Herndon, VA – The most fuel efficient car across North America is not a hybrid. It’s a diesel. A Volkswagen Jetta TDI Clean Diesel, to be exact. Making its way across the nation and into a world records, a Jetta TDI recently achieved 58.82 MPG during a successful 9,419 mile bid for the lowest fuel consumption across the Continental United States. Despite being officially rated at “just” 30 MPG city and 41 MPG highway by the EPA, the Jetta TDI managed a whopping 14 percent improvement over the previous record of 51.58 MPG.
Set under real world conditions with a completely stocked Jetta TDI, the record attempt began on September 5, 2008, in Washington D.C., and passed through (take a deep breath): New York, NY; Rutland, VT; Toledo, OH; Des Moines, IA; Spearfish, SD; Missoula, MT; Winnemucca, NV; Santa Monica, CA; Durango, CO; Oklahoma City, OK; Mount Vernon, IL; and Ponchatoula, LA; before finishing up 20 days later and 11.04 tanks of fuel lighter in Beckley, WV. The world record was achieved using simple driving techniques that maximized the already exceptionally efficient TDI engine. Despite the less than ideal weather conditions, varied terrain and frequent traffic congestion, the entire journey’s fuel cost came in at a paltry $653, with the Jetta TDI Clean Diesel’s average consumption costing just 6.9 cents per mile.