Love my TDI. Simplicity of the ALH, torque and 700+ miles per tank. Gotta love it.
Yes, I'm in that camp too. ALH engines and 5 speed manual trannys. A 2001 and 2003 Jetta TDIs and I've managed a few 900+ mile tanks. Both have a lifetime average of over 50 mpg since I've owned them. Done extensive work on them both. The '01 was a salvaged car that needed to be re-engined due to the block (and other things) being broken in a rollover and the '03 was bought after the prior owner drove it until the TB broke (twice the recommended service interval). Some serious head/valve refurbishing and a complete TB system put it back on the road.
Hard to not love cars that get lower cost per mile than the Connie.
Thanks to Conrad for the invite to check out this forum and find a few more Concours and TDI owners.