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http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/2/European_Union_Flag.jpg Fuel efficient yet still powerful enough for the “driving enthusiasts”. (cleanmpg.com/forums/showthread.php?p=238842)

http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/VW_BlueMotion_lineup.jpgWayne Gerdes - CleanMPG (cleanmpg.com) - Oct. 26, 2009

Polo, Golf and Passat BlueMotion offerings provide not just good FE but spectacular FE!!!

The first BlueMotion monikered automobile was the 2006 Polo with a world’s best for a five-seat car of 60.3 mpgUS combined on the NEDC. At the same time, this Polo represented the beginning of a product line under the “BlueMotion-Technologies” umbrella, Germany’s best known automotive environmental label. Volkswagen is now presenting the three high-volume models in the recently redesigned BlueMotion: the Polo, Golf and Passat. All three Volkswagens are equipped with an exceedingly innovative high-tech package yet remain affordable. This package includes new common rail TDI engines, regenerative braking, Stop-Start and improved aerodynamics.

With combined fuel consumption values between 53 and 71 mpgUS, the three new Volkswagens are making the world take notice as the world’s most fuel-efficient models in their respective classes. Delivery of the first Golf BlueMotion and Passat BlueMotion automobiles will begin this year, while the production of the Polo BlueMotion will follow at the beginning of 2010. The Golf BlueMotion and Passat BlueMotion can be ordered today. Advance sales of the Polo BlueMotion will begin later this year. All three new models show what is technically feasible when the best available yet affordable technologies of our times are combined. Clearly, the Polo BlueMotion, Golf BlueMotion and Passat BlueMotion are cars that perform on the environmental level of tomorrow’s world, yet are already available today.

Polo: 71.3 mpgUS combined on the NEDC

Each of the new BlueMotion models sets a benchmark for fuel economy, emissions and costs in its class and the world’s best belongs to the VW Polo BlueMotion. The second generation Polo is aiming to become the first "3-litre car (78.4 mpgUS)" of the modern era and the most economical five-seater in the world. Its 11.9 gallon fuel tank enables a theoretical driving range of over 845 miles. This makes the commute to work, driving holiday or long weekend affordable... Sort of :rolleyes: Although we will never see the Polo BlueMotion here in the US, expect a 105 to 110 mpgUS capability and an easy 1,300 mile range.

Another measure of cost effectiveness: according to the German Federal Bureau of Statistics, the average German car driver covers a total of 6,820 miles/year. For Polo BlueMotion owners, just eight fill-ups are needed over an entire year!

Golf: 61.9 mpgUS combined on the NEDC

Only slightly less economical than the Polo is the new Golf BlueMotion. Thanks to a fuel consumption of 61.9 mpgUS combined, it is the most fuel-efficient car in its class. With a range of just under 900 miles thanks to its excellent FE and 14.5 gallon fuel tank, a driver could drive from Hanover to Monte Carlo, a considerable distance of 781 miles. A CleanMPG driver? 85 mpgUS and a 1,200 mile range would be in the cards ;)

Passat: 53.5 mpgUS combined on the NEDC

The range of the new Passat BlueMotion is and will soon be proven to be impressive. With its FE of 53.5 mpg combined and 18.5 mpgUS tank, it can easily cover 986 miles. A drive from Hanover to Rome (962 miles) could be driven non-stop. Today, no other car of this size in the world travels can travel as economically. And this not only applies to the sedan; identical fuel economy is also attained by the Passat Wagon BlueMotion which will arrive in showrooms next year.

BlueMotion - Common Rail TDI + Stop-Start + Regenerative Braking

The BlueMotionTechnologies aboard these three super-diesel automobiles make up a comprehensive package of high-tech components. The foundation is of course the new common rail TDI engines with modified engine management software and reduced idling speed. At the heart of the Polo BlueMotion is a 3-cylinder, 1.2L TDI, while the Golf and Passat are each powered by a 4-cylinder, 1.6L TDI. A gear-shift indicator integrated in the instrument cluster indicates when to shift for a given driving condition. Other BlueMotion features include regenerative braking, Stop-Start system, low rolling resistance tires, especially lightweight and aerodynamic wheels, lowered suspension (Golf) as well as sporty design modifications and a customized interior.

All said, Ford is nipping on VW’s heels and we can expect a future Fiesta Econetic with Start/Stop to go after the Polo’s current most fuel efficient car in the world title. Competition is grand indeed :)

Wayne,
Is the Polo a 155" car -roughly the size of the FIT? What does it cost-with fancy diesel? I think the Euro is worth about $1.50 -makes everything European expensive.
Why won't we get it?
It gets this spectacular FE with the usual particle filter setup that wastes some fuel to "clean" itself?

Thanks
Charlie

Hi Charlie:

___I have a few News items about the Polo and Golf BlueMotion including pricing. And they are expensive in $USD terms just as a Focus w/ a gasoline 2.0L or stripped Prius costs almost 1.5X's what they do here in the US. European manufacturers are under extreme stress if they plan to continue manufacturing automobiles in the UK, France, Germany, Sweden or Italy nowadays.

___Similarly, the BMW X3, X5 and X6 are all manufactured here in the US even thought they can be equipped with Asian and some European right hand drives and European spec'ed emissions control equipped engines we do not have available here in the US.

___We will not get one yet because the marketplace probably would not accept a 0 - 60 time of 11 seconds and the emissions controls added to the smallest Diesel would overwhelm any process advantage it may have had. The upcoming Golf TDI will be a tough sell as it costs essentially the same as the Jetta TDI with exactly the same FE and smaller form factor.

___The BlueMotion's are equipped with DPF's nowadays but lack the US Tier2/Bin5 Doc's, high flow EGR and especially that high tech and expensive Leanburn NOx trap. All of these harm FE of course :(

___Good Luck

___Wayne

Wayne,
Thanks for the info.
So we can just forget about getting any really high FE TD in cars.The VWs are about all we can expect (nice cars,but....).

Thanks
Charlie

Hi Charlie:

___65 - 70 mpgUS is not bad from the Jetta TDI on the highway. You want 100 + numbers on the same here in the US, there is only the Insight-I.

___Good Luck

___Wayne

The upcoming Golf TDI will be a tough sell as it costs essentially the same as the Jetta TDI with exactly the same FE and smaller form factor.The Golf is only smaller on the outside. On the inside it's slightly larger at 109cf total, vs. 107cf for the Jetta.

I would agree the Golf is a harder sell (in this country) because it's a hatchback, though. Golf has struggled vs. the Jetta since the early 90s, as American new-car buyers tend to prefer trunks. But used Golf TDIs have much higher resale than Jetta TDIs, as used-car buyers (who tend to be more practical than new-car buyers) more often recognize the utility of the (rarer) Golf.

Personally, I'd much rather have a Golf than a Jetta sedan. Besides being able to much more easily stuff large items in back, as city dwellers we (like the urban Europeans who have made the Golf the most popular car on their continent for many years) routinely find ourselves able to slip our Golf into short parking spaces that we'd have to pass up in a foot-longer Jetta. Earlier this year we were even able to leapfrog several larger vehicles and squeeze onto the back end of a full 120-car ferry (http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries/your_wsf/our_fleet/index.cfm?vessel_id=1) we wouldn't have been allowed to board with the Jetta.