Diesel Technology

To comment on the end of the story, rumor has it Ford may use a smaller diesel as an optional engine in the F-150. Diesels have always been such wonderful engines.

I love the hybrid technology but if I had a choice I would take a diesel. They've come such a long way and the technology has been around for a very long time so its been through the wringer per se.

Don't get me wrong here, the Hybrid technology is a blessing but its just a bit too new for me yet.

 

I for one would love to have more diesel options. Especially in cars like 4door sedans and the such. After being around them in trucks, I understand the power that they have and are able to produce. My fathers 1-ton dodge with a 24v cummins turbo diesel gets 22mpg when he isnt pulling a load. Pretty impressive for a 7,000lb truck with a 6cyl in it.

 

ahh, alternatives to alternatives, what will they think of next?



im all for more diesels

ok random story time. my friends mom has this beastly super duty with a diesel in it and one time they were off roading and they lost the 'L' in the diesel logo so now the beast is referred to as "The Diese" hehe.. thought that was kinda cool

 

I agree Scott. According to a lot of customers the F-350's gas mileage is wonderful. The engine doesn't have to work as hard to move the weight of the truck as a gasoline counterpart would.

 

Thats exactly right. Diesel's make such insane trq that they can move a large load with minimal effort. Dad's dodge makes 265hp, but almost 500ft lbs of trq. Pretty amazing when you see its a inline 6 with a turbo. Although the pistons are the size of paint cans, it gets amazingly good gas mileage.

With aftermarket tuners and a good air filter, supposedly most trucks can pick up significant hp and trq increases and at the same time get much better mpg. I dont see a downfall to it, with the exception of not being able to go through a drive through because you cant hear the intercom over the engine noise :P

 

I don't really know a lot about deisel engines...why are they so much louder?

 

They just are.. they dont spark to combust like a gasoline engine, they combust from compression of the fuel and air. They are much more robust than a gas motor as well. Usually large trucks are more noisy, most of the diesel cars I have seen are fairly quiet.

 

Price of diesel is $3.50 now, so not many people will want diesel these days.

 

Even a Jetta TDI is noticeably more noisy than the gas version. They gots that clatter, its annoying. So many people look at hybrids and diesels and see them as competitors. There's absolutely no reason you couldn't have a hybrid diesel. In fact ford's Meta One concept had one, and all those buses toolin around NY and Seattle have them. Ya a hybrid would add cost and weight, but it would combine the benefits of both those technologies, making for insane fuel mileage. A diesel engine is only more efficient because it has a higher compression ratio. If you added regenerative braking and automatic shut off at idle and under low loads, you'd have an even more efficient drive train, and you'd eliminate that noisy clatter when it matters most. Sure it'd still be just as noisy when the engine's on, but its not as big a deal when the car's moving along cause then it goes away quick.

I get soooo frustrated cause you see so many articles that are like diesels are better than hybrids. They're two completely different parts of the drive train@! They're not in competition with eachother. Even heads of car companies say this kind of stuff too. Its as though they feel they only have to increase the mileage by so much, like once you're past 30mpg, you're all good and there's no reason to make the car any more efficient.

 

Or you could want the best of both worlds..a diesel hybrid!

 

Diesels, ahh the joy of...

$3.38.9/gal fuel (Greater Cleveland)
$90.00 oil and filter changes (still every 5000 miles)
$150.00 fuel filter changes (every 15,000 miles)
$75.00 air filter changes (as needed)
$35.00 coolant additive (every 15,000 miles)

And this is just daily maintenance operation, sure the 5yr/100,000 mile engine warranty is nice, but once these trucks go out of warranty and they need repair-look out.
And don't you dare misfuel them, big $$$$$$ (It happens more often than you think.)

...don't get me started on hybrids.

 

Oh, and diesels STINK!

 

Not if they are properly maintained and tuned correctly they don't.

 

I respectfully beg to differ, even the best running diesel still has that "something funky is burning" odor. But a proper running 6.0l Powerstroke is a real performer!

 

I agree with Andy. Where I'm from there are a lot of diesels from the 1980s, mostly Volkswagens and mostly Golfs. Those diesels can last forever, my cousing have 1989 Golf which have almost half a milion km on the odometer. And their prices are so high, 20-years-old Golf diesel with 300,000+ km on the odometer still cost 3,000+ euros

 

You're right Zoran. Diesels hold their value extremely well. We've been lucky enough to get in four on trades from the Family Plan pricing.

As an example we have a 2004 F-350 Dually Lariat that is for sale for $34k. Talk about holding its value! And diesels always will too.

 

The point of hybrids is to get away from the exclusive reliance on petroleum burning vehicles. As such, they really don't compete head to head with diesels. As we march forward we might even see ethanol replace gasoline as the fuel of choice. I'd love that. In my mind it's far more practical an idea than hydrogen.

I'd appreciate diesels a lot more if they were quieter and didn't smell so bad.

 

A hybrid diesel would probably adress the smell issue too. I mean, the cars you smell are the ones that are stopped at a light, driving slow in traffic or just idling, which is when the hybrid would shut off the engine.

Hey Matt... JYNX you can't talk untill i say your name three times!

okay tell me i'm not the only who did that in grade school and who understands what i just said...

 

I would but ...oops, I can't talk!

 

that comment SICKENS me
you show me a well running gas engine with 572,500 miles and then we can talk