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Why European Diesel Cars Are Not Available in the U.S.

TurboSpyder submitted on 6/7/2009 Official Bell & Ross Timestamp: 2:37:39 PM

8 user comments | Category: Misc News | Source: | SOURCE: www.scientificamerican.com

Tag Link: Diesel Cars

Different countries do have differing standards in regard to how much pollution gasoline and diesel automobile engines are allowed to emit, but the reason you see so fewer diesel cars in the U.

S. is more of a choice by automakers than the product of a decree by regulators on either side of the Atlantic.

Since the advent of the automobile age in the U.S., gasoline has been king of the road; today upwards of 95 percent of passenger cars and light trucks on American roads are gas-powered. And the federal government has done its part to keep it that way, taxing diesel at a rate about 25 percent higher than gasoline. A recent assessment by the American Petroleum Institute, an oil industry trade group, found that federal taxes accounted for 24.4 cents per gallon of diesel but only 18.4 cents per gallon of gasoline.

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TurboSpyder

Bilstein "DampTronic" traitors! http://www.oobject.com/category/top-10-soviet-technology-ripoffs/

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User Comments

Joe_Limon

Diesel is still a dirtier fuel, charging 6% more taxes is a good thing if you care about emissions. And if you compare prices now they are pretty on par with each other.

— Joe_Limon (View Profile)

Posted on 6/7/2009 5:15:00 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: -2   

abqhudson

Please explain how a Mercedes Bluetec diesel is dirtier than a Mercedes with a gasoline engine.

— abqhudson (View Profile)

Posted on 6/8/2009 8:33:13 PM | | Votes: 1   

huu76

I can't find my good link but last I recall, there was diesel was taxed about 1cent more than gasoline nationally. Hardly a cause for commercial bias.
Here's a rather old link but it shows gas/diesel taxes are basically the same in every state.
http://www.taxadmin.org/Fta/rate/motor_fl.html

Another outdated article but it shows Kyoto doesn't even include soot as a pollutant, which increases global warming more than CO2. Wonder why the diesel loving Europeans are so keen on Kyoto?
http://www.scienceblog.com/cms/diesel_cars_may_promote_more_global_warming_than_gasoline_cars

I still contend diesel makes us more dependent on foreign oil, not less.
www.fuleconomy.gov and see how many barrels of oil a Jetta TDI needs vs a Prius.

AutoLies strikes again.

— huu76 (View Profile)

Posted on 6/7/2009 7:14:08 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 3   

_43LE

huu, looked at who posted this story and it all makes sense...Mr. Euro-lover-only himself.

— _43LE (View Profile)

Posted on 6/7/2009 10:50:47 PM | | Votes: 2   

SpicyMikey

I thought soot helped reduce global warming. It blocks sunlight from reaching the ground. In fact, I read an interesting article a few years ago where scientists saw a small but measurable bump up in the U.S. temperature after 9/11. They attributed it to the lack of soot and vapor clouds being created by the thousands of flights all over the country for those few days. Bottom line; particles in the air help reduce global warming, otherwise things would be much worse than they already are (so I've read)

— SpicyMikey (View Profile)

Posted on 6/8/2009 10:11:13 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 0   

TurboSpyder

Spicy, I heard the same thing on one program but I also saved a news story that said soot from Asia may contribute to global warming. You can put a white hanky right at the tailpipe of a new diesel car and not get it dirty at all so I don't know how much soot a modern diesel puts put. Right now, they meet all the same emission standards in the U.S. that gasoline engines do.

— TurboSpyder (View Profile)

Posted on 6/8/2009 10:39:13 AM | | Votes: 0   

hybridfarce

Don't forget that there are several bio-diesel fuel substitutes that should work in modern diesels (and with comparable fuel economy). I don't know of any bio-petrol substitutes that are comparable to gasoline (ethanol doesn't count; it has a lot less energy density, plus there are engine modifications that are needed).

— hybridfarce (View Profile)

Posted on 6/8/2009 12:45:09 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

huu76

Turbospyder,
The newest diesels may barely meet U.S. standards while hybrids surpass the standards by mile.

Modern diesels also only achieved their new cleanliness after big oil refined the crap (or carbon) out of diesel. The new diesel engines running the old dirty stuff only reduces emissions by about 10% while the refining process takes out 95% of it.
Hybrids do all their magic on regular gasoline, the same stuff that's been out there since the 80s.

— huu76 (View Profile)

Posted on 6/8/2009 9:31:54 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

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