Mobility and Sustainability.

• Avoid short journeys

The engine consumes a particularly large volume of fuel when cold. The volume of fuel burned on shorter trips is therefore above average, especially in winter.

• Check your tyre pressures

Always use the tyre pressure recommended by Volkswagen for full loads. This reduces road resistance and thus fuel consumption.

• Use fuel-efficient engine oil

Fuel-efficient oil is fully synthetic low-viscosity engine oil. While it may be a bit more expensive, this type of oil will cut your fuel consumption by as much as 5%.

• Avoid unnecessary loads

Additional weight of just 100 kg, for instance, will increase the fuel consumption of a Golf by up to 0.3 l/100 km.

• Be aerodynamic

Always remove auxiliary equipment such as roof boxes or baggage racks if these are not required. Even at 100 kph, a mid-range vehicle carrying three bicycles on the roof will consume around 2 litres more fuel for every 100 kilometres travelled.

• Switch gears quickly

Use third gear in traffic at 30 kph, fourth gear at 40 kph and fifth gear at 50 kph. Switch gears as soon as possible.

• Allow the vehicle to roll

If, for instance, you are approaching a red light, simply take your foot off the accelerator and let the vehicle roll along in gear. At this point the engine's overrun fuel cut-off is applied and the fuel supply is cut off, so you are not using any fuel.

• Look ahead when driving and »swim« with the traffic

Always maintain sufficient distance between you and the vehicle
in front. This way you can control rapid variations in speed
by taking your foot off the accelerator rather than braking and accelerating.

• Drive smoothly and calmly

Where possible, drive at a steady and moderate pace. In all likelihood, you will still arrive at your destination just as quickly as if you constantly accelerate and decelerate.

• Use additional devices, which increase fuel consumption, moderately

Comfort is important – but in moderation. Take air-conditioning, for instance: the system output is at its highest during the cooling phase, in which the system is used to cool the vehicle interior when it is warm due to summer temperatures; this is reflected in fuel consumption. Therefore it's best to aerate the interior before the start of a trip, begin the journey with the window open and only then start the air-conditioning system.

Improve together

Intrigued? If so, you could learn how to actively save money in our nationwide fuel economy and eco-training courses. As part of the Volkswagen driving experience, professionals give you tips tailored specifically to your driving style, showing you how you can effectively save fuel without having to drive more slowly - all the time helping to preserve the environment. Comparative drives will demonstrate surprising savings successes. Further information available free of charge on:
+49 (0) 8 00/8 93 83 68 or online at www.volkswagen-driving-experience.de.
The Autostadt's Economy Training in Wolfsburg already provides some insight. Further information about this is available online at www.autostadt.de.

Want more?

Volkswagen is taking charge – with a combination of technologies designed to protect the environment and sustainable economising. Together with the German environmental agency "Naturschutzbund Deutschland e.V." (NABU), we are very actively involved in tangible environmental protection projects. Furthermore, we also provide our fuel economy training courses throughout Germany together with NABU – and all for free.
As part of the NABU campaign "gear change - the easy way to save fuel", fuel economy action days have been taking place nationwide since 2002. More than 3000 drivers have been able to optimise their driving styles with Volkswagen models. "During our training courses, vehicles are used, that are equipped with special measuring instruments, enabling us to highlight to our participants the difference between the previous and new fuel-saving driving style. This has helped 95 percent of our course participants have achieved considerable reductions in their fuel consumption. In some cases, this reduction has been as high as 40 percent", remarks Dietmar Oeliger, Traffic Consultant at NABU. The fuel economy training courses are the result of a cooperation founded between Volkswagen AG and NABU.

Further information about this is available online at www.sparsprit.info and www.nabu.de.