I just got 40.9 MPG on a 450 mile trip yesterday...80% highway with the a/c blasting and cruise set at 78, the rest on 2 lanes and surface streets...Cincinnati to Wooster OH and back. 1.4t automatic with 2 people on board. The 1.4 is perfectly adequate 95% of the time.
It has really strong mid-range punch...if I'm going 60, it spools up to 80 with no appreciable effort. It's not as strong from a stop as I'd like if I'm feeling froggy, and it seems to run out of steam around 5000 RPMs.
I've driven a 1.8t and it felt faster but also more "willing"; like it wanted to be driven aggressively. The 1.4t is perfectly content to burble along at low RPMs like an old BMW with the "eta" version of the M20 inline six.
