Dont know what sort of mileage a Jeep gets but it probably should be
remembered that beetles etc were made when petrol was the least expensive
thing you could put in the car. Consequently the fuel economy was ordinary.
In my Type 3 I get about 27 mpg, my wifes 2.7 litre Sonata gets 38 mpg on a
trip. If you want top economy get some  little buzz box  from Asia.
                 Cheers
                  John

In my long experience the Beetle can deliver quite good fuel economy
(up to 7 liters/100 km or about 32 miles per US gallon) in urban
driving.  That’s reasonably competitive with many Asian econoboxes.
The car is quite light by modern standards (thanks in part to the
extremely light engine) which helps reduce fuel consumption in stop-
and-go driving.  The engine warms up very rapidly because it lacks the
thermal mass of a liquid coolant system.  Fuel economy falls off at
highway speeds due to relatively poor aerodynamics.  Also, the load
imposed on the engine by the cooling fan is significant.  Of course a
carbureted Type1 engine will always be at a disadvantage compared to a
modern fuel injected engine with mixture controlled by an oxygen
sensor in the exhaust.  It’s interesting to speculate what fuel
economy would result if a fuel injected Type 1 engine (used from’75 on
in North America) were retrofit with a feedback mixture control system
using an oxygen sensor.  I doubt this experiment has ever been tried.
It’s worth noting that in the early ‘70's fuel injected Type 3 and
Type 4 Volkswagens were amongst the most efficient vehicles
available.  I would guess the Type 3 squareback would have
considerably less aerodynamic drag than a Type1 at highway speeds.

The real economy in driving a Beetle is the elimination of
depreciation and the dramatic reduction in repair costs (assuming you
do your own repairs).  These are still higher costs than the cost of
fuel.  Parts are still readily available by mail order and are far
less expensive than those for a typical Asian econobox.

Finally, I think most would agree the basic Beetle (torsion bar front
suspension) gives fewer problems and has higher value than the
Superbeetle (McPherson strut front suspension).

Garry
‘74 DP1600 basic Beetle

I've had a 73 Super for 13 years that I've never been able to get better
than 16-17 mpg, in town or on freeway.  Never have been able to figure out
why, and it's been regularly maintained.

BTW, the BIG sunroof is called a "ragtop"

Karls

The ACVW is no great mileage champ and when you compare it to the lusty
comfort of a modern Asian wonder with surround sound and AC, it's really
pathetic. Discounting the fun factor, of course, and the joys of wrenching,
and pissing off insurance salesmen and just plain loving classic esthetics.

I'm getting the pristine '72 ready for sale. It will soon be time to market
it to the whacko "poseur green" software engineer types who work in a
cubicle, but carry a Leica M8, and spendy hiking stick, wear Swiss hiking
gear and mountain boots to work - and take a cab on rainy days so their
monster SUV doesn't get dirty.