[Jurgenk]

Sorry, I think all the hybrid drivers were out enjoying their cars today...

Figuring there are only ~330 of us on the road in the US currently and a few more waiting to be purchased, it's quite against the odds for there to be a lot of us here. I only know of a handful of us who have posted ever...

 

[Jurgenk]

28.4 mpg on a 35 mile highway trip with ~ 1 mile at each end of local driving

Hit some traffic midway for few miles

Otherwise going 50 mph solid

 

[Jurgenk]

Hit 30 mpg a few points on the way home. Traveled 28 miles with 3-4 miles of local traffic and hitting every red light.

Despite all that, easily made 29.6 mpg from start to finish.

Starting to figure out how to "hypermile" with the T3H. Could get over 30 mpg if I stay at 55-60 mph and draft, time to avoid lights, etc.

 

[Jurgenk]

Over three months driving 50% through gridlock traffic downtown was just over 19 mpg without special effort. For one week I drove alot in sport mode and very aggressively to see how badly I could do in the city-- I got 16.5 mpg and I was literally dumping gas racing from stoplight to stoplight trying to outmaneuver traffic-- a few times using launch mode. Our BMW 3 series got 15.2 mpg with the same style of driving and a dodge journey V6 loaner got 9-11 mpg (and didn't race very well and was literally no fun I might add).

The hybrid is a Jekyll and Hyde. You'll be able to take on any performance SUV this side of the cayenne turbo or X6 M using launch mode, but if you are hypermiling people are going to be a bit impatient with you because you are going just below the speed limit, are not wasting gas flying out of stoplights, or are following a bit on the close side.

 

[Jurgenk]

No problem-- the published and third party review fuel economy numbers for the T3H and cayenne s hybrid are not way off. Everyone deals with a different set of traffic conditions and uses different driving styles, so its hard to know how things will work in practice. I wanted to give a realistic picture of the extremes, which if you average out will put you somewhere around or just below the EPA prediction.

If you have lots of freeway miles you'll do very well with the T3H. This is because the 8 speed is nicely geared for highway speeds and the sailing feature saves a ton of gas. It will use a little hybrid power for passing and manage to store away enough electrons to get you a nearly free ride around the city once you're off the freeway.

If you're driving around the city, the parallel hybrid will not be as efficient as a Prius in saving and storing every bit of kinetic energy due to the relatively small motor and battery, but it does probably 20-30% better than gas alone.

In the end it is an impressive bit of engineering. The fact that the same drivetrain is in the cayenne s hybrid and panamera s hybrid says plenty about its ability to perform.

 

[Jurgenk]

Definitely vary your throttle during break in. Have been very happy with stability of oil levels with our engine and have not needed top offs inbeteeen oil changes thus far.

I do feel efficiency has improved with time.

 

[Jurgenk]

I discovered something today

I'm getting better mileage in the city using sport mode.

The default drive shifting program tends to do tall starts in second gear, and skips gears to save on fuel. If you have the roads to yourself this is the most efficient program, short of going into e-mode, which is yet more efficient but even slower.

But if you want to keep up with stop and go traffic this ends up being wasteful because you need to dump a lot of gas to keep up with the flow of traffic.

I found that using a very light foot in sport mode is the best compromise of efficiency and performance. I got just under 18 mpg in stop and go traffic and stayed out in front. I can do better in city traffic (approaching 20 mpg) with the regular shifting program but I can't keep up as well given the tall starts.

 

[Jurgenk]

I like conspicuous consumption as much as the next guy. Just surprised that it worked out to be more efficient...

 

[Jurgenk]

Those numbers are pretty reasonable for driving 75. The sweet spot for fuel efficiency is 55 on the hybrid, which is how I logged those high numbers a few posts back. I could manage that because there was bumper to bumper traffic hovering around that speed that stretched for 30 miles, so a combination of drafting and ideal rpms. So some dense traffic situations actually help efficiency. The C&D review for the Cayenne S hybrid hit 27 in manhattan traffic which I suspect was similar crawling up and down river and FDR drive...

In normal traffic this weekend I did 18 in the city and 22 in the burbs, no hypermiling necessary.

 

[Jurgenk]

There are some amazing deals on the hybrid out there--
Have you driven one yet? You owe it yourself to drive one, just make sure you spend a good amount of time behind the wheel and drive it in a spirited way in sport mode with the engine warmed to 195 degrees, and with at least 40 psi in all four tires. Then chill out and drive it in regular mode, and electric (e-) mode. This car has a few different personalities and you should convince yourself that you at least like the regular and sport modes before you buy...

After driving everything else put there in the price range I decided its the most fun you can have in a real SUV without spending more than 70k or getting a V8 cayenne S, and without the gas penalty.

With a big discount as old 2012 stock or even bigger discount as a certified former VW exec lease with low miles and less than 2 years, its a no brainer. You can't get a better car in that class without spending $20k more.

 

[Jurgenk]

That marketing video is awesome.

I only discovered it after I picked up my hybrid, but its quite accurate and effective in its sales pitch. I'm guessing nick has probably seen it.

 

[Jurgenk]

Where can you get the 3.0 tfsi engine anywhere for that much cash? You can barely get a high mileage 2011 s4 for that money. Now add the electric motor and its torque adding fuel sparing benefits, the 8 speed transmission, and the very nice option list of the hybrid, with stuff I haven't even discovered yet, and its a no brainer.

The engine, the tech, the toys. What more could you want?

 

[Jurgenk]

If you've got a rapport w porsche service don't know why they wouldn't help-- you'd be paying out of pocket, right? Doubt that VW warranty will transfer to CA, this has been looked into by others, I thought.. But if you really are serious about engine tuning then its all moot for anything power train related as vwna might be skeptical for warrantee coverage no matter where you reside. That's the only thing that's holding me back from major suspension and tuning upgrades right now.

But the kind of upgrade you're talking about might just be worth it. Truly cayenne turbo srt-8 league stuff...

 

[Jurgenk]

Nick

That's a bummer about the inability to get proper service at Porsche. Somehow this lends credibility to the story that Porsche's line up is distinct from VW, despite the underlying shared architecture, and pretty much everything beneath the surface.

Registering to your cottage in upstate NY should not be an issue, if you've got that situation going for you, your warranty situation will be completely legit. Unless the Mounties start harassing you for driving with American plates for the next few years..

 

[Jurgenk]

You're telling me.


I priced out a new Q5 hybrid at $54k with less equipment than the T3 hybrid, no storage space, wimpy 2.0T, and a dash with better wood options but no better interior fit and finish than the T3 hybrid, honestly. The thing that gets me is that the T3H looks about the same size on the outside as a Q5, but has so much more room and hauling capacity on the inside...

I'd love to get a second T3H, but this time I'd try to special order an air suspension and lane change depart to the US. That would truly be unbeatable.

I was doing some time trials in the rain this week on a stretch of highway, and I was getting below 5 seconds from 0-50. Couldn't go faster without breaking laws, but on good dry pavement and fewer groceries in the back, I think I could easily break 6, and try to hit the 5.5 seconds claimed by one reviewer. My setup is all stock except for a K&N which I do not believe to be useful or advantageous.

 

[Jurgenk]

Seriously

That is some extremely smooth sailing for a German made auto. 6 years and $150 out of pocket, better than any Honda or Toyota that we've owned.

I don't know if that's feasible to expect from a car with all the toys that the hybrid has, even with the best voodoo and Santeria.

We had a Prius that gets a lot of abuse, and its 4 year maintenance costs total around $120. But Toyota had a few more years on VW for ironing out the kinks in their hybrid powertrain.

I love the T3 hybrid but I will be getting an extended warranty before the years end because I plan to keep it for a while

 

[Jurgenk]

I was minding my own business in Cambridge tonight, when a 2009-10 cayenne turbo pulled up next to me looking to race from the stoplight. I didn't think he was serious, until he floored it and howled his turbos at the stoplight. I was caught off guard but I threw it into sport and stayed within 1/2 a car length (same as my start delay) with him up to about 50 mph, when I think we both regained our sanity. Honestly no idea if he was going all out, but he seemed surprised that I could keep up in the hybrid, and wanted to keep playing. I got stuck behind some other traffic and he went off to terrorize a bunch of other sedans... Older guy driving with younger lady... Hey man, whatever makes you happy...

 

[Jurgenk]

I agree, i don't think a stock hybrid could beat the 2nd gen turbo cayenne, but maybe the first. A chip modded hybrid would be a good contender. i dont know if theres headroom for the turbo cayenne to get drastically better. Any matchup would be very entertaining to see, this would be one interesting YouTube video.

I am still amazed by this dude with the turbo cayenne. He couldn't have fit the cliche any better.

 

[Jurgenk]

Just as Treguan said

Rush hour city driving with a little highway mix, I've done no worse than 17.9 long term average, and as good as 22. This includes frequent stomping on the gas to get out of certain situations (geezer with geishas for example)...

Long distances even when you're not all downhill from Tahoe can see mpg numbers easily over 25 without trying, and more if you're fuel conscious.

In summary it's like having a cayenne s V8 or even slightly better, with the appetite of a V6--definitely no worse but potentially better

 

[Jurgenk]

Exactly

Use the money you save on your exec lease return and invest in more warranty (although drivetrain including hybrid motor and battery warranty good for 8 years and many miles) if you intend to keep, and upgrade the stereo with better amplification and speakers, by the time you're done you'll have a better than Dynaudio system for slightly less money than the cost of a Dynaudio upgrade (which reportedly still uses paper cone drivers)...