Diesels in the News

tagman

My opinion, from day one, on the MTBE, is that the only reason, it is not listed, as a carcinogen, is that, it has not been in the public domain, all that much.

Given MTBE's infiltration of part's of the nation's groundwater, listing it as a carcinogen could open up the biggest can of worms imagineable... maybe something to rival asbestos exposure.

TagMan

roland3

... Tagman, what actually surprised me was that when it started showing up in groundwater and the first few lawsuits that the petro industry did not immediately cancel any use/involvement. Of course that's an almost automatic admissioin of guilt.

gagrice

I think the EPA is ultimately responsible as they pushed for oxygenation. Ethanol is such a pain to transport and MTBE is easy by comparison. They both have the same characteristics. We really do not know the long term affects of ethanol either. Other than reduced mileage. Modern cars do not need any oxygenation according to EPA studies. So it is just a political boondoggle and we pay the price. It would have been much smarter to keep working on switchgrass ethanol and get that right. I guess the government has plenty of excess money to throw around.

On the news front. Someone posted that the head of CARB got the ax from Ahnold this week. Any links to that story? Maybe he made disparaging remarks about Hummers.

roland3

... gagrice, I am not a big conspiracy kind of guy, but the MTBE deal kind of looks like two plus two: petro industry, & lobyists, & regulators, = mandate.

gagrice

I don't consider it a conspiracy either. It is just the way business is done in Washington DC. Oil company exec or lobbyist takes a Senator out to dinner. Explains how ethanol is not the best solution to the problem, and by the way how is your campaign coming along? Then ADM goes to their Senator in the Midwest and explains how they are going to provide jobs in the ethanol industry. Next thing you know we have a bill loaded down with every kind of PORK known to mankind.

When something unforeseen enters the picture like the MTBE fiasco, no one accepts the responsibility, so we all pay the bill to clean up our governments mess.

If corporate America can get the government involved with subsidies it is a WIN for corporate America. They reap the corporate welfare and have little liability if it all falls apart. Such as the last Ethanol boondoggle in the late 1970s.

I would just as soon see grassroots alternatives to our energy problems. If it stands on its own and is profitable, great.

Bring on the small biodiesel producers.

gagrice

This is from a company I invested in a few years ago when I first started thinking about biodiesel.

Green Star Products, Inc. (OTC: GSPI) (OTC: GSPI.PK), announced today that it has received serious interest in producing biodiesel from algae globally.

Over the past few weeks, companies from over 20 countries on five continents have expressed their interest in GSPI's biodiesel and microalgae technology.

These countries include: South Africa, India, China, Brazil, Australia, Canada, Argentina, Chile, New Zealand, Peru, Costa Rica, Sweden, Czech Republic, Zimbabwe, Spain, Italy, Nicaragua, Mexico, Russia, Kazakhstan, etc.

Numerous inquiries have also been received across the U.S.A.

This surge in "microalgae-oil-to-biodiesel" interest is accredited to two media events.

As of May 1, 2007, Continental Airlines has been showing a two-minute documentary-type news video on all of its flights over three hours around the world. The video is packed with cutting edge technological information that has sparked worldwide interest.

Also aired during May 2007 was a 15-minute interview with Joseph LaStella. This interview is not a promotional interview as it outlines the time scope of the future of biodiesel production from algae.

Both media events explain the present and future status of biodiesel as an alternative fuel, which is based on feedstock oils from food sources such as corn oil and soy oil versus non-food microalgae oil.

These media reports also explain the mounting competition between biodiesel feedstock oil crops versus food crops to utilize the same existing farmland and fresh water resources. Whereas microalgae production does not compete with food crops because all it requires is un-usable desert land, saltwater, CO2 and sunshine. This type of land is in great abundance in the Southwestern United States and in many foreign countries.

The worldwide response to these two media events has been very good and GSPI has signed NDAs with several of these prospects.

Some of the inquiries come from utility companies who are interested in providing their CO2 stack emissions to feed microalgae, and thus reduce global warming gases.

Algae consume (eat) CO2 and emit only oxygen to the atmosphere. Therefore, algae reduce global warming gases while producing feedstock oils for fuel and other uses.

Algae can produce 50 to 100 times more oil per acre than food oils crops.

Biodiesel from algae

roland3

... gagrice, I agree that the biodiesel is a much better solution than ethanol.
... Yes also to that's the way it is. So everybody, EPA, petrochem industry, and the auto companies say go ahead the MTBE will not eat the pintles out of our injectors. And I have to admit it's kind of neat in a big picture kind of way, clean up, to some extent, hundreds of thousands, of tailpipes. BUT, when ALL of the above KNEW it was a nightmare did petro industry immediately shut MTBE down, did EPA say STOP we were wrong, noooooooooooooo. Petro industry could not shut down because the courts would have thought the big companies acted without EPA approval and even prompting, and EPA could not admit they are wrong because it's a bureaucracy, and I say they are almost that wrong about forcing the Diesel industry to use EGR and or a small refinery in the exhaust system, and actually increasing green house gas compared to a more efficient engine. So yes we all have to pay.

larsb

Scramble for small diesel trucks

gagrice

Still kind of big for what most people need. I think it is all based on our screwy emissions regulations. I think they found a size loophole that will not be as closely monitored. You know the VW TDI in the Touareg is about that size and was let into CA.

I would consider a diesel Expedition if that is the only diesel SUV available that my wife and I like the looks of.

jkinzel

It’s a nice try, but still too big for most light pick-up usage. The Ford Ranger with a 3.0L would be a nice starting point.
And I hope they don’t think they can sap $4,000 to $6,000 premium out of a ½ ton pick-up? I might go $1,000 to $1,500 over the gas, but no more. I’ll keep what I have, my 94 Ranger.

bristol2

That would certainly be what I am looking for but I am disappointed that they are all focusing on diesel v8's instead of diesel v6's.

ruking1

I feel a tad mixed on the subject. But I have to tell you from a mpg and power point of view, I have been/am less than impressed with the I6 gasser on the Toyota Landcruiser (15-17 mpg max highway). I also understand the Lexus V8 is a performer and a trooper but it has to use premium and might get 1 mpg better (16-18) I think the thing that would really spark me would be a twin turbo V8 diesel getting between 25-35 mpg.!! Of course between 400-550 # ft of torque with a 6/7 speed manual or auto transmission would truly sweeten the match!!

bristol2

I think you are right not to judge until we see the mpg that the v8 diesels get.
I agree with you that putting a diesel into the full size SUVs is the way to go. A turbo-diesel Land Cruiser or LR3 would be a thing to behold. Getting a manual in there would require an over-seas import I have no doubt.

I can picture our household with a diesel Expedition and diesel F-150 or Silverado.

ruking1

This might not be politically correct, but I could get rid of 2 small cars, with one SUV that gets 25-35 mpg. While the environmentalist would tend to point an accusatory finger (like the Spanish Inquisition) at the SUV, what they would probably ignore is 2 cars off the road.

blufz1

1st interesting light truck diesel is likely to be Honda's V6 Ridgeline in fall 08.

bristol2

Yup, definately not enviro-friendly (don't forget you would be dinged for adding those 2 cars to someone else's inventory) but between the added longevity of the vehicle, and the greatly improved utility, it is really hard to argue with a diesel SUV.
We do some running races and triathlons and so are hauling kid(s), bikes, dirty gear etc in both on and mild-off road. Trying to do that and still be in something that watches the MPG is hard to do.

ruking1

Well for sure not everyone lives like those fictional 4 characters in "Sex In the City" Also it is hard to imagine people walking 5 miles in 4/6 in high heels.

tagman

bristol2 - a diesel SUV is where it's at. Hopefully, I'll be replacing the wife's MDX with a diesel Mercedes GL. I'm personally looking forward to a smaller diesel SUV for myself... such as a diesel BMW X3 or the upcoming gorgeous diesel GLK.

TagMan

ruking1

Honda would totally miss the boat if it did not in the future put that iCTDI in that Pilot/MDX.

tagman

Honda would totally miss the boat if it did not in the future put that iCTDI in that Pilot/MDX.

Absolutely correct. Or even in their wildly popular CR-V... although I think your idea of the Pilot/MDX is more likely.

TagMan

ruking1

Yes, however I do scratch my head a bit on that CR-V. But hey it is hard to argue with a bullish market.

tagman

Yes, however I do scratch my head a bit on that CR-V.

Why do you say that?

TagMan

ruking1

Well I guess because I have done some time in the MDX and the Pilot. I have seen and been in the CR-V, but I think for my uses, it didn't ring a bell.

tagman

I'm also very familiar with both the Pilot and MDX. When I looked at the CR-V and tested it out I was very impressed. For that size/price tier, I don't see a better value out there, IMO.

TagMan

ruking1

That being true, I continue to think that diesel models across the broader product lines (that oems are willing to take the requisite chances on), makes all the sense in the world. There is no way I wanted folks to think that just because it didn't trigger anything (to me), that it was any less valuable to those who would find it of value.

tagman

I completely agree with that perspective. Diesel powertrains should hopefully be an alternative in as many models as possible. The more the better.

TagMan

houdini1

Are you guys both referring to the latest version of the CRV or to an older version? I compared the older version of the CRV to a Pilot a couple of years ago and the CRV felt sort of flimsy compared to the Pilot. I am hoping the new CRV is much better.

jkinzel

I have been looking at the Honda CR-V as a replacement for the aging (1993 – 190k+ ) Explorer. I hope it (the Explorer) will last long enough for the rumored diesel CR-V to materialize, but I’m not above getting the gasser version. My concern is, is it something I would want to take a road strip in? Any thoughts?
My neighbors Jetta TDI went in for a recalled break switch and on the return trip home the rear breaks locked up. Dealer says “coincidence, not our problem” and VW is giving him the runaround. My neighbor is not a happy camper right now. I’m waiting for a call to post his bail, LOL
As much as I want a diesel, VW is not my first choice due to customer relations.

ruking1

I just had that TSB completed. Previously in app 94,000 miles, there was not even a hint of a problem. This would lead me to believe that in your neighbor's case, it is too coincidental to be a coincidence.

I would not be the first one to say that VW despite its best efforts, continues to shoot itself in the feet.

blufz1

No worries re Honda Diesels in SUV's. The CRV gets a 4 cylinder diesel with over 250 ft. pounds of torque. The Pilot gets a 6 cylinder diesel with over 325 ft lbs of torque.

jimlockey

VW's are not that bad. Had an 02 New Beatle and now have a 05 Passat TDI almost three years. Had some troubles the first three months, but none since then. They are like any dealer I've been to. Some times ok some thimes not so ok. Had more trouble with a 04 Toyota Sienna. I call it the second worse car I have ever owned. It had a bunch of problems.

I'm now older enough that the dealers don't give me any trouble.

jkinzel

I believe his Jetta is a 02 and in all fairness, this is really the first problem he has had with it and it has about 110k miles on it. And like all TDI owners, he loves the car and has all the maintenance done right on schedule.

tagman

Are you guys both referring to the latest version of the CRV or to an older version? I compared the older version of the CRV to a Pilot a couple of years ago and the CRV felt sort of flimsy compared to the Pilot. I am hoping the new CRV is much better.

The all-new CR-V is the vehicle to consider in a small SUV, not the old one.

It's no wonder it has become the #1 seller so quickly.

A diesel would make it even better.

TagMan

houdini1

A diesel is THE qualifying factor!!

stevecebu

I decided to run biodiesel which at the local station is cheaper than regular diesel. I don't live in the US at the moment so it's probably not the Super low sulphur stuff. But my economy was 24.7 MPG and that's with me having the A/C on in the blazing hot sun while waiting for my wife in the stores as well as her filling out job applications etc... Too hot to not run the A/C so a lot of time was spent idling or in Light-very heavy city traffic. A few roads you can sustain 50kph but only at night and it's a lot of stop and go and no traffic lights in the city at all, but a lot of traffic. I have found that the mpg on biodiesel is approx the same as regular diesel and was going to fill it up again but the station closed at midnight.
I expect that i could do better but it is a 4 door pickup truck 102HP/200TQ
Highway mileage is not really measurable as the longest highway here is about 80km long with a max speed of 100kph.
There is traffic on that so maintaining a steady 100kph isn't very easy as you have to pass slower moving vehicles. But my economy goes way up even on short uses of say 15-20km of the highway.
This is just a diesel reference for those who are interested in real world economy. The back roads are tight and winding roads with mid-heavy traffic or Main roads are long fairly straight with much heavier traffic and large slow moving trucks and more junkyard type vehicles than you'll see anywhere. It's like driving through an obstacle course. I suppose if anyone is interested I could take a video of traffic at about 2pm or so and put it up on You Tube. 7-9am traffic I don't even think about because it's just not worth driving in, so I don't!

gagrice

Thanks again for the update from the Philippines. Is your biodiesel made from palm trees. I know in Africa they are planting huge amounts of some type palm for biodiesel.

As far as clean diesel. Biodiesel is very clean. Virtually NO sulfur. That is the nasty stuff in fossil type diesel. The main reason for the black soot and nasty smell from diesel vehicles. The EU and now the USA have mandated ULSD (ultra low sulfur diesel) to help with emissions. You are doing your part there to both clean the air and reduce imported oil.

Happy 4th of July even though you are away from home.

scooterdiesel

All this longing for a reasonable Diesel vehicle. The small version of the Dodge Sprinter looks like a quite reasonable Diesel, and it is here, now. As soon as my 1990 Ford Econoline Gasser dies, the Sprinter will be my next vehicle. I like the cargo version. But it is available as a passenger vehicle.

gagrice

I don't think you can go wrong with that vehicle. I am not sure the new one is as efficient as the 5 cylinder one I had. Hopefully it is. Getting 25 MPG in a vehicle with that capacity is great.

scooterdiesel

What size was yours? The small, medium, or large? Was it a high roof? Why did you get rid of it?

moparbad

Diesel efficiency likely to trump even subsidized ethanol

The article title tricked me into reading it thinking it was about diesel, not so, it is really about ethanol.

gagrice

Mine was the long wheelbase tall one. It was an RV conversion from Forest River, called the MB Cruiser. Weighed about 8500 lbs and never got under 20 MPG even short trips around town. I sold it because we found out we did not like camping and long trips. We would rather fly and rent a car. I bought it right at the end of the year in December and sold it a year later in the Spring so only lost a couple thousand on it. I put 5k miles in a year. The new owner has put 11k miles in two months. He loves it and his daughters love camping in it. They had a Vanagan. So this is huge for them.

stevecebu

Thanks again for the update from the Philippines. Is your biodiesel made from palm trees. I know in Africa they are planting huge amounts of some type palm for biodiesel.

Sure thing, happy to update the group. I want to get my wife to hold the camera and do a video while we ere driving in normal traffic but my digital camera only will shoot 3 minutes at a time.
I can always ask what they make their biodiesel from as I really don't know. But it's good stuff so far.

As far as clean diesel. Biodiesel is very clean. Virtually NO sulfur. That is the nasty stuff in fossil type diesel. The main reason for the black soot and nasty smell from diesel vehicles. The EU and now the USA have mandated ULSD (ultra low sulfur diesel) to help with emissions. You are doing your part there to both clean the air and reduce imported oil.

Hahahahha that's pretty funny but you'd have to live here to understand the joke about just how bad diesel fumes are for the main form of transportation which is Jeepneys, modified versions based on early WW2 military jeeps with lek 60HPO engines designed to carry 12-20 people! Straight exhaust and nothing but pure fumes blowing out from them. They are cheap public transit tho at P7.5 per ride and that's like 15 cents or so.
Biodiesel is very clean but if you ever saw them clean a Jeepney exhaust it's almost enough to make you vomit! They have a brush with a long handle and scrub the inside of the Jeepney exhaust and they scrub it real well. Then they fire it up and it blows the blackest nastiest stuff you'll ever see, all over the road. No pollution controls, no catalytic converters and many people are out there on small motorcycles breathing it all in, plus the heat and oh yes, it's an experience! :surprise:
I really like my new Toyota diesel tho,very clean and reliable and the biodiesel seems to get less economy but my wife is learning to drive a standard and we use my truck and of course the economy suffers and when you wait anywhere you keep the A/C on all the time even at night due to the pollution.
I never used to be a believer in pollution controls until I moved here but I do understand far better why we have such controls. But these things here are polluting worse than you can imagine. Too bad i won't be able to buy a diesel as I will be back before they are released.

Happy 4th of July even though you are away from home.

Thanks! and Happy 4th to you as well! a lot of guys here are ex military so everyone shot off a LOT of fireworks yesterday, mostly unsafely and right in the middle of the street as is typical here. No power wires were knocked down and no one was hurt. It's good fun but it's nothing like Christmas and New years when there are more fireworks going off than I've ever seen in my life! They are all over the place and blow up under your car the street is like a war zone with fireworks landing on rooftops and blowing up. I typically will spend $200 on fireworks for Christmas and $300 or so for New years as we visit my wifes family. We fill up a van with fireworks and we get belts that are 10,000 rounds long! But entire neighborhood will come out to watch so it's all good fun.
It's quite a country here.

gagrice

Our pollution controls in the USA are a bit skewed. The regulators want our cars to clean up the air that goes in to them. And they do little to clean up industrial pollution. Our Planes, Trains, tractors and ships are still using dirty fuel. In the case of cargo ships the diesel has as much as 3000 parts per million sulfur. Some even burn bunker fuel right out of the well. That is a major source of pollution in the Los Angeles basin.

I have an acquaintance that retired there right out of the Air Force. He told us it was the only place he could afford to live.

Be sure and clean your fuel filter since you switched to biodiesel. It is a strong solvent and will clean a lot of gunk out of your fuel system.

stevecebu

Our pollution controls in the USA are a bit skewed. The regulators want our cars to clean up the air that goes in to them. And they do little to clean up industrial pollution. Our Planes, Trains, tractors and ships are still using dirty fuel. In the case of cargo ships the diesel has as much as 3000 parts per million sulfur. Some even burn bunker fuel right out of the well. That is a major source of pollution in the Los Angeles basin.

I like getting good economy, a shame all the good diesels will not be coming out for a while.
I will probably have them do that at my 10,000km service but I'm only at 8,000km so I think it will be ok to wait 2,000km. I'm having an oil change on Saturday again every 3 months and I'm a month late! :surprise:
They are very strict here about the maintainance schedule so it's had like 4-5 oil changes in 8,000km!
Cargo ships and all that will never get cleaned up they are too hard to regulate and can fire many people to cover their loss to their profit. So passenger cars and trucks pull a very heavy load.

ruking1

..."Cargo ships and all that will never get cleaned up they are too hard to regulate and can fire many people to cover their loss to their profit. So passenger cars and trucks pull a very heavy load."...

This to me is another way of saying the priorities are totally akimbo (bas ackwards). It is truly an elitist way of punishing the masses. It is sort of that the old royalty way of say punishing the prince who commits a misdeed: they execute a few hundred peasants,... to teach him a lesson. I am not so sure he get the same meaning from the lesson, as those dead peasants.

marcb

future small pickup truck. probably no diesel, but a 2.4 gasser looks small enough (maybe):

http://www.pickuptruck.com/html/future/scion/10scionxp.html

houdini1

Hmmmm....I like!!

dieseldoc

Hi, forgive this post as I am completely new to this site, in the UK diesels have become big business, particularly with common rail systems revolutionising the motor industry.
I have been repairing Diesel injection systems for 35 years and I have been involved with development work for London Transport, Cummins Engines, Perkins, Rover etc. I have also given training courses in the UK to apprentice technicians and commercial vehicle mechanics and my diagnostic skills have taken me overseas as far as Hong Kong. From time to time I will drop into this message board and if I can help in any of the discussions I will. I do hope this post does not infringe of the rules to this message board, if so I apologise.

Doc

gagrice

You are very welcome to the Forum. We can always learn from those that have first hand knowledge.

One quick question. How are the Honda diesels doing against the EU diesel cars?

dieseldoc

Hi, Thanks Last year the Honda CR-V was more popular than Land Rover and Toyota in the UK. A very big problem currently in the UK is people filling their Diesel tanks with petrol, its happening at a rate of 400 a day. Unfortunately the main dealers over here are basically cashing in on the owners misfortune.