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http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/2/AmericanFlag.jpg Test drive between the Jetta TDI and Prius-II HEV. (cleanmpg.com/forums/showthread.php?p=189639)

http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/2009_JettaTDI.jpgJud Engels - CleanMPG (cleanmpg.com) - Feb. 21, 2009

2009 VW Jetta TDI 6-speed MT – 30/41 mpgUS city/highway and 34mpgUS combined on the 08 EPA.

A four driver/navigator team from Seattle is driving both a Toyota Prius and a new clean burning diesel Jetta, 9,000 miles on a cross country trek. They are not only looking to compare fuel economy, but all aspects of the two vehicles.

What are they doing? The Green Human team is putting both cars to the test and evaluating their performance in all kinds of conditions, from the bitter cold of the Northeast winter, to the desert heat in the Southwest.

Why is what they are doing newsworthy? One of the top mandates of the new administration is to move this country in the direction of green energy.

Starting in Portland Maine, our crew of auto enthusiasts will drive a 2009 Jetta TDI and a leading hybrid vehicle nearly 5000 miles as they cross the entire United States of America and ultimately end the test drive in Portland Oregon.

On the way they’ll keep track of fuel consumption in all kinds of conditions from bitter cold to blistering heat.

Which one will come out on top? We’ll all have to watch and see.

This is a VW dealership sponsored trip and for a good cause in the promotion of the fuel efficient Jetta TDI. The unfortunate part is it appears to have some bias as the Video's are wrought with errors from both the VW dealership sales personnel and the drivers themselves regarding both the Jetta TDI and the Prius :( Let us hope they learn the power of both technologies without playing fast and loose with the drive they are currently completing.

Portland 2 Portland (greenp2p.com/index.html) – The ultimate test comparison of the new Jetta TDI vs. Prius.

I can't wait to see the results since I own both vehicles.

I'm skeptical due to the inherent bias of sponsorship by one of the contenders. Still interesting to see the results, but we know what the Prius II can do if driven right. I'm guessing no shm by this team...

Need to see fuel cost, not merely mpg. Can't trust tire pressure equality or anything unless there is some verification throughout by independent parties. Need to see emissions comparison. If they skew results based on battery disposal, that is quite a copout in my eyes.

These are 2 of the 3 best FE car options in the USA (HCH II) at this time. But this test must be viewed with caution. Can Jerry Jones referee a Cowboy game? Well, yes, if Delta is setting it up. Grin

Didn't know you owned a TDI or a Prius, Wayne. Edit: This is Jud's statement.

Hi Kssathead:

___I helped Jud write it and he was not around to post it so up it went.

___I left one comment in one of the blogs where the driver said the VW Jetta TDI owns the 48-Contiguous State Fuel Economy WR of course ;)

___I watched some of the other vids with the VW salesman and again, it bled with bias, inaccuracies and at worst, they simply made “stuff” up :(

___We will watch their progress but as far as making a statement, they are way off the mark about the Prius in terms of emissions and overall FE but will surely comment loudly about the Prius’ poor interior ergonomics. I could not find any fuel consumption data on the site so I bet the Prius is doing OK and they did not expect that so it is not posted yet. The Prius although not great on the highway is still decent and under SHM, will trounce the new Jetta TDI. The older ones however have a definite edge.

___What I suspect is even driving the Prius foolishly, they will come to respect its capability unless they tampered with it with low pressures or played games like floor it, regen it floor it and garbage like that on the highway.

___Good Luck

___Wayne

Well, hobbit did Bahstan to Pahcific and back last year and got 52 mpg or so, if I recall right. Granted he's an ace, but that's a real vacation story, not an attempt to maximize mpg from coast to coast.

And you (xcel) and others have put up many great numbers. You and Jud know both cars, so just be prepared to keep them a little real.

Could you be more specific as to the inaccuracies in the video?

Hey, re-check yer sources (http://techno-fandom.org/~hobbit/pix/hf08/rest/). 57.1 real-world, 8100 miles, and
at no time did I talk about "research driven strategies" or
"touch points". Just "locking my foot".
.
If you can't tell yet, my BS meter is smackin' the right-hand end
pretty vigorously on this "p2p" thing...
.
_H*

Hi Mdensch:

___Watch the salesman when asked what would you tell a customer why the TDI is better than the Prius. Batteries, Highway FE and 250,000 mile reliability... Coming from a VW salesman no less :rolleyes:

___Hobbit, I concur 100%.

___Good Luck

___Wayne

Hi All:

___It looks like our friend Mr. “chart and graphs but can’t drive” commented in the same area about the EPA is either right or lying in the (2/17 - What are we doing here?) blog. I wonder why he doesn’t get it yet ;)

___Also, check out the VW Digital Guy vid on 2/16. Look at one of the sites listed in the middle of their big board :D

http://www.youtube.com/v/q1rNqXRrSbw&hl=en&fs=1

___I looked for the FE results so far but have not seen any??? I am not really interested in what the salesmen have to say but am interested in what the guys have to say about the two and the achievements so far...

___Good Luck

___Wayne

OK, pick any metro area. Prius II and TDI go 5 laps from distant suburb to downtown parking lot and back in rush hour both ways. I'm thinking Atlanta or Dallas or Houston. Then we'll measure fuel economy, emissions, brake wear, and the environmental impact of disposal of brake pads.

Event to be conducted by Toyota salesmen.

Hi All:

___Bumping this one...

___The bias is almost dripping off the video's. They have VW dealers that do not even know how to start a Prius explaining to the camera what is bad about a Prius let alone the rest of the "made up" stuff they are speaking about :confused:

___Batteries needing replaced, what to do with them when its time to recycle, performance, cleaner emissions from the diesel...

___And the driver/navigators are adding commentary. Even when they try and sound reasonably unbiased they miss the key points.
No really, the Prius really is a terrific automobile. With thousands of miles on this trip so far in all kinds of conditions, I have to say the Prius is comfortable, reliable, effortless to drive, and of course, gets great gas mileage.

What’s interesting is that despite having sold over half a million Prius in America over the last ten years, Toyota’s hybrid still only represents ten percent of their total light-duty vehicle sales. In fact hybrids in general only account for two and a half percent of total light duty car sales in the entire country, and are only projected to reach maybe eleven percent by 2015.

What the hell is going on? With all the pragmatic benefits of ownership, why are the Prius and its hybrid comrades falling down in the eyes of consumers?

I think the answer is that Americans just like cars, real cars with power and performance.

A car that is great at all the boring parts of driving like the Prius, just doesn’t cut it for many of us.

That doesn’t mean that there is anything wrong with a Prius owner’s decision to buy one. In fact, I’m glad there are so many Prius, and I wish there were more of them on the road.

If we want to save the world however, we’re going to have to do better than 11 percent. If hybrids don’t have what it takes to move the meter faster, then America and the rest of the world needs an alternative that will. We need a car that can save the world and give us what we want.

I think the Jetta TDI is a step in that direction.
___I like both the TDI and Prius but if these guys were so concerned about the Prius sales, (they blew that number given it has only been in the US almost 8 years now), why is the country not loaded with TDI's that have been here for far longer let alone recent sales of a brand new “Car of the Year” this and that is not coming close to Prius sales yet? Performance? Is the Prius not keeping up with the 09 Jetta TDI? I wonder what would happen with an 06 TDI :rolleyes:

___I suspect the Prius FE numbers are higher than the TDI numbers including fuel costs and that is why they are not posting the day to day results?

___The site now has a vote so go have at it when you get the chance.

___Hopefully when this is all over, they will learn quite a bit more about the Prius and its attributes plus discover why so many have been sold and why they are such great vehicles for the general consumer.

___For us, I hope we can learn something new about the VW Jetta TDI but the dealerships are spewing out "Prius tales" vs. TDI facts.

___Good Luck

___Wayne

Wayne, too bad you couldn't have followed them in your own vehicle and then report in your results.

hey everyone im james and one of guys on the Portland 2 Portland Green Test Drive. we are now in Myrtle Beach South Carolina. We've drive over 3,000 miles on the trip and have and finding the Jetta TDI is getting getter mpg than the toyota Prius. Stay tuned and here are some links to our videos we put up daily. Thanks everyone.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSayPVCCtFQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_eCw5vt-AjE&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CyvQo29pyk&feature=related

love the feed back

As a TDI fan, I'm embarrassed by what these guys are saying. Too many of the TDI promoters and dealers have no clue about anything hybrid related, and the videos and comments so far have done nothing but thoroughly reinforce that. :( This is why people who know what I drive are shocked that I can compliment their hybrid.

To the dealers: Wake up and learn a bit about the Prius. You're not doing any good by spreading blatantly wrong information about hybrids, so give it up.

Someone's bias is showing (http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/showthread.php?p=182235#post182235), and posting links to
"no longer available" videos isn't particularly convincing. The
feedback appearing here is screaming "give both vehicles an equal
and fair shake" because that's NOT what we're seeing.
.
_H*

Wanna know how I know they are out to lunch? They pour praise on the Prius interior comfort while complaining about the drivetrain technology. Any Prius driver (well, any objective one) will tell you that if anything the opposite is true. The driving ergonomics are what kill the car, while the drivetrain makes up for it by delivering the goods and with bomb-proof reliability to boot.

In the industry, we like to call this technique "making s**t up."

Some of the garbage I've heard from car salesmen (who don't sell hybrids) about hybrids is so stupid it boggles the imagination.

It's sad to see these guys pouring more flames on the [b]idiotic[/i]b hybrid-vs-diesel wars. So stupid. Both have advantages, and both are great!

I say this as the owner of two VWs, including a TDI: I'm disgusted.

WRI - If you were to have some words with that dealership, it might carry some weight. You're a local, AND a TDI owner. One of the "true believers" as it were.

I am a little dissappointed with the lack of knowlege on the Prius side. I can tell you that on the highway, (and I speak for the 06 Jetta TDI). The Jetta will get slightly better FE then the Prius. However, once you slow down to city speeds then the Prius far better.