Well, to begin with, the hybrid Mercedes S-Class runs premium gasoline; the national average for premium today is $3.90. For diesel, it's $3.94, therefore making it the better choice of the two vehicles, at least as fuel prices stand currently. Of course, in this case, we're comparing a diesel to a gasoline-hybrid vehicle. Compare the same diesel car to a non-hybrid gasser with an engine of similar size and performance, and the difference in fuel economy and performance is often huge!

http://fuelgaugereport.aaa.com/?redi....com/index.asp

 

I still don't understand why would anyone, who spends $100,000+ on a car, care if that car is averaging 24 or 26 mpgs ... Especially a car like Mercedes S-Class, one of the finest luxury cars in the world. Why would the owner of that car want a noisy diesel because of the lousy 2 mpgs ...

 

I'm not sure where you're getting "noisy diesel" from. Again, the 335d is just as quiet if not moreso than my 2011 5.0L Mustang which features a very quiet, refined engine and powertrain, so that's definitely saying something. There's absolutely no smoke or clatter from the 335d, just shove-you-in-your-seat torque at any and all RPM's and fuel economy that makes you wonder if your fuel gauge is working correctly. The diesel offerings from Mercedes and Audi, from what I've read, are just as refined and quite, too, so again, I don't think that's a factor. So, just because someone spends a lot on a car, does that mean they automatically don't care about miles per gallon? I personally think they do care about fuel economy, even if it is a lousy 2 mpg's. The fact that diesels hold their value better than their petrol counterparts -- especially hybrids with their battery packs -- may be a factor, too. I'm not in the market for a $100,000 car and probably won't be for quite some time ( ) so I'm really only guessing at this point.

 

Sorry I haven't respond sooner, I must've missed this.

Anyways, I'm right now in a country where maybe 70+% of all cars are diesels and I can tell how noisy they are. Just the other day a newer Audi A6 was next to me during the red light and it was noisy, just as noisy as my 9 year old Golf.
And that's one of the finest luxury cars in the world. Less expensive cars with diesel engines, such as my Golf or pretty much anything German and/or Italian, sound like a tractor.
And, like I mention before, there are also realiability issues. I just found out that my Golf needs a new engine at 115,000 miles on the odometer. I had crappy cars before (1991 Taurus, 1992 Escort, even a 1997 Dodge Intrepid wasn't realiabile), but neither of them needed a new engine at 115,000 miles.
I was gonna wait until next year and buy a Chevy Cruze diesel ... now I think I'll just get a Focus or Kia Soul.

 

I'm not sure what year the Audi was you mentioned above but, at 71 decibels, the current Audi A6 TDI is quieter than the petrol-drinking A6 which measures 74 dB. The TDI is also significantly more efficient than the petrol A6, clocking in at 5.9L / 100 km combined vs. 8.2L / 100 km combined, respectively. If that weren't enough, the diesel-powered Audi emits considerably less CO2, too.

Audi A6 TDI -

http://carfueldata.direct.gov.uk/sea...aspx?vid=27665

Audi A6 -

http://carfueldata.direct.gov.uk/sea...aspx?vid=27661


Let's look at BMW. The diesel-powered 335d, at 68 decibels, is quieter than the gasoline-powered 335i, which measures 74 dB.

BMW 335d -

http://carfueldata.direct.gov.uk/sea...aspx?vid=24919

BMW 335i -

http://carfueldata.direct.gov.uk/sea...aspx?vid=24945

The latest version of the 535d is quieter than the latest version of the 535i, coming in at 69 and 73 dB, respectively. Furthermore, the 535d is FASTER 0-100 km/hr than the 535i (5.5 sec for the 535d vs 5.9 sec for the 535i (with 8-speed auto) PLUS the 535d gets 40.7% better fuel mileage (5.4 liters/100 km vs 7.6 liters/100 km) and 20% less CO2 emissions (142 g/km vs 177 g/km) - http://www.bmw.com/com/en/newvehicle...i&model_2=520i).

BMW 535d -

http://carfueldata.direct.gov.uk/sea...aspx?vid=28487

BMW 535i -

http://carfueldata.direct.gov.uk/sea...aspx?vid=28476


My dad has owned several diesels in my lifetime: two diesel VW Golfs, a diesel Jeep Cherokee, two Cummins-powered Dodge Rams (one had over 300,000 miles on it when it was sold off), a VW Jetta TDI that had over 160,000 miles when traded and a BMW 335d, and none of them had any engine-related issues whatsoever. I hate that you've got problems with your car, but applying your logic, I guess I could conclude that all gasoline engines have issues because my 1997 Dodge Dakota was a complete piece of sh*t. Moreover, as gasoline engines become more complex with high-pressure, direct injection, turbocharging, etc (essentially, they're becoming more like diesel engines), you'll begin seeing more and more issues arise due to the complexity of the engine and its components. I also wouldn't be surprised to see some sort of DPF system on upcoming DI gasoline engines, just to meet emissions standards that are a couple of years away (all modern diesels I know of currently meet said standards). I'm sorry, but when looking at modern diesels, there really aren't any drawbacks when compared to petrol engines of similar size.

http://www.autoobserver.com//2009/03...n-buildup.html

http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...-up-Megathread

 

You bring some really interesting points, but like I said my real life experience is different. I just checked that web-site and according to them my 2002 Golf 1.9L TDI noise level is at 73 db. And then I checked my buddy's Euro 2002 Focus 2.0L and that web-site stated that his noise level is at 74 db. It's just not possible, I've driven both cars and there is a huge difference in noise level.
And there is also a fine line in cars being noisy and being loud.

When it comes to quality, like I said, I'm right now in a country where 3/4 of all cars are diesels (2.0L and smaller) and majority of people are having issues with newer diesels. Majority of them can't last over 200,000 km (120,000 miles) without bigger issues, with the exception of Opels (for some reason their diesel engines can last longer). Sure, fuel quality plays a role in that (Serbia has some of the lowest fuel quality in Europe). But at the same time, Serbia is full of older 1980s diesels, cars like Volkswagen Golf and Passat, Audi 80 and Mercedes W123, those are cars that are impossible to kill, no matter how low fuel quality is.