RinconVTR wrote:
Small diesels in North American will fade like E85.
Emissions (Particulate Filters and DEF systems), higher initially cost, higher fuel cost and higher maintenance costs give recent buyers a LOT of remorse.
Sure the MPG and Torque numbers looks good on paper...until you own one and find its slow as H E double L, MPG does not offset higher fuel and maintenance costs, and you do not like how unreliable it is.
Wait for more owners fall out of warranty and have to pay out of pocket for various high priced repairs under 100k total miles. We'll see online complaints flood the internet. Ya'll just wait!
Wow! Has E85 faded? Many of us never got the memo. Filled up the other day for $1.66 a gallon for E85. Several years ago when we were bumping $4 a gallon for gas, my pickup lived on E85 for almost two years which I could buy for $1.50 less than regular gas. Same deal with today's prices in my area. E85 for $1.66 and regular gas for $2.49. that kind of a price spread, and even with the lower mpg for E85 I still save almost 3 cents per mile fuel cost by using E85 compared to regular gas.
MPG numbers can be impressive, but it is the actual cost per mile that really means anything. On just fuel cost alone, per mile, diesel has no real advantage to me. Compared to what I get for fuel economy on E85 and the price, a diesel in the same pickup would have to get over TWICE the average mpg, at the current price, I am getting on E85. That is not very probable.
In the right circumstances, diesel is a good choice. Just not for my needs. My 3/4 ton Chevy does a excellent job doing all I need to do, and doing it on E85. I already have to use over 20,000 gallons of diesel a year for my commercial needs. No desire to use the stuff in my personal vehicles. Diesel doesn't have that starry eyed mystique to me that it does for some.
