Ecodiesel: 19.46 MPG Towing 7,020 lbs.

Claude B wrote:
FWIW,

The drivetrain of my VW Touareg TDI and the RAM Ecodiesel are about the same. V6 common rail turbo diesel, +/- same HP and torque, 8 speed tranny and about same diff ratio.

On my last 8 weeks trip to Florida (8,170 km total), I did average a fuel conso of 13,5 L/100 KM (total of 1103,8 litres) or 17,4 mpg US gal with the TT behind 80% of the time. In solo, it was mostly city driving.

Last year (trip to Florida) with the same TT and my previous 2003 V6 Pathfinder, I average 18,8 L/100 km or 12,5 mpg (US gal).

On highways, I drive at 62-64 mph on flat or going up hills like on the I-81 in PA.

For me, hands down on turbo diesels for power, towing and fuel economy.

I checked my 2012 Touareg towing MPG when we used to tow a 4,500 lb TT and never got anything that high. I always checked it with 100% trailer towing though. Disconnecting for even 20% will throw it off quite a bit as the non-towing mileage is about double what the towing is. I averaged 14.5 with a high of 15.5 and a low of 12.5. It is very speed and wind sensitive as you would expect. Your TT is lower with a more aerodynamic shape, so that will help vs mine which was a traditional square semi-sloped front profile. The Touareg is an awesome tow vehicle for a smallish TT. We still have it, but switched to a truck (gas)/TC combo so it's just a daily driver now.

FWIW, I love the Touareg, but modern diesels make me nervous with all the computer/emissions stuff going on. After 70,000 miles I've had 2 issues. One was a low DEF warning that would not go off after refilling the tank. We were on a long trip and needed to go to a dealership to get it reset because it was going to go into limp mode (unknown cause). The other was a warning light that suggested a fuel pump failure, but it went away on it's own. This is a common problem that there is a lot of forum activity about. The latest problem was a flat tire that had to be replaced, but the manual and dealership recommend replacing all 4 tires due to the computer (arghh!) not being able to deal with different wheel sizes between new/old tires. Anything more than 3/32 difference in tread depth is a no-go above 80KPH. Luckily we were at 2/32 so I got away with just one.