they ask the musical question, "which is a better deal? a prius or a Mercedes-Benz E-Class Diesel.

answer: "Go diesel [sic] -- unless you crave the attention a hybrid commands."

and part of their "equation" is paying "$7K more than the gas-powered equivalent" for a hybrid.

talk about lousy journalism....

i made a .pdf of it and uploaded it to
http://www.plusaf.com/prius/2006-03-...y-magazine.pdf

enjoy!


ps...

from http://www.roadandtravel.com/roadtes...enze320cdi.htm

"Outwardly the diesel E-Class is indistinguishable from the gasoline-powered version, but will cost about $1000 more (starting at just under $50,000.) That premium may well be paid back before the year is out through fewer stops for refills at the pump."

woo-hoo! anyone want to do the math on the total cost per mile versus the Prius for anything under about two million miles a year???

 

I get your point as to the overall cost of the Mercedes CDI, but really that's not a fair comparison. All things being equal, I'd love to have a Mercedes CDI but spending $50,000+ for an engineering masterpiece is not all that sensible for my family budget. I suspect that people buying that car are not doing it strickly for economic reasons?

A much better comparison would be looking at a variety of factors that include more than the initial cost and mile per gallon. I think a VW TDI model and a car like the Prius would be a better comparison. The initial cost is much closer and most likely size and ride comfort comparible. I suspect the VW's are a bit more sporty and know that the New Jetta likes to brag on its safety aspect. (its a nice car BTW)

As for me, I opted for my 2003 VW Jetta TDI (figure about $18,000 - 20,000 new in 2003 and also have a 2001 TDI) partially because I've owned them in the past and understand what I'm getting into tinkering wise. I knew they were extremely efficient and would eat up the highway with plenty of torque. Did I mention they can be easily tuned adding about 40% gains on HP and Torque for those wanting performance?

My lifetime mileage is about 45 mpg and cost per mile is a miserly 5.8 cents which includes all maintenance (excluding personal labor) and tires through 70,000 miles. I've also developed confidence in the longevity factor noteworthy in diesel cars -- yet to be conclusive with hybrids. Look around and you'll see significantly more 'high mile' diesel cars than gas powered vehicles.

With the improving Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel (ULSD) and push for biodiesel, this new breed of diesel is far cleaner than in the past too. I've been pleasantly surprised as to how smooth my little 1.9 liter TDI runs on biodiesel ... it actually quiets the engine a little. Personally I'm anxious for someone to mate up hybrid technology and a diesel AND sell it in the US. (ha ... I feel like I'm only dreaming)

My point is don't discount diesels ... they are not as bad a deal as you might think.

 

yes and no...
that was my point... the comparison is silly, and i wrote to them from their website to tell them so.

and yes, i think a Diesel is great... i put about 70 or 90,000 miles on my 1982 Isuzu I-Mark sedan, and loved it! never got much less than 30 mpg, and it took me on 4000 mile camping trips with such overloads that you'd never want to do to a little car like that. been there, drove that, proselytized that. if the dealer hadn't put a lousy aftermarket clutch into it, i probably would have kept it another 30k miles. at 90k, the old clutch was starting to slip a little on power-shifts into second gear at high rpms, and the new clutch was juddery and grabby until it warmed up after a few miles. neither were acceptable to me.

yes, the no-sulphur Diesel fuel will make a huge difference all across the US, and biodiesel is a great idea, too. maybe some day it'll even be a mix of ethanol and Diesel, too .

and, btw, there are lots of high-mileage Diesels around because... well, look at your tachometer. what's the red-line. my Isuzu red-lined at 6,000 rpm, the highest i'd ever heard of back then. truck Diesels: maybe 4000-4500. little gas engines: 5000-6000-7000, with gearing to keep them in the high rpms, where the horesepower is. Diesels do torque, and they love low rpms. that's one reason for the longevity. (plus some sturdier bearings, etc., to handle the stress of the Diesel piston-thrust). oh, and where does a lot of the Diesel's fuel economy come from? Not having a throttle in the air supply feeding the cylinders. i also drove a '63 Mazda RX2, and by lowering my shift points to "nothing above 2000 rpm", i went from about 12-13 mpg to about 16-18!!! lower rpm => wider throttle opening => lower "pumping losses" => higher efficiency. Diesels have no throttle plate. they have the lowest pumping losses of any fuel-engine i know of.

if your car is a Diesel, lower shift points won't help as much, but if you're driving a gas stick-shift, drop the rpm where you shift by a thousand rpm or more, and be really consistent, and report back how much your mileage increases.



i just couldn't figure out where the author of that little piece of filler was coming from or going to....

people on this blogsite try to figure out the cost-per-mile justifications for all kinds of very comparable solutions; this guy just blew me away with the idea that anyone would compare a Prius to a Merc that starts at $50K!!!

it just took my Duh-Meter and pinned the needle!

 

I hear ya!