My Green Skoda Fabia (VW Polo) R3 CRTDI - finally smashed the 3L / 80MPG barrier

[GreenTDI]

The TDI has been given a power boost. The numbers are 102 hp at 3800 rpm and 237 Nm (175 lb-ft) at 2300 rpm. OK, it will never be an HP monster, but the power delivery has improved throughout the whole rev range and driving the small three-cylinder is much easier now. I have a picture of the powercurve, sorry for the bad quality (I also deleted some personal information).



I can analyse it like this:
The stock figures of 180 Nm (133 lb-ft) and 75 hp are now reached at 1850 and 2300 rpm (instead of 2000 and 4200 rpm!! before)
There is over 230 Nm (170 lb-ft) of torque available between 2100 and 2800 rpm. The 100 hp is reached at 3100 rpm and is sustained until 4300 rpm. So it's clear that it's not a peaky curve, but the figures are held for a long time.

My experiences until now:
At low rpm, the difference is moderate but noticable. At load below 1500 rpm it's less grumpy and and there is now actually a slight acceleration!
Between 1500 and 2000 rpm it's already quite powerfull but also smoother and more dosable: the accelerator is no longer an on-off button. There is also less delay between the accelerator and turbo response.
But from 2000 rpm the needle suddenly goes fast and you get that typical 'push in the back'. It's a strange feeling because it doesn't fit with the 'eco-friendly' nature of the car. It's certainly no longer a ! But what will it mean for FE, as always it will be up to the driver ...

[Stubby79]

I was going to say...that's a heck of a lotta torque and HP for something with a 3 cylinder in it.

So I looked up the car. That's a lotta weight to move with a 3 cylinder! Poor thing. Should move well now though.

[GreenTDI]

Originally Posted by Stubby79

So I looked up the car. That's a lotta weight to move with a 3 cylinder! Poor thing. Should move well now though.

It's not a small car either. But because it (was) under motorized I automatically drove more quietly and the small engine was quite efficient.

[GreenTDI]

Here you see the MPG-wonder standing proudly between a Golf GTI on the right and a Passat Variant Highline 2.0 evo-TDI (that's a mouthful) on the left. Diversity was key here, power figures went from 100 hp for my car, 200 hp for the Passat and more than 300 hp for the Golf! There were at least 600 horses in that room ...

[GreenTDI]

It doesn't look like FE has worsened. It's even easier to get good mileages with a smoother/faster driving style. Before, for a quick overtake, I had to downshift and revving the engine up to 4000 rpm and it took quite a long time. Now it's just a punch on the accelerator, going no further than 2500 rpm and upshift to continue.

I'm shifting less, making less revs and the acceleration time is shorter. If I look at it that way, it's win win win.

Actual numbers will follow, it's not in the winter that I will break new records but it certainly will be better than previous winters ...

[Leinaad]

Sounds good. Winter tires are killing my already bad fe, I´m roughly 1 litre above my normal consumption.

Do you have any other mods in mind? You have a 5speed transmission right? Is there a 6 speed available or longer gearing from the greenline models?

[GreenTDI]

It's true that winter tires are bad for FE, but you get more safety in return. I'm only changing my wheels when they predict severe winter weather for a long time. But in Germany it's mandatory during the whole season I think.

Originally Posted by Leinaad

Do you have any other mods in mind? You have a 5speed transmission right? Is there a 6 speed available or longer gearing from the greenline models?

That's a good question. I've done all the mods that I had planned when I started this thread early this year ... I'm now waiting for the summer to see how it will affect FE.

There are a few adjustements that I want to complete this winter. Like removing the roof rails, antenna (+closing all that gaps) and seal the rear bumper at the bottom, because that thing acts like a parachute for the air that's going under the car.


As for the future:

It already has the long ratio 5 speed gearbox from the Greenline version. I'm sticking with that at the moment. If it should break down my plan it to look for an alternative. The same applies for the entire exhaust. There are a few options, all coming from the 1.6 TDI engine. The 1.2 TDI is actually a 1.6 TDI where they have cut off a cylinder, those parts should fit.

Oh yes, and if the AC is empty (could be after next summer) and no longer works I would like to remove it. I'm never using it. With the condenser removed, the engine cooling will improve, allowing to close the top grill completely for better aero. The weight reduction of about 20 kg on the front axle is also worthwhile.

[GreenTDI]

I did a 69 mile back and forth trip yesterday (city traffic, country roads and 60% highway) and scored an average of 56 MPG or 4.2l/100km.
Nothing special you would think but the weather conditions were extremely bad - an active cold front passed with wind gusts of 55 mph, pouring rain and a temperature that dropped in a short period of time. So I'm pleased to see such a figure, before the eco mods MPG went from 45 to 50 in these conditions. The car is also more stable and headwind is less of a problem.
So far so good ...

[GreenTDI]

Still performace related - but it also shows an aerdynamic improvement - I saw the opportunity to test the top speed yesterday, and reached 192 km/h (120 mph) real speed.

This summer there will be another 'test' with the removed roof rails, the improved rear bumper, better inflated tires and some higher temperatures. In addition to that 90 MPG mark, it would also be nice to hit 200 km/h (125 mph) with the GreenTDI. Although, it's not easy to overcome another 5 mph at those speeds ...

For the time being it is cold and wet outside, and my usual long highway trips have been canceled due to the corona pandemic, so there isn't much to add about fuel economy ...

[stefaantje]

Originally Posted by GreenTDI

...I was looking for lightweight forged audi rims, like the first generation A2 and A3. It put's 12 lbs on the scale. There isn't a lighter 15" rim that fits my car...

Could you share the specs on those Audi rims?
I assume they have pattern 5x100, but what are the widths & offset (ET-value)?

Maybe you even know a part number / reference number?