[T3] Old Type IIIs

[James Lingenfelter]

   Have to add: I don't take my mileage much anymore, since the  
odometer quit working LOL. I'm only able to figure it now when I know  
the exact mileage of a route, such as the work commute etc.

On Feb 23, 2011, at 9:13 PM, James Lingenfelter wrote:

>  If you fill up your tank, drive 200 miles, then fill up again and  
> get 5 U.S.  gallons in, that equals 40 mpg. Come on, give me more  
> credit than that. The car has been a daily driver for 7 years, I  
> think I know what highway mileage I get. And yes, I have even heard  
> of tailwinds (once). From my experience, dual single barrel carbs  
> ALWAYS get better gas mileage than stock setup, if they're done  
> properly. And being mostly a type 1 person, I have NEVER gotten  
> that kind of mileage out of any type 1, no matter what the setup.  
> For one thing, the type III, particularly the squareback, has less  
> drag than any of the type 1s. So I stand by the 40mpg. In fact, a  
> few weeks ago, I got over 30 IN TOWN.... and I'm talking big-city,  
> stop-and-go, never-get-over-40mph kind of in-town. When I lived at  
> higher elevation and had it jetted smaller, I could do even better.  
> So, unless Texas is now measuring with the Imperial Gallon.....
>
> BTW- this particular car had these carbs when I found it..... that  
> was actually one of my requirements in type III hunting, since  
> nobody I knew with the FI could ever get them to run, LOL. I am NOT  
> a mechanic and didn't want something that would take a lot of work  
> to get running.
>
> On Feb 23, 2011, at 6:47 PM, Jim Adney wrote:
>
>> On 23 Feb 2011 at 7:58, James Lingenfelter wrote:
>>
>>>     I will be ridiculed, as always, for saying this, but I still
>>> stand by it; my type III has been a daily driver for 7 years; if  
>>> it's
>>> not running, my family is minus a car. It is used to ferry the kids
>>> around, has had to go on long trips, etc. Since I have owned it, I
>>> have known a FEW other people that used them as REAL daily drivers,
>>> with one friend basically using his as a work truck on unpaved
>>> mountain backroads, logging 1,000 miles a week or more. Everybody
>>> I've known that REALLY depended on a type III for serious dependable
>>> transportation would tell you what I'm about to tell you, and it's
>>> very simple: Throw the fuel injection system in the trash and put
>>> carburetors on it.
>>
>> Sure, you may not have been able to get your FI to run right, but
>> don't blame the car. I drove FI Type 3s as daily drivers for 35
>> years. For most of those years, we had 2 such cars, daily drivers for
>> my wife and for me. They started and ran well from -30F to +112F,
>> from Death Valley to 8000', and seldom let me down, almost never for
>> a FI problem. I almost NEVER had to adjust anything related to the
>> FI. It was always rock steady decade after decade. I would still be
>> driving them except that I'm no longer willing to do so in our winter
>> salt while suffering from the lack of a practical heater.
>>
>> Yes, you can put carbs on one, and with some effort you can get them
>> to run well with them. Most people fail at this, but a few, like you,
>> come out ahead. Yes, you can probably get slightly better HP, but
>> this won't come without an increase in emissions and a decrease in
>> fuel economy. Frankly, if you think you get 40 mi/gal, you're either
>> using Imperial gallons or you're not doing the math right. I don't
>> think my '62 beetle ever did that well.
>>
>> Your complaint points to the one weakness in our FI systems: the lack
>> of good mechanics who understand them. Yours clearly didn't and I'm
>> afraid that experience is all too common. I'm my own mechanic, and it
>> was a steep learning curve in the early years. Not much was published
>> and even less was understood. That's one of the good things about the
>> internet and this list; it makes that info available for those who
>> care enough to ask and listen.
>>
>> Perhaps you got 40 mi/gal one day and that's the day you remember. I
>> did that once, too, but then I discovered that I had a 25 mi/hr
>> tailwind on an interstate. Not a fair test.
>>
>> So, yes, I'll give it to you and your carbs for HP, but for
>> emissions, fuel economy, long term reliability, and general
>> driveability, FI comes out on top.
>>
>> -- 
>> *******************************
>> Jim Adney, jadney at vwtype3.org
>> Madison, Wisconsin, USA
>> *******************************
>>
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