My first 500 mile tank (10 gal tank - 61 mpg - 81 VW Rabbit)

[81rabbitdiesel]

Hi Guys,

I had a lot of running to do in the last week and racked up some miles. I have always tryed to go about 300 or 400 miles before i fill up cause i dont want to run the Rabbit out of Diesel. My last couple of tanks helped me go for the 500 mark! It only has a 10 gallon tank so it is a bit nervous when you start seeing it above 400.

I learned alot more about my car doing this and Last week i was able to ride in my firends 90 jetta Diesel and see how the gearing is different in the 2 cars. His Diesel has the same motor and is a non turbo. But th Jettas Gearing is much lower than in my 81 rabbit. His 5th gear is like my 4th gear.

Just with the stuff i have learned on his site and NO Areo mods yet i have went from getting 40+ mpgs to breaking 60mpgs my last 2 tanks.

This tank was 503.6 miles on 8.24 for 61.1 MPG! I really think with Aero mods i could bust 70mpgs with this old car. Time will tell.

I also know the 8.24 gallons filled i up cause the Gas Pump didnt shut off and it ran out of the tank. if it would have cut off or had i caught it quicker i think it might have just used 8 gallons. i am just going by what the pump said i used and included what was on my car and the pavement : )

Thanks for reading, Don

[user removed]

Great mileage. I was wondering when I read the thread title about a VW Rabbit with a 500 gallon tank! Heck you could go 30,000 miles on that tank.


regards
Mech

[slowmover]

Originally Posted by Old Mechanic

Great mileage. I was wondering when I read the thread title about a VW Rabbit with a 500 gallon tank! Heck you could go 30,000 miles on that tank.


regards
Mech

Same thought here!!

Congrats. I regularly get over 700-per tank so thread titles without tank gallonage reference are always a bit funny to me. I have 36-gls capacity and some of the newer diesel trucks have 50-gls OEM.

Keep up the good work. Must feel great to log that mpg!!

.

[MetroMPG]

Hi Don -

Just with the stuff i have learned on his site and NO Areo mods yet i have went from getting 40+ mpgs to breaking 60mpgs my last 2 tanks.

~50% improvement through driving technique alone is nothing to sneeze at. Congrats!

And I fixed the thread title, guys.

[Diesel_Dave]

Way to go, Don! Keep up the good work!

[Ken Fry]

Wow! Great job!

[Ryland]

I was looking in the fuel log of the 1981 VW rabbit that my grand parents bought new and they would often get 58 to 62mpg, but I'm sure they were also driving 55mph and never drove less then 15 miles one way, the car had over 160,000 miles on it before the factory starting battery or brake pads/shoes were replaced for the first time, but then again they bought the car because if they were going to drive some place it was a distance.

I know that the alloy GTI wheels are heavy, but I wonder if more modern alloy wheels would fit (VW used wheels that centered on the hub, instead of with the lugs, I think, fact check this) but if you can get lighter weight 14" wheels then you have options for low rolling resistance tires.

Also, the transmission oil is most likely 31 years old, unless you've changed it, a synthetic GL5 gear oil in there might make things move a little smoother.

[larrybuck]

Congrats! Please be smart enough to hang on to that car!
Quite impressive as the CD factor, and weight is more than my CRX w comparable
mpg figures.

[Rusty Marina]

If the shock towers are good (a death nail in VWs of that era) I would hang onto it. I think the 81s had the larger 1.6 over the earlier 1.5.