Quote:
Originally Posted by Hersbird
But now diesels are dead in the USA because of previous rules that IMO were there to purposely kill them. Plus all these new rules make the latest diesels crap in comparison to the 2000s versions. What is the best EPA rating for a new diesel sold in 2021 compared to say 2006? I'll give you a hint, terrible because the only new diesels today are in pickups and SUVs. Even considering the last of the cars around 2019 they were worse and worse every year while their gas counterparts were better economy wise year after year. US emission laws as pointed out in that article weren't about conserving resources and making less co2 it was about local smog which in 98% of the country isn't a problem. Just ban them in LA and let the test of the country enjoy the durability and economy of a modern, non-choked to death diesel.
|
Diesels are dead in the USA because the EPA and CARB no longer make special exceptions for them. Diesels and Gasoline cars have to meet the same emission standards. Odd that some see no longer getting special treatment some sort of conspiracy against diesels.
Diesels had to start adding emission equipment - which made them more expensive. At the same time gasoline engines adopted a lot of the tech from diesels: Direct Injection, variable turbos, higher compression - and now get fuel economy very close to a diesel. Add in the rapidly improving hybrid tech that is getting cheaper and cheaper and there really is no reason for someone to buy a diesel. A hybrid is cheaper to buy and cheaper to run. (I had a 2003 Jetta Wagon TDI and a 2005 Toyota Prius) VW's cheating scandal just accelerated what was inevitable.
Diesel's aren't just dying in the US they are RAPIDLY falling out of favor in the EU as well. 10 years ago diesels had a 55% market share. This year they are down to 18%.
As to smog not effecting 98% of the population and just being a California issue - not the case. Birmingham Alabama had the worst air quality of any place I've lived and large cities all over the country are in violation of federal clean air standards. The USA is an urban country. 67% of the population lives in metros greater than 500K people and 56% in metros greater than 1 million people.