Clean Diesels in the US – too little, too late?
I love diesels. I’ve always wanted one and I thought this fall I would finally get one in the USA, a 50-state-legal one. A nice, 6MT torque monster that gets 45+ MPG, ideally of the Euro sports wagon variety. And I’ve been telling anyone and everyone, “Don’t buy a hybrid! Unless you drive 25K+ miles/year, diesel’s the way to go!”
But lately at the pump, I’ve noticed the price disparity between regular and diesel fuels. At my corner Valero, it’s $4.059 a gallon for regular vs. $4.949 for diesel. That’s 89ยข/gal, or 22%! So I got an idea: since the EPA recently rated the 2009 VW Jetta TDI, and I have gas mileage records for the past ~45K miles on my 2003 Accord DX 2.4L 5MT — why not compare them?
| 2003 Honda Accord DX | 2009 VW Jetta TDI | |
| Class | Midsize | Compact |
| Displacement | 2.4L | 2.0L |
| Cylinders | 4 | 4 |
| Transmission | 5 speed manual | 6 speed manual |
| Curb Weight | 2,989 lbs. * | 3,241 lbs. |
| Horsepower | 160 bhp | 140 bhp |
| Torque | 161 lb.-ft. | 236 lb.-ft. |
| Pounds per bhp | 18.7 lb./bhp | 23.2 lb./bhp |
| Pounds per lb.-ft. | 18.6 lb./lb.-ft. | 13.7 lb./lb.-ft. |
| Passenger Volume | 103 ft3 ** | 91 ft3 |
| New EPA (Cty/Hwy/Cmb) | 23/31/26 | 30/41/34 |
| Real-world observed MPG | 32.2 MPG over 45K miles | - |
* Not many mainstream cars under 3,000 pounds these days!
** More (6 ft3 more) than a 2008 Mercedes-Benz E350 (also, 10 ft3 more than a 2008 CLS550 and… 15 ft3 more than a 2008 C350)!
So what am I getting at here? First, I’m bragging that my car weighs less than 3,000 pounds (handles great, especially since installing the Neuspeed STB) and that it boasts more passenger room than basically all (C/CL/CLK/CLS/E/SL/SLK/SLR-class) 2008 Mercedes-Benz sedans, coupes & roadsters save for the S-class (and yes, my back seats have a lot of Mr. Happy memories to prove it 
). But that’s not why I’m writing this post, which is getting to be rather long. I’ll take my observed MPG of 32.2 and compare it with the highest EPA-provided number for the Jetta TDI, 41 MPG. If we take out the 22% price penalty, the numbers are 32.2 vs. 41 * 0.78 = 32.0 MPG. So, price-adjusted, my “gasser” gets the same gas mileage! But.. there’s no funky/complex/unproven urea system to worry about, there’s no turbocharger to cook the oil, it revs to 6,500 RPM (with VTEC!), it’s proven technology, has Honda bulletproof reliability, is cheaper to insure (Accord is one of the best-selling cars in the US), is less likely to shred tires due to torque (45K miles on Potenza G009s, should last another 30K with regular rotation), and so on, and so forth.
I really wanted a diesel. A diesel passenger car in the US of A. But unless diesel prices here drop to match regular gas (or be cheaper, as is/was the case in Europe!), it simply isn’t a smart move to replace a perfectly amazing gasser and spend all this money (yes, there’s a price premium) on new/unproven-in-the-US diesel technology at this point. A better move may be to wait a few years to see how it all pans out, after all there are many competing alternative technologies on the map — the race has just begun! Of course, this only applies to people with Accord I4 or better gas mileage — if you drive an SUV or some other monstrosity, by all means run, don’t walk, to your nearest VW dealer and put a down payment on a Jetta Sports Wagon TDI 6MT! I’ll even forgive you if you choose the DSG (as I would 
).
[Update 6/2/08: A reader pointed out that the '09 Jetta TDI meets the 50-state emissions regulations without an urea system. My bad.]
June 2nd, 2008 at 11:59 am
Interesting thoughts, but be aware that the Jetta TDI does not have a urea system — VW has tweaked the engine such that it meets emissions regulations without such a system.
Frankly, if just installing an STB makes a major difference in the Accord’s handling, it really must have sucked to begin with. A sway bar, sure, I could see that. Springs/struts, definitely, but an STB? I don’t know.
Your points on fuel economy are well taken, of course. But if prices on fuel rise across-the-board (which they may continue to do over the next few years,) the price gap between diesel and gasoline may make the diesel financially more attractive. (Remains to be seen, though — I’m not giving up my gasser yet, either.)
June 2nd, 2008 at 10:41 pm
That’s pretty cool about not having the urea system, I watched a video a while ago that presented a test mule and I thought they said it had the BlueTec/moniker-of-the-day urea system. My bad.
I am pro-diesel, I just don’t think it’s the right move right now for me (and, I dare say, others in similar situations). But I’m a Variant fanatic, and since Honda stopped making Accord wagons long ago (they do sell them in Europe – bastards!), it may just be enough to put me over the edge. I pretty much dream of 6MT Diesel Wagons at night when I’m feeling automotive, but I’d prefer one in Passat trim. The 335d in wagon form would also be tempting.
If you care about the environment, keep in mind that no matter how clean diesels are they’re still dirtier than gassers. They’re cleaner in that you no longer choke if one drives past you, but they’re still not that clean. But a clean diesel like the Jetta TDI 2.0L should still beat an 18 MPG SUV in emissions, while enjoying 34 MPG combined, according to the EPA.
P.S. The Accord handled just fine pre-STB – the 225/45R17s made a much bigger difference.