Better Gas Mileage

To All:

Several people have written to ask what they can do to go a little
farther on a gallon of gasoline. Often times they cite some really
dismal figures, such as 14mpg for a bug or 12 for a bus.

Basic rule for stretching your mileage is to drive slower. Alas, that
isn't always possible here in southern California, where you're liable
to get a ticket if you drive too slowly on the freeway -- and where
using surface streets is not an option.

How slow? Near your torque-peak. In my '65 bus that's about 37mph in
4th gear.

Driving economically calls for a bit of thought and a heavy dose of
common sense, which is surprisingly rare among owners of air-cooled
Volkswagens. For example, it should be obvious that you'll get better
mileage if your engine is kept in perfect tune.

Lightening the load is another sure bet for better mileage. I managed
to pull more than 300 pounds of spares, tools and camping equipment out
of my bus.

Skinny tires give better mileage than fat ones, especially if they're
pumped up as hard as rocks. The bus gets a bit skittish when the tire
pressure is 50psi but it isn't a problem if I keep the speed down.
Make sure your alignment is dead-on, even to opening up your toe-in a
tad; right now I'm running with about sixty-thou toe-in vs the usual
..120". And make sure your brakes aren't dragging, not even the tiniest
bit.

Your driving habits are perhaps the most significant factor in reducing
your fuel-burn. Get it into 4th as soon as it will pull it and keep a
very light foot on the accelerator. On level ground keep your speed as
steady as possible. Any jiggle or bounce with be seen by the
accelerator pump as a demand for more fuel.

Is it worth it? I'll let you decide: I got 308 miles out of my last
fill-up -- 10 gallons (I usually get 230 ~ 240). The Ghia does a LOT
better but you can't haul a sheet of plywood :-) (Personal errands?
Use a bicycle. Good exercise :-)

-Bob Hoover

wrote:

> To All:
>
> Several people have written to ask what they can do to go a little
> farther on a gallon of gasoline. Often times they cite some really
> dismal figures, such as 14mpg for a bug or 12 for a bus.
>
> Basic rule for stretching your mileage is to drive slower. Alas, that
> isn't always possible here in southern California, where you're liable
> to get a ticket if you drive too slowly on the freeway -- and where
> using surface streets is not an option.
>
> How slow? Near your torque-peak. In my '65 bus that's about 37mph in
> 4th gear.
>
> Driving economically calls for a bit of thought and a heavy dose of
> common sense, which is surprisingly rare among owners of air-cooled
> Volkswagens. For example, it should be obvious that you'll get better
> mileage if your engine is kept in perfect tune.
>
> Lightening the load is another sure bet for better mileage. I managed
> to pull more than 300 pounds of spares, tools and camping equipment out
> of my bus.
>
> Skinny tires give better mileage than fat ones, especially if they're
> pumped up as hard as rocks. The bus gets a bit skittish when the tire
> pressure is 50psi but it isn't a problem if I keep the speed down.
> Make sure your alignment is dead-on, even to opening up your toe-in a
> tad; right now I'm running with about sixty-thou toe-in vs the usual
> .120". And make sure your brakes aren't dragging, not even the tiniest
> bit.
>
> Your driving habits are perhaps the most significant factor in reducing
> your fuel-burn. Get it into 4th as soon as it will pull it and keep a
> very light foot on the accelerator. On level ground keep your speed as
> steady as possible. Any jiggle or bounce with be seen by the
> accelerator pump as a demand for more fuel.
>
> Is it worth it? I'll let you decide: I got 308 miles out of my last
> fill-up -- 10 gallons (I usually get 230 ~ 240). The Ghia does a LOT
> better but you can't haul a sheet of plywood :-) (Personal errands?
> Use a bicycle. Good exercise :-)
>
> -Bob Hoover


OR you could rebuild the tired old engine, get it to burn what goes
through it more completely, extract more power for the wheels from the
same amount of fuel as before.. and THEN drive slower. Win from both ends.

It is possible to build an engine that is a bit more economical to
drive, but most of all what is important, is to rebuild the engine so it
again does it's job as it did when it was NEW. No wasted energy in the
form of leaks and inefficient burn process.

Of course, this route costs money in the initial investment, and it will
take TIME before the build cost is earned back from better mileage.

You would also get more power from a std rebuild, want it or not, and it
will be hard to ignore and drive slow, without enjoying it even without
noticing.

Jan

wrote:
>To All:
>
>Several people have written to ask what they can do to go a little
>farther on a gallon of gasoline. Often times they cite some really
>dismal figures, such as 14mpg for a bug or 12 for a bus.
>
>Basic rule for stretching your mileage is to drive slower. Alas, that
>isn't always possible here in southern California, where you're liable
>to get a ticket if you drive too slowly on the freeway -- and where
>using surface streets is not an option.
>
>How slow? Near your torque-peak. In my '65 bus that's about 37mph in
>4th gear.
>
>Driving economically calls for a bit of thought and a heavy dose of
>common sense, which is surprisingly rare among owners of air-cooled
>Volkswagens. For example, it should be obvious that you'll get better
>mileage if your engine is kept in perfect tune.
>
>Lightening the load is another sure bet for better mileage. I managed
>to pull more than 300 pounds of spares, tools and camping equipment out
>of my bus.
>
>Skinny tires give better mileage than fat ones, especially if they're
>pumped up as hard as rocks. The bus gets a bit skittish when the tire
>pressure is 50psi but it isn't a problem if I keep the speed down.
>Make sure your alignment is dead-on, even to opening up your toe-in a
>tad; right now I'm running with about sixty-thou toe-in vs the usual
>..120". And make sure your brakes aren't dragging, not even the tiniest
>bit.
>
>Your driving habits are perhaps the most significant factor in reducing
>your fuel-burn. Get it into 4th as soon as it will pull it and keep a
>very light foot on the accelerator. On level ground keep your speed as
>steady as possible. Any jiggle or bounce with be seen by the
>accelerator pump as a demand for more fuel.
>
>Is it worth it? I'll let you decide: I got 308 miles out of my last
>fill-up -- 10 gallons (I usually get 230 ~ 240). The Ghia does a LOT
>better but you can't haul a sheet of plywood :-) (Personal errands?
>Use a bicycle. Good exercise :-)
>
>-Bob Hoover
>

I never check the mileage on my beetle because I never fill it up and I don't what
be upset with it. I only check the mileage on my daily drive car.


Joao
72 Super 1302

Yes, I think the tune up and condition of the engine is very important
however the driving is numer one. Where I live I am under no pressure
to drive anyone elses speed so I keep the rpms under 3000 on the puma
and super and not over 3500 on the bus. The Puma with webers will get
about 22mpg, the super about 28 and the bus with duals about the same as
the Puma. Dennis

href="http://albums.photo.epson.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=4025706&a=30209382&vt=vp">Den's
1977 Puma</a>