Where have I heard of that before?
Posted on 10/22/2006 9:24:45 PM PDT by thackney
This should put the expensive hybrid out of business. Now to refine more diesel.
Ford and GM to respond with heavier cars.
Uglier, too.
You can buy a lot of very nice diesels in Europe. Better mileage than gas by a long shot and good performance. There are several from companies like BMW, Audi, and Mercedes that can do 140+, hit 0-60 in less than 7 and return mpg in the high 30's.
Take this one for instance:
http://www.caranddriver.com/roadtests/11344/2006-bmw-330d.html
BMW 330D
369 lb ft of torque, 6 seconds 0-60, and 40 mpg on the highway. We need cars like that in the US. They could put a real dent in our dependence on ME oil. Too bad the enviroweenies are afraid of diesel. Its come a long way.
We do not have a shortage of diesel. But we have a huge shortage of diesels manufactured to meet the new EPA standards for passenger cars and light trucks. Right now, I believe that Mercedes-Benz is still the only one on the market. Others should be coming but are not available yet.
And they couldn't make these diesel cars also hybrids because...?
Wow, In 1981 Volkswagen made the Rabbit Diesel that got 50 mpg.
Honda, as great as they are, surely should have come out with something considerably more impressive...
U.S. corn yields 354 gallons per acre.
Rapeseed has a yield at 102 gallons per acre. Soybeans, yield only 56 gallons per acre.
Outside the US in better climates you can get ethanol, the top yields per acre at 714 gallons from sugar beets in France and 662 gallons per acre for sugarcane in Brazil.
With biodiesel production, oil palm plantations are a strong first, with a yield of 508 gallons per acre. Next comes coconut oil, with 230 gallons per acre.
Food and fuel compete for land
http://www.sarid.net/technology/051027-food-fuel-compete.htm
Cost. It takes a lot miles before you recoup the premium sales cost of hybrid/diesel.
Catepillar, Mack, Detroit Diesel and Cummins have all been producing efficient diesel motors for trucks for decades, why does it take a Japaneese company to tweak the tech and put it in cars?
"Wow, In 1981 Volkswagen made the Rabbit Diesel that got 50 mpg.
Honda, as great as they are, surely should have come out with something considerably more impressive..."
Except that Honda will be substantially quicker, smoother, and cleaner.
After 25 years of technological improvements, I should hope so.
Bingo.
Diesels are most efficient over a limited RPM band.
Run the diesel at that speed and have it do nothing except run a generator.
I would think 60~70 MPG would be easy.
Humor has it jeep is going to make diesel grand cherokees and commanders in the next year or so. We need more biodiesel.
"Catepillar, Mack, Detroit Diesel and Cummins have all been producing efficient diesel motors for trucks for decades, why does it take a Japaneese company to tweak the tech and put it in cars?"
Cummins is in the process of developing a light duty automotive diesel which should be out soon.
Where have I heard of that before?
It doesn't make much sense...
Only if you have to stop and go a lot hybrid pays of.
Unless this isn't the case you're paying more to aquire and maintain the plus in technology under the hood then you safe fuelwise.
This is true unless fuel doubles it's price. (Which isn't so offhand to happen but might aswell be a long way down the road)
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