2008 Audi A5 3.0 TDI quattro

[Mehen]

http://www.fourtitude.com/news/publish/Features/article_3197.shtml

Too bad its Europe only - but hopefully we see the 3.0TDI in other American models.

Torque is prodigious and immediate. On paper, the engine may sound meager with only 240 bhp at 4000 rpm, however the 369 ft-lbs. of torque at only 1500 rpm that had us smiling so much our jowls were showing… or maybe that was from such authoritative acceleration.

Off the line and around town, the A5 pulls like nothing else in the range – not even the S5. That power is said to make the A5 also the fastest in the non S-car part of the range, moving the coupe from 0-62 mph in 5.9 seconds. Even on the highway, one can drive lazily without shifting and still pass with ease. Even better, this is the kind of car that can return an estimated on and off-highway average of over 39 mpg.

Better fuel economy than a Ford Focus.

[Gurm]

Too bad that the state of Massachusetts has, in their blind eco-ignorance, banned sales of all new diesel passenger vehicles!

That's right, even though TDI's emit LESS pollution than gasoline cars, they're illegal here in MA. You have to buy them used (with 10k miles per year!) in Rhode Island or New Hampshire.

[ND66]

Too bad that the state of Massachusetts has, in their blind eco-ignorance, banned sales of all new diesel passenger vehicles!

That's right, even though TDI's emit LESS pollution than gasoline cars, they're illegal here in MA. You have to buy them used (with 10k miles per year!) in Rhode Island or New Hampshire.

No way!

May I ask why? They had to give a reason for that?!


.

[spadnos]

I think most of those rules are due to sulfur in the emissions, and the type of emissions.

For the most part, you can't buy a diesel car in the US right now, because the fuel regulations are changing (and I guess the engines need to be tuned differently for the new fuel or something).

AFAIK, the emissions from diesel, though lower in volume, are actually more harmful to people. I guess the particles are smaller so they stay aloft longer and also cause more damage when they lodge in the lungs.

Of course, it's 1:10 AM, and I may be remembering some or all of this wrong

- Steve

[Jon P. Inghram]

Yes, particulate emissions can cause more immediate health issues, but I've yet to hear of people in Europe falling over dead from black lung caused by diesel exhaust. I'd guess that corrupt politicians are more likely the real reason for the ban than any real health or environmental reasons.

[az]

New Diesels sold here motly have particle filters.

[Gurm]

Yup. Well essentially if someone buys a BRAND NEW CAR that, for $500 and an hour's work, can be made to run on vegetable oil and NOT NEED ANY GAS... that'd be BAD for the fat-cat oil interests. Which means that lawmakers vote against it, regardless of which side they're normally on.

Friend of mine bought a two-year-old Jetta TDI. It's a bit underpowered, but point in fact is he only puts diesel in it once a month or so. Needs diesel to start in the morning when it's cold, and for the last mile home at night just to get it in the lines, but runs 99% of the time on vegetable oil. Cost him a couple hundred bucks and an hour or two of running the controls and the line. He's saving, at current rates, $450-$500 a month on fuel costs with all the commuting he does!

(And no, it doesn't smell like fries...)

[spadnos]

I just talked to my friend who knows about the subject (and told me all I know on the subject )

The reason you can't buy a new diesel (in New England and California) is that a new car must pass fairly strict emissions tests, and diesels can only pass with a newer technology catalytic converter. Unfortunately, diesel fuel curently contains sulfur, which destroys the newer catalytic converters. The newer fuel is just starting to become available (it's supposed to be universally available in 2008, I think). So, even if you could buy a new diesel, you would destroy the catalytic converter until the new fuel becomes available. It's similar to the lead thing as far as older cars go - you can use new or old fuel with an older catalytic converter.

Incidentally, you can (and apparently some people do) (a) buy a car out of state or (b) pay someone from out of state to buy a car and drive it 1500 miles. After 1500 miles, it's considered used and doesn't have to pass the stricter emissions rules.

The grease car idea is the exact reason my friend has been looking into this.

- Steve

[az]

Is the diesel fuel in the US different from ours? I gather it is mostly used for trucks and that even your SUVs run on gasoline.

What about stuff like Mercedes-Benz's BlueMotion?

[Jon P. Inghram]

They're improving the diesel in the US, look at the Ultra-low sulfur diesel article on Wikipedia to see what's changing. The old US limit was 500 ppm of sulfur, the new is 15 ppm which is comparable to European diesel.