Quote:
Originally Posted by Johnny Mullet
Nobody wanted a stinkin' diesel especially after the GM 5.7L turned out so unreliable.
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Yep. That truly bad GM auto-diesel would often fail just starting it up cold. It pretty much single handedly destroyed the domestic diesel movement in the US.
Other reasons diesels did not catch on in the 80's were because they were woefully underpowered (since very few had turbos), you really did have to go to truck stops to get fuel (few service stations had diesel pumps), and diesels were NOISY! None of these things apply anymore and I would love to see more diesels.
I had an 81 diesel rabbit and I wish I had it back! 50+ mpg driving full throttle most of the time.
I think the perfect diesel was that VW Passat at the top of the page - it was available as a diesel and got 45 mpg.