Mark P

I now have 10k miles on my TDI since September and I'm loving every minute. Anyone else here with 10k+ miles on TDI so far?

I've averaged 26.0 MPG over this 10k miles. I've gotten over 30 MPG on segments, but I love the torque and am having a blast making full use of it. And to do that and still get 26 MPG, I couldn't be happier. It's better than any of my other cars listed in the graph below for MPG and bigger than all of them, and quicker than some. It's just plain fun all around and meets all sorts of different needs of mine (utilitarian). I know others are getting better MPG, but they're clearly not having as much fun as I am




Zoomed in for just the Q5 TDI:



I changed the VAGCOM fuel consumption accuracy to "108" and that looks like the perfect setting (based on first 2 datapoints and trend from 110/109 settings). Now I can trust whatever I see on my trip computer to be accurate. That's awesome we have this ability:




Have been getting around 500 miles per tank (median value) and quite happy with that too:




I ran out of fuel this morning when I was pushing it. I got 33 miles past empty and had been driving rather efficiently since 0, averaging around 30 MPG, so just about a gallon of spare capacity. This was over 2 days, with various stops, so I likely could have gone further if in a single stint. I'm happy to know the limit and now I'll stay well within it . I hope you all benefit from this . When I ran out, I actually tried starting it a few times to get me to move just a little, getting me out of the lane I was in to a safe place. Then upon filling the car with 1 gallon of diesel, when I went to restart, it cranked for a while (5 seconds maybe, seemed forever) and then started up just fine.

I put 1.051 gallons in a can and into the car, then drove 7.5 miles to a gas station and proceeded to add 19.978 gallons. This tank averaged 24.4 mpg, so if I apply that to those 7.5 miles, I consumed 0.307 gallons during that drive, meaning I still had 0.744 gallons in tank. Adding the 19.978 until the pump shut off means the tank took ~20.7 gallons from dry to pump shut-off. FYI for those who may find this interesting.

All TDI owners should get their hands on a Fueling Adapter. This is needed to pour fuel in from a can or from a non-standard-diesel pump nozzle. The diesel pump nozzle is wider than a gas nozzle, which prevents putting a diesel nozzle into a gas car. But there's also a mechanism to prevent putting a smaller gas nozzle into a diesel car (at least the Q5) and that's a release on the flapper that requires the nozzle to be full (diesel) size else it will not open. So this full-diesel-size plastic funnel performs that task:

Part Number: 000-072-709 Looks like List Price $8.70 at VW & Audi Dealers. I'd suggest a VW dealer as they often have prices less than MSRP. Below is a good online Audi Dealer with it for $7.40, but of course have to add ship. Check your local VW and Audi dealers for online parts pages to see if they list reduced prices online, or call and see if they have standard price reductions (ie 10%) from MSRP. It's worth trying a few as I've found quite the variation in local dealerships.










And I've been driving this a whole heck of a lot more than my 911. Partially because it was over winter, partially because I've given more attention to the new car, and partially because we're taking my Q5 instead of my wife's Tiguan whenever we go out as a family (including 2 trips up north, evident in the graph)...



In comparison, when I first got my A3 and drove it 10k miles, I drove the 911 3k miles, 3x more than I've driven the 911 now: (no kids then)




and when I first bought the 911, I drove it much more than either my S4 or Golf (or the sum of those):



All signs pointing to the fact I am really enjoying the TDI Q5

All Graphs here:
http://ctny.audiworld.com/mark/996tt/mileage/

Parsec

I'm surprised it's getting better mpg than your Golf and A3, but I haven't checked the EPA estimates so my surprise is based on impression (due to the small vehicle size and engine of the Golf and A3). I assume this car is a long-term keeper with a target life of 200k miles?

dmicah

Please back up your comments with data from now on.

One question though: I thought with diesels it's really bad to drain the tank? At least it used to be back when my dad had the 240D.

Mark P

Ha, yes I like data

I don't plan to do it again, but it didn't seem any different from a gas engine from a user perspective. I've heard there are systems in place to shut down before it gets too bad, so maybe that's the case. When I ran out, I actually tried starting it a few times to get me to move just a little, getting me out of the lane I was in to a safe place. Then upon filling the car with 1 gallon of diesel, when I went to restart, it cranked for a while (5 seconds maybe, seemed forever) and then started up just fine.

Mark P

Golf 1.8T FWD: 22/28,
A3 2.0T FWD: 22/29,
Q5 3.0 TDI Quattro: 24/31

I just happen to have a graph for that



Several other graphs too:
http://ctny.audiworld.com/mark/q5/research/car_comparo/

JBDinTX

The Fueling Adapter is something I will never need. I never let any of my vehicles get below a quarter of a tank before I fill up. Most of the time it is a half a tank. You are very lucky you got a Diesel engine to start right up. I own a construction company and deal and work with heavy equipment all the time. My employees know it means their job of they run something out of diesel fuel. I have a onsite fueling truck there just for that. It can be a entire day just to get a diesel started once you run it out.

Bob Petruska

Running a tank so low can damage fuel pumps as the cooling just isn't there with the pump not submerged properly. I wouldn't run this test too often.

I'm also surprised that the TDI doesn't do so well with the fuel milage. I agree the torque fun is there but for most owners who don't even know what torque means are wasting a lot of money when they can just buy the 2.0/3.0 gas engine and do the same or better.

Mark P

I think modern diesel cars are being setup with the mindset that to see a diesel car to the masses, it needs to be able to deal with people running out of fuel. People are idiots. Same goes for requiring 93oct - car still has to be able to run fine on 87oct. I bet every loaner car at Audi has had 87oct in it at some point.

Mark P

Yes I do. Now I know limit - no reason to "test" again.

dadizon

...but are those gas engine owners changing the VAGCOM fuel consumption accuracy to be more accurate? I'm sure if MarkP left this unchanged he'd be seeing much higher mpg's. For example, my TDI is seeing 33 mpg's avg and that's with stock values which we all know is optimistic.