Photo courtesy of VW.

Photo courtesy of VW.

Volkswagen's 2015 Golf TDI clean-diesel compact car reached 81.17 mpg on a trip across 48 states on its way to setting a Guinness World Records achievement for non-hybrid fuel economy.

Drivers traveled 8,233.5 miles in 16 days and spent $294.98 on 101.43 gallons of Shell Diesel fuel during the trip. The previous record was 77.99 mpg, and the hybrid record is 74.34 mpg, according to a VW release.

The Golf TDI left Volkswagen of America’s headquarters in Herndon, Va., on June 22 and returned on July 7 after visiting all of the contiguous states.

Wayne Gerdes, automotive journalist and founder of cleanmpg.com, was the primary driver. His co-driver was Bob Winger, an electronics engineer long involved in energy and conservation projects. Gerdes is an expert hypermiler who has set mileage records in more than 100 vehicles, according to Volkswagen.

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