Fuel Economy in A Westy

[puffthemagicwagonvw]

Hey All!

I’d like to get some input on everybody’s fuel economy. I’ve got an 84 Westy with the 1.9 auto. The only extra weight I have is pretty much from my AUX battery, which is huge. About 80lb. But that’s it.

I filled my tank, drove 80 miles, and filled my tank again. It was just over 7 gallons. Some basic math would suggest I got 11.4mpg. It was very windy, but half of the drive the wind was behind me, so I don’t think the wind would have made that much of a difference.

EDIT: I did just put on new tires. They are a bit larger. 225/70/14. Could that make enough of a difference?

I’ve read on here guys/gals are getting 15-20mpg. Any idea why I would be getting such terrible mileage? Would leave to hear some input.

[brickster]

What is your tire diameter? If it's larger than stock, are you applying a correction to your calculation?

I have the same year, trans and engine as you with stock diameter tires inflated to placard PSIs. I get 19-21 depending on top average speed.

[SCM]

How long have you had your van? Is this decrease in mileage something new or is it the first time you paid attention to it?

According to this (and some other sources IIRC), a 2WD automatic can be expected to get 15 mpg city / 16 mpg highway (16/18 for a manual trans).

https://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/bymodel/1991_Volkswagen_Vanagon.shtml

My 91 Westy automatic gets a pretty consistent 14 mpg which I largely attribute to most of my drives being on highways at around 70-75 mph. I would bet the economy on the factory window sticker and the site I linked above is based on driving 55 mph.

How heavily my van is loaded seems to make very little difference IME. Speed and headwind make a HUGE difference. My worst mileage was 12 mpg during a long highway drive into strong headwinds. My best was 20 mpg on a very scenic dirt road going about 30 mph. But 90% of my trips find me at 14 mpg or just slightly above.

I roll on 8.5 x 27 off road tires and have my front air dam removed so those might also come into play. I do plan to reinstall the air dam eventually and am interested to see if that affects my mileage.
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'91 Westfalia GL Automatic (GTA "Turbo" Rebuild w/Peloquin) and 2.3L GoWesty Engine

[Sodo]

225/70R14 tires have a diameter of 26.4
185/80R14 tires have a diameter of 25.7
26.4/25.7= 1.027 or ~3% bigger.
your actual mileage is 1.027 x 11.4 =11.7 mpg

I doubt this makes you even 3% happier.

these are just "numbers".
You have to find a 5-mile odometer test on the freeway.
Or use signpost mileages to find your van's actual odometer correction.

And the 11ish mpg is dismal.
I'm not a WBX guy but the first things that come to mind is replacing the oxy sensor or check for a plugged catalytic converter.
_________________


'90 Westy EJ25, 2Peloquins, 3knobs, pressure-oiled GT mainshaft, filtered, cooled gearbox
'87 Tintop w 47k 53k, '12 SmallCar EJ25, cooled filtered gearbox
....KTMs, GasGas, SPOT mtb

[dubbified]

I had a 90 I got 15 yrs ago from a rasta dude in Hood River oregon, it was a weekender 2.1 Auto/Multivan.

The thing was a pig, 12mpg.

I put a ALH TDI in it from a 01 jetta, and unless calculations were off, I was getting 38MPG.

I am moderately had run maybe three tanks in it, and then realized the tranny needed rebuild due to age, the bands were slipping. The trans was never in good shape, it sat on the garage floor for almost 3 yrs prior to reassembling.

I just put in a 091/1, and its geared, RP/lsd/lockered, and I hope to see 10-15% increase due to the expected MPG losses on the automatic.

I'm getting close to taking it for a drive, will certainly master the MPG on freeway driving.

I do think repowering the van is the only sensical way to overcome cost of ownership, and the price of fuel, especially if you like driving.

Even if I did go to another engine type, it'd be a subaru diesel, like this dude..

ITs a gorgeous engine swap, sounds amazing too.


Link


If I ditched my ALH, it'd be for that setup. wooooooo. So clean.

[Sodo]

[kamzcab86]

1990 Westy
• full-camper
• auto trans
• 2.1L WBX
• 205/65R15C Cooper Discoverer HT3 tires
• awning, aux battery, camping equipment, personal gear
Averages 16-17 mpg, with boosts up to 20-21 with tail wind & no uphills.

1989 Westy
• full-camper
• manual trans
• 2.1L WBX
• 16" BFG tires
• awning, aux battery, camping equipment, personal gear
Averages 17-18 mpg, with boosts up to 20-21 with tail wind & no uphills.

Poor fuel mileage can be a symptom of a faulty O2 sensor, among other things.
_________________
~Kamz
1986 Cabriolet: www.Cabby-Info.com
1990 Vanagon Westfalia: Old Blue's Blog
2016 Golf GTI S
"Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance." - 孔子

[dougnlina]

Here are some averages for you...
https://www.fuelly.com/car/volkswagen/vanagon
_________________
"Olive" a '60 Ragtop Beetle
"Grover" a '87 Syncro Poptop 1.8T

[shagginwagon83]

EJ22e powered Westy getting about 15-16 mpg.
_________________
Brandon
"Jo Ann" - '83.5 Westfalia EJ22e w/Peloquin
Instagram @joannthevan

[GoEverywhere]

I've got a built 2.2L aircooled so not a 1:1 comparison, and mine's a Riviera camper not a Westy, but I get 17mpg if I drive it hard and as high as 27 if its mostly freeway or I drive conservatively.

[Jeffrey Lee]

I'll also add that 80 miles is a pretty small sample size. A small difference in fuel pump shutoff nozzles or filling technique could sway your results. Unless I'm mistaken (is there an aerodynamics expert in the house? hello ... hello?), a headwind harms fuel economy more than the same tailwind helps it. Tires introduce another variable ...

1. Do a longer test, with more miles, under baseline conditions.

2. Confirm the accuracy of your speedo (the one in your dashboard, not the other one--we all know those tend to exaggerate).

If still only 11-12 MPG, start looking for culprits.

Good luck!
_________________
Camp Westfalia
Camping Tips • Newsletter • Cool Campervan Apparel
www.CampWestfalia.com

[danfromsyr]

at what speed did you drive it?
as economy goes down really fast ~70+mph..
_________________

[DanHoug]

aerodynamic drag increases as the square of the vehicle speed + wind speed. the curve of drag increases sharply as the effective air speed increases, it is NOT a linear line (graph of y=x*2)! so yes, a head wind has far more detriment than a tail wind helps.
_________________
-dan
60% of what you find on the internet is wrong, including this post.

'87 Westy & '89 Westy both 2.1 4spd

Past projects can be found at--
www.thefixitworkshop.com

[bobbyblack]

[dubbified]

[vanis13]

[Mckinleyvillian]

hey bud i'm wondering how heavy your foot? I've been taught/learning in my year of vanagon driving that you've gotta drive with a light foot, like far lighter than any other vehicle i've driven. getting that down i'm getting 17-19 mixed condition driving for my beat up 1.9 tin top. I also don't go over 55 most of the time. but check your emissions system, before i had a good cat and working 02 sensor, the van was ripping like 11mpg at best.
_________________
so many roads i know
all i want is one to take me home

85 Vanagon GL 1.9 stick

[Steve M.]

This is not your problem as it is an electromechanical problem you need to verify first everything is working as it should. After you get it running to best mpg then think about getting a cover or panel on the luggage/cargo rack above the drivers seat. It's open shape causes air turbulence like an open bed on a pickup truck.
It will help a bit if you can get the best aerodynamics from a rolling brick.
_________________
This free advice is worth exactly what you paid for it.

There are seven days in a week. Someday is not one of them.

[cmayna]

Couple days ago I went over to the coast and back in our stock '90 with an automatic and got 16.7 mpg.
_________________
'90 Westy / automatic.
If I'm not working on the camper or my '50 Chebbie truck, I'm either fishing with the wife or smoking Salmon.


Craig

[mikemtnbike]