Main page | May 20, 2008 »

Diesel Automobiles Clean Up for an Encore

Volkswagen says it will be the first to market with diesels clean enough to pass muster in every state. Jetta TDI sedans and wagons are due to arrive in August.

AFTER years in the automotive wilderness, largely exiled to the smoky borders of truck stops, diesel is coming home. Americans may not recognize its freshly scrubbed face, according to The New York Times.

A 19th-century invention by Rudolf Diesel, the diesel engine has always been known for outstanding fuel efficiency, with better mileage (by 25 percent to 40 percent) than gasoline. But the kerosenelike fuel and the engines that burn it were dirty, noisy, dawdling and even deadly, linked to increased risk of cancer and respiratory disease.

That has all changed, in part because of cleaner-burning fuel — its 2006 rollout had been mandated in 2000 by the Clinton administration — that has 97 percent less of the sulfur responsible for diesel engines’ sooty particulates.

The low-sulfur fuel, hailed by the Environmental Protection Agency as a historic advance, has opened the door to sophisticated emissions controls that let diesel engines meet the strict pollution standards of California. Those rules, the world’s most stringent by far, require 2009-model diesels to be as green as gasoline or even hybrid models.

In the meantime, advances like turbocharging and high-pressure fuel injection have transformed diesel cars from soot-belching slowpokes with a telltale clickety-clack sound to smooth, tidy and powerful machines that many Americans would have a hard time distinguishing from gasoline models.

With technical and environmental hurdles overcome — and facing tougher mileage standards that call for a 35 m.p.g. average by 2020 — automakers are rushing in with clean-diesel cars.

Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth  at 11:26 AM to Clean diesel | Permalink | Comments 0

Bob Tasca III makes first-round exit in Bristol

BRISTOL, Tenn. – It just wasn’t Bob Tasca III’s day at Bristol Dragway on Sunday as the rookie driver fell to Ron Capps in the first round of NHRA POWERade Drag Racing eliminations, according to Tasca's publicist Alexis Kinch.

“Ron went out and made a solid pass,” said Tasca. “We just didn’t quite have enough for him today.”

The driver of the Motorcraft/Quick Lane/Custom Accessories Shelby Mustang's record against Capps drops to 0-2 after posting a 4.923-second, 313.88 mph run to Capps’ 4.827-second, 316.52 mph pass.

“We expected the car to run a high 4.70, Chris [Cunningham, crew chief] was pretty confident on that,” said Tasca. “It’s just disappointing that the car just didn't do what we expected it to. We also didn’t have that little bit of extra luck that you need in this sport. But, you can’t get down about it. The next race in Topeka is coming up, so now we focus on that.

"The team is going to pick up our new three-rail car this week in Indianapolis, which is the same style chassis that the Force teams are running with. Ford Motor Company has invested a lot of time into this new chassis to make it safer out here for us competitors, and we’re optimistic that it is going to show us a little something for our zero to 60 feet.”

The series takes the week off before heading to Topeka, Kansas for the 20th annual O’Reilly Summer Nationals May 30-June 1. It will be Tasca’s first visit to the Kansas track, and the ninth race of the 24-race NHRA schedule.

Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth  at 11:02 AM to Racing | Permalink | Comments 0

Oil prices gain while pump prices rise to new high

NEW YORK -- Oil futures crept higher Monday while retail gas and diesel prices reached new records, adding to the pressure on drivers planning road trips for the coming holiday weekend, according to the Associated Press.

Americans are now paying an average of $3.79 for a gallon of regular gas, according to a survey by AAA and the Oil Price Information Service. Diesel now costs $4.52 a gallon.

Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth  at 10:41 AM to Crude oil market | Permalink | Comments 0