24 Hours of Lemans dominated by... diesels...

[angib]

OK, Audi and Peugeot diesels did dominate the Le Mans 24hr results - though that really is down to the gas/diesel equivalence rules. In World Touring Cars, they get diesels and petrol winning different races, mainly because they are constantly fiddling with the rules to keep the two equal.

However the point of this post is more mundane - The Times (sorry, that'll be The London Times for you guys) did nice back-to-back test of a BMW 520d and a Toyota Prius between London and Geneva, adding in 100 mile of city driving to give the Prius a decent chance:

Toyota Prius proves a gas guzzler in a race with the BMW 520d

Don't have a heart attack when watching/reading this - they are talking in UK gallons, that are 20% bigger than US gallons, so their 48mpg(UK) is only 40mpg(US).

Andrew

[caseydog]

The ending was pretty competitive, with the first place Audi and second place Peugeot on the same lap.

GT-1 was close with Aston Martin finishing first, but on the same lap as the Corvette in second place (37 laps behind the diesels).

Being that close after 24 hours of racing is quite a feat.

Hey Andrew, I believe that is two in a row for your Aston's, isn't it?

CD

[wanders]

Just to chime in on diesels.. I've been driving a Jetta TDI for 7 years now. I can honestly say that after all this time, I still look forward to driving it which is more than I can say for anything else I've owned.

I've had one engine related repair, namely the diesel injection pump. This hurt to the tune of $600 and a days effort to replace it. (It would have been considerably more had I not found a lightly used pump and a TDI guru to look over my shoulder!)

Yes, the high price of diesel today hurts, but given the mileage, I'm still ahead of the game. Average in mixed highway city driving is 46. Best ever is 53 on long roadtrips at 70-75mph. Worst ever is 33 towing the teardrop at 70-75. ( I've learned to slow down a little with the trailer since and got 36)

The older TDI's (2003 and back) are easy to modify for more power. Newer ones less so, but still doable. I got a nice bump from 90 hp to 110hp and 155 ft/lb torque to 180 with larger injector nozzles. No milage penalty either if I stay off the "fun pedal".

My hope is that there will be more diesels available when the time comes to replace it.

[traveler]

I have a 1992 Dodge Cummins/5speed and with a little tune up, I was getting about 23 miles per gallon, but now they came out with the low sulphur deisel, my milage went down to around 18. The truck has 400,000 miles, so that isn't too bad.

[caseydog]

I have a 1992 Dodge Cummins/5speed and with a little tune up, I was getting about 23 miles per gallon, but now they came out with the low sulphur deisel, my milage went down to around 18. The truck has 400,000 miles, so that isn't too bad.

I would say that the 400,000 miles is the culprit on the fuel economy, or something is wrong with the engine or engine management system. Low Sulfur and Ultra Low Sulfur diesel does not effect performance or fuel economy one way or the other.

CD

[mikeschn]

Are you sure?

Mike...

Low Sulfur and Ultra Low Sulfur diesel does not effect fuel economy one way or the other.

CD

[caseydog]

Are you sure?

Mike...

Low Sulfur and Ultra Low Sulfur diesel does not effect fuel economy one way or the other.

CD

In big rigs, tests have shown about a 1.5% decrease in energy produced per volume between LSD and ULSD. When the fuels are measured by weight, there is no difference. It is not the reduction in sulfur that makes the difference, but in the process of refining out the sulphur, it becomes a "lighter" fuel.

In most smaller diesels, the difference should be negligible.

Going from 23 to 18 mpg is not negligible.

Something else is probably happening.

CD

[mikeschn]

I see! Thanks for that tidbit!

Mike...

[wanders]

Are you sure?

Mike...

Low Sulfur and Ultra Low Sulfur diesel does not effect fuel economy one way or the other.

CD

In big rigs, tests have shown about a 1.5% decrease in energy produced per volume between LSD and ULSD. When the fuels are measured by weight, there is no difference. It is not the reduction in sulfur that makes the difference, but in the process of refining out the sulphur, it becomes a "lighter" fuel.

In most smaller diesels, the difference should be negligible.

Going from 23 to 18 mpg is not negligible.

Something else is probably happening.

CD

I've seen no difference in the TDI.

[traveler]

CD, now you got me worried. It runs real good and purrs like a big cat, and I hope that there nothing going wrong. Drove big rigs for 38 years, but am NOT a diesel machanic, so will take your word on that. Thanks for the reply and I will put a rack on the motor and see if that does anything for the milage. Thanks again.
Bruce