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Malcolm and Rodney Kinsey drove 1941km from Beit Bridge to Cape Town on one tank of diesel in a VW Golf TDI BlueMotion like this one.
A recent epic South African road trip by Australian fuel-efficiency experts John and Helen Taylor (4431km in a Toyota Prius on less than 140 litres of petrol) seems to have set a new fashion.
The latest to step up for the long road were veteran journalists (and cousins) Malcolm and Rodney Kinsey, who set a South African record for the longest distance travelled by a passenger car without refuelling - 1941km, to be precise!
Malcolm Kinsey, of course, is the author of the annual Kinsey Report on the prices of replacement parts for cars in South Africa.
The two cousins, with six-times SA Rally champion Jan Hettema as observer in a back-up car, filled up their bog-standard VW Golf 1.6 TDI BlueMotion's 55-litre tank at the SA Customs post in Beit Bridge, on the Zimbabwean border and, by rocking the car and "trickle-filling", managed to squeeze in almost an extra 10 litres.
Then they set off toward Gauteng, at 4pm on a Friday afternoon, running at a steady 80-90km/h, the slowest speed at which the TDI would pull top gear without labouring.
That sounds like a crazy time to start a long trip, but there was method in the Kinseys' madness, as they crossed the urban sprawl of Pretoria and Johannesburg in the small hours of Saturday morning without even slowing down.
They reached Bloemfontein at about 9am on Saturday morning and took a well-earned break, getting back on the road just before 4am on Sunday morning.
They were, however, very lucky in that an earlier approach to the Director of Roads had borne fruit, and they were escorted through each of the many stop/go roadwork sites on the N1 with the minimum wastage of time and fuel.
The group reached Cape Town late on the Sunday with the Golf running on fumes, having driven 1941km, at an average speed of just under 70km/h, on 63.8 litres of diesel, for an overall fuel consumption of 3.29 litres/100km.
And Rod Kinsey, whose idea the record attempt was, said: "The car was fantastic - it drives like it was built for economy runs!"
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Citizen, wrote
I drive a diesel powered car and get amazing fuel efficiency. To Alf, diesel cars are not more expensive to maintain as has been assumed, even in the long term. In the past they were because there were not many, hence parts were scarce. Things are different now. I get 4.9L100km. Thats driving at 120-140kmh.
Alf, wrote
Good advert for the bland Golf. Aren't diesel engines also problematic in the long term, or has technological advancement alleviated the problems?
Anonymous, wrote
Im sorry to say this but this is not a standard car! I quote "by rocking the car and "trickle-filling", managed to squeeze in almost an extra 10 litres." This is definitely not a "bog-standard" VW as I can also do it to my car and get away with a new SA record.
Polo1.6cl, wrote
I often get 750km per tank in a 1.6 petrol Polo, typically 42 liters to fill, at average of 100 kmh. If I could squeeze close to 70 liters this car would exceed 1400 km on a tank. These diesels are not that great! If I drove at 70 kmh average this would be even better.
Mavusana, wrote
Awesome!! VW cars rocks, I drive a nearly 3 ton car, the smart and touch car,"Amarok" and it does 800km urban per tank. It makes you wonder, and I can bet it is also capable of 1000+ kms. Very impressed for such a big car.
320d, wrote
I often get over 1000km's on a tank in a fully-laden (packed to the roof) 320d touring automatic at 120kmph and aircon on full. However, higher speed and stop-starts (ie every highway in SA) can easily increase consumption by 10-20%.
Tony, wrote
Not suprised at all with the achievement. VWAudi diesels sure can go the extra mile. In April 2010, I drove overnight: my 2 tonne plus Audi A4, 2.0tdi at 120kmhr (cruise control, aircon on, 2 adults and a baby and loaded boot to the Platenburg Bay area. I got 1363km before refilling. Go Audi!!! I kept my engine and aircon running at all the road construction sites on the N1 and N10. They were at least 6 with a combined stopping time of over 2 hours!! VORSPRUNG DURCH TECHNIC for sure!!!
Kevin, wrote
Kon-tiki, wrote
Nothing amazing. I constantly manage 1000km on a 60 litre tank of pterol in my Renault Megane Authentiq 2004. I always need some chatterbox in the car to keep me company when the road straightens open. It all needs the conservative out of any alert driver and the enviornment is half saved.
Mo, wrote
Great effort and excellent figures from the Golf. I once did 1050 kms in a 2006 BMW 320i driving at a constant 120kmh. 2 Adults and 2 kids. I guess you can get good fuel consumption from many 'normal' cars on the road provided you drive very conservatively. I could never get myself to drive that way again!
Fuad, wrote
I think it's a great indication of what kind of consumption you could expect from a car like this. I have a 2005 VW Golf 5 2.0 Comfortline and driving on an open road at a speed of 110 and 120kph I get 4.5 ltrs per 100 which equates to +- 900km on a tank of fuel which is brilliant for a petrol car. Gotta love VW... ;)
Anonymous, wrote
Rad, wrote
@Kitty, no,it wasn't realistic as they were trying to achieve the best fuel consumption they could. To give you a more realistic figure....on the long weekend my family and I went away for the weekend (JHB-Rustenburg-JHB), we drove on the M1-N1-N4, on cruise control the whole way at 120kmh on the clock (so probably an actual 115kmh). We were in a Polo 1.9TDi, 2 adults,a toddler and a newborn, towing a trailer. My fuel consumption was 4.9 liters per 100 km over 344km
Josef, wrote
Interesting to note that the 1.6tdi was chosen and NOT the 1.2tdi. This is all I need to know that the 1.6 is actually the more economical of the 2.
colinA, wrote
and how much did the back-up car use, as i presume they drove the same way and at the same speeds? i think they should do it both ways and lets see how good they get. i think if i went on nardo track, with a truck in front of me with a huge flat plate behind it so as to create good vacuum and i drove a polo diesel a meter behind it at 90kmh constant, i reckon i could smash these records. then i too could advertise how great this car is and wow , look at the consumption, only 1km a litre and i drove 5500 kms on a tank without filling up the extra 10 litres by rocking the car and trickle filling. this is BS and not real world driving. come on VW , give us some real people car value for the the people that drive them like ordinary everyday people in your peoples cars.
Joe Cynic, wrote
I agree with Kitty. Nobody drives like this in real life. It is like estate agents who try to flog a property as being 'one hour from Cape Town', when it will take at least one hour to get out of the city.
Trololol, wrote
@Kitty *really Excellent indeed, since the vehicle wasn't modified for their purpose; that purpose, of course, being to set a fuel economy record - not to reflect resultant frugality numbers under normal use. Realism doesn't necessarily apply here... this was a specific mission, for recognition and scientific intrigue, not a road test serving the motoring public's irrepressible want for statistics. Is deliberately crashing a concrete barrier into the side of an A-segment hatchback, at 80kph, really realistic? When last did you see a flying wall in a confined space? Yet, without these, consumers would be clueless as to the impact protection capability of vehicles on sale. One should seek to derive relevance, not to idly expect it. &c.
Darth Vader, wrote
Whoopie!!! I drove from Pmb to East london , +- 698k's in a Citroen C3 1.6 Hdi , on less than half a tank of fuel , and I DID NOT SPARE THE HORSES!!! I could have pushed on to Jbay if I wanted!! I wonder what they spoke about at 70km an hour? Parts pricing?....
TDIowner, wrote
Great accomplishment indeed. This equates to 72 miles per gallon. Here in the US we don't get the Golf with the 1.6L TDI, only the 2.0L with a setting to satisfy the EPA. With a lot of babysitting I get my 2.0 TDI on the low sixties. I read that last year a couple drove a TDI 140hp through the lower 48 states with an average of 68mpg.
Shaun - Cape Town, wrote
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