Diesel Cars: A Comparison from Consumer Reports

[12valvepower1]

diesel is power for life

[Gnometower]

In Europe there is a Kia Rio Diesel for €13k that has an official rating of 74 mpg combined

[Ho0di]

Subaru please bring the Boxer Diesel :(

[132oink]

well, gas had gone to 5 dollars a gallon.

[12valvepower1]

bring the subaru diesel over here. or i want a bmw 335d

[12valvepower1]

i want a bmw 335d

[waddlerobloxxxx]

Germans love diesel

[12valvepower1]

@waddlerobloxxxx i do too germans invented diesel rudolf diese lwas german

[JOHNINCOLUMBUS]

I don't like BMW's...never have...there's something about their styling that I've never liked.

[12valvepower1]

the steering can be helped with the gas pedal..heheheh. 416 ft lbs torque is what i want! yeah boy. check out my channel for diesel performance videos.our f250 gets 20 mpg for being 6k pounds.

[Falewick]

Kind of american POV review, but it's true. In europe, diesel is cheaper than gas so diesel really makes sense fuel-economy wise. People get gas if they either don't drive very often, or for high-performance cars, or they just make short (5 min) trips which are bad for any engine but diesels especially. 45-50mpg is what my friends get, even with older diesel cars. Diesel produces less CO2 but slightly more pollution overall. Hybrids really don't make any sense, they're just for hippie show-offs.

[heartlessvietboy]

I am against diesel fuel because it pollutes our environment. Clean diesel still pollutes the environment more than we want to. 

[thedarkone2134]

@heartlessvietboy So does gas, with diesel you use less fuel to do the same thing, which means you put out less in terms of emissions, especially with new clean diesels.

Diesels are a good alternative to gas cars for a lot of people and when you consider the fact diesel is easier to produce, more efficient and can run on more then just diesel fuel, you've got a wining combination for people and the earth.

Diesel just makes sense.

[Andre609]

@thedarkone2134 If the world runs out of oil to produce, gasoline cars will be sitting in the driveway while diesels dominate with alternative oils like veggie or french fry oil.

[bigman95impala]

@heartlessvietboy hmmm so 3x the engine life, 1 year or more on and oil change and 25% better fuel economy from a similar gas models

Well if those arent enough reasons why diesels are better then you sir are a dopey fool

[12valvepower1]

vw jetta tdi is same price as prius.. diesel lasts longer less parts better mileage more power.. on and on and on

[Andre609]

@heartlessvietboy and you aren't against gas for the larger amounts of emissions it puts out? You can run diesel engines on old french fry oil and veggie oil or different oils with a high energy content, it would be wise to retain information about a topic when you debate on it.

[georgio941]

The only diesel you can get that is affordable in the US is the jetta and that is because it is assembled in Mexico. No thanks.

[Andre609]

@georgio941 So that means it's unreliable? i'll show you my 98 TDI and prove to you how much you know about them.

[ClarophonistCJ]

Get a UK car. 1.4 or 1.6 diesel does 70mpg +. Stop buying 2.5+ cars and come into the real world.

[ClarophonistCJ]

Just look at our cars in the UK. 60mpg in a 1.6l diesel. Buy one, and stop being stupid.

[pimpninja1985]

I'm an American and have been living in Europe not for over three years now and here I drive a Mercedes S320 4Matic diesel. I get around 7lites/100km which is like 33 miles to the gallon. It is just a quiet as the gasoline version and twice as economical. When I come back to the USA, I am only buying diesel. The Europeans definetly know whats right.

[kfowler917]

its good to see someone provide the 'total cost of ownership' vantage point. it should always be part of your equation for purchasing a new automobile.

[Seattlecarnut]

I've always been interested in diesel vehicles. For me, the only problem is not so much the performance or the noise, but the smell diesel emits out the tail pipe.

[seniorbaylindo]

@Seattlecarnut

My truck doesn't even smell like a diesel with the DPF and other emissions stuff on it.

[soc993]

It would be more accurate to say fuel *efficiency* instead of fuel *economy.* Fuel economy depends on the price of fuel whereas fuel efficiency does not. I.e., if gas were $1/gal and diesel were $5/gal a gas engine would achieve better fuel economy even if it were only getting 20 mpg and the diesel engine were getting 40 mpg. (Or even 50 mpg.) Also, the old Mercedes diesels can tolerate veggie oil conversions much better than the current diesel engines (if they can at all, which is doubtful).

[BenBen808]

Diesel Cars can run on pea nut/chip oil yes indeed!!

[juscurious]

Consumer Reports is absolute shit. There ratings are different than just about everyone else and in a very major way. All their top rated cars are from Japan. All of them. No Mercedes, no BMW, No AUDI. That simply can't be. I'm not saying that the Japanese don't make good cars but can all of thier top rated cars be from Japan. Don't believe it. CR is shrilling for the Japanese and I think that's crap. I particularily dislike this Ahole David Champion. CR is shit.

[kazazajua]

American and japanese manufacturers fear that if more North Americans drove diesels, they would, like European and Asian, diesel owners, keep their diesel cars longer; and that the cars themselves, like diesels elsewhere, will last longer than gasoline cars. Less sales-Less profit!!! We can't allow people to save can we?

[adamslurch71]

@kazazajua And yet Mercedes is know for its long lasting diesels, the 240D and 300D for example, yet they have higher sales and more repeat customers then any american brand.

[thedarkone2134]

@kazazajua I don't doubt that at all. My jetta has 320,000Km on it with no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

I've gotten more use from it then any gas car I've had.

[Andre609]

@thedarkone2134 Same here man my 98 TDI has 450,000 and change, it still runs like a dream i'm hoping to get 200-300,000 more out of it. 320,000 that would definitely drive like new, i've seen an 92 golf non turbo go 950,000 kms and still runs fine.

[venci1983]

you are just stupid people. you just waste fuel because you can't face change. in europe we drive diesels for a very long time and it's not scary. stop fooling yourselves by saying stupid things like gasoline cars are cheaper to run - no they are not. diesels can make in some cases 40% better fuel economy. even $1 higher price per gallon for diesel is not enough to make gasoline cars better to run! it is checked long time ago here. buy a european diesel and stop crying like girls about it!

[venci1983]

even if diesel fuel is more expensive in USA it is still much cheaper to drive a diesel. considering the difference in fuel economy the 10cents for gallon down price to the gasoline fuel compared to diesel isn't enough at all to make a difference. and what is that 19mpg from the GL? i've testdrived one of these and i made 24mpg.

[andres8712]

One of the reasons why American's can't really feel the economy is because  Gas is cheaper than Diesel for them .. In most of the other countries Diesel is actually cheaper..

[Tuppoo94]

@andres8712 diesel is cheaper here in Finland but there is a problem... the stupid diesel tax that we have to pay here if we want to drive a diesel car

[moaski]

I have a few problems with this commentary:

1. How is it that the diesel 3-Series gets 5 mpg better than its 335i gas-counterpart and has "no payoff" whereas the X5d also gets 5 mpg better than a typical gas X5, yet yields a definitive payoff?

2. Where can you buy a diesel Jetta in the "low $20k range?" Not by me!

3. "Most diesels are installed in high-priced luxury vehicles." NOT TRUE! In the US market yes, but around the rest of the world cheap diesels are most abundant.

[st3even]

@moaski I can't believe you only get 5 miles extra on diesel. the US just hates diesel.

[moaski]

@ st3even Yeah...It's the our government's emissions regulations for diesels that squash their viability in the USA.

[bg1379]

@moaski

1) 5 MPG better in a 3 is far better than 5 in a X5, percent-wise.

2) This is an American publication, and in America most diesels have been luxury cars, factually.

3) You make it sound like stringent air quality regulations are a bad thing! The environmental impact of a polluting car is worse than that of a car that uses more gas, also factually.

[moaski]

@ bg1379

1. That's what I'm saying. So why then doesn't a 335d pay off? It's cheaper than an X5 and percentage wise gets much better mpg!

2. WOW...that's exactly what I said, AGAIN. Most diesels available in the USA are German in origin.

3. Your statement here doesn't reiterate anything I've already said, so that probably explains why it makes no sense whatsoever.

You may want to re-read my comment and remove yours as to not look like a huge jerkoff, factually.

[bg1379]

@moaski

Re-read your comment, entitled "a few problems with this commentary" and go to number 3, a PROBLEM, stating that they are wrong about what diesels usually are.

Also, think about it- 5 of 20 is a much higher percent than 5 of 30- they are right (you unjustly told them that THEY were wrong) you'd make your money back more quickly with the X5.

[moaski]

@ bg1379 I know the comment you are referring to. Worldwide, diesels are not luxury vehicles. They are mor common than gasoline powered vehicles. ONLY in the USA market are diesels typically found in luxury vehicles. EVERYWHERE else they are commonplace.

Do the math: a 335d costs $3,650 more than a base 335i and gets 36.5% better fuel economy...a xDrive35d costs $3,700 more than a xDrive30i and gets 24.5% better fuel economy. HOW DOES THE X5 PAYOFF AND THE 335d DOES NOT?!?

jerkoff...

[bg1379]

@moaski

The data that is being presented does not suggest a 36% increase, I've no idea where you are getting that number. 28MPG from 23 is like a 21% increase. IN THEIR DATA, the X5 gets 29% higher economy.

And, finally, I find it quite peculiar that my comments mysteriously get 2 thumbs down in a row right before you comment. . . . .

[moaski]

I find it quite peculiar that mysteriously I get a thumbs down with every comment you post as well....hmmm.

Perhaps there are a lot of YouTubers watching our debate right now that happen to disagree with your comments more so than mine?

Check the MSRPs and EPA figures and then you'll see where I get my figures.

Congrats on avoiding all the other poignant comments I've made that your are unable to refute.

[st3even]

@moaski Sad but true, hopefully that changes one day...

[bajabusta]

i would rather have the jetta diesel over any prius/insight.

[biohazard1243]

@bajabusta Agreed

[12valvepower1]

bmw mercedes vw

[12valvepower1]

@bajabusta hell yeah 

[Andre609]

@bajabusta You say it brother!

[MazdamusPrime]

i would like the lgacy deisel to cross the pond but i hear it's noisy and clunky but i don't know if that s true.