On June 24, Volkswagen of America announced it set a new Guinness World Records achievement for the “lowest fuel consumption—48 U.S. states for a non-hybrid car” category with 77.99 mpg. The achievement also beats the hybrid vehicle record of 64.6 mpg by more than 13 mpg.
“We thought with the Guinness Record we would be able to underline our fuel economy, it is a statement that diesel is able to drive fuel economy,” said Dr. Carsten Krebs, Volkswagen director of Corporate Communications. “We are proud that the two guys were able to achieve this in mpg diesel technology and that the car was a US made car. They broke the old record by more than 10 percent, and we proved diesel technology has an advantage.”
The Passat TDI Clean Diesel departed from Volkswagen of America’s headquarters in Herndon on Friday, June 7, at noon and arrived back on June 24, having covered 8,122 miles. Volkswagen employees as well as Virginia State Delegates Tom Rust and Jim LeMunyon greeted the car drivers Wayne Gerdes and Bob Winger.
Jonathan Browning, president and CEO, Volkswagen Group of America, Inc., said: “To cover 8,122 miles on just 104.94 gallons of fuel is nothing short of astonishing and shows just how economical our TDI Clean Diesel vehicles can be. Even for everyday drivers, the mileage benefits of our TDI engines are significant: Volkswagen has no fewer than six TDI Clean Diesel models that achieve an EPA estimated fuel economy rating of 40 mpg or better on the highway.”
Wayne Gerdes, founder of cleanmpg.com was the primary driver. Automotive journalist Gerdes has made a career out of hypermiling. Hypermiler is a term coined by Gerdes to describe a driver who strives to exceed their vehicle's EPA fuel economy rating. Gereds has set mileage records in more than 100 vehicles, as well as achieving the record for lowest fuel consumption in the lower 48 U.S. states with a hybrid vehicle at 64.6 mpg. His co-driver was Bob Winger, an electronics engineer involved in energy and conservation projects.
Founded in 1955, Volkswagen of America, Inc., an operating unit of Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (VWoA) is headquartered in Herndon. It is a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG, headquartered in Wolfsburg, Germany.