must have been scraped under the scrappage scheme. A well maintained TDI has only just broken in at 100k its the body and electrics that tend to die first you could also look at seat and skoda as they are both VAG with the same engines

I was just looking at the smart Cdi engine specs the other day. It would make a fantastic power plant for a wv 1L inspired cockpit layout car. Its something i would love to do if i had a garage.

[Unheard]

All links working again

Here are some more 3L related study guides some of them are referenced in the document 218 as posted in images.

Same as images
SSP_218.PDF

Body
SSP_216.PDF

Electronic manual gearbox
SSP_221.PDF

The 1.2l and 1.4l TDI engines
SSP_223.PDF

The electro-mechanical power steering system (not fitted to my car)
SSP_225.PDF

Here is a crash test video of the 3L. The test was undertaken by PMG Technologies Canada.

(may require VLC player to watch)
Video of 3L crash test




I have also just found this Guinness-World-Record-with-Microlon.pdf

It opens up another area of investigation for me i had never heard of this Microlon stuff before

[Piwoslaw]

Thanks for all the info!

I've been looking for a deal on the Lupo 3L for over a year now, but their price doesn't seem to go down over time One of the worst things I've seen in a used car lot was a 3L tuned for performance. That's one efficient car less

I read somewhere (lost the link) that the 3L's engine is so efficient that it needs the help of an electric heater in the winter.

A hypermiler's dream would be to ditch the auto trans. Were there any produced with a manual? I've seen ads for 3L's with a manual transmission, I wonder if that's not just the owner not knowing. Though in one picture of the cabin the stick did look like a manual. I also read on some forum that someone did a swap.

Originally Posted by Unheard

I enjoy not really having much concern over the fuel dial because its a refreshing change.

Ah, but the fun is not about not using a lot of fuel, it's about using even less

[robchalmers]

How big is the 3L's fuel tank? mine is a paultry 45litres including reserve, but that will last 9days with 5-6 of those commuting.