Tag Archives: diesel

Diesel – fuel for thought

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In the third part of our Fuel series, we look at diesel.

diesel pump at petrol station

Are diesel cars more fuel-efficient?

As price-pressured motorists look to get more bang from their buck, sales of diesel light vehicles have increased rapidly over the last couple of years.  Due to lower fuel consumption rates than an equivalent petrol engine, diesel engines are the standard in heavy vehicles. So why not in light engines too?

Pros:

  • Modern diesel engines are as quiet, smooth and powerful as petrol engines and are more fuel-efficient.

Cons:

  • One disadvantage often mentioned by NRMA Members is that diesel handpieces at garages often have a film of diesel fuel over them, as any spillage does not evaporate as quickly as petrol.  And if the diesel gets on your hands or clothing, the smell is difficult to remove. Retailers are making efforts to avoid this but have not yet found a perfect system.

Consider:

  • Diesel fuel does not contain more energy than petrol. In fact, it contains marginally less.
  • Whereas the intake of a petrol engine has a throttle blade in it, which forms an obstruction and reduces efficiency, a diesel engine doesn’t. Therefore, it gets lower fuel consumption.
  • Diesel variants are often more expensive to purchase than the petrol ones, so if your interest is purely in lower running costs, make sure it is going to make sense for you by checking out the NRMA’s Car Operating Cost Calculator.
  • In many cases, the higher initial purchase cost outweighs the reduced fuel cost.  But you are also gambling on the price of diesel staying similar to petrol over several years.
  • If you have never driven a diesel-engined vehicle and are considering purchasing one, you should test drive a few to see how it feels.

If you drive a diesel car, do you feel you’ve you got your money back in reduced fuel/servicing costs?  And are you happy with the driving characteristics of diesel?

Diesel – a greener fuel option?

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Since 1 January 2009, diesel fuel has had to meet strict fuel quality standards, now producing a significantly lower amount of sulphur than both ULP and PULP.

National fuel standards

National standards regulating fuels that impact the environment first came into effect in January 2002, brought in to reduce the amount of toxic pollutants in emissions.

Initially, diesel’s sulphur standard was set at 500 parts per million (ppm). As of 1 January 2009, this was reduced to a maximum of 10 ppm.

How does this compare?

From 1 January 2005, the maximum amount of sulphur ULP (91.0 RON) could contain was set at 150 ppm.

Since 1 January 2008, PULP’s (95.0 RON) maximum sulphur is 50 ppm.

Is it time diesel lost its ‘dirty’ reputation?

New generation turbo-diesels have particulate filters which further reduce the amount of particulate (soot) produced in the vehicle’s emissions. On top of that, these new generation diesels are proven to go further on less. For instance, BMW’s new diesel powered 1-series, on sale now, returns less than 5 litres per 100km and emits just 126g of CO2 per kilometer.

The first diesel-fuelled Subaru to be offered in Australia, the Subaru Outback, will be on sale in November this year, and diesel models of the 2010 Mazda CX-7, 2011 Ford Territory and Peugeot’s new 407 are all on the way. It is clear that more and more new car models are being offered with ‘clean’ diesel alternatives.

Coupled with the particulate filter and the new, stringent sulphur emission standards, diesel might just be a viable, greener fuel alternative.

Does diesel still have a ‘dirty’ reputation? Have you thought of diesel as a greener fuel option?

For the full list of diesel quality standards, visit The Federal Government’s Environment website.

The diesel price rise

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As recently as six months ago, one of the main incentives for buying a diesel vehicle was the perceived savings on fuel compared to a vehicle using unleaded petrol. But now it’s not uncommon to see the price of diesel up to 25 cents more than regular unleaded, leaving many owners of private diesel vehicles wondering if it was all worth it.

Several factors have contributed to the diesel price rise.

The main reason for diesel being consistently more expensive than standard unleaded petrol is that most diesel is sold under contract to fleet operators, mainly for heavy vehicles. This means the volume sold at your local service station is low, leaving retailers little incentive to discount.

Also previous Government regulations allowed diesel to contain 500 particles per million of sulphur. This has recently been adjusted to allow only 50ppm resulting in the production costs of diesel and unleaded petrol being quite similar.

Diesel prices are also kept high by demand in Asia, where most transport uses diesel.

Many Australians holidaying in New Zealand come back wondering why diesel is significantly cheaper there than it is here. However, Trans-Tasman diesel prices cannot be compared, as diesel in NZ is not taxed at the point of sale. Rather, diesel vehicle owners are required to pay a Road User Charge (RUC) in distance travelled slots, making the actual cost of the journey much more expensive than it appears at the bowser.

Manufacturers and the Government may be pushing diesel as a ‘green’ alternative to petrol, but owners and potential buyers are probably questioning if diesel is indeed a fuel of the future.

What are your experiences with buying diesel? Do you still find it worth the money, despite the recent price rises?

Diesel, hybrid or don’t care – have you made the switch?

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July 16th, 2007

Global warming and CO2 emissions are two issues we now confront on a daily basis.

We’re all aware of the problem, but has this influenced your choice of car or transport?

If you were in the market for a diesel powered car five years ago, it was slim pickings. At the time, European stalwarts Citroen, Mercedes-Benz and Peugeot could help you, but petrol-hybrid cars were almost non-existent on our shores.

Today almost every manufacturer offers a diesel variant, from economy priced to luxury, while Honda, Lexus and Toyota all have hybrids in their line-up.

However, manufacturers have not eliminated petrol models from their range entirely – petrol powered cars still sell the most units by far. Perhaps we’re not as concerned about our car’s ‘carbon footprint’ as the media would have us believe.

With so much on offer, have you made the switch from petrol to diesel or hybrid power, and what has the experience taught you?

Or do you still have your petrol car, with no intention of switching to an alternative?

How much is your decision guided by financial or environmental reasons?

Or have you dispensed with a car altogether?