[hal9999]

I’m the guy who started this thread.
First I’m very pleased about your comments (negative or positive) !

Please allow me to throw-in my 2-cent opinion.

1. Regarding the problem with cold temperatures, it seams that Diesel driven countries like Europe (specially Scandinavia) and Canada have resolved this problem. Maybe the Diesel fuel in the US hasn’t the same quality as in the above-mentioned countries. On the other hand, in Alaska all large trucks/lorries use Diesel. Ask them how they can continue to transport valuable loads during the winter?

2. Politics and religion are a dangerous way to use them as evidence. Everyone is right and on the same time wrong. It’s an endless discussion. Although I agree that Diesel could reduce the dependency against the main fuel producers, our dependency remains!
It won’t solve the problem, as long we don’t have cars that don’t use fossil energy,
Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Russia remain the main crude oil producers.

3. Regarding the Hybrid engines: I believe that a Hybrid Diesel engine is more energy efficient than a gasoline one. The question, although, remains: Do we really need such high tech vehicles, to transport, mainly ONE person from A to B ?
I recently read that the same fuel economy could be reached by a high tech Diesel engine (please don’t ask me where I read that! I don’t remember!).
I repose my question: Why do we need two engines to transport mainly ONE person?

There is simple rule used by car manufactures:
A: a car consumes during it’s live-span so many X Liters / Gallons of fuel.
B: The manufacturing of it consumes about the same amount of energy!
C: The recycling of it consumes, again more or less, the same amount of energy!

Therefore a less complicated Diesel engine car needs less energy to be constructed and recycled as a complicated two engine Hybrid car!

4. Regarding the patriotism, in other words was this car build by American or German workers, is also an endless discussion, and it’s very risky!
Many parts of German cars are build in eastern Europe and Asia. The same is valid for American cars. So how do we quantify how much an American car is really American???

5. And to finish, with a more or less polemic issue. What about IMHO, the senseless Iraqi war? Aren’t almost all military vehicles Diesel driven?
Doesn’t this contribute to the shortcoming of Diesel production?

This is just my opinion and no offend is included.