News: Hybrid Technology Better Than the Diesel?

On the contrary. Why not a diesel/electric hybrid?

 

Even better - a biodiesel/electric hybrid.

 

If reduction of emissions is your highest priority, I already drive one of the cleanest choices available now and in the near future: a 2004 Prius running on low-sulfur 90% gasoline 10% ethanol fuel.

 

Biodiesel has a bad tendency to gel in cold temps, which makes it a poor choice here in the north. Ethanol, on the other hand, is a good fuel, though lower in power than gasoline. The biggest problem with it so far has been an incompatabilty with some seals used in fuel lines, injectors, etc. , but it can be remedied with different materials.

 

Why not a diesel/gas/electric hybrid?

 

Seattle is about to be the first city in the US to operate a fleet of diesel hybrids, made by GM. Apparently, GM is investing its hybrid technology into trucks and busses, which makes some sense since they are heavy polluters and get terrible mileage. My partner runs his Jetta diesel on bio-diesel and has had no gel problems in our cold weather. If the bio diesel is made properly, it will work as well as petrol based diesel and produce much less particulant pollution. It's also better on the engine. Diesel, the inventor of the engine which bears his name, intended his engine to be run on vegetable oil making farmers essentially self sufficient. The petrol giants co-opted that operation (like they did by buying up transit systems and bankrupting them to promote automobiles and gas consumption.) Our joke is that when I get my Prius, we will have cut our dependence on "foreign oil" by about 75%. My partner is making his own fuel from scavanged cooking oil and some website technology.
The whole alternate fuel/hybrid thing feels really exciting because it's a way of fighting back against the stupidity of our present Bush inspired anti conservation energy policy.

 

Diesels have high NOx emmisions, so even a hybrid diesel would not be good.

 

That hurdle is being worked on. The sulphur content in diesel fuel right now ruins the emissions equipment too quickly. The new fuel regs for diesel will help remedy this.

 

don't forget Diesels' poor power-to-weight ratio, which means there'll be more engine to lug around .... and accelerate off the line..... which would slow the car or require bigger electrics, batteries, etc., etc., which are all in the wrong direction.... one of the best features of a Diesel is that, at idle, it consumes virtually no fuel, which is GREAT for around-town or slow-traffic stop-and-go commuting! my '82 Isuzu I-Mark Diesel wouldn't go below 30mpg no matter what i did to it! but in a hybrid, i'd vote: no.

[and they vibrate more and are noisier, on average....]

 

Diesels running on bio-diesel have vastly less particulant emissions, and no sulphur emissions. France is going bio-diesel big time.

 

maybe a diesel with this technology
http://www.denso.co.jp/motorshow/2003/en/p...esel/index.html
my big complaint with diesels and emissions is that you can't run one underground without a scrubber, why above ground. We put them on lots of diesel powered equipement for sale to use above ground all the time. Cummins, IHC, Cat, Toyota, etc. and they work so why not all diesels? Even if they only cut 60-80% of the particulate that's a lot better than none.

 

Mercedes Benz has a concept car called the Grand Sport Tourer that is diesel / electric hybrid.

 

Saw that thing on their web site and all I can say is, WOW! However, what's your best guess re MSRP? I'm thinking it's going to be a two-fer thing (i.e. you'll be able to buy 2 Prii for the cost of 1 GST).

 

I appologise for the dead link on the Denso site. It was a description of their new scrubber technology.

 

Which is a good thing. Paris smells like a big truck stop with all the diesel cars. Not to start a flamewar, I love Paris.

jv

 

You mean to tell me that one of the byproducts of website production is a vegetable based oil? This is a bigger breakthrough than anything!! Tell me how it's done, my partner, being a webprogrammer, would love to harness this capacity.

-m.

 

Back to the topic at hand, though - this website: http://www.drivetosurvive.info/ - was the basis of a show just last night on the History Channel (of all places) regarding the future technology of cars, dealing specifically with alternative fuel sources. One of the guys in the Drive to Survive competition only spent $5000 to put two parts into his Dodge Ram to convert it to a clean burning truck. Also in the competition was a 2004 Prius, but I'm not sure if it was modded at all. The Honda insight that was in it was modded to burn Hydrogen. Anyways, interesting stuff. They also had a nice 5 minute or so segment on the 2004 Prius.

-m.

 

Thanks ! Me too, but the main pollution comes from trucks and buses caught in traffic jams, not from cars. Lets dream about electric trucks for inner city delivering ...

Richard. 8)