Quote:
Originally Posted by Ecky
I find diesels attractive in concept, but there aren't a lot of diesel cars that are available in the US that I would be interested in. I've been (1) scared away from VW by reliability statistics, and there aren't many other small diesel cars.
It used to be that (2) diesel engines held a huge efficiency advantage over gasoline engines, but Honda and Toyota had gasoline ICEs in the 90's (and possibly a little earlier, I dunno how efficient the D15B6 from the CRX HF was) that nearly matched the thermal efficiency of diesels.
(3)Diesel fuel has something like 14% more energy (it's actually 11.6%) per gallon than gasoline, and in the past as been priced similarly or even lower. However, more recently we've seen diesel pricing spike significantly higher. |
i'm not disagreeing with ya but some of your statements are sketchy.
(1) trade in index quality: what years are these figures based on? what parts of the cars are judged? MK4(99.5 to 03) VW TDI has the best engine. VW interiors are sub par after 180K, fenders rust when exposed to salt and not rinsed. diesel engine will run way beyond that(400-500K) unless it:
goes into run away, runs out of oil, is modded so much that the bore is out of round or timing belts are not replaced on time.
(2) does the 90's scenario still hold true today? VW hit their mark with the MK4 and make 50 mpg (5 speed MT) straight out of the box.
(3) the only time diesel was lower than gas was before 2004. here are some of the reasons.
Why Diesel Costs More Than Gasoline | NACS Online
Why are diesel, gasoline going opposite ways? - Business - Answer Desk | NBC News
i still get better value with diesel than gas in a similarly equipped car.
here's something to consider:
New Study Finds U.S. Diesel Vehicles Have Lower Total Cost of Ownership Than Gasoline Vehicles New Study Finds U.S. Diesel Vehicles Have Lower Total Cost of Ownership Than Gasoline Vehicles | Diesel Technology Forum
Fuel Efficiency: All of the diesel vehicles had better miles per gallon than the gasoline versions with the diesels having between 8 to 44 percent higher miles per gallon.
- Fuel Costs: All of the diesel vehicles had lower fuel costs than all the gas versions of comparable vehicles, with 11 of the 12 vehicles showing double digit reductions in fuel costs, ranging from 10 to 29 percent.